My dog thinks my house is a toilet!
It isn’t something that many people mention to their friends but many people inadvertently allow their house to go to the dogs. Because of our busy lifestyles, training and maintenance of dogs can become a burden. Whether it’s housebreaking problems or simply puppy mischief, dogs can ruin a person’s life and they can ruin relationships and peaceful households.
Most people have no idea what I’m talking about right? Wrong! With the popularity of inside dogs and dog children, many people don’t know how to control the dog situation in their homes.
While dogs range in their levels of innate naughtiness, it is always the owner’s job to rein it in and make living together possible. Moms really shouldn’t expect the kids to do (any of) the cleaning. Face it when we were eight, we all said we’d take care of the puppy but did you really mean it?
The best way to keep the house livable for humans is to confine the dogs and limit the areas they have access to when home alone.
Housebreaking
Dogs pooping and peeing in the house is a huge problem. If dogs are completely confined to the house for 10 hours, how can it be expected to hold it? And when the dog finally gives up and goes, that spot becomes the designated ok to poop in spot. And there the battle is lost. Doggy will think of that spot as a good spot to go in until he is corrected.
The easiest way to prevent doggy from deciding to hell with housebreaking is to come home early and take doggy out at lunch. As most people, myself included, can’t do this it becomes a real challenge to completely housebreak a dog when leading a busy lifestyle with no accessible yard. In my life, being busy often leads to inconsistency, which leads to problems with my dogs which then leads to everyone hating me.
If puppy needs to be left unattended for an extended period of time, he should be confined to an appropriate area with access to water, shade, and a bathroom. Appropriate areas may include an outdoor dog run, a securely enclosed yard, the kitchen (if you’re willing to clean), a patio, a dog pen or anywhere that is easy to clean, safe, and ok to get dirty. A puppy pad or toilet can help to confine mess that makes life unbearable but frankly those get old.
When the humans come home, dogs can come out and play but when they are unsupervised they need to be in an area that is puppy proof and easily cleaned. The dogs will be safe and for our sake only allowed to destroy their own space.
100% of poop being made outside is of course the ideal but if that isn’t looking possible right now, the easiest thing to do is to quarantine it.
Naughty dogs
As I’ve written before, Eppie is a naughty and curious dog. And while I am endeared to her because of that, it also creates a lot of messes. She likes to open things and spread things everywhere! My dog are allowed free reign down stairs and I always move everything that I do not want destroyed or eaten at least five feet off the ground.
Ideally, when a naughty dog is left alone it should be confined to a sparsely furnished room with easy to clean floors. In my home, grout is my worst enemy as is the carpet! Leave only dog items in the room that are allowed to be chewed, scratched, or otherwise maimed. Let me be the first to tell you that leaving cardboard, a crocheted blanket, human food, or anything else fun in the room will most likely result in a tornado. Don’t leave the dog in the garage if the garage is the designated storage area!
I suppose after all of that my message is that some people have problems living with their dogs. The true goal of co-habitating is to set your dog up for success by limiting their ability to wreck the whole house. Remove all valuables and food from reach and make a designated pet potty if needed. It isn’t the dog’s fault that there was so much to be played with!
It isn’t something that many people mention to their friends but many people inadvertently allow their house to go to the dogs. Because of our busy lifestyles, training and maintenance of dogs can become a burden. Whether it’s housebreaking problems or simply puppy mischief, dogs can ruin a person’s life and they can ruin relationships and peaceful households.
Most people have no idea what I’m talking about right? Wrong! With the popularity of inside dogs and dog children, many people don’t know how to control the dog situation in their homes.
While dogs range in their levels of innate naughtiness, it is always the owner’s job to rein it in and make living together possible. Moms really shouldn’t expect the kids to do (any of) the cleaning. Face it when we were eight, we all said we’d take care of the puppy but did you really mean it?
The best way to keep the house livable for humans is to confine the dogs and limit the areas they have access to when home alone.
Housebreaking
Dogs pooping and peeing in the house is a huge problem. If dogs are completely confined to the house for 10 hours, how can it be expected to hold it? And when the dog finally gives up and goes, that spot becomes the designated ok to poop in spot. And there the battle is lost. Doggy will think of that spot as a good spot to go in until he is corrected.
The easiest way to prevent doggy from deciding to hell with housebreaking is to come home early and take doggy out at lunch. As most people, myself included, can’t do this it becomes a real challenge to completely housebreak a dog when leading a busy lifestyle with no accessible yard. In my life, being busy often leads to inconsistency, which leads to problems with my dogs which then leads to everyone hating me.
If puppy needs to be left unattended for an extended period of time, he should be confined to an appropriate area with access to water, shade, and a bathroom. Appropriate areas may include an outdoor dog run, a securely enclosed yard, the kitchen (if you’re willing to clean), a patio, a dog pen or anywhere that is easy to clean, safe, and ok to get dirty. A puppy pad or toilet can help to confine mess that makes life unbearable but frankly those get old.
When the humans come home, dogs can come out and play but when they are unsupervised they need to be in an area that is puppy proof and easily cleaned. The dogs will be safe and for our sake only allowed to destroy their own space.
100% of poop being made outside is of course the ideal but if that isn’t looking possible right now, the easiest thing to do is to quarantine it.
Naughty dogs
As I’ve written before, Eppie is a naughty and curious dog. And while I am endeared to her because of that, it also creates a lot of messes. She likes to open things and spread things everywhere! My dog are allowed free reign down stairs and I always move everything that I do not want destroyed or eaten at least five feet off the ground.
Ideally, when a naughty dog is left alone it should be confined to a sparsely furnished room with easy to clean floors. In my home, grout is my worst enemy as is the carpet! Leave only dog items in the room that are allowed to be chewed, scratched, or otherwise maimed. Let me be the first to tell you that leaving cardboard, a crocheted blanket, human food, or anything else fun in the room will most likely result in a tornado. Don’t leave the dog in the garage if the garage is the designated storage area!
I suppose after all of that my message is that some people have problems living with their dogs. The true goal of co-habitating is to set your dog up for success by limiting their ability to wreck the whole house. Remove all valuables and food from reach and make a designated pet potty if needed. It isn’t the dog’s fault that there was so much to be played with!
Technorati Tags: bad dogs, confinement, dog lifestyle, dog messes, dog training, housebreaking
Can’t control the monster dogs!
February 17th, 2010
