How do i train my 2 year old lab?

Question

my dog is a two year old lab. he is not potty trained yet because i have no idea what im doing. right now he lives in a room in the garage. if i potty train him then he will be inside with the family. he sometimes goes outside in the morning before i go to school but if he doesnt then he will go inside. i dont want to leave him in the cage because it is too long for him to be in there.i leave him food and water in his room. please tell me how to potty train him and be very very very specific. and remember this could make a dogs life a lot better. please help!!!!!!!

Answer 1

House Training Puppies and Dogs

If given a choice, dogs prefer to eliminate away from the areas where they eat, sleep, and play. Dogs eliminate in the house for a variety of reasons:

- There might be a medical cause for the problem.

- The dog might not have been properly trained to eliminate outside.

- The dog might be marking his territory.

- The dog might urinate when excited, intimidated, anxious or upset.

House training is accomplished by establishing a surface and location preference AND by preventing the dog from eliminating in unacceptable places. Crating and confinement needs to be kept to a minimum, but some amount of restriction is usually necessary for the puppy or dog to learn to “hold it.” Understand that house training demands an investment of time and effort. Puppies are sometimes not fully house trained until they are 8-12 months of age. As a general rule, a puppy can only hold his waste for the same number of hours that he is old, in months. In other words, a four-month-old pup should not be left alone during the day longer than four consecutive hours without an opportunity to go outside. By the time the pup is four months old, he should be able to make it through the night without going outside. Adult dogs adopted from shelters are often not fully housetrained and need a refresher course.

What to do:

1. Keep the dog on a consistent daily feeding schedule and remove food between meals.

2. Know where your dog is at all times. To anticipate and prevent accidents, you need to watch for early signs that he needs to eliminate. These signs include pacing, whining, circling, sniffing and leaving the room. If you see any of these, take the dog outside as quickly as possible. Not all dogs learn to let their owner know they need to go outside by barking or scratching at the door. Some will pace a bit and then just eliminate inside.

3. If you cannot watch the dog, confine him to a crate, a small room (with the door closed or baby-gated), or tether him to you with a leash that does not give him much leeway. Gradually, over days or weeks, give the dog more freedom. If the dog eliminates outside, give him some free time in the house (maybe 15-20 minutes to start). If all goes well, gradually increase the amount of time out of confinement.

4. Accompany the dog outside and reward him with praise, treats, play, or a walk whenever he eliminates outdoors. It’s best to take the dog to the same place each time, as the smells may prompt the dog to eliminate. Some dogs will eliminate early on in a walk; others need to move about and play for a bit first.

5. Take the dog outside on a consistent schedule. Puppies should be taken out every hour, as well as shortly after meals, playtime and naps. All dogs should get out first thing in the morning, last thing at night, and before being confined or left alone. Adult dogs must get out at least four times a day.

6. If you can catch the dog in the act of eliminating inside, SHRIEK loudly. Immediately run to the dog and rush him outside. If he is small, pick him up; otherwise, just grab him by the collar and run outside with him. The idea is to startle him, which should stop him in mid-stream. Allow the dog to finish outside, and reward him. If you do not catch the dog in the act, do not do anything to the dog.

7. Clean accidents with an enzymatic cleanser to minimize odors that might attract the dog back to the same spot.

What not to do:

- Do not rub the dog’s nose in his elimination.

- Do not scold the dog, unless you catch him in the act of eliminating in an inappropriate place.

- Never, ever physically punish the dog for accidents; that includes hitting with a rolled-up newspaper.

- Do not crate your dog if he is soiling in the crate.

- If the dog enjoys being outside, don’t bring the dog inside right after he eliminates—he may learn to “hold it” to stay outside.

- Do not use an ammonia-based cleanser. As urine contains ammonia, this could attract the dog back to the same spot to urinate again.

Above all, please be patient! If a puppy has an accident, it is not because he is spiteful or lacking in the ability to learn—it’s because the owner failed to adequately supervise him, didn’t take him outside frequently enough, or ignored or was unaware of the dog’s signals to go outside.

Answer 2

First of all, the dog should not just be living in a room. Labs need a lot of attention and it seems like you just aren't taking the time to potty train him. You said you have no idea what youre doing. Maybe it is not the time for you to have a dog, plus youre in school so even more reason right there. You just leave food and water and he "sometimes" goes outside in the morning. That is just unecceptable to the dog and its well being. IF you decide to keep it and find the time, to potty train him you first coukd try letting him go inside then taking him outside as soon as he goes so he learns. If it is a male you can buy a yellow post @ petsmart that practically makes dogs pee on it b/c of the scent. or consult a proffessional, or get a book. there are millions of books online and in stores about potty training. Don't rely on random people from a forum only.

Answer 3

Labs are very smart, so you are lucky there.  You are just going to have to practice and make sure you praise him when he does good.  I would suggest the bell thing, and the command thing, and I would leave him in the garage, or child gated in the house until he can behave in the house.

