Congratulations on bringing home your new puppy! Now the fun begins! But first we need to potty train your new little buddy. Depending on the age of your pup will help dictate how you train them. Each of my dogs have been at a distinctly different stage of potty training. My first girl was a rescue and was only 5 weeks old when she came to me, Miss Millie was 8 weeks old, and Mr Magoo 10 weeks old. This time around it has been so much easier. Maybe its experience but more likely its because Mr Magoo is older.
General Expectations
The general guidance I’ve been given is that for every month they are old that is the number of hours they can hold their bladder. Using Mr Magoo as an example he should be going out every 2 hours since he is just over two months old. My first girl needed to go out every 30 minutes to an hour. She was way too young to be out of the litter, but so goes the life of a rescue dog.
The first few days your new puppy is home with you it is going to be a MAJOR adjustment for him. You will want to be taking your dog out every 30 to 45 minutes. Set her up for success and you will both be happier.
Potty Training Rewards
You want to reward your puppy for pottying outside. A lot of people like to use a treat or cookie. This is super useful particularly when you have a younger dog. Mr Magoo gets a lot praise for going “Potty Outside” but I don’t give treats. And when I say a lot of praise I mean it is a small party for him when he does. Neither Miss Millie nor Mr Magoo were given treats when they went potty outside, my reason being that it is an expectation not a trick.
The exception to this is when I teach the command “Go Potty.” Miss Millie did and still does get treats when she will “Go Potty” or “Go Poop” when directed. This is super helpful when you are doing performance events and they aren’t allowed to potty in the ring. And yes, you can teach them to do their business on command. It takes time but it is possible.
Potting Training Your Puppy
Back to potty training your puppy. After a few days you can start following the hours based on their age in months. You will also want to potty your dog right after they eat. I always make sure he has pottied before I feed him so he doesn’t have an accident getting excited over eating. Yes……Mr Magoo gets that excited to eat. Its how he mastered the command “Go House.”
Your puppy will be napping a lot! Depending on their age they may be sleeping as much as 20 hours a day. When they wake up take them immediately outside to potty. This is one of the biggest mistakes we all make when potty training. Most accidents occur when they wake up. If you are crate training, which I highly suggest, having them nap in their crate makes it easy to ensure you are there to take them right out. Not sure how to crate train your dog? No worries, check out my blog post to get some ideas.
Nighttime Routine
At night, I pick up water bowls after I finish feeding the last meal. I let Mr Magoo have some water right after dinner and then after that it is up for the night. I try to stick to a feeding schedule so the routine is easier to follow. Mr Magoo gets his dinner about 5 or 6pm and then water comes up about a half hour after that.
Depending on the age of your puppy will dictate how long they will be able to sleep through the night. It is important to get into the routine of the final potty before bedtime. With Mr Magoo he will poop and pee before we go to bed. He sleeps for about four or five hours before he wakes up and needs to go out. I leave him out for five to ten minutes and he goes pee a couple of times and generally will poop. He will then sleep for another five to six hours, giving me time to get up and ready in the morning, or sleep in if I can 😊
After I installed a dog door I thought Miss Millie would use it and then a few months later she started having nighttime accidents. I had gotten away from the routine and she needed that reminder, so we always go potty before bed now. Even though she does get up sometimes and goes out in the middle of the night on her own. She used to tell me that she was going out by licking my face, a wet tongue on your face in the middle of the night is a bit creepy to wake up to. Gradually she learned she didn’t need my permission to go out the dog door and do her business.
Other Ideas
There is a lot of information out there and what works for one person may not work for another. I will tell you any training to go potty on potty pads or paper will make potty training harder in the long run. Unless you intend to use them forever. Your dog will have a hard time separating what is OK to use inside and why they go outside. If you need to use them try using them on a patio or using a piece of fake grass on the patio on top of a potty pad.
With Miss Millie I was in an apartment for the first six months I had her, and I was on the second floor. I got a patio potty that was fake grass that drained into kitty litter. It worked out really well for the night time trips outside! Generally, she went downstairs to the grass to potty but it was a great compromise to aide training without being a potty pad in the house.
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