Although there are so many different ways to potty train a puppy. It is very difficult to find one that suit your pup's need and fits your life style.
"A Simpler Method for Indoor Potty Training"
This method is like making a deluxe crate = a better larger crate with a bathroom in it .( the potty room)
This way your new dog won't go all over the house at the beginning while he/ she is still learning to master it's potty training skill.
Using a traditional crate will be too hard for people who go to work 8 - 5 daily and for puppy that is still too small to hold their pee for 7 -9 hours)
This method I created is proven to be VERY SIMPLE for ANY pups to understand. It even works for older untrained dogs, house with multiple dogs like mine, or hyper pups who can't focus.
It also works for busy owners and family with children who likes to keep the house clean & urine- free.
* You really must START THE POTTY TRAINING STEPS BEFORE YOU BRING YOUR DOG HOME. Yes, that's right !
What that means is, before you bring your new dog home, you must :
- Get a GATE / PLAYPEN with panels to sectioned your home/ make boundaries for your new dog.
Your house is too big and foreign for the new dog and it needs your help to make it simpler for him/ her using gates / playpen.
*In my video, I use a Small Animal Playpen (Large size),
brand: All living things, available in Petsmart for $41
- Choose a specific area for them to go potty ( although this method was designed for indoor potty training ,
I recommend using outdoor potty training for bigger dog)
- Pick a less traffic area. On the corner of a room, in a spare living room, etc. Remember .. this area will be permanent ! Your dog will always go to that same area,
so .. choose the area very carefully and calculate the pros and cons in choosing it.
* Use the playpen/ panels gate and make a potty room with pee pee pads on one side and bed, water, food, toys on the other side, separate from the pee pee pads.
(Don't forget to put the OPENING of your gate on the bed's side, NOT on the potty side, this is to avoid any mess ! Because your dog will come and greet you at the opening, and we don't want him/ her to step on his urine or stool)
NOW it's time for PUPPY / NEW DOG TO COME HOME !!
- Put him / her inside the potty room right away, leave him/ her there for 1 hour to settle down. Your new dog most likely WILL pee or poop on the pee pee pads inside the potty room. Praise & Treat !
and now you can let him/ her out to roam the house for 1 hour (and NOPE !! your new dog is NOT potty trained yet. But it already started to learn)
- Then ask pup to "go potty again after 1 hour, walk him to the potty room, enclosed gate, and tell him to "go potty".
If pup doesn't go, leave pup in there for half an hour to 45 min or until it goes potty. If pup falls a sleep, then just let pup rest for a while. Once it wakes up, ask again to "go potty" (dog usually go potty approx. 5 to 20 min after nap)
- Write down pup's potty times. You will notice how often your pup goes potty, some pups go every 1 hour or 2.
- Now watch your dog's potty / poop routines for 1 day (how soon after meal he/she goes pee, how soon after nap, how often it goes to the bathroom to pee or poop in a day, etc. This sounds complicated, but it is pretty simple).
- WRITE THEM DOWN as a POTTY SCHEDULE (this is for you so you don't forget)
-Because pup can't go in the potty room on their own yet, at the beginning you have to ask your dog to "go potty" according to the potty schedule.
- Ask your pup to go in the gated area and close the gate.
- When pup did go potty, Praise and Treat everytime, then you can let pup out. Try not to open the gate too soon.
- Repeat the word "go potty" several times if pup refuse to pee/ poop then leave them alone in the potty room.
- Come back to check on pup & don't stare.
Do not yell / hit, this is not a punishment room !
-Repeat steps according to potty schedule and eventually they will go in and out without being asked (and on demands).
-Once they can go in and out by them self, you can remove the gate. ( they still will have that gate in their mind), and they will go there by themselves.
I let the dog sleep in the crate at night until he/ she is potty trained.
* Remember my method will work for sure, but it can not be compromised !
If the new owners are NOT as committed ( no gate, forget to open the door to let them in / out, have no daily schedule, etc) some pups will never be potty trained forever. It's NOT because they can not do it nor because they are bad pups, but because they don't get enough help and they become very confuse of what they should do.
It's never just the dog's fault ! You have to be responsible dog's owner and commit 100% to help your dog learn this important skill.
I wish you and your pup the best !