When you want to buy a small dog, and decide for a Pomeranian (in short: a Pom), it is best to get information on that breed first. In general, you should never buy a dog unless you know what you’re getting into.

A Pom is a lively, intelligent little dog with a hard voice and he has to have a say in on everything. Like most small dogs, you can easily train your Pom, but it may be a bit of a challenge.

I’d like to refer here to my article on how to train a Shih Tzu. Most of the principles mentioned in that article will also work here.

One thing in your favor is that Poms are by nature very clean dogs. They don’t like to soil the area where they sleep and eat. Also, they develop habits about where they usually go potty. Finding out what your dog likes and prefers is a key to completing your training task.

First of all, establish yourself as the leader of the gang. Your Pom is confident and independent enough, but will be happier if you take the lead. Your Pom’s ability to be a well-behaved companion is linked with your ability of being a strong and positive leader and a good teacher.

Next, you need to set up a training area. You can use a small room or a crate, but always make sure the Pom has enough space to move around – you can’t expect your dog to be happy in a small box for the duration of its housebreaking period! Use positive reinforcement to condition the desired behaviors. You reward a desired behavior by saying ‘Yes!’ and ignore other behavior. This way, the dog will soon understand that he’ll get a treat (or a praise, or a toy) when he does something you want, but if he does something bad, he won’t be rewarded.

You best spend enough time in the training area. Play with the dog there and also feed it at this spot. Make sure your Pom has a nice bed and is comfy. You can let the dog out in other areas when you are with him, but when you are not home, keep the Pom confined to the training area.

You also have to set out the toilet area. This is a place the dog can easily reach, every time he needs to go potty. You should watch your Pom and accompany him to the toilet area every time he looks as if he will want to potty. Afterwards, praise him when he used the right toilet area.

You can learn to predict the potty moments of your Pom by putting it on a set feeding schedule.

Once the dog uses the toilet area consistently, you can let him enter the other parts of the house. Of course, at first you’d best stay with him as much as possible. The dog has to learn the other places are ok too as long as he doesn’t go potty in them.