Puppy Potty Training: 6 Things Pet Parents Should Keep in Mind

When you’ve got a new puppy in the family, it’s important to start working on potty training right away. But this experience can be a confusing and stressful one for the puppy as well as for you and everyone else in your family. So what can you do when you need to potty train a puppy?

Important Puppy Potty Training Tips

There are many methods for potty training, but we’ve broken down some of the best ones into six important tips for you to check out below. Read through these suggestions and don’t be afraid to reach out to a puppy trainer in your area if you need additional help.

Below are 6 puppy potty training tips every pet parent should remember when going through this process:

Patience is Key

You’ve probably heard this already, but remember that it’s important to always stay as patient as possible with your puppy. Accidents are going to happen and potty training isn’t going to occur overnight, even in the smartest of puppies. Give yourself and your puppy both some slack and be patient when working through this type of training.

When you’re patient with your puppy—and encourage the other members of your household to be patient too—you’ll form a more positive bond with your new family member in no time. You can use this positivity to help your puppy learn more quickly as well.

Positive Reinforcement

Always use positive reinforcement when potty training a puppy instead of negative reinforcement. Negative reinforcement includes shoving your puppy’s face into potty accidents or yelling at her when she doesn’t understand where she is meant to potty. These habits can cause her to be afraid of you and may make her associate potty time with fear too.

Using positive reinforcement helps your puppy understand what you want her to do and when. You can give her treats when she goes potty in the right place at the right time, and make sure to shower her with lots of praise for getting it right, too!

Be Repetitive

Repetition can make a big difference in the success a puppy has when potty training. If you take your puppy to the same part of the yard every single time you take her out to potty, she will quickly learn that this is what she is meant to do in this location.

It’s also important to take her potty before allowing her to play in the yard. This repetition will help her understand that going outside is for potty first and playtime second, and she will train more quickly if you keep up with this repetition too.

Use a Schedule

It’s crucial to train your puppy on a schedule from the very first day you bring her home. You may need to take her outside to potty every two hours for the first week or so, but after that, you can ease up on the schedule a little bit in most cases.

Puppies respond well to going potty on a schedule, and you can train your puppy more easily if you are very strict about the schedule too. Be sure everyone in your household is on board with the schedule as well.

Be Ready for Accidents

You should always be prepared for the possibility of potty accidents with a puppy—and with a dog of any age. Make sure you stock up on floor cleaners designed for the types of flooring you have, and save some old rags you don’t mind using to clean up puppy pee if you need to as well.

Remember, too, that you can use puppy pads if you have to. However, training your dog to potty on pads can sometimes work against you if she decides this is the only place she can go potty in the future.

Consider Potty Bells

Some dogs respond well to the use of potty bells. These are training tools that can be used to signal your dog that it’s time to go potty outside. You can hang them near your door and have your dog ring them when she needs to go outside.

You may need to ring the bells for your dog the first few times so she understands the point of them. From there, you might need to work on training her to stop ringing them every time she wants to go outdoors. With practice, you should be able to train her to use them correctly.

Talk with Your Vet for Additional Tips on Puppy Potty Training

With the right plan of action, you can have your puppy potty trained in no time. Remember that this is a challenging time, but that it will eventually pass. As long as you spend time working with her from day one, your puppy will be potty trained someday and will be able to fully join the family.

Until then, keep these tips in mind and be sure to ask your veterinarian if you have any other questions or concerns about your puppy’s health, wellness, or developmental milestones. At The Village Vets, our team is always available to help with your pet during any stage of their life, including puppy potty training. Contact any of our locations for additional help and support.