The Don’ts of Shih Tzu HouseTraining

Bringing a new puppy into your lives will surely make your home a lot brighter and more fun. For the first few days, you will feel like in cloud nine as you watch your puppy play around and follow you wherever you go. But the honeymoon phase will end once you step on his poop. And you will also surely get tired of picking his poop many times a day.

To make sure that you and your furry friend will have a harmonious relationship, you should housetrain him. Sadly, housetraining your pup is not as  easy as it seems. There are many things that you can do wrong. With that in mind, here are some of the things you should avoid doing when housetraining your puppy.

• Do not punish your Shih tzu when you catch him doing the act.

Many dog owners tend to do this, especially when they are already getting frustrated. They would shout at their dogs as they do the act. Or worse, they might even slap or physically punish their dogs. This is the most common form of negative reinforcement. You may think that they will understand that what they have done or what they are doing is bad because you punished them. Well, not all dogs will. The most common effect of this type of punishment is that it will make your dog become aggressive and it will be much more difficult for you to train him.

• Do not free feed your dog.

Training your dog is all about consistency. It will be hard for your dog to learn anything if you will not establish a consistent regular schedule. That means you also have to regulate his feeding time too. Only give him feed during the established feeding time. Leaving out food for him to eat all day will certainly defeat such purpose.

• Do not send off your dog to a facility that will do the housetraining for you.

This is the easiest way, yes, but this is not the right way to housetrain your puppy. Keep in mind that the dog will be living in your home and he will not understand what he needs to do in your home if he will be trained someplace else. Additionally, you will also not be able to learn what you should do when potty accidents take place.

• Do not allow your dog to roam around freely until he is potty trained.

If your dog is not potty trained, he will surely pee and poop everywhere inside your home—in the couch, in the doormat and many more. If you wish to avoid being in this scenario, it is recommended that you keep him in a cage or an open playpen instead of allowing him to run free inside the house.

Dog owners tend to commit the mistakes that are mentioned above. As a result, they experience a housetraining process that is full of problems and complications. To avoid all that, you should keep in mind the don’ts mentioned above when housetraining your puppy.