You’ve got a new puppy!

It’s an exciting time for both of you. We’d like to take some of the stress out of training your puppy.

Usually, the first priority is potty training, or “housebreaking” the puppy.

1) Remember, your puppy is a baby. He has just left the only place he has ever known, with his mother and his brothers and sisters. Treat him as you would a baby.

2) Don’t hit your puppy. (Would you hit a baby?)

3) Don’t expect him to know what you’re saying. He doesn’t understand many words yet.

4) Be patient. You will have to repeat each lesson several times.

5) Don’t yell. It only scares and confuses him.

6) Don’t hit your puppy. (Just a reminder.)

7) When potty training, don’t rub his nose in it! (Again, would you do that to a baby?)

8) Praise him EVERY time he does something right,

9) Don’t let anyone else hit your puppy.

Try to avoid the old newspapers-spread-on-the-kitchen- (or bathroom or laundry room) floor. What that teaches puppy is that it’s okay to go potty on that floor (or on any newspaper he happens upon). Think about your someday full grown dog leaving Lake PeePee on your kitchen floor because you taught him to.

Instead, try this:

BASIC SUPPLIES FOR CRATE TRAINING YOUR DOG;

• Lots of patience
• Dog crate with metal bucket on 2 hooks
• Breakfast portion of kibble in training pouch
• Soft toy and chew toy for distractions
• Nature’s Miracle to clean up messes
• Old blankets/towels for lining the crate.
• More patience

The Process

House training a new puppy begins with crate training. Crate training is never, ever a punishment. In the same way that if you call a dog to you and punish the dog, then they will remember THAT one time instead of the dozens of times you called the puppy to you and rewarded him with jackpots and a party. Every single time you call a puppy to you is good for the puppy. Every single time they go in a crate is good for the puppy. And malamutes work for two things, not love and not affection, sorry, pick another breed. Malamutes work to run down a trail and Malamutes work for food. You phase out the food over time, but when you are training a puppy to do anything, it’s all about the paycheck.

Want a Malamute puppy to love his crate? Then every meal happens in the crate. Start by not closing the door at first and make a game of it. Portion out his two meals. With a measuring cup. Put dinner on top of the fridge. Now you have a source of treats (his breakfast) that is a finite amount.

Because you can’t housetrain a puppy with diarrhea.

What causes diarrhea? Parasites, change of water, too much water, change of schedule, change of food, too much food, and allergies. Want to eliminate (note the pun) most of your elimination problems? Measure his food and give kibble as a treat, especially at first.

Lure the puppy into his crate with the treats. Toss them into the crate or a bucket in the crate so they make noise. Let him come out as he wants. Toss a toy in. Praise and paycheck. Make this a game.

When you work, you want praise and a paycheck. You will work for just a paycheck, but you won’t work without a paycheck. The praise with the paycheck makes your job that much better. Same with puppies. Praise and paychecks.

So start crate training by making the crate a joyful place to be. With Malamutes, that’s paychecks, i.e. food.

If your brand new puppy screams his head off in the crate, consider sleeping next to the crate for a few days. He doesn’t know you, he doesn’t know what you want, everyone he trusts in the world is gone. And no one can function without sleep. Make concessions the first few nights. If you bring the pup into your bed the first few nights, just to shut him up, then that’s his default for the rest of his life. If you sleep on the couch next to his crate the first few nights, put your fingers in the crate, and comfort him when he is scared, he will learn to trust you IN HIS CRATE.

And consider where the crate should be. If the room that smells the most like you is your bedroom and you exclude the puppy from your bedroom, you are isolating him. Isolation to a puppy is scary and dangerous. The family is happiness and safety. Best option to create a bond with the puppy is to resign yourself to having the dog’s crate in the bedroom for the near future.

Steps, on a non-work day

Alarm clock goes off, I step into shoes, scoop brand-new puppy out of his crate next to my bed, and carry him outside (we haven’t learned leashes yet.) Place him down where I want him to go and stand like a boring, silent statue. Or possibly walk slowly like a boring, silent robot. But I am not talking, squealing, or playing with puppy. We have a job and the job is to eliminate the bladder and bowels. If he does, than WHEN HE IS EMPTY, not when he is going, I will quietly, calmly praise (or even click/treat, but that’s another post.) I mark the behavior I want, the EMPTY puppy, not the GOING puppy, because he might stop mid-movement for the reward or acknowledgement. Once he is empty, we go back to the house. Carried or on a leash. Puppy goes back in his crate for breakfast. I get ready for the day.

Take puppy back outside to potty again. Puppies have to eliminate when they play, when they wake up, when they eat, when the wind blows. I am learning the puppy’s bowels schedule. He is learning my schedule.

If the puppy does not eliminate, he goes back in his crate for 30 minutes. Then back outside and try again.

If he does eliminate, then I praise/reward, and come back inside. At this point he gets 10 minutes on a leash inside, with the leash in my hand AND both of my eyes on him. This is me learning his schedule, not me getting ready for my day. This is me figuring out how far the trust goes, not me eating breakfast. This is me watching for his sniff/circle behavior, not me on my phone. We are training ME to train the puppy. I can’t do that if I am distracted. So I focus on my task. After 10 minutes of successfully NOT eliminating in the house, he goes back in his crate. With some of his breakfast kibble as a paycheck.

I do something for 30 minutes (or 15 depending on if he goes in his crate). Then we go back to the outside to potty, then either 15 minutes on a leash with the leash in my hand inside the house. Or back in his crate.

If he is good with 15 minutes on a leash inside, then he gets 20. If he can’t handle 15 without eliminating in the house, we drop back to 10. The idea is to find HIS schedule. How long can he handle being out of the crate, leashed in the house. How frequent do the outside excursions need to be. How long can he handle being in the crate. This is discovery. Then once you have a baseline, adjust from there.

A smart puppy will learn the schedule, if you make a reliable schedule. A smart human will learn the puppy’s schedule, if you take the time to figure it out.

There will be setbacks, there will be accidents. But the process starts slow and builds.

First figure out his bowel schedule, then work on extending it. A long 3-4 day weekend, or a week off work, is ideal. But work with what you have.