# Housebreaking-Dogs he need to make a mistake?



## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

Does a dog need to make a mistake, to learn to housebreak? Marty has been with me 6 days and has not made a mistake yet. I take him out every 1-2 hrs and he goes outside. Will he learn by repetition not to go inside? Or do dogs learn by messing up and then being corrected? I'm just curious if one day he will just go through the dog door on his own when he has to go.


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## KSC (Aug 6, 2009)

I wondered that too with Kipling and he did indeed one day just start to indicate when he needed to go out. It becomes habit and that's what they then want to repeat. They do not need to make a mistake to learn.


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## gelbergirl (Jun 9, 2007)

I assume the other 3 dogs use the dog on-their-own?
Maybe he will learn from the others?


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## eurobichons (Jan 20, 2007)

He may scent once he feels more settled with you, that is usually when a male wants to mark his territory. Do you have other males at home ?
Likewise you may just be lucky and have one that isnt dominant or want to inform the doggy bugle service that he is protecting his loved ones, its often found that a dog that doesnt mark his territory isnt quite as settled as you would think....Because urine for dogs is like a message board or a forum, it lets others know who we are, what we are, etc etc.


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

All great points! Yes, my guys all use the doggy door on their own. I didn't know that about marking. He is a timid fellow. He has not tried at all. I keep a bellyband on him at all times, so I know if he makes a mistake. That will also be helpful if he starts to mark!


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## eurobichons (Jan 20, 2007)

Did you know that belly bands have been banned in the UK as it can actually stop the production of urine and cause stones and struvites and oxylates to develop because the doggy would rather hold onto its message s if you get what I mean.
What I do is take away some coat from around the penis to the navel it cant be noticed when showing the dog but stops all that drippy willy syndrome.


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## oohbetty (Mar 2, 2009)

I don't think he needs to be corrected. He's getting in the habit of going outside and that's what he's going to want to do. He will prefer not to go inside. My male had very few accidents in the house. They were mostly our mistake, not his. He doesn't mark at all. It sounds like you're doing well.


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## Tom King (Aug 2, 2006)

No mistakes are not necessary. The correct number of mistakes is Zero. You're doing the right thing by establishing good habits. Housetraining is all about forming habits for a young dog. Most people get into trouble when they expect the dog to reason it out. Especially with the young ones it's all about habit. These dogs are very much creatures of habit and anything they do once can easily escalate into something that they do twice. For them, at the point of doing something twice (like peeing in the house), it has become a habit.


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