hi everyone,

i am new to this forum and have not yet brought my new puppy home

i am doing a lot of preparation work/research and have a quick question concerning housebreaking and stairs/stairs alone

unfortunately in my home the only way outside to the yard is a relatively steep flight of stairs

my question is when bringing my puppy out do i teach him to use the stairs or do i carry him? i know that if the puppy looks like he is about to go in the house while im monitoring him i should clap or startle him so he stops but i read somewhere i should not carry him outside. I'm just confused because what if the little guy cant hold it on the trek downstairs/handle the trek itself?

Any information will be greatly appreciated!

MV

Welcome to the forum Mark.

The question on house breaking, no I wouldn't clap my hands if the dog starts to go, I'd might kick myself for not getting him out sooner but I wouldn't be trying to startle him into stopping.
perhaps get his attention with 'time to go' real happy like it's play time see if I could get him to follow otherwise I kick myself for missing the signs and not getting him out sooner.

Without seeing the stairs the question of how soon to allow the pup tackle them on his own is rather harder to answer.
How old is the pup? How big is the pup (breed)? How wide is the tread of the step? How high the rise? How long the run?
If things really look to iffy I'd probably at least carry the dog down and if he could handle it allow him the pleasure of going back up on his own while at the same time introducing him to some easier (long low) steps elsewhere. Churches and old style libaries come to mind, ie. long treads and low rises.
I avoid going down really ugly looking stairs for quite a while if possible.

Have fun with your new dog.

Welcome Mark! I agree with Randy on the housebreaking issues... Do your best to be proactive at all times to avoid the inside mistakes. Take the puppy outside immediately after bringing him out of his crate (hopefully you will be using a crate), after playing and after eating, as well as about every two hours. Set the little guy up for success and praise like crazy when he goes potty outside. I have a feeling you are going to be cursing those steps for a little while... Congrats on your new pup! When do you bring him/her home?

I brought my Leonberger to work with me when I got her. To go outside we had to go down 2 flights of stairs. I carried her up and down for 2-3 weeks because it was quite a treck for an 8 week old puppy to make when they really had to go.
(She was 21 lbs at 8 weeks, so I got quite a few chuckles from co-workers)

Then after she had gone, I used marker training to get her acquainted with the stairs on the way back up, making little stops to lure her back down a couple steps so she got accustomed to using the stairs both ways.

So I would carry for the potty breaks and do some stair work when the little guy is not in a rush to make it outside. Once he is confident on the stairs then you can start letting him use them to get himself in and out for bathroom breaks.

Oh and ditto on the no clapping thing - if he has already started, you were too late!

Congrats on the new puppy!

Thanks everyone for the excellent advice. It all makes perfect sense just needed to hear it.

 Quote: randy allen

How old is the pup? How big is the pup (breed)?

Randy he will be an 8 week old German bred GSD.

 Quote: Barbara Schuler

When do you bring him/her home?

Barbara still a couple of weeks. I'll be sure to post some pics.

Thanks again everyone!

MV