How to Housebreak Your Dog in 7 Days
 

Has anyone read this book and tried this method? It is supposed to be really good and effective (if you stick to it), i am on my first day today.

I just read it. My pup is not yet 16 weeks, but getting there. I'm not sure if we'll even need to do the hard-core seven day plan (with limiting food and water) because we've been using the basic principles of the book since we brought him home, so he's already picking things up really well.

Oh, I will be watching this post to see how it goes. We have a stubborn one.;)

Tell me more! :p

:thumbup:

oh, please let us know how this works. Oliver is 16 weeks this Saturday and I need all the help I can get.

Interesting and I too will watch to see how this goes.. anne

Interesting I may get it just to see what their technique is

Which book exactly did you get. Who is the author because I went onto amazon to search for it but more then one of them come up... I am eager to read it. I hope its not to late for me Roxy is 8 1/2 months old :cool:

Amazon.com: How to Housebreak Your Dog in 7 Days...
That's the one I got.

The idea of it is to use a crate, and to have a strict schedule of feeding (and watering during the first seven days), pottying, and playtime.

During the seven days the dog is only supposed to be fed and watered during the specific times, in their crate. Then a half hour later you take them out to potty. Then free playtime, followed by a few hours of crate time.

The book has different schedules for people who are home during the day vs. working and also for different dog/puppy age groups.

She says that after seven days (or so) of adhering to the strict schedule your dog will know where to go potty, and will learn to hold it until brought to the potty spot.

I believe for this to work you need to continue with the schedule, but can increase the free time and lessen the amount of confined time until you are just confining when you are not home.

My puppy is just 15 weeks now, we've had him for a month. We've been crating him, letting him out into his pen (which at first was covered completely in papers and now just has his Rascal dog potty and bare floor) and after he potties he is allowed free time out in the house and then we repeat the process. Overnight we leave his crate door open in the pen so he can potty when he needs to.

He's been doing really well with this, in that he now uses his Rascal and does not have accidents on his pen floor. BUT, I slipped up yesterday and did not wait for him to poop in his Rascal before letting him out with us and the minute he ran into my daughter's room he pooped on her floor. My bad, because at this point I feel it is our responsiblity to make sure he is "empty" before he gets free time - but I also learned that he does NOT completely understand that the Rascal is the only place he can go in the house. :( :(

Oh that sounds great I think I might have to go and buy that this weekend and not wait until I can get it from Amazon... I def need that I hope it works for you and me too LOL!! I just posted a thread about having problems with the limit space I give my dog that she just poops and plays with it ALL over the kitchen :eek:

Thanks again...

So today will be my third day on the program. Marly is doing pretty good. Unfortunately he escaped from the baby gate yesterday and dug a nice hole into my carpet 3" X 2". His new home is now the laundry room instead of the bathroom LOL. I think this will work out really good, i can already see a difference.

I ordered that book from Amazon early this week for Cosmo whom I've had for 3 weeks now. We are doing the crate/x-pen thing and clicker training for outside potty, plus potty bells..lol.

He really caught on to the potty bells too much where he dings the bells just to go outside and goof off so that's when I brought the clicker into play. He goes potty, click, treat and that's it. If he goes out for a few minutes and goofs off in we come in.

I love the potty bell idea but they are so smart and catch on so quickly that oh I get to ring the bell and they jump up and let me outside. :rolleyes:

I'll let you all know how I llike this book when I get it and try it out on Cosmo.

OH! i forgot, i got it at Barnes and Noble for 7.99$. I know amazon is about the same including shipping, but if you don't want to wait, pay the same and hit up barnes and noble. ALSO it is a really small skinny book, so you will have to look through the whole rack of them until you find it hidden between some. That was my luck :)

Would love to know how everyone's training is going. I bought the book and read it but I think I'm a little to late for the training.. Roxy already goes on pad and book says I shouldn't confuse her so I'm stuck with her going on pee pads. Now my only problem is her spreading her poop ALL over the kitchen :(:(

It's going so so, Marly had a visit at the vet on Sunday morning and we discovered some eye problems, he is doing a lot better, but it kind of got in the way of the potty training these past days. I built a 4'X2.5' doggy park on my balcony, and so i am trying to teach him that's where to potty, but he isn't getting it yet lol.:animal36

Aww I'm very sorry to hear that. Although I'm glad he's doing better... I have to read over the schedules again and see if I still have hope to train my Roxy to still go outside as appose to go on pee pee pads....

Good Luck...

I think the book means that if you *plan on* training them for outside, don't start with the pads. But since you are where you are, and want to retrain, it is never too late to start training for outside!

I'm def going to reread that chapter.. Thanks DanielleK :thumbup::)

Hi am interestd in buying the book suggested. Before I do, my 8 month old pup, Bently is still having accidents inside. I do crate train him during the day, and bring him outside early morning and several other times though out the day and then at nite. he still manages to potty in the house. What should I do? He does use a pee-pad inside. But he tends to be stubborn. He is my first Yorkie T, i love the breed thus far. I used to have Rottwilers.

hi... I start my 7 days tomorrow I hope everything goes good... I just have one question hope someone answers before the early morning...

