Housebreaking a Bichon Frise Puppy

Begin housebreaking training immediately upon bringing your puppy home. Developing good habits early is very important, so that as the puppy grows into an adult dog, he will understand what is expected of him. Since puppies have small bladders, they will need to go out more frequently than an adult dog. Therefore, plan to take your puppy out several times a day, especially after meals. As the puppy gets older, the need to go out will grow less frequent.

Confine your puppy to a crate. The crate should be large enough for the puppy to turn around in, but not so large that she has room to eliminate in one corner of the crate and remain in another corner. The idea of crate training is that dogs do not like to be in a confined space with their waste. A puppy will not soil his crate if it's the right size.

Take the puppy out for a walk to eliminate frequently, especially after meals. When he eliminates outdoors, praise him and offer him a treat. Now that the puppy has emptied his bladder, he can remain outside the crate if you are home to supervise him. Some owners keep the puppy on a leash near them so they can supervise him closely and make sure he is not sneaking away to get into mischief.

Use pet training pads in a confined space when you cannot supervise your puppy. For those who are at work all day and cannot get home to take the puppy out of the crate, pet training pads are a great alternative training trick. Puppies cannot hold their bladder all day, yet they cannot stay in a crate all day without soiling it. Confining the puppy to an enclosed area like a small room or hallway, and laying pet training pads on the floor to use, will train the puppy to eliminate on the pads rather than throughout the house, on carpets and other surfaces where odors are hard to remove and bad habits can begin.