Puppy Potty Training for the Average Person

You may feel like potty training your puppy will be difficult and time consuming. Here are some easy tips that will get you started in the right direction. If you have a little patience, you are well on your way and success will be your reward. Consider these basic guidelines to make potty training easier and don't worry, it will be fun for both you and your new puppy.

First you need to find a place in your home where you can limit your puppy to a confined area, especially when you are not home. For obvious reasons you do not want it wandering unsupervised all over your house. You can use a safety gate to block off a tiled area, or use a crate, which is very effective. You definitely want to avoid having many accidents on your carpet. Either, or both of these will make your training easier, cleaner, and quicker. Next you will need to put down some newspaper in the area you have chosen. You should put some by the door you want him to eventually go out of. This will help your puppy learn its boundaries and go potty on those specific areas.

If you catch your puppy going potty in the house take him outside immediately, do not wait for him to finish. This will train your puppy that it is not ok to go potty in the house. Also, never hit or yell at your puppy during potty training, this will only make him fearful and timid. It may lead to your puppy to go potty in places you cannot see. That would definitely be a stinky mess. Always supervise your puppy when it is roaming freely in the house. If you find a mess in any room, you need to keep that area off limits to avoid repeat offenders.

Always be sure to take your dog outside to go potty, first thing in the morning and right before bedtime. To help prevent accidents during the night, do not give your puppy a lot of water before bedtime. When you are home with your puppy, you need to take him outside every 20 to 30 minutes to go potty. You should be using the command "go potty" while you are outside with him. It is important and most effective when you are consistent. Eventually he will become familiar with the routine and know to go potty outside. It is best to not be in a hurry when waiting for your puppy to go potty. Keep telling him to "go potty" and when he does, give him a lot of lovings and a treat. As mentioned earlier, you need to be patient.

Keep looking for signs that your puppy is learning. In about two to three weeks you should notice your dog sniffing or hanging around the door. This is a clue to you that he needs to go potty outside. take him out immediately, with supervision of course. Another sign is your puppy may run to you then towards the door until you notice that he has got to go. Always praise your puppy when he lets you know it is time to go potty. When your puppy does go potty outside, praise him again. You can praise your puppy by giving him a treat. Treats are very effective and a good scratching behind the ears works well too. Using the words, 'good boy' is a great way to verbally praise him.

The last step is to relax and reward yourself for doing such a good job training your puppy. At three to four weeks your puppy is officially potty trained. Now the rest is up to you, begin applying these techniques and enjoy and love your new puppy.