First, of course, there is pet training. We know that training a puppy is very different from training an older dog, but there are commonalities. Take time to learn and understand the difference between puppies and older dogs, and even the particulars of certain breeds.

• Keep your pooch in the same room until he or she is trained: Your dog will need to be monitored carefully when first being potty trained. Don’t let them wander to other parts of the house, or you won’t be able to catch them when they go potty.

• Create a safety zone for your pup to go potty if you have to be away for a time: You’ll want to either crate your dog or keep them in a confined area with papers or a potty pad if you have to be away for a length of time. Your dog will soon learn that this is a safe, designated area to go potty in the house.

• Create a potty schedule and track their behavior: If you monitor your dog carefully, you can get an idea of how long they are holding it before he goes potty.

• Reward them for good behavior (learning to go potty at the proper time): Give your dog a treat the moment after he goes number one or two, and be sure to give plenty of praise.

• Don’t scold after the fact: If you happen to leave your dog alone during the potty training period, and he goes potty in the house when you’re not there, that’s not his fault. Remember, he wants to please you and get things right. Never scold him for going potty when you’re not there. He won’t understand why he’s being scolded.

From muddy paws to fur on every surface, Bona dog products are designed to handle the everyday mess that comes with canine companionship.

Similarly, older cats can present different issues from kittens and young cats, who can be fairly easily litter-trained. At times, older cats may opt not to use the litter box, and instead, will go potty wherever it suits them, due to the fact that they can sometimes develop health issues that create challenges with going potty. Even so, there are things you can do to help correct such behavior, and to discourage them to use your floors as a bathroom option.

• Keeping the litter box extra-clean will encourage all cats to make good use of it.

• Make sure they can easily access the litter box, and ensure that the entrance to the box is low enough for them.

• Actually place them in the litter box roughly half an hour after their meal time.

• Choose a senior cat litter that helps with mobility issues, such as a fine-grained clay litter.

Cat households face their own cleaning challenges; see the Bona cat products that make it easier to manage fur, litter, and everything in between.