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How to Train Your Older Dog to Stay Off the Carpet

How to Train Your Older Dog to Stay Off the Carpet
Hard difficulty iconHard
Time icon1-6 Months
Behavior training category iconBehavior

Introduction

Has this happened to you? You move into a new house with beautiful carpet in some of the rooms, and your old dog doesn't understand why he suddenly can't lounge on the new, soft flooring. Maybe you just adopted a senior dog, and you don't know any of the rules he lived with previously. He could have been allowed anywhere in the house, or he could have lived in a house with wall-to-wall carpeting. 

The old adage "You can't teach an old dog new tricks," might discourage you from trying to teach your older dog to stay off the carpet, but it is possible to teach him something new. The difficulty will be to change his habits. Older dogs already have an idea of how the world works and it's harder to make a change to their routine than young dogs who don't have long-established patterns. 

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Defining Tasks

There are a few things to consider when trying to train an older dog to stay off the carpet. You need to come into the training with lots of patience, maybe even more than you need for a puppy. Your dog is going to be confused as to why he can't do something he has always done. You also need to be completely consistent. If you relax your training even once you could set yourself back on weeks of training.

If you're moving into a new home or if you are bringing home a new dog, set the boundaries from the beginning. From the moment he steps into your home, let him know where he can and cannot be. You might need to block off rooms with baby gates for a while. Make sure he knows where he can go. Give him a space to call his own and feel comfortable in.

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Getting Started

There are a few items you will need to get started. If you are bringing home a new dog or changing houses, make sure you have them before you introduce the dog to his new digs. 

  • Baby gates or room dividers.
  • A dog crate.
  • One to three dog beds.
  • Treats.
  • A clicker.
  • A few area rugs or runners.

There are several methods to use based on your dog's temperament and the way he reacts to his new rules. Read through the three below and decide which will be best for your dog, or mix and match steps to come up with the best training plan for your dog.

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The Leash Method

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1

Block off all carpeted areas

Block off all the carpeted areas in your home with barriers or baby gates your dog can't get through.

2

Set up a comfy space

Make sure he has a comfy bed, a crate, or a space he definitely is allowed to be in.

3

Leash your dog

Put a leash on your dog and walk to the entrance of a carpeted room. Ask for a 'sit'. Make sure to remove the baby gate.

4

Tell him "no"

Once he starts to place a paw on the carpet tell him "no" sternly and bring him back.

5

Tell him "yes"

After a while, he should stop right before the carpet. When he does tell him "yes" and treat him. Keep practicing.

6

Move around the house

Practice this with each room that has carpet. Make sure he begins to associate "no" with stepping on the carpet and "yes" with stopping before the carpet.

7

Let him off leash

Now you can move off the leash. Stand in the carpeted room and watch him. When he starts to walk on the carpet, say "no" sharply. He should move off. When he stops before the carpet and doesn't try to come to you, tell him "yes."

8

Keep practicing

Keep practicing and move on to each room. After some serious dedication, your dog should eventually stop walking on the carpet.

The Your Space/My Space Method

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1

Define his space

You know you want the carpet to be off-limits for your dog. Now you have to define which places he is allowed. This will most likely be areas with tile, laminate or wood flooring.

2

Make it comfortable

Dogs often don't have traction on these kinds of flooring and they can be uncomfortable to lie on, especially for an older dog. To make it more comfortable, put down an area rug and dog beds or a crate in these places so he will be happy to be there.

3

Start with one room

Start with one room you want your dog to stay out of. Keep the baby gates up on the other rooms and remove the one for this room (just for the training session).

4

Stand in the middle

Stand in the middle of the room and don't pay attention to your dog.

5

Tell him "out"

When he starts to come into the room say "out" sharply and point out of the room. He might be a little shocked, but he should leave.

6

Keep practicing

Each time your dog tries to come in the room with you, tell him "out" and make him leave. He should move over to the comfy bed or rugs in his area of the house.

7

Slowly move to each room

Once he no longer tries to enter a room, you can move on to the next one you don't want him to enter. Be patient and consistent. If you don't want him in there, don't give him a chance to get away with it.

