Housetraining 101
Potty Training Pointers
The following is brought to you by our sponsor, BISSELL.
Potty training can be a stressful time in a pet parent's life. When it comes to potty training your pet, starting as soon as you bring your pet home will help ensure success. Always remember housetraining a dog, cat, or other pet requires a routine and lots of practice.
Keep a few things in mind when training your dog:
- Teach your dog to use the same outside area each time.
- Put your dog in a particular spot and encourage him by saying "go for it!" then follow up with a treat. After 2-4 weeks your puppy will go to that spot on his own.
- Always take a puppy outside for a "potty break" before leaving him alone in your home.
- When a puppy is left alone at home, confine him to a small area, like a kennel or bedroom.
- Remember, it's better to reinforce good behavior than to punish bad actions.
When potty training a cat, don't forget:
- Putting a cat in his litter box and gently scratching his feet in the litter will allow the cat's natural instincts to kick in.
- A litter box should be a private area. While many pet owners prefer to keep litter boxes secluded to areas like the basement or laundry room, loud appliances or even the noise of a furnace may keep your cat from using that area.
- Scooping the litter box daily and thoroughly cleaning it with soap and water weekly will help eliminate accidents.
A little bit of patience will allow you to effectively potty train your pet. However, accidents do happen, so keep an enzyme product, such as BISSELL's Pet Stain and Odor Remover, on hand to treat stains. The formula will also prevent a pet from returning to a previously soiled area.
When it comes to accidents, never ever punish your pet if you didn't catch him in the act. He'll only become confused! And while it may be hard to keep your cool, watching BISSELL's SpotBot Pet clean up the mess for you can be a great stress buster.
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