There are many myths and urban legends surrounding house training on the Internet. Many involve potentially damaging ideas like correcting/punishing a puppy for an indoor elimination when they have no idea what it is we want (and damages the trust between us), or teaching a puppy to use a pee pad inside the house which then has to be un-taught when they won’t stop using your bathmat to do their business.
The longer the Internet is around, the more frustration about this issue I encounter.
I’ve worked with many clients whose adult dogs have eliminated indoors for years largely because their humans tried every well-meaning bit of advice haphazardly and ultimately gave up.
House training a puppy or dog to eliminate outside is FAR easier on them than teaching them it’s OK to eliminate inside but only on an absorbent pad.
A yard isn’t mandatory for outdoor house training. A balcony or patio with a grass pad works beautifully. Not to mention the convenience of not having to go outside overnight during house training or when it’s raining.
The easier house training is on people, the more likely they’ll stick to a plan. The closer you stick to a plan, the faster you’ll have a house trained pup.
Beyond the location of where you want your pup to eliminate, house training requires 3 things to succeed: consistency, confinement and realistic expectations.
It’s not realistic to expect a puppy or dog to not eliminate for 6 or more hours during the day.
It’s not possible to house train a puppy who has free range indoors. Confinement is key to house training because puppies learn early on from to not soil the place they sleep in from their mothers.
You don’t have to use a crate for this. Pens and small rooms without a carpeted floor can accomplish the same thing. So can a leash.
It’s not reasonable to depend on a puppy to consistently signal their need to eliminate until after they’re house trained (no indoor elimination in 8 consecutive weeks).
Additional recommendations for successful house training:
*Establish a realistic schedule for trips to your puppy’s designated elimination area. Start with every 30 minutes when they’re awake, from day 1. Add 30 minutes per day (no more) until your puppy is consistently OK going 2 hours between potty breaks.
*Meals, naps, overnight sleeping and vigorous play stimulate the puppy’s need to eliminate. Take them outside immediately after meals and when they wake up, regardless of how long it’s been since their last elimination. Take them outside after no more than 10 minutes of vigorous play (or contain vigorous play to the outdoors for the first 2 weeks at least.
*If you have an outdoor space that can accommodate it, an elimination pen expedites house training significantly by keeping puppy focused on the task at hand, when you take them to the elimination location.
*An elimination pen teaches puppies to eliminate first, play and explore later. Puppies will often enter the area for this purpose voluntarily, after a week or so of consistent practice.
*Ignore your puppy when they’re in the elimination pen. Distraction is the primary reason puppies eliminate indoors just after not being productive during a potty break.
*Watch your puppy from the corner of your eye, so you can see eliminations happen.
*Keep your puppy in the pen however long it takes to achieve a successful outdoors elimination, in the first 2 weeks.
*The reward for eliminating outside is going inside. When elimination happens in the pen, open the door and head inside immediately.
*Avoid verbal praise. Allow the canine brain to focus. This contradicts a lot of internet dog trainer house training recommendations, I realize. It’s based on 20+ years of experience.
When I stopped exciting puppies with high energy verbal praise after a successful outdoor elimination, I began to see the training “stick” significantly faster.
*Play stimulates elimination. Chase, fetch, tug, and the flirt pole are good options for expediting eliminations.
*Begin play only after your pup has had time to do their business (10 minutes is my recommendation).
*Play with your puppy in the elimination pen so they don’t habituate going all over your yard.
*Our patience helps puppies and relax and focus. Verbal pressure frequently delays elimination.
Puppies in my programs are typically house trained 2 weeks from the start, when their people follow the protocols consistently.
If you’re struggling with house training at any stage, I can help.
If you want to get house training right from the day your puppy arrives, I can help.
Drop me a description of where you are in your puppy journey, and what’s your biggest struggle right now.
Dee Green has been a professional dog trainer and canine behavior consultant for more than 20 years. She specializes in puppies up to 18 months, and fearful, anxious and reactive dogs of all ages.
©️Dee Green, 2023