8

Remove the gates

Eventually, you can remove all the boundaries in the house. Your dog will have learned that his cozy rugs and bed are much preferable to being told to get off the carpet.

The 'Go to Your Place' Method

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Define your dog's space

Find a spot outside of each room with carpet that you want your dog to go. Place a dog bed or mat in each area.

2

This is your spot

Teach your dog that the bed or mat is his designated spot. Have him sit on the bed and give him treats while saying "your spot."

3

Go to your spot

Stand with your dog a little ways away from the rug and say "go to your spot." Give him lots of treats when he does.

4

Walk into the carpeted room

Remove the baby gate or barrier for one room and walk it to the middle. Wait for your dog to try and follow you.

5

Give him the command

When he tries to follow, say "go to your spot." praise him when he does. Repeat this step over and over again until he no longer tries to go on the carpet. Make sure to put the gate back up when you are done. You can do this step several times a day for a few minutes each time.

6

Move to the next room

Move on to the next room, making sure that each time you try a room where your dog already knows his spot. Practice going to his spot until he no longer tries to go on the carpet.

7

Take down the barriers

Once he is opting for his spot instead of the carpet for every room, you can take down the baby gates. Make sure everyone in your household knows what you are doing and helps keep an eye on your dog. Don't be afraid to go back to the training steps if he forgets.

Written by Katie Smith

Veterinary reviewed by:

Published: 02/01/2018, edited: 01/08/2021

Training Questions

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Training Questions and Answers

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Mabel

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German Shepherd

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1 Year

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Question

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My dog has ocd like behavior only sometimes when I take her outside to potty. She is very strong and stubborn when she gets excited and will pull me around easily when I take her out. The problem I’m having is a strange one, and kind of silly. I’m just wondering if it can be corrected and trained. We live in an apartment building, and our neighbor across the way from our door has a door mat she cannot resist when I take her by to go outside. She will go running as hard and fast as she can for the door mat (even if I say no) and lay down on it right away almost like an OCD behavior like she has to. Every time she does this it’s just kind of inconvenient cause if they have shoes or things on the door mat she makes a mess of everything. She will only get up on her time when she wants to and then will be back to pulling as hard as she can to get through the next door (she always wants to be the first one through doors also ocd like behavior). Well, the other day their was a ladder in the stairwell and she tried to do the same “get her way” behavior and run under the ladder that was standing up against the wall from some worker that had left it there. I had to pull her back through cause the entire thing that was a tall ladder almost fell on my head when she did this. Is there a way to teach the “NO” command where she will understand not to do these things even if she has a strong desire to make her own choices?

Jan. 22, 2022

Mabel's Owner

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Caitlin Crittenden - Dog Trainer

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1133 Dog owners recommended

Hello Rachel, I would start by teaching a solid Heel and Leave It command. Leave It method: https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-shih-tzu-puppy-to-not-bite Heel- Turns method: https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-poodle-to-heel I would then work on some intermediate and possibly even remote collar training - since this is a more obsessive behavior that may require an interrupter. I would also work on building pup's general respect and listening with you, since that's also probably a part of the equation. https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-doberman-to-listen-to-you I would treat this a bit like shadow chasing or prey drive, where the dog is really fixated on something and you need a high level of obedience training plus an interrupter at times, then a behavior you train to replace the unwanted behavior, that you can reward instead. So in this case, some obedience training would be commands like leave It and Heel. You would reward pup for heeling, watching you instead of going to the mats, and correct disobedience to those commands - so pup pulling on the leash instead of heeling. If pup has ever shown any form of aggression toward you, this might be a symptom of a bigger issue, since pup feels they can drag you around to get their way. In that case, I would hire a professional trainer who specializes in behavior issues to work with you in person on this, and be sure to utilize more safety measures to avoid a potential bite while working with pup. https://www.youtube.com/c/JamiePenrithDogTraining Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

Jan. 24, 2022

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Lola

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Basset Hound

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18 Months

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whenever Lola, my boyfriend's dog, visits, she comes onto my jute fiber rug and then starts scratching herself. She likes staying on that rug even though we put her own blanket on the floor next to the rug. My apartment has concrete floors and she never likes to sit on the floor. Another question is that she has separation anxiety whenever I visit. She cries when we leave my boyfriend's place and she jumps on us and we are trying the ignore method when we come to his place and turn our back when she jumps. i praise her only when she calms. Will that eventually work? Is she too old to be trained?