When I leave her confine what exactly do I leave in the crate with her? The size is suppose to be as big as for her to turn and lay down on but do I leave a blanket in and or toys? My boyfriend said I shouldn't put any blankets or anything in with her because she can still pee on it and the blanket will absorb.. Does that sound right..... Sorry a little worried being that she's 9 months already so I'm starting from scratch......

I would put a blanket in with her for the first day. Then, when you let her out, check the blanket to make sure she hasn't soiled it (a sniff check will let you know). If she hasn't, then keep using it, if she does, go down to just bare floor. Yes, it's nicer to have a blanket to sleep on, but keeping her on the floor is not cruel and she'll eventually get the hang of her 'den' and not soil her bed so you can put a blanket or bed in for her once she understands that.

Toys, yes. Definitely. You want her to have something to do while in there.

When you say "manages to potty in the house" - when is this? Have you kept a log to see if he's having accidents at the same time every day/night? Is he going to a certain spot? Are you taking him out often enough? Are you working during the day when he's in the crate?

So he goes outside, on a potty pad, and then still has accidents?

I'd definitely suggest the book - it will probably be just what you guys need.

I also suggest until you get the book to a) clean up any of his areas where he's had accidents with Nature's Miracle or something similar, b) keep him out of the areas of the house where he likes to have accidents if possible, c) keep an eagle eye on him while in the house (he should not be allowed to roam freely if still having accidents), and d) take him out more often.

Just bought the book today thru Amazon so can't wait to get it. My little Harley was doing great on his potty training (on a potty pad) until just a couple of weeks ago (he's nearly 6 months) and now we have totally gone backwards. He's getting neutered this week so hoping that might help a little with the marking.

Hope to get started with the book once he's healed from his neutering this week.

Today was our first day on our training. We went out at 5:30 this morning she went pee but no poop....:( I came home at lunch checked on her blanket to see if she soiled in it.. THANK GOD she didn't.... So I took her out and she did pee but still no poop :confused::confused: When I came home at like 4:45pm I ran to take her out being the fact that its 95 degrees today over here it was SO HOT.... She was panting from the heat so we had to come inside a few times for her to get water poor baby.... But still no pee no poop... Then we came inside she started whimpering so out we went.. Then all of a sudden she took the longest pee :D but still no poop.... So it was time for feeding.. So I got her food ready and she started to eat so I closed her in the kitchen I left her for 3 seconds while I went to tinkle myself and I return to find her poop in the kitchen in the same spot where her wee wee pads once were.... :(:confused::(:eek: Does that mean I have to start all over.. She hardly ate any food and now I go to play with her and she just wants to lay LOL!! She's so lazy LOL!!!! The day is almost over for her.. We have until 7:30 to go out and then I put her in crate until about 10pm before its bed time.....

I did this a while ago with my 2. It works; not necessarily in 7 days (particularly if you aren't starting with a brand new pup)- but it does work. The point is: consistency. Even if it takes months....and it might. The most important part of the book are the schedules - everything else is driving home how very important it is to be consistent.

Here is the original thread.

Hope that helps!

Hi AmeliaBadelia, Thanks for the post... The not necessarily in 7 days is what I'm worried about LOL!!! I had to adjust her schedule for the weekend because I can't stay home on weekends as well as weekdays to train I'll rip my hair out LOL!!!!

So far its going good... I had 3 accidents this week and I just started it on Monday so I say its going pretty good.... Granted she gets distracted when we are outside she often just wants to look around and chase flies.. Its to funny LOL!!!!

But I will try my best to follow the schedule to the T I mean hey if I can wake up at 5:20 in the morning just to walk her and feed her and stuff then I'd say I REALLY want her to learn hehehhe

I do need to find me a doggy deodorant spray to spray her blanket and crate to smell freshy clean :D

Thanks again...

I have a new baby yorkie but I'm training her the same way I trained my chihuahua (he's 4 lbs and is 2 years old), the same as I trained my lab and my mix breed. For the first three days I keep them in the crate almost constantly..i take them out only for them to pee eat drink and 10 min playtime several times a day. That way they got used to the crate. It helps to crate train if they realize the crate is a good place to be. Then after the three days I gradually upped the time they were allowed out of the crate..but constantly kept an eagle eye on them. I also would have them walk from the crate to the door excitedly calling their name so they would get to the door quickly without peeing..this way with the small breeds they walked so that helped them want to go straight and pee, it also taugt them how to get where they needed to go to be let out to pee..as well as if they started to squat allowed me to tell them no and then praise them when they went to the right place.I successfully trained all of the oldest that way and now i'm working on Miley..it takes time and consistency and patience..