Why You Should Never "Rub His Nose in It"

Why You Should Never "Rub His Nose in It"

Rubbing your dog's nose in his poop or pee left on the floor for you to find is a very old school method of dog training that should have died out years ago. Unfortunately, usually do to misinformation and ignorance, this method is still used by many people to this day.

It was thought that if you rubbed your dogs nose in his poop he would learn quickly that pooping in the house is wrong. However, dogs live in the moment. They do not think back to what they've done and they do not think ahead to the future. When you find a present left for your by your dog and yell at, spank or rub his nose in it, your dog isn't learning not to poop in the house! Instead what he's learning is that you are a scary, unpredictable animal that he should fear because when he is least expecting it you're going to hurt him and rub his nose in his poop!

Even if you do not rub your dogs nose in it, punishing him after the fact will create the same result. Your dog does not remember pooping in the house, and does NOT make the connection between your punishment and eliminating in the house.

So what if you catch your dog in the act of eliminating in the house? Can you rub his nose in it then? Absolutely NOT! Rubbing your dogs nose in his poop is disgusting and cruel. Take a moment to think about how you were probably potty trained. No where did it probably contain this type of training behavior, and if it did it would be considered child abuse! You do not have to rub your dogs nose in his poop to get your point across!

So what can you do instead?
Here are some basic tips you should always remember when house training a dog!

1. Never rub his nose in it!
   
2. Never punish your dog if you have not caught him in the act!
3. Keep in mind it is a learning experience; it will take some time for your dog to get the concept but just because it's taking time does not mean he will never learn!
4. When caught in the act, tell your dog in a firm voice "NO" and quickly bring him outdoors. Encourage him to eliminate outdoors. If he does, PRAISE!
5.  
6. SUPERVISE: Supervising your dog is the best way to house train. If you do not catch him in the act you can NOT correct the bad behavior and reinforce the good behavior!
7.  Keep your dog in a crate if you are unable to supervise. Most dogs will not eliminate in their crate, and this will teach him how to hold his bladder for longer.
   
8. Small dogs have smaller bladders than large dogs! A large small dog cannot hold it for as long and therefore will need to go out more often than a small dog.
   
9. Be consistent. This is very important! If you change your training or do not consistently watch, correct and reinforce your dog it will take twice as long to train him!
10. Be patient! Patience is one of the most important tools you can arm yourself with when training your dog.