I use a crate* to potty train with, but only for potty training and then I break it down and store it.  I put blankets and a small food and water dish in the crate.  Dogs don't potty where they eat and sleep.  When they are first little, I only expect them to hold their potty for 4 hours, and then 6 hours, then 8 hours and so on.  So when they are first little, I set a timer or alarm clock to wake myself up at night to take them *out.  I only allow my puppy in the bedroom* or the living room, only one room at a time.  They have to graduate to more space.  If I allow them to have full run of the house, it will overwhelm them.  I take them out the same door each time.  I tie a dinner bell to the door handle.  Do not use a jingle bell as they could get their toe caught in it.  So when they are little, I ring the bell for them, and then open the door to go *outside to potty.  When they get bigger, I take their paw and whack the bell and open the door to go potty.  Eventually getting to the place where the puppy will ring the bell and let me know when they need to go potty.  Dogs want to please you, so it is your job to let them know what behaviors please you and what doesn't.  So when my puppy goes potty, I give her a treat*, and clap, and make a fuss and praise her.  So she learns that going potty outside makes me happy.  If she has an accident, make a disgust sound like “tsst”  and take her out right away.  I never yell* or spank* my puppies.  Take them out when they first wake up, after they eat or drink, before nap, finish romping, when their activities change, or when they are sniffing around. Some puppies go pee right away, but may not go p**p until 10 minutes later, so wait for the p**p.  I have a little play time here, because sometimes I think they are done, and they are not.  Puppies train at their own pace.  While I may have a puppy that hasn't had an accident in several weeks, I don't let my guard down.  I don't expect my puppies to be "fully potty trained" until one-year-old.  If they have a setback, shake it off, and start over.  I only have my puppies in the crate when I am not watching them.  When I am sleeping, cooking, ironing, doing chores, basically when I am not watching her.  All other times, she is out of the crate practicing being a "big girl."  This is the time I train her how to behave in the house.  So we are practicing "no barking", 'no biting", "no jumping", and "don't eat the furniture."  I also have to practice "playing inside" so she doesn't knock over things.  You must keep the puppy in sight when they are little because they don’t know the difference between newspaper and carpet, and you don’t want them sneaking off and getting into trouble.   Some puppies can sleep through the night around 3-months-old, but their bladder is grown around 6-months-old.



REVISIONS:



*I use a crate to train with.  It is the method I prefer, compared to other methods I have tried.  I noticed that if they are in the crate, while I am doing chores, they are o.k., because the crate allows them to see me and be re-assured.  The crate can also be a comfort when stored in the basement for dogs who live in areas where thunderstorms and tornados are an issue. .  However, use the method that works best for you.....a laundry basket, a cardboard box, a woof-woof house, x-pen, child gates, whatever works for you.



*Outside, pee pad, litter box, whichever method you are using.   When the puppy is first little, keep the pee pad, litter box near the food and water dish, so the puppy can eat and drink, and then go potty.  You can move it away as they get older.  The pee pad has a scent that smells and initiates potty.  Sometimes a pee pad makes a sound that scares some puppies, so you might want to use a litter box if that happens.  The pee pad allows a puppy to walk around, but a litter box keeps the puppy in one place.

*Bedrooms, I use the bedroom and living room for training, because it works for me.  Choose rooms that work for you, but watch for rooms that are damp, or drafty.  While my puppies sleep in the bedroom during training, once they are trained, I let them sleep where they want to.  They don't have to sleep in the bedroom forever.

*Treats.  While I use treats for training, you don't have to.  I like Charlee Bears for training (a little cracker for a little mouth,) I use them for training, but once they are trained, I cut back on them.



*Some puppies will go potty in the same spot each time.  Some puppies have to be told to go potty.  A command like "go out" for pee, or "go finish" for p**p, might work for you, keep saying “go finish” until the puppy poops.  This is a good thing to train if you tra

Answer 4

whenever your dog makes a mess,

u shove his nose in it and scold him,

and don't be nice about it,

if he whines, just keeping doing it.

you can't be nice when you're potty training your dog otherwise he won't learn,

he'll learn fast if you do that way,

Answer 5

well right after hes done eating wait a couple of min then take him out u should take him out every morning afternoon and night out some newspaper around him so he could go the next day pick it up thats for night but take him outside befor that.

answer this

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?...

Answer 6

Potty training a dog usually requires a lot of patience and consistency. And please don't scold him when he messes up (accident). I assume you leave him because you have to go to school. So you need someone to help you out in doing this.

After his meal, accompany him (w/ leash) outside & wait for him to pee or poo. When he's done, give him treat & generously pat him while saying "Very good" or "Good Boy". Repeat this procedure for like a week. Please be consistent and make sure to do this EVERY after his meal.

The next week, do this procedure with him, this time UNleashed but he needs to be accompanied. It will now give him the impression that he can do this on his own. Still, don't forget the treats and praises!

As I've said, be consistent, these 2 weeks are crucial because dogs are Conditional learners. Let him do his things on the same spot outside. Whenever he commit an accident inside the house, don't scold him. Just say "Bad dog" or "Bad boy" (in a more stressed tone), and of course, no treats!

Goodluck!