Bringing home a new puppy is one of the best things ever. Everyone is excited, cooing and crowding around the little fur ball. Then the romance begins to die down after a few weeks, people start getting busy again. You’ve guessed correctly, it’s time for puppy potty training to commence
Potty training is the beginning of an awesome adventure you can have with your new dog (that’s how I convince myself). Sure it can be a little unappealing at times but it’s a chore much needed for the rest of his life. Here are several puppy training tips to get you started on the right track.
Understand your puppy’s limitations. They cannot control their bodily wastes for very long yet so do not feed or water them close to their bed time. In any case, there will be a few nights wherein you will have to set your alarm to go off twice to bring your puppy out to his spot and relieve himself. Do not rush the puppy when he isn’t ready. It is more important to establish good habits early on.
Have a schedule for their meal times daily and do not vary from it as much as possible. His body needs to be accustomed to a certain pattern of eating and eliminating. Take him outdoors to discharge early in the morning and late at night. After meals, bring him to his designated potty place to do his business. Keep repeating a phrase the puppy will associate with toilet activities like ‘go potty’ until he does.
Right after successfully eliminating, lavish the little pup with praises. Make sure he knows how well he did in going to the toilet on that spot. Reward them with a little treat and a few minutes of play before going back to his pen. Repeat process after an hour in case the puppy decides it wants to go at it a second time. At this point, setting good habits is the most important aspect of puppy potty training.
Now it’s time to teach him how to request to go outside for toilet. Sounds difficult? It’s not as hard as you think. Fasten a bell at the end of a rope and tie to the door. When you go out for your special walks, give the bell a little nudge and say ‘go potty’ clearly so the puppy will hear. Do this for two weeks. After that time, say ‘go potty’ when you reach the door but don’t do anything. Wait for the dog to touch the bell from habit which he will with patient practice. When he does, reward him with plenty of praise and open the door.
Repeat this process every single time the puppy uses his toilet privileges. Your dog will catch on and understand this as his signal to want to go out. Before long, he will know enough to tap the bell or door by himself whenever he needs to unload.
That’s all there is to it. Properly and consistently done, these puppy training tips should have successfully gotten your dog potty trained easily. Now you can go on to your next, hopefully less smelly adventure!
