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Training a new puppy and kitten
When we decided to get a new kitten and puppy together people said we
were mad, but I was convinced that from knowing each other as babies the
two would always get on - having never known a house without the other.
When it came to collection date we had to firstly ensure that both kitten and
puppy had been receiving the regular worming and flea treatment that they
required. Fortunately both animals had considerate and knowledgeable
owners who had treated them with worming tablets
and flea treatment,
so we were confident taking them away clean and infestation free.
Before we had picked the new pets up we had already decided on both cat
and dog names.
Thumbelina for the kitten and Fenna for the puppy. We
arrived with the animals' new collars/leads and carriers to make transportation
home easy. Once we arrived home the real fun and training could begin.
We knew from our research that the kitten should be litter trained and to have
the litter tray ready for her to use. We introduced her to it straight away and
continued to stand her in it every hour to ensure she knew where it was and
what it was for. Sure enough she did her first wee and poo in it relatively
quickly and thus we were confident that she was litter trained. Dogs are much
trickier to train and the process can take months rather than hours as it does
for a cat. The important key to puppy house training is to know the signs of a
dog needing to use the toilet, so sniffing on the floor, circling an area and
starting to squat. The earlier you spot the signs the better, and then
encourage them outside and ask them to do their business. Whatever phrase
you use, stick with it and remember to give massive praise and maybe even
some dog treats
when they perform outside. Scolding a puppy for messing in
the house is not going to aid house training, so remember to have plenty of
patience and to spend time training them.
We provided both kitten and puppy with a nice new bed in the utility room
which they both settled in really well. We were fortunate enough to not have
problems with them settling in the night and I do think it is because they had
each other for company.
Thumbelina was definitely easiest to train as she was litter trained within
hours and learnt how to use the cat flap a few months later quickly and with
no fuss. House training Fenna took a lot more patience and time as did
training her out and about but persistence, continuity and patience were the
key and within six months she was fully house, lead and walk trained and they
both settled in really well together.
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