Sept. 22, 2020

Lola's Owner

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Caitlin Crittenden - Dog Trainer

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1133 Dog owners recommended

Hello Patricia, Check out the article linked below and working on teaching the Out command for the rug. https://www.petful.com/behaviors/how-to-teach-a-dog-the-out-command/ For the jumping, check out the Step Towards method - stepping toward tends to work better than stepping away with older dogs because the action of moving toward pup communicates that you want them to respect the space around you though body language, and makes jumping less effective and fun for the dog by throwing them a bit off balance. Once pup is acting respectful, you then follow the step toward with a reward for sitting politely so pup will learn to Sit nicely to get attention instead. Step Toward method: https://wagwalking.com/training/train-australian-shepherds-to-not-jump For the separation anxiety, I would start by building pup's independence through crate training, Place, and Down-Stay. Check out the Surprise method from the article linked below and work on that method to get her used to you being out of the room while she is crated. https://wagwalking.com/training/like-a-crate Work on "Stay" and "Place," commands while you move away or leave the room, and teaching her to remain inside a crate when the door is open as well as closed. Give her something to do in the crate or on Place during the day while you are out of the room (such as a dog food stuffed Kong to chew on). Place: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omg5DVPWIWo Down-Stay: For some dogs, working on more structure and independence at home is all that's needed for. Some dogs also need to be taught to cope with their own anxiety by making their current anxious go-to behaviors unpleasant, giving them an opportunity to stop those behaviors long enough to learn something new, then rewarding the correct, calmer behavior instead. Building her independence and structure in her life will still be an important part of this protocol too. Set up a camera to spy on her. If you have two smart devices, like tablets or smartphones, you can Skype or Facetime them to one another with your pup’s end on mute, so that you can see and hear her but she will not hear you. Video baby monitors, video security monitors with portable ways to view the video, GoPros with the phone Live App, or any other camera that will record and transmit the video to something portable that you can watch outside live will work. Set up your camera to spy on her while she is in the crate and leave. Spy on her from outside or another room. Leave however you normally would. As soon as you hear her crying or see her start to try to escape or destroy the crate from the camera, quietly return, spray a small puff of air from the pet convincer at her side through the crate wires, without opening the door, then leave again. Every time she barks or tries to get out of the crate, correct, then leave again. Don't spray in the face and avoid citronella ones - only use unscented air - citronella is too harsh. After five minutes to ten minutes of practice, as soon as your dog stays quiet and is not trying to escape for five seconds straight, go back into the room where she is and sprinkle several treats into the crate without saying anything, then leave again. Practice correcting when she barks or tries to escape, going back inside and sprinkling treats when she stays quiet, for up to 30 minutes a session at first. After 30 minutes -1 hour of practicing this, while she is quiet, go back into the room and sprinkle more treats. This time stay in the room. Do not speak to her or pay attention to her for ten minutes while you walk around and get stuff done inside. When she is being calm, then you can let her out of the crate. When you let her out, practice opening and closing the door until your dog is not rushing out. You want her to be calm when she comes out of the crate and to stay calm when you get home. That is why you need to ignore her when you get home right away. Also, keep your good byes extremely boring and calm. Also, for longer alone times give her a food stuffed Kong into the crate/room with her. Once she is less anxious she will likely enjoy it even if she didn't pay any attention to it in the past, and that will help her to enjoy alone time more. First, she may need her anxious state of mind interrupted so that she is open to learning other ways to behave. Once it's interrupted, give her a food stuffed Kong in the crate for her to relieve her boredom instead of barking, since she will need something other than barking to do at that point. Regularly practice her staying on Place and in the open crate while you are home and leave the room as well. Finally, teach pup the Quiet command to make communication with her clearer. Quiet method: https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-shih-tzu-puppy-to-not-bark Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

Sept. 23, 2020


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