Have a new 8 week old male Shih Tzu and have to train with everything. Potty and chewing main problems. I have about every chew toy available but he seems to get bored and then chews my pant legs, or whatever he shouldn't! I am saying NO constantly and thinking about changing his name from Bailey to NO. Any ideas will be appreciated.
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Hi Donna.........
We have a now 7 month old little girl Shitzu named HannahJoy. We have had her since she was about 5 months old. We have been training her to paper and wee wee pads so we can hopefully transition her to a litter box. We find she (they) are very bright (overly)...lol. She still chews but we give her plenty of bones not so much toys, and she has a long bo bo squeaky that she sleeps with. She still every once in a while might explore...but a quick sharp "HANNAH whatcha doin punky....." takes her mind right off it and breaks her concentration of it. Her ratio is about 95-98% on the pads unless she is too excited and is playing with our other two dogs....but we have learned our shitzu is such a Joy just have plenty of patience and love and dont expect too much at that age. He is much younger and needs loads of love and PATIENCE. Consistency, Repetitiveness and Alertness .....and when you see them thinkin about it.....break whatever they are concentrating on. I hope that works. You should have as much fun with your lil boy as we do with HannahJoy.
Hope that didnt bore you.......God Bless
Peggs and Robin
Help. We have a 3 month old pit bull puppy that wants to chew on everything even though she has toys. Seems to think she can poop or pee on the bathroom floor rug even thought she was just out. Licks, bites on me. Can anybody give me some advice on how to get this sweet puppy trained.
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I have a puppy bull dog, he is 5 weeks. At the moment, I'm having trouble getting him to stay. He sits when I tell him to but I have to sit him myself, like tap his bottom.
Also, he wees on the paper but doo doos on the floor. What should I do to potty train him.
P.S: He loves to bite shoes and your clothes. I know it's playing but sometimes it scares the lil one. What do I do about this?
Specta from Birmingham, England
Hi, Congratulations on your new puppy.
Here are some things that have worked for me over the years:
Buy a crate the dog can comfortably turn around in. Not one too big, as dogs consider them their "dens" and like them snug and cozy. Use the crate for housetraining and sleeping.
After the dog eats, take him outside on a leash and say "go pee" and then "go poop." Say it nicely, encouraging him. If he doesn't do at least pee or it you are going out or distracted by chores or something else while at home, place him in the crate. Wait about an 1/2 hour and take him out again.
When you leave the house, put the dog in the crate and take him outside immediately when you get home, following the steps above (use a leash and firm commands). You're dog might take some time to get used to the crate. That's okay.
Don't let him out if he whines. Give him a small treat when you place him in the crate and pretty soon, he soon will go in when you tell him to.
Now, for the other problems. It's time for obedience classes. Check the yellow pages, call your vet, ask at the pet store, grooming or boarding facility for someone in your area that holds dog training classes. It's the best money you'll ever spend because it will teach you so much about the proper way to work with your dog so everyone ends up happy.
I also recommended tuning into Cesar Millan (aka "The Dog Whisperer) show on the National Geographic channel. If you don't get it, you can find his shows on DVD (Wal-mart sells them). He has a book out, but it's more autobiographical. It wouldn't hurt to borrow it from your local library. It will help get you ready for the training class.
You need to do all of this quickly so the bad habits you described don't become permanent. Puppies have short attention spans, but can learn easily if you are CALM, ASSERTIVE and PATIENT. (Keep repeating those words over and over to yourself.)
Also, make sure your puppy has toys to play with. A couple of old shoes to chew on wouldn't hurt either.
Puppies are like babies, they need patience, love and gentle but firm hand to grow up right.
Dogs have their own way of seeing the world and it helps immensely if you understand how they think and what motivates them.
Good luck!
Wow! what fun you are going to have with your new puppy! We rescue dogs and have 5 that live with us permanently.
Puppies are babies--that should be your mind set. They poop a lot, want attention, chew anything, and accept your love unconditionally.
We firmly believe in crate training. We always say, "Go in your crate" whenever we would put a puppy in the crate. This comes in handy because if you need to leave the house and keep the dog in the crate, he will know the routine. "Go in your crate", dog goes in, you shut door. Later on, you will be able to keep the crate door open so the dog can go in or out at will. The crate becomes his safe haven. We drape a throw rug over the top of the crate too.
Another command that we think is very important is "House". Whenever we have the puppy outside and are going back inside we repeat "House" many times as we are walking towards and thru the door. Someday your puppy will accidently get out (they all do) and using the word "House" lets him know where to go.
Housebreaking rules: no food after 7pm, no food in the crate. No water after 10pm.
Toys: Puppies are cutting their teeth so they do need something to chew on. we never give them shoes or socks. A puppy can't distinguish between toy shoes and Mom's good dress shoes. We use tennis balls and a soft cuddly dog toy (no squeeker, makes the puppy too excited) when they are little. When they become huge, we give them pieces of PVC pipe about 8" long and at least 2" in diameter.
Sit and Stay? He's 5 weeks old. That's like telling a 18 month old human to sit and stay. What's the attention span there? We use treats to teach sit and stay. Just to get started: to teach to sit, hold the treat just a bit higher that the puppy so he can see it. As you say, "Sit" move the treat towards his head and back.
Obedience classes are an option but we have never used them. That is a personal choice. There is a multitude of books and the internet to get you going.
Lastly, 5 weeks is pretty young, so patience, praise, persistence, and routine are key. Don't expect instant results but you will see progress.
By wendy
I am a firm believer in crate training also...it's like the pup's little den and dogs don't usually foul their den..that's very young, patience is a must. I have a female Jack Russell that we got at 4 weeks. I didn't think she would ever be trained -- but she is! I am a strong proponent of an obedience class also and then continuing to re-enforce those basic commands..my two just got over a gastric infection so I have been on poop patrol for 5 days -- but I just wanted them to get well -- glad to say they are! These two are like naughty children -- great fun but sometimes a pain in the behind - I can say "crate" right now and mine head for theirs - in fact my male goes there a lot -- he likes his privacy and he is 7 yrs old..enjoy your little one...here's a pix of my clowns.
By cj jones
First of all your puppy should still be with mom, Puppies need to be with mama till at least 8 weeks !!! You are expecting waaaaaaay too much from a tiny baby, would you want a human baby to do this? I think not!! Give your puppy lots of love and be very patient with it.Don't forget fur babies teeth just like human babies and it hurts! Give something hard to chew on, Nothing that puppy can choke on! And when you find him/her chewing something he should not,gently take it away and tell him/her NO!
By Rosa
And don't forget he's still only 5 weeks old! Now if he were 5 years old, it'd be a bit different.
By Beth
