7 Tips for Potty Training Your Puppy
Bringing a new puppy home is one of the most amazing moments of a dog owner’s life! Finally, your new family member gets a furr-ever home, and you get to come home to a fluffy greeting! You know what’s not fun to come home to? An accident left by your un-trained pup. But we get it – puppy training your dog is difficult!
So here are seven puppy tips to make potty training your dog a bit easier:
- Feeding Schedule
- First Thing in the Morning, Last Thing at Night
- Let Puppy out Every Hour, Right After Meals and Drinks
- The Same Spot, Every Time
- Stay Outside with Your Pup
- Learn Their Signs
- Praise Your Pup
Feeding Schedule for Potty Training
Puppy training all starts with the food. Creating and sticking to a feeding schedule is crucial if you want your dog potty trained. If the food goes in at the same time every day, it most likely will come out the same time every day! Take a look at your daily schedule and find a breakfast and dinner slot for your pup that works with your daily routine. The easier it is for you, the smoother puppy training will be!
First Thing in the Morning, Last Thing at Night
Even before mealtime, your dog should go outside to try to go to the bathroom. As soon as you wake up, let your puppy out. This could save you from that I’m-going-to-be-late-for-work type of accident from your pup! Taking a step outside with your pup first thing in the morning can actually have a lot of mental health benefits for you too, so don’t take that time for granted! Then, continue the routine at night. Right before you and your pup hop into bed, take another potty break to make sure there aren’t any accidents in the middle of the night that could interrupt your beauty sleep (you AND your pup’s!).
Let Puppy out Every Hour, Right After Meals and Drinks to Avoid Accidents
In the early days of puppy training, it’s important to let your dog out every 30-60 minutes. Eventually, you’ll know your pup better than anyone and know the general times they will have to go to the bathroom, but in the beginning, you have to give your pup constant options! This is crucial after meals and drinks as well. We’ve all heard that sloppy pupper tongue lapping up water for minutes on end – shortly after is the perfect time to head outside to avoid any accidents!
The Same Spot, Every Time
Each time you take your dog outside, take them to their designated “potty spot.” If you live in a city or apartment, choosing a spot early will make your life so much easier than wandering around looking for more patches of grass. Even if you have a big yard, choosing a spot is still one of the most important puppy tips. Dogs are very aware of their own smell and marking their territory, so they will be more likely to go in that spot than one with a foreign smell. Taking them out on a leash is the best way to lead them to their spot, and our Minimalist leash is perfect for those constant trips to the bathroom.
Stay Outside with Your Pup
Your dog loves you more than anything. You want potty time to feel more like a routine and less like a punishment. If your dog is outside while you are inside, they aren’t going to spend much time wandering around the yard to go to the bathroom when their best friend is inside. If you stay outside with your pup, not only will you make the experience more enjoyable for them, but you can also make sure they actually went to the bathroom to avoid surprises later!
Learn Their Signs
Puppy training is going well – your dog has been doing their business outside, but still hasn’t quite learned to sit at the door and ask for it to be opened. Never fear! You know your dog better than anyone, so paying attention to their signs can help you suspect a bathroom break is on the horizon. Here are a few signs your pup needs to go outside:
- Sniffing the floor
- Squatting
- Pacing or walking in circles
- Smelling their butt
- Returning to a place in the house they’ve had an accident before
- Whining – even if it’s not by the door!
- Our Penelope likes to make eye contact and vigorously wag her tail
Praise Your Pup!
The most important step in the puppy training process is praise! Once your dog has successfully gone to the bathroom outside, praising them with a treat is the best way to seal the deal. You can give them a biscuit or a snack, but we have a better idea. What better way to celebrate that the puppy accidents are over than with a new show-stopping collar? We think this Rosalicious collar just screams, “I don’t pee inside anymore! I’m sophisticated!” Celebrate your grown-up doggo with this Martini bowtie collar.
For more puppy tips, visit our blog. You can start shopping for your potty-trained puppy accessories right now!