House Training in Extreme Cold

One morning last week at 6:30 I was trying to decide if there’s anything worse than house training a puppy in extreme cold (wind chill of -22!). The only thing I could think of is house training a puppy in areas with bears/hungry wildlife.

Last year was extremely cold too and for a few families with young, short-haired puppies we decided to use a litter box/puppy pad set us in the garages until the puppies were a little bigger an the weather was a little better. There was one puppy who was only 5 weeks old (illegal for pet stores to sell puppies that young – but I believe private individuals can legally do so) and it just did not seem safe to take him out on the coldest days!

This year I am doing my best to get my puppy out. When it has been extremely cold I carry him outside, set him down, he’s cooperative and will go right away and then carry him back inside. If he doesn’t immediately stay for  me to pick him up, I know he has more to do and I’ll give him another 30 seconds to a minute.  I keep my boots right by the door so I can slip them on while I’m heading out the door.  I wear enough layers in the house that I can go out (briefly) without a coat or I put it on outdoors while I’m watching him.

A helpful piece of house training is to reward puppies after they eliminate in the correct location. I have some big pieces of treats in my coat pockets so that I can pick up the food pieces with my gloves on, I let him nibble that as I carry him back inside. A second option is to have a baby food jar with a little cream cheese or canned dog food inside. This can say sealed in a pocket and then be quickly open and fed while wearing gloves.