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Housebreaking
Your Maltese |
| About housebreaking your Maltese:
If done properly, housebreaking your Maltese does
not have to be as much of a hassle as some owners make it to be.
Your Maltese is a creature of habit. If it is taught where you
want it to eliminate, and you control its food and water intake to
regulate when it will eliminate, you will have a happy
relationship relatively free of accidents.
The biggest mistake made by Maltese owners is inconsistency. It is
important that you first choose the method of housebreaking
appropriate for you and your pet and secondly stick with it. We
know of many Maltese owners who are impatient or inconsistent when
housebreaking their pets. The result is a pet that is never fully
housebroken.
So, remember the three P's - persistence, patience and praise,
and you are guaranteed success. |
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Here are the 3 methods you can use to house train
your Maltese: |
The Paper Method:
The paper method seems to work better
with a puppy than with an adult Maltese, although it can be used
on both.
To begin house training your pup with the paper method, first you
must choose a location where your puppy will be staying until
housetrained.
Make sure the room is puppy proofed and that elimination on the
floor in this area will not cause permanent damage to your home.
A bathroom or small kitchen is usually a good place for this.
Once you have chosen an area, cover the entire floor with
newspaper.
If you have a young puppy, it will eliminate much more often than
when it is older. So, just be prepared for many messes in the
beginning.
In the beginning, it is important to replace the paper as soon as
possible after the elimination has occurred.
This helps your puppy to establish the area as its own, and it
will help you get a better idea of where it favors doing its
business.
As your puppy eliminates throughout the day, it may go in several
different areas of the room.
But, as it gets a little more used to its room, it will choose a
certain area where it prefers to eliminate.
When its preferred area for elimination is established, begin
removing the paper from the rest of the room, only covering the
area it uses.
Make sure you leave its papered area large enough so that it does
not miss the paper.
If it misses the paper, the area is too small and you need to add
more paper.
When it uses its papered area, praise it. The more your puppy
associates a reward with its choice of the paper instead of the
linoleum, the quicker your puppy
will be trained.
After it has established that it will use the papered area instead
of the floor, begin moving the paper towards the area (presumably
somewhere outside your
house) where you want it to go when fully trained.
The paper should only be moved a little at a time towards this
location. If moving the paper confuses your puppy, you may only be
able to move about one inch
per day, until the paper reaches its final destination.
Once your puppy understands that it is to eliminate only on the
paper, and you have been able to move towards the area where it
will eventually go outside, monitoring its habits will be much
easier.
Once the paper is completely removed, it will go to that area
automatically and sniff or turn circles, letting you know it has
to go out. |
Crate Training:
Crate training can be used on both a puppy and an adult Maltese
and is probably the most effective and efficient way to house
train your pet.
No Maltese will want to eliminate in a place it considers to be
its own and therefore, unless left in its crate for too long, it
will not eliminate in its crate.
Once every hour, place your Maltese on a leash and walk it in the
area where you want it to go potty.
If it has not gone in five minutes, return it to its crate for
another hour.
After another hour goes by, the dog that did not go last time will
most likely go this time.
When it does go, be sure and praise it profusely and return it to
its crate. The excitement in your voice when you are praising it
will help it better understand that THIS is the place you want it
to go.
Once that is established, it will do its best to make you happy by
eliminating in its designated area.
Once you feel it understands where it is to go to potty, you may
lessen its crate time, and begin opening up its area to more than
just its crate.
Be sure and open up its area a little at a time so it clearly
establishes the larger area as "its area", increasing the desire
to keep its area clean.
Eventually, you will be able to open up your entire home, but this
is only after a lot of time has been spent training and proof that
it understands. |
Litter Pan Method:
This method will have the best chance of success with
an young puppy but an older
Maltese may be able to litter train with success as well.
Similar to paper training, litter box training begins in a
confined area such as a bathroom or kitchen.
Although you may be able to use a traditional cat litter box for
this purpose, pet supply stores do sell doggy litter boxes. They
are shaped a little different and are a bit larger than the
traditional kitty box. Also available are special litters and
papers that should eventually be used in the box.
Like paper training, the beginning stages have paper lining the
entire floor of the room. You continually change any soiled
paper until the puppy chooses a place
on the floor it likes to eliminate.
Once the puppy has eliminated in an area about the size of a
litter pan for approximately two weeks, place a litter pan on
the floor and paper inside the litter
pan.
When it goes and does its business inside the litter box, make
sure to praise it profusely. It has got to establish this is the
correct behavior before it will
be comfortable with it.
Once it is used to the litter box with the paper, you may begin
the change to doggy litter if desired. As time goes on, you may
add additional litter until eventually the paper is gone and
only litter remains.
If you choose this method, you must clean the litter box every
time your Maltese eliminates. It will not go in a dirty box.
Failure to consistently clean the litter box will result in your
puppy reverting to the floor.
Follow any of the above 3 methods consistently, and you should
soon have a fully house-trained Maltese! |
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