Housebreaking a Shih Tzu can be one of the most difficult things you
will ever try to do and many people find it the most frustrating thing
about owning a Shih Tzu. Shih Tzu dogs are very independent thinkers
and prefer to do things their own way.
It takes patience and many Shih Tzu owners turn to Shih Tzu litter box
training when regular housebreaking does not work. You may want to give
it a little time before you break out the litter box.
Patience is a virtue when training a Shih Tzu and you will need a
lot of patience to housebreak your Shih Tzu. Even the best-behaved Shih
Tzu dogs can take up to six months to be properly housebroken. So if
you have only been at it for a few months then you need to keep trying.
Litter box training should be a last resort, a very last resort.
Due to their behavioral patterns it is very much worth repeating
that you may want to develop patience with a Shih Tzu in regards to
housebreaking before you resort to using a litter box. A Shih Tzu will
look at your entire house as a territory and if you let it know that it
is okay to relieve itself in the house anywhere then it may not always
associate that activity with the Shih Tzu litter box training. It is
still much more beneficial to get the dog to understand that, for
bathroom needs, outside is good and inside is bad.
The size of the dog can also determine whether or not you want to
consider the litter box. The Shih Tzu is a toy breed but it can grow to
sizes that are much too big to be using a litter box with. Consult your
breeder, or your vet, on their advice about whether or not a Shih Tzu
the size of yours should be considered for litter box training or not.
A bigger dog is going to have problems with a litter box so be sure
before you start training.
You think you have tried everything else and Shih Tzu litter box
training is your last resort. Get a large litter box and put it in the
area the Shih Tzu has been soiling the most. Take your dog to that
litter box several times a day and praise and reward the dog for using
the litter box. Never punish a Shih Tzu, as that will negate all the
training you have done and cause you to have to start over.
Punishment confuses a Shih Tzu and causes any training already
completed to have to be done over. Watch your Shih Tzu and take it to
the litter box when it displays the signs of getting ready to go to the
bathroom, like sniffing in a spot or circling.
Never give up on housebreaking until you have tried everything there first or you may regret it later on in your dog’s life.
