Paper training --- One month later. What to do?

Nov 16, 2007. Case study. Vaccination 3rd done today.

Questions asked by a young couple:

1. Should we restrict the feeding amounts? The pet shop seller advised leaving the food all day as the Shih Tzu was small sized.

2. How many times a day should we feed?


PUPPY
Shih Tzu, Male, Born Aug 2, 2007. 2.4 kg. Now 14 weeks old. Small sized. Pet shop puppy seller advised to leave feed bowl for 24 hours. Active.

HOUSING
Playpen.
1. Lower left quadrant --- Pee pan with newspaper. Urine spray liquid at one end (left most).
2. Front middle --- Water bottle. Middle because water seepage will go onto tray instead of the floor.
3. Upper right corner. Feed bowl. Feed topped up. Free feeding.
4. Upper left quadrant. Basket bed --- sleeps in bed or corner of bed outside at night.

POOPS 3x/day. No specific time. Poops onto pee tray as well as lower right corner. Pees many times on tray and on lower front half of the playpen.

"Did you change newspapers every day and regularly?"
"Once a week," the young man said.

I repeated my question.

"Once a week," the young man said. "Sometimes we change papers after 3 days."

"The puppy likes a clean newspaper to eliminate," I explained. "He will poop on the lower right corner or pee throughout the lower half of the playpen to avoid stepping on the soiled newspapers if he can help it."

Change newspapers daily or more often.



CONCLUSION
1. It has been one month. The puppy was not paper-trained as soiled papers were not replaced regularly (several times a day).

2. At one month, the puppy would be paper-trained if it has access to clean papers and the playpen could be removed. The puppy should go to the pee tray's newspapers to eliminate.

3. Give sufficient feed 3x/day. Remove the feed after 10 minutes. This encourages the puppy to poop after eating (in many cases). Do not distract the puppy before he poops.

4. Exercise. Evening outdoors. The puppy will eliminate downstairs. Get a fixed timing. Let it eliminate on newspapers after dinner before going downstairs.

5. A time-table for feeding and exercise is necessary for early success in paper-training. Pee tray is a good idea as this prevents the tiled floor of the living area from being soiled. But the puppy does not go into it if the papers are soiled. Changing papers a few times a day and praises and treats on successful elimination on newspapers are needed for early success.