Shawn Riley

Canine Trainer & Behaviorist

Shawn Riley is a Canine Trainer & Behaviorist based in Tualatin, Oregon. With over 40 years of experience, Shawn trains people to properly establish and maintain leadership roles with their canine companions. Shawn has trained with several acclaimed canine experts and refined The Dog Way training methods through experience and observation of dogs' natural interactions within their groups. Shawn has appeared on several local TV shows and was recruited by National Geographic as the on-set Behavioral Advisor for a national video series called “My Dog Ate What?”

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Help potty training a puppy
Here's my advice for what to do:

1.) The most important factor here is that ALL puppies need to be supervised 24/7 if they're in an area where they can be destructive, hurt themselves or make a mess. No puppy should be held responsible for any kind of destruction or mess-making until they're at least a year old. The better we are at true canine understanding and training the better this will go, but the results will be determined by several important factors. First and most importantly will always be OUR ability to train them. If we were perfect, they would learn everything VERY quickly!! Secondly, growth and developmental phases are going to be slightly different for every dog. Other variables are proper feeding and watering times and amounts. Most people mistakenly overwater their dogs AND just let them graze, instead of giving them specific times and amounts to eat. All dogs, but especially puppies, NEED to be fed on a schedule 1-3 times a day depending on their age and other variables. Once a dog is a year old, I personally feed them once a day, but that's a personal choice. Some people feed their dogs twice a day for their entire lifetime. Either is fine, although there are consequences for both.

2.) Once you have embraced the fact that you must be watching them all the time (not just when it's convenient) then you'll be able to teach them properly. Keep in mind a dog is never going to understand our inability to do things their (the proper true canine) way. No matter what you have ever heard, read, or what anybody ever tells you, unlike humans a dog CANNOT choose to do the wrong thing so WHATEVER they are doing is exactly what they believe is the right thing to do. A dog's instincts literally mandate this. If you see your dog going into the bathroom in the wrong place, gently say no and take them to where you want them to go and have them go there, and then praise them when they do go. Praising should be strictly limited to verbal and physical only, no treats or bribes or any of that – it just leads to more problems.

3.) Schedule your feeding and watering times so that you start learning when your dog needs to go to the bathroom before they need to go, and then schedule taking them out for a walk to the proper spot you want them to go and stay there with them until they actually go, and then give them lots of praises and hugs. If they still haven't gone and you can't stay there any longer, take them back inside and watch them like a hawk. The second they start to do it in the wrong place, start back at the beginning by telling them no and take them back out to go where they're supposed to go. Eventually, they will pick up on this and they will start learning that the only place they are ever allowed to go is the place where you are praising them.

Having a proper foundation with your dog is going to make all of this work better, of course. A "proper foundation" means that the dog owner has properly established the position that they're making the rules for their dog, which happens through built and established trust and respect. Most dog owners benefit from quality instruction from somebody who does not use any bribe or prevention-based methods (i.e. no training collar, treats, clickers, choke chains, or anything like that–just a solid true canine philosophy).

Best of luck out there and be good to your dog– remember, a dog is probably the only true unconditional loyalty that a human will ever experience!!

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