EXERCISE PEN TRAINING IS A FOUNDATION EXERCISE

If you are having a difficult time seeing action in the x-pen, put a chair out there by the pen, a book or newspaper  (word puzzle) and wait the full twenty minutes. Consider it meditation. From time to time remind your friend why you are out there by saying things like, “I am waiting for you to go pee, so go pee please”. If after twenty minutes you still have no joy, put your dog on leash, take him backindoors to the crate, remove the leash and collar and put him in the crate. Say “kennel” as you put the dog in the crate. Wait five or ten minutes and do the routine again.

 When your dog has relieved himself in the x-pen area you can give him some free time in the yard or in the kitchen of your home; at this pont we do not  take him or her out for an on leash walk.  After about twenty minutes of free time play a young puppy will want to go out to pee or poo again. This is why the long weekends work well for teaching the crate and the x-pen. A normal pup or adult dog will be well  online in four days. Dogs which are not normal minded, i.e. Rescued, traumatized, injured, ill or geriatrics can take as long as two months to grasp the full routine and be ready to proceed with learning. Eventually the x-pen will not be required at  home. If you live in an apartment, your x-pen is an on leash area to which you quickly  bring your dog to relieve itself within a few minutes of your building doors. Gravel alley ways, specific tree trunk, parking lot post, curb gutters; drainage is a consideration for the urine. Tiny dogs can use balcony pee trays and if you have a penthouse balcony, I wish I had one too. The principal feature of the learning exercise is to put the dog on leash and collar from the crate, walk in a controlled fashion to a door, go through that door out to the exercise (pee) area.  If you have an exercise pen, remove the leash put the dog in the pen, tell him why you are there and wait. If you  do not have an exercise pen, leave the dog on leash and wait for results, repeat why you are there, if you have joy, (results)  praise your dog, clean up where needed. Do not go for a walk! That would be giving the dog unearned territory. OF COURSE the dog will pee on a walk! That is what they do. We are teaching him to go in a specific spot, at a specific time determined by us. This is laying a foundation of understanding that will allow your dog to run free, safely with reliabilty. It is a wonderful thing to see your dog running free as Nature intended, a sight well worth the effort getting there.



EXERCISE PENS AND OBEDIENCE TRAINING

EXERCISE PENS and OBEDIENCE TRAINING

Outdoors, the x-pen sets aside for pet "business"

The exercise pen is a set of eight connected wire panels 24, 26 or 48” high. We set them up outside to section off an area we wish the dog to stay out of, or stay within, to do his business. They are not strong structures and do not hold the dog unattended.  They merely mark out an area.  You can also mark out an area by keeping your dog on leash to do its business and by going to the same spot all the time. Inside the house the x-pen also marks out an area but we do not usually use as a business area indoors.

We use the x-pen outside to teach the dog to do its business on command, or to go in a small space without having to run free. We use it for extended travelling and visiting, and for other sanitary reasons like ease of clean up or for a sick dog. The advantages of all, if not apparent, are that once you have instructed your dog to do its thing and it is done, that is that taken care of. You are now ready to go on an outing, or you can now comfortably lock your dog up or leave it for a while when you are otherwise busy, or you are now ready to go visit family or friends who do not want your dog to pee in their house...and so on. And, the army does it for their dogs so it must be good. Side note, if that is not enough, horses do this so dogs can too.

Teaching a dog to relieve itself when told is an easy thing when the same routine, place, and words are used.  Until trained, always take the dog to the exercise pen on leash. If you do not have an x-pen, keep the dog on leash to do its job. If nothing happens put him back in the crate for 15 or 20 minutes and try again. See that he gets a drink if he wants.  It might take a long time to get results but it will happen and when it does be sure to say “WHAT A GOOD DOG” with sincerity,(dogs spot a fake instantly) and true relief. Expression in your voice (or body if you have no voice) is of the utmost importance in dog training. At first it is very exaggerated then reduced to a more normal level of gesture.