Hey, Potty Training! F-U!

I think I know why potty training fails…

Since getting Enzo, I swear I’ve been outside more than I’ve ever been since getting Tilly 11 years ago.

It took 6 weeks since his arrival for me to finally relax when he’s cruising around the house.

6 weeks to approach the door and actually wait to be let out.

It took 6 weeks of me learning his cues and me reminding him that he needs to go to the door.

He’s 4 months old and I still don’t consider him 100% housebroken.  He’s had very few accidents but that’s because he’s been constantly watched and put outside all.the.time.

Up from an hour nap? He gets put outside.

Up from a 5 minute nap? Outside.

Before putting him in the kennel for a few hours? You guessed it: Outside.

Before putting him to bed for the night? Outside.

Sniffing the carpet? Outside.

All of a sudden ditching the family? Out he goes!

I can’t remember the last time he was outside? Outside.

Basically blinking? Outside!

So, when will he be trained? Your guess is as good as mine. I just know to do this until BUT there’s light at the end of my tunnel because I’ve noticed a huge change from him at 16 weeks old versus 17 weeks. Will your pup “get it” at 17 weeks old or closer to 20? Maybe they’ll have it nailed at 14 weeks! Alls I know is each puppy is an individual, so don’t be focused on the timeline but just commit to putting in the consistent effort knowing that you may be doing this for the first 6 weeks (or more) of having your puppy home. And if for some reason you think your puppy is trained, and they are “all of a sudden” having accidents in the home, that tells you they still need your guidance.

We also need to acknowledge the studies that have been done on how the housebreaking process can be a reflection on how clean the breeder kept the area that the litter spent their first 8 weeks in.  Once puppies are mobile, they’ll naturally start to leave the place where they sleep to relieve themselves in a different area. If that “bathroom” isn’t kept clean, the pups will unintentionally step in it and track that smell all over their living space so then there’s no clear distinction between “this is where we relieve ourselves and this is where we don’t” – it all starts to smell the same.

At the end of the day, we all want to get our pups housebroken. And since I’m slowly getting out of the trenches here’s some tips on what I’ve noticed while working with Enzo.

Potty Training Tips:

-          Use the same door for the first 4 weeks (at least) of training. Enzo had no idea for the first month of being with us that the back door opened up onto the deck because we never let him use it. We want to make this easy for them.

-          Pee Pads aren’t the worst invention but you need an exit plan. Enzo had one day in an exercise pen with pee pads and interestingly enough, he peed on the towel that I put in there for him to sleep on, but he didn’t mess once on the pee pads. Out of 40-some days, we’ve used pee pads that one time, so if you don’t need them, and are home a lot, try to avoid them. It wouldn’t surprise me if the pee-pad-trained puppies then relieve themselves on the mat at the door once the pad is removed. So keep that in mind when using pee pads by the door.

-          If you’re using bells for them to ring, make them obvious and at their level, right by the door. Also, make sure they’re seeing you ring them. If your pup is staring out the window and they hear *ding* then the door opens – they won’t know where that sound is coming from. They need to see it.

-          ANY time they approach the door, let them out. I mean it, people! You’re in the training process and we want them to understand: you approach the door = get let outside. If that gets ignored, your pup will figure out option B very quickly.

-          Keep a mental note of their last bathroom break, especially if they’ve been awake for a while. It’s easy enough to make the correlation of: awake from a nap = put them outside but if they’ve been awake and busy that’s where we sometimes forget to remind them.

-          Usually, the first couple weeks we are outside with them every bathroom break, and in doing that, they get used to the company. This is totally fine but we need to transition them out of this attachment. First time I put Enzo out solo he turned around and wanted back in so I went outside (but stood on the step) and he went to the grass to relieve himself. If your pup does this, don’t fall for it! Especially when you really feel like they need to go. You have been their bathroom buddy since they met you, so you’ll have to go out with them more often than you’d probably like and slowly bring distance to the activity.

-          If your puppy is weather sensitive, walk them out to the farthest part of your yard and on their way back to the house their body will start to cue them that they should use the bathroom and stop pouting about the rain.

-          Because you’ll be out there with them, use that opportunity to say “go pee” or “go potty” as they’re relieving themselves. Do this enough and they’ll be able to go on command, which is super handy on road trips or late-night bathroom breaks where your patience is dwindling.

-          Distractions are the biggest challenge. If your pup isn’t thinking about using the bathroom, good chance they’re not going to go. Leaves, butterflies, wind, people walking by, birds, cars, other dogs, or (my personal favourite) our own dang children opening the door while the puppy has finally picked a spot to use the loo only for the puppy to stop production and run over to them….sigh…so if your pup is getting easily distracted, stick with the program and have patience. Don’t take it as a cue as “oh I guess they don’t need to go!” and then they go find a quiet place in the house to finish what they (almost) started.

-          Finally: every accident in the house is human error. No way around it so get off your pedestal, Sugar. Love youuuu!

It’s hard, it’s a pain in the ass, and it’s a long road BUT they do eventually get it the kinder and more patient we are. Remember: dogs don’t understand the value of our homes and they don’t care how expensive the rug is. It’s up to us to teach them our expectations.