OverWatch K9 Academy

Jun 16, 2024 1:49:10 PM

Potty training, and the overall process of raising a puppy through to adulthood, revolves around setting your puppy up for success, and having clear communication. There is tons of knowledge and theory behind the process of potty training a puppy, so bear with me as we dive into this topic.

The first thing to think about and accept is that the concept of potty training is not at all a natural behavior for a dog, it is actually quite foreign. Looking at your puppy with a more primal lens (think wolves), they would simply release their bladder whenever the urge comes. That doesn’t raise any concern, as we all know dogs achieve potty training all the time, but it is a great mindset to have while going through the process! With it comes understanding and patience, both of which will make the process less stressful and more successful. Potty training requires short term structure for long term success!

Puppies typically have the instinct to walk away from the “pack” to release their bladder. For us, this usually looks like walking into the next room – if you’re in the living room, the puppy would walk to the kitchen or dining room, or back bedroom, etc., to get away from you.  This can be a great cue that your puppy has the urge to potty! 

If you notice your pup starting to walk away, putting their nose to the ground, or walking in circles, these are all cue’s they are about to potty. To redirect them, start excitedly talking to your puppy while moving towards the door to get outside, possibly even jogging to get your puppy’s attention quickly. I suggest starting a cue such as, “Outside? Wanna go outside?”. You’ll want this cue to be separate from the cue to go potty. 

Once outside, stand fairly still to not be a distraction, and calmly repeat “go potty” to your puppy. This is the cue you will be teaching to your puppy to go potty on command!  Rewarding (marking) the behavior of pottying outside can be done with food, however I don’t suggest it, it’s easy to become a distraction to your pup. I like to throw a party with a happy “Good boy! Good potty!” and petting / playing.

In the beginning stages of potty training you will reward the puppy for both peeing and pooping, as time goes on you’ll want to give a calmer “Good boy, good potty” for peeing, and wait for the poop (or completion of the potty session) to give the excited party throwing. 

In between these potty breaks, while your puppy is free in the home, you’ll want to keen eye on your pup and watch for the cues mentioned above that he or she may be giving, showing the need to potty again. At this point we don’t have an official cue that your puppy will give you, but it will come with time as your puppy makes the connection, with repetition, of where you’re wanting the pottying to happen. 

Whenever you’re preoccupied, whether it be with cooking, taking a shower, helping kids with homework, or anything else this is a great time to utilize the crate. The crate is a happy, safe space for your puppy, we like to think of a pack-and-play for an infant! It’s the safest place for your puppy without supervision. 

The crate also eliminates the option of an accident so that the puppy is always successfully pottying where he should be! We don’t want the puppy to fail by having an indoor accident because at this stage we don’t want to give a correction. Just like teaching any behavior (sit, down, come) the puppy must first understand what the behavior is. After all, potty training is a taught and conditioned behavior, not natural. 

If corrections are given for indoor accidents during this foundational stage, the puppy will often associate the correction with the act of pottying itself – not because it was indoors. This leads to the puppy becoming reluctant to potty in front of you at all. You’ll take your puppy outside, it will play instead of potty, you will bring the puppy inside, and it wanders off to potty in a location that you cannot see. Thankfully this confusion can be avoided by not correcting your puppy for any accidents.

Use any accidents as an opportunity to track data – how long has it been since my puppy has been outside? How long after eating did he have a bowel movement? Most puppies can become predictable on when they need to poop! For some puppies it is within 10 minutes of eating, for others it can be 3 hours after eating. Puppies will have 1-3 bowel movements per feeding. This is typically connected to the brand of food being fed. The more filler in the food, the more waste comes out. Paying attention to the timing of your puppies bowel movements will greatly assist the process of potty training! 

Unfortunately the need to pee cannot be as easily predicted, puppies at 8 weeks of age can commonly pee every 30 minutes. It takes patience and time to build this duration, but luckily puppies are smart, and will catch on quickly, building duration every few weeks. 

The hardest one to catch is typically mid-play, running and playing gets their bowels moving! Much like a child they can ignore the urge to pee while playing until suddenly they drop their toy and pee. In the beginning stages of potty training interrupt your puppy from playing with excitement and encouragement to follow you outside for a potty break. Your puppy will begin giving small cues mid-play, typically by moving towards the door that leads to their outside potty area.

Potty training a puppy is an important step in the process of raising an amazing pet. It can be a stressful process or a breeze, it ultimately requires patience, consistency, and a well-designed plan, with proper structure and understanding of how and why we potty train, stress can be lowered. Luckily we have the structure and tips to help you potty train your puppy successfully! 

Don’t give any corrections if you find a potty accident. Corrections can lead to your puppy becoming confused, coming to see that you think pottying is a bad thing all together, and they will begin to avoid pottying near you at all. This snowballs into your puppy not pottying on trips outside, but instead waiting until they come back inside and can go to a top-secret area for you to find it later. Avoid this by not using any corrections, but instead keeping a mental log of how long your puppy was out since his last potty break. Adjust the frequency of potty breaks according to the length of time that he had his accident.

Establish a routine: Puppies thrive on routine and consistency, so it is important to establish a potty schedule. Take your puppy outside first thing in the morning, after every meal, after playtime, after waking up from a nap, and before bedtime. These are the times when they are most likely to need to go potty.

Pick a designated potty area: Choose an area in your yard that you would like your puppy to use as their potty area and walk them to that area each time. It is best to stick to this area for consistency, the puppy will smell the prior use of the bathroom and be reminded of what its task is!

Learn your puppy’s patterns: Puppies bowel movements can be fairly predictable, specifically pooping. Note what time you feed your puppy and what time the puppy goes poop, and you should be able to time it.

Use a consistent “outside” command: When you’re heading to the door to take your puppy out to potty use a consistent cue such as “outside” or “want to go outside” as you’re leading them to the door. Over time your puppy will learn what this means, as the puppy matures you’ll be able to ask them if they need to go outside and they will respond either by going to the door (a yes) or staying put (a no).

Use a consistent “potty” command: Whenever you take your puppy outside to potty, use a consistent command such as repeating “go potty” calmly to help them understand what is expected of them. This will also help them associate the command with the act of going potty, and begin to release their bowels when they are asked to!

Offer a reward: Whenever your puppy successfully goes potty outside, make sure to offer praise and love as a reward. This positive reinforcement will encourage them to repeat the behavior in the future. Using treats can make some puppies forget about needing to use the potty, we suggest sticking with verbal praise and pets as rewards for potty training.

Watch for signs: Pay attention to your puppy’s body language and behavior, as they will often give you clues when they need to go potty. Common signs include sniffing around, whining, circling, and wandering away from you. It can be helpful to put a thin cheap leash on your puppy to keep them tethered to you, making you more aware if they start tugging to try to go off to find a spot to potty.

Use a crate: Crating your puppy when you are not able to supervise them can be a helpful tool in potty training. Dogs are naturally clean animals and will avoid going potty in their sleeping area, so using a crate will help limit accidents. Utilize the crate like you would a pack-and-play for an infant. For example, if you were going to take a shower you would put your puppy in the crate because the puppy would be unsupervised.

Be patient: Potty training a puppy takes time and patience. Do not expect your puppy to be fully trained in just a few days. Be patient and persistent, and never punish your puppy for accidents.

Following this structure will teach your puppy the concept of potty training clearly, quickly, fairly, and without conflict. With short term structure you will set your puppy up for a lifetime of success! We are with you throughout the potty training journey, let us know if you have any questions along the way.