Ring the bells to go out!

Teaching your puppy not to soil in your house is not an easy task, but you can make it easier by teaching him or her to ring bells.
Dogs find this fun and it gives you a clear indication what the dog is asking for.

Housebreaking is simple using this method. The one thing to remember is you won't get overnight results and it takes many months and somtimes up to a year to fully teach your dog to 'hold it' until you are around. After all, puppies are babies and just like human babies, they take time to learn things and their bodies are growing and changing all the while as well.
Consistency & patience on your part is a must as well.

The first rule of housebreaking is not to use paper on the floor. You only teach the dog to pee in the house this way. Also you confuse the dog because one minute he's getting praise for peeing on the paper, the next outside. Then he gets scolded for messing off the paper but you just taught him inside is OK by giving him paper. Only he can't differentiate between which place inside you allow him to mess.
Confused reading that? Well, so is the dog trying to learn by that.

Now, you must confine your dog when you cannot supervise his actions all the time. Crate training is best, but if you absolutely refuse crate training, then a baby gate across a room that an occasional accident can be allowed to occur is best. We confine the dogs to the kitchen, which by the way has the door to outside with the bells.

Any inside messes whether it be pee or poop gets picked up with paper towels (sanitized and cleaned with an enzymatic cleaner like Nature's Miracle) and the dirty towels placed in a specific spot outside and left there. This is going to be your designated toilet area for a while until the dog gets the hang of this outside business. Doing this leaves the dog's scent there indicating in 'doggie lingo' that this is the spot to toilet at. Leave any poop there for a few days longer than you normally would as well. This helps to teach the dog. Only pick up the poop if you walk the dog where the law says you must pick it up or it's in a public area where it SHOULD be picked up.

Always walk the dog on a leash to teach them to housebreak. This is done even when using your own back yard.Why? Because this means business, not play. It keeps the dogs mind on the task at hand. Playtime is only for when the dog has done what you brought him out there to do.

Use lots and lots of praise when your dog does toilet outside. Make a big deal out of it. Don't use food treats as the dog only will become accustomed to receiving food for doing what he needs to learn. Praise works best. This goes for any training, whether it be obedience, or tricks or housebreaking.

Now you need to get a regular schedule installed for out times and food. Young dogs eat 4 times a day. This makes for alot of poop and pee! Water needs to be left out at all times but now until your dog is trained or it is unbearably hot and you've no air conditioning, you need to start taking the water away in the overnight hours. Taking the water away gives you a fighting chance.

So now you feed the dog at the same time for each meal (as the dog gets older and you reduce the meals, you still keep your schedule). When the dog is finished eating, IMMEDIATELY put his leash on and take the dog outside. Use the SAME WORDS to indicate the dog is going outside to toilet. We use, "Want to go out?". This is another tool that shows the dog what is going to happen next.
So, as you're putting the leash on, say "want to go out?" and take the dog to the designated toilet area. You must stay there until the dog does his 'business'. We used to say 'go piddle' or 'go potty' and all the other words we want the dog to associate with going out to toilet. Once the dog actually does his 'business' you give lots and lots of animated and happy praise.
Keep in mind you could be outside for quite a while before the dog learns wha


Author/Source: Joan Walker





Introduction

Older pigs can sometimes get over-looked in favour of young guineas, either in their own household, or when a potential owner is choosing a new pet.

There are pros and cons in caring for, or choosing, an older guinea (for the purposes of this article I am including any guinea that is already adult, say over 1 year) but I hope that in reading this article, anyone would think hard about choosing an older pet and giving them the chance of a long and happy life.

This article concentrates on the pig's character and compatibility, as health care will be covered in other articles

Pros and Cons

If you acquire a pet from a rescue, or from someone who unfortunately due to circumstances beyond their control, has to give up their beloved pets, they can be old or young: many litters are born in this situation.

Once you have squealed your way round the skittish youngsters, take a moment to consider the older pigs that are available.

With a youngster you have no idea of the personality they will develop - this will depend on a complex mixture of nature and nurture.

The nature part is set and you can't influence it.

Their nurture will depend partly on how well their mother has taught them, partly on their experiences so far, and partly on how you treat them from now on, if you were to chose them.

2 out of 3 of those factors are out of your control, so as much as you think that you are choosing a pig with certain attributes (eg you may think you are choosing the quiet one of the bunch to suit your quiet household), they are an unknown quantity, and may only be quiet in that group - they may turn out to be a boss pig in another environment.

And if they didn’t develop the type of personality you sought, would you be disappointed?

Then consider the older pigs: their nature is known.

Their nurture is usually known: it may have been less than ideal, but their adult character will already show how they have coped with it. If their conditions improve from now on, with regular handling, a shy pig can be brought out of it shell, a nervous pig can be taught to trust, a bossy pig can be tamed down, but you will already have an idea of the basic characteristics from the information the rescue staff, or the previous owners who are surrendering their pet, can give you.

Their full health history may be a mystery, depending on their circumstances, but their recent history will tell you of any chronic conditions, acute problems or items that need monitoring.

Puzzle and Pickles’ Story - by Sue

Puzzle & Pickle came from the RSPCA last year. Going on advice from the members of this site, I think they must be at least three years old now, although they're showing no signs of old age. Puzzle is mainly honey-coloured, with white fur round his bottom (often dirty..!) and a black face, with a white rosette on the top of his head. He is a large pig, weighing in at approx.1400g. Pickle is a stripy tri-colour: honey, white and agouti, no rosette, a clean bottom and weighs about 1200g. They are both extremely fond of food, and "popcorn" about if they think there's something nice coming. Being adults when they came, they were large enough for a proper cuddle on arrival; now they are even tamer they both enjoy a snuggle up on an old towel while their fur/skin is inspected, although Pickle can be a little difficult when it comes to clipping his claws.
They do occasionally have a bit of a disagreement, but there is plenty of room for them to spend time apart so it has never come to bloodshed yet! They went to the vet for the first time last Saturday, and both were very well-behaved

In Sue’s story she knew what she was taking on, as the boys were already paired up when she got them. She didn’t have to go through introductions and possible fig


Author/Source: Rufus 2005