Re: Potty Training?

In Reply to: Potty Training?
Category:   House Breaking
Posted by:  Rachel
Posted on:  January 28, 2002 at 12:55:40

: Hi! We have a 17 week old JRT named Kacey. We are potty training her and it seems harder training her than my kids... I am a stay at home mom so I am home with her 24/7. I take her out in the A.M. when she wakes, naps, playtime and feedings and many times in between. Our home is 3 floors and I have to take Kacey down at times 1-2 levels to get to the back yard so she can do her business. I ask her before we go if she needs to go potty and she follows me down and out the door she goes. My question is will she get the signal this is potty time and will she give me a signal that she needs to go? At times I wonder who is being trained more me or her : ) She is doing great! I keep her in her crate if I can't keep a very close eye on her, but any tips and is there an average when a puppy is trained? Also this is my daughters dog (she is 12) and she is doing the dog obedience class with her, but are they any great games that JRT's enjoy? Thanks in advance for any advice : )

Response:
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Hi Rachel,

Well I have to warn you this breed normally doesn't get 100% until around a year old...sometimes even a little longer. Not to scare you though as she gets older she will be able to hold longer and you will not have to take her out as often.

Also some dogs will let you know when they have to go and their diplay of such is noticeable. Others don't give grand displays but are much more subtle, this is something that you will have to keep a keen eye on to observe.

And at this stage yes it's quite common to feel more like you are getting trained than the dog lol!

Get yourself a copy of "How to Housebreak Your Dog in 7 Days" by Shirlee Kalstone. It's a little gem of a book and worth every penny of the less than $7 for it. Caveat here though...Shirlee it appears, has never tried to housebreak a JRT...so don't go by the title otherwise you will set yourself up for disappointment.

I'll provide you a link, you can actually order the book right from here!

As far as games, I don't know of a JRT out there that doesn't love to chase after a tennis ball! It's good exercise but remember that a puppy cannot withstand really hard exercise, they still have growing bones. A game of hide and seek is fun to do too. Either have a family member hide somewhere (remember to make it easy..it's a puppy) and call out to the dog. The puppy will have to search to find them and it's also a great way of getting your puppy to come to you when called. You can also try hiding little treats. Just remember to set the puppy up for success. Nobody likes to play games they can't win.