How To Housebreak a Border Collie

The key to housebreaking a Border Collie is preventing the accident in the first place.You need to take the pup outside after every meal,after every nap and after every playtime.You need to impress upon his little mind what is expected and when.I can't stress this point enough,carry the pup outside so he can do his business!If you don't carry him,the first chance that he gets to dig in his heels,he will and you will end up with a mess on your floor.By carrying him he learns quickly that he is going to be taken outside to go potty.

The use of a training crate can help tremendously.You may consider this cruel and unusual punishment but your dog won't.In fact most dogs prefer to have the safety of their"den".Dogs will not, unless forced, go potty in their crate.Think about it this way, would you go to the bathroom in your bed?Didn't think so.

Using a crate to house break a Border Collie also helps to keep both you and your dogs stress levels down.Let's face it,training a dog is a big job and can be a tough thing to do.Anything that you can use to your advantage is a plus provided that it doesn't harm your pet in any way.

The way to begin with a crate if your dog seems a bit wary at first is to simply open the crate and sit by it.Call the pup over and play with him outside the crate.Let him sniff the area to see for himself that everything is okay.If he decides on his own to explore,great!If not,then try putting his food dish or favorite toy just inside the crate to help entice him into going in.This could help tremendously with house breaking Border Collies

Eventually he will go in.Once he does he will become more comfortable an eventually lay claim to his new space.Once that has occured you can then shut the door of the crate,but sit there by the crate.Don't abandon him just yet.You need to work up to that.Each day add a little more in the crate time to your training.The next step is to leave the room for a short period of time,say five to ten minutes tops.Then come back.Each time that you let him out of the training crate immediately take your pup outside to do his business.Again carry him until he is thoroughly house broken and learns what happens when he goes outside.

When you do take him out try to go to the same spot everytime so that he will understand that this place is his potty spot.Preferably as far from your door as possible.Your pup will consider your house as a bigger "den" and won't want to make mess close to it either.

Any pup should not be let loose to wander your house right after eating or drinking.They just can't help themselves and will need to go immediately.Letting them run loose is just asking for trouble.The same is true when they first wake up and right after playtime.Believe me your Border will let you know if you pay attention to him.He, like all dogs will circle and sniff trying to find a place to go.You may at first think this is cute or even strange behavior but it is not.This is natural and a big clue to you to pick him up now and get outside.Again prevention and observation are key to house breaking the Border Collie pup.

You need to understand this,your Border pup and for that matter any pup can't be expected to hold it for long periods of time.Even if you use a training crate for the potty training ,it is unusual and cruel punishment to make the pup hold it for a long time.Make sure that he gets out regularly.