Bringing a new furry friend into your home is always a fun and exciting experience. But before you can start playing and snuggling with your pup, there’s one thing you need to do: potty train them. In this post, we’ll share some tips on how to potty train a puppy, so you can start right away!
Let’s get started!
How to potty train a puppy?
This process isn’t as difficult as it may seem.
In fact, with a little patience and consistency, you can have your puppy trained in just a few short weeks!
While puppies don’t have full control over their bladder until they are closer to 5 months, we can still significantly reduce the number of accidents in the house by starting training early.
Potty training should begin as soon as we bring the puppy home.
Thankfully puppies are fast learners and catch on pretty quickly!
How long does it take to potty train a puppy?
While it can depend on the puppy and the breed of the puppy, most puppies have a basic understanding of the need to potty outside after about two weeks of consistent training.
Of course, some puppies may get it right away, and some may view the world as one big patch of grass to go potty on!
Most people find that somewhere around 6 or 7 months is when their puppy is finally accident free!
Create a routine or schedule
The number one reason for potty accidents in the house? Human error!
Puppies can only hold their little bladders for so long, and it is up to us, as the owners, to ensure we get them outside in time.
When we forget to take the puppy out, chances are they will need to go to the bathroom!
In fact, when we leave the puppy unsupervised, there is a greater chance that the puppy will potty indoors because we won’t be there to see them do their little potty sniff and catch them before they go.
Potty training your puppy, especially at a young age, is just as much training the puppy as it is training yourself to create a routine and stick to it.
If you know that your puppy seems to have to go about every 2 hours, make sure you take them outside a little before the 2-hour mark is up.
Having a set schedule will also help the puppy realize that at certain times of day, it gets to go outside and go potty, and it just might encourage them to hold it a little longer if they think a potty break is going to happen soon.
Regular feeding schedule
Feed your puppy on a regular schedule.
What goes in on a regular schedule will usually come out on a regular schedule.
So you’ll get to learn your puppy’s bowel habits and know when it’s time to take the puppy outside.
Another tip is to keep the water bowl up throughout the day.
Offer water with meals, after play, and periodically throughout the day.
Not letting the puppy have unrestricted access to water helps ensure that we don’t miss the puppy drinking a bunch of water and then needing to go potty sooner than we expected.
Crates
Finding a way to keep your puppy contained when you aren’t supervising is key to potty training.
Many people find that crates, cages, or kennels work well for them, and others like puppy playpens.
Keeping the puppy contained in a safe, comfortable, and quiet area will keep the puppy from wandering off and finding a spot inside to go potty.
Whatever you decide, make sure the space is comfortable and not so big that the puppy can go potty in one corner and then go and get comfortable on its bed in the other corner.
For big breeds, some people get the big dog kennels when their dog is just a puppy but put a cardboard box in the kennel to make it more size appropriate for the puppy.
As you can imagine, puppies don’t like laying in a puddle of their own pee, so the theory is that they will be less likely to pee if they are going to be stuck in it or lying in it.
Instead, the puppy will probably whine or fuss a little bit to let you know it is time to go out!
Related Post: What is The Best Dog Breed For Me? 10 Things to Consider!
Clean everything Thoroughly
While it may sound gross to us, dogs tend to want to go potty where they’ve already gone before.
If a spot on the carpet doesn’t get cleaned thoroughly, that scent will entice the puppy to want to go potty there again.
To avoid this happening, make sure you clean up any accidents thoroughly.
With paper towels, soak up as much urine as possible.
After that, spray the carpet with an enzymatic pet stain and odor removal cleaner.
Pick a specific bathroom spot
Keep your puppy on a leash, even out in the yard when potty training.
There will come a time for leash-free play in a fenced-in yard but not when you are focusing on potty training.
By keeping the puppy on a leash, we can encourage the puppy to focus on going potty in their designated bathroom spot instead of wandering around and playing in the yard.
Wait until your puppy is completely done going to the bathroom before you praise it or give it a treat.
You don’t want to interrupt the flow!
Only when they are done can you start excitedly praising them and giving them treats.
How often and when to take a puppy potty?
Take your puppy potty at least every one to two hours during the day.
Create a schedule and stick to it.
There are also certain times that you should take a puppy outside.
A few examples include the following:
- After the puppy is done eating or drinking
- After waking up from a nap
- After a play session
If you take your puppy outside to go to the bathroom and it doesn’t go, you’ll want to confine it to its crate or playpen or watch the puppy very closely.
Chances are it will need to go soon.
How to teach the potty command?
Use a verbal cue to get your dog to go to the bathroom.
Read your puppy’s body signals, and when they are just about to go potty or are going potty, use that cue.
For example, “Go Potty.”
Again, we don’t want to distract the puppy so say it calmly.
Saying go potty over and over again while your dog is wandering around the yard and not doing its business won’t help them associate the phrase with the action.
What to do if you catch your puppy going potty in the house?
Don’t punish your puppy!
It will only scare the dog and encourage it not to potty around you.
Do say “No.” Say it sternly but don’t yell it.
Some say to use the word “Nope” because no matter how mad you may be, it is a hard word to say loudly and meanly.
Immediately take them outside.
Praise them if they finish going potty out there, but they may not.
Clean the area with an enzymatic cleaner.
How to potty train a puppy: Conclusion
Remember that there will be setbacks and that accidents do happen!
We sometimes may be guilty of forgetting that our puppies are just babies… Even the big ones!
We just need to be patient with them and give them as many opportunities to go outside as we possibly can.
