Training A Shih Tzu Puppy

A Shih Tzu Training Guide

 Training a Shih Tzu puppy should be a top priority once you get your new dog.  While some people say to wait until they are 4 months old to start training them, you should start once they are old enough to wean, and thus old enough to potty train.

Training a Shih Tzu puppy should start with basic housebreaking or potty training as some people call it.  Teaching basic commands should come a few weeks later.

To start potty training your Shih Tzu make sure you take it outside very hour for the first few weeks so it knows the routine.  Also take it outside after every time you feed or water it.

When your Shih Tzu does go to the bathroom outside make sure you praise the dog for a job well done.  If the dog knows it gets rewarded for going outside, it will do so.

BUT, it will only do so if it knows there is a routine as to when it can go outside.  If you only take the dog out randomly to use the bathroom, it will not know when to go, and might end up going in the house.

After housebreaking has been mastered, then you can start teaching basic commands.

When training a Shih Tzu puppy one of the first commands you should teach is to sit.  The sit command should be taught first because it can be incorporated into all other dog training aspects.

To make teaching dog commands easier and quicker, only teach them in an area or room where there are few distractions and no noise.  You want your dog to focus only on you.

Also when training your Shih Tzu puppy keep the training sessions short and too the point.  Aim for 10 minutes several times a day rather than just one long training session once a day.

After you have taught your dog to master the sit command then move on to other commands like heel, stay, and fetch.

When ever you take your dog outside always have them on a leash and don't let them off the leash until they are either back inside or in a fenced in area.  Shih Tzu can sneak away quickly when not watched and into the path of cars.

So when training a Shih Tzu puppy make sure you have lots of patience and make sure to use brief and frequent training sessions.