The most important component of Crate Training is consistency and attention. This is up to YOU, not your puppy. If you take the time and pay attention to your puppy when you first get the puppy home, you will be rewarded by minimizing the time it takes to housebreak your pup. The more concentrated effort you have into housetraining up front will result in an earlier payoff - a housetrained puppy!
Crate Training is the easiest, gentlest, and most humane way to house train a young dog. Done properly, it should only take you a few minutes every 2 hours or so for only a few weeks. Set a schedule, and stick to it. However, you must be vigilant at all times that your puppy is not crated. Keep at it for a week or two longer than you think the puppy needs, just to be sure.
The puppy should be supervised at all times even when he is being fed, exercised, or played with. After he eliminates where you want, you will be able to let him play. When he becomes tired and ready for a nap, or when you cannot remain in the room to watch him, you must put him back in his crate until he wakes or until it is time to take him outside again. Also, your puppy should always be crated/confined at night and when you are away from home. You will find that the crate gives your puppy a sense of security, of his own turf, at a time when he is physically moved away from his mother and littermates. DO NOT FORCEFULLY REMOVE YOUR PUPPY FROM HIS CRATE! This is his den, where he feels safe, and you should not violate this feeling of safety. This also protects your furniture, carpeting, wallpaper, shoes, etc. Make sure that he has plenty of chew toys to play with while he is in his crate. Unless he is an older puppy, he is probably still teething.
The basics of housetraining are quite simple: your puppy will have to eliminate when he first wakes up, after he eats and at approximately 2 hour intervals otherwise while he is very young. As he matures, you can extend the periods of time between trips outside. If you stick to these basics, you will have success in a minimal period of time.
Puppies should be able to sleep overnight in their crates by the age of 3 months. However, be prepared to get him outside immediately when he wakes! If his crate is not near the door he will be going out, pick him up and carry him outside. Watch him carefully until you see him go. Don't let yourself be distracted! Some puppies are quite small, and unless you watch constantly and carefully, you may miss it. When he does go, praise him highly and bring him back inside. You may need to resort to a form of bribery, a small treat when he does well. Try first without the treat, you may not need it. Most puppies respond more to praise than treats.
Do not scold your puppy when he has an accident unless you are right there and then do it immediately. Otherwise, he will not understand what you are unhappy about.
Remember to take the puppy outside after every meal. He will usually need to go within 15-20 minutes of a meal, usually much sooner, especially if he is very young. Also remember to take him outside before putting him to bed at night.
If you follow these instructions, your puppy should be housebroken in a few weeks, however, remember to continue to crate him if you cannot watch him. He may still manage to get into mischief if left to his own devices.
