What are some tricks/tips for potty-training a puppy?
I have a 8-week old puppy, and she keeps pooping in the house. I don’t want to have to get rid of her, but it’s getting really old. We’ve had her for 2 weeks, and I am totally sick of picking up crap!
She is a mix. The mom is a pit bull/lab mix, the dad is a bulldog.
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Potty training a puppy | Estella | 
July 17, 2010 8:24 pm
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By crazypranks, July 17, 2010 @ 8:24 pm
I would reccomend crate training this helped so much! You can research it online, the best thing to do is take them to potty is 10 minutes after they eat , drink, play and wake from a nap. When you take your pup outside say go potty, make potty over and over again, when your pup goes prais her like crazy and take her back inside. She will soon learn that when she makes potty outside she gets praised and gets to go back in the house. and when crate training, when ever you cant physically keep an eye on your pup, put her in her crate, she will avoid messing in her "den" at all costs. When you can watch her again take her out of her crate and take her out side to potty again. when she goes bring her back in. If you do this with out letting her mess inside it will cut your potty training time by more than half.
By S S, July 17, 2010 @ 8:24 pm
Taking them potty after the eat or drink after they nap or play vigorously
By kayanbean24, July 17, 2010 @ 8:24 pm
bring him outside like every 2 hrs and when ur not home pop him in the crate it worked for my puppy
By r6xtc, July 17, 2010 @ 8:24 pm
i take the dog, and put his/her nose close to the poop and a little smack on the nose, i do it several times.
small dogs are the stupidest and hard to train so depends on what breed also
By Holly S, July 17, 2010 @ 8:24 pm
You can buy Puppy Pads, They work. Bring it outside right after it eats and right when it wakes up. You can also try Kennel Training. If you get a small kennel to keep it in when your not home or when you are too busy to watch him. Only big enough for him to sleep him, and he will learn to hold it because they usually don’t like to mess where they sleep.
By JD, July 17, 2010 @ 8:24 pm
you got a puppy. they are just like human babies. they don’t get potty trained right away. remember, this is a very young (baby!) animal with perhaps a small attention span and definitely a small bladder. patience is a necessity. and consistency. and remember that a puppy is going to have to go to the bathroom a lot more times than an adult dog. please don’t make the mistake of getting rid of a darling animal because you did not educate yourself well enough in advance. keep the dog in an enclosed space that is easily cleanable, like your kitchen, or a utility room, and keep a constant eye on them so that you can apprehend them and scold them as soon as they begin to try to go in the house. and take them out immediately when they do, then praise them liberally when they go where they are supposed to. they’ll get the idea eventually. really, it takes time. a lot of time.
By andi3693, July 17, 2010 @ 8:24 pm
there is nothing you can do except take the puppy out ALL the time, I have an 11 week old mini doxie and that works for me. If she is out and about in the house watch her, and as soon as she starts acting funny… aka sniffing around, take her out. After a few months, if you keep this up, the eventually get the hint that the grass is where they are supposed to go to the bathroom, but you must be diligent
By anapapolo, July 17, 2010 @ 8:24 pm
simple. if the dog gets the poop out in the house, immediately pick the pup up, show it the poop closely (don’t actually shove it’s nose in it), and take the pup outside to the lawn and leave him there for a bit. if you catch him in the act, immediately pick him up and follow the same procedure. shouldn’t take more than a couple days. dogs have an instinctual desire to not poop in their dens. attach words such as ‘no’ and ‘good boy’ at the appropriate times and mean it.
By cincywahine, July 17, 2010 @ 8:24 pm
Ok I just went through this with my puppy.
Get a kennel…or a carrier if she/he is that small…that’s what we used.
Put her in the kennel/carrier and make her stay in there for about 1 hour. AS SOON as you let her out…take her outside…when she goes…make a HUGE deal of it like she jsut did the greatest thing in the world…treats and all…if she doesn’t go…put her back in the kennel for another hour and try again….
once she goes…let her play around the house…eat…whatever she wants for about 1/2 hour…then back int he kennel…
after an hour or so start the whole process over…
This is VERY time consuming and sometime frustrating…but she IS a baby and she doesn’t know any better.
NEVER HIT HER….no matter what the reason…NEVER HIT HER…
If you do exactly what I told you…she will be potty trained in NO time!!!
Babies are time consuming…sorry!
By txharleygirl1, July 17, 2010 @ 8:24 pm
I agree picking up crap is a pain. I got my chihuahua puppy at 6 weeks old. My other dogs were 6 weeks old too. My chihuahua
is 8 weeks old now and Im beginning housebreaking.
The method I used on all my dogs works great and usually suceeds in less than a week.
Pick a day to start when you can be with the puppy ALL the time.
When you catch it going to the bathroom. Quickly catch it by the skin on the back of its neck, tug upward with a little shake while saying loudly "NO NO BAD DOG" Carry the puppy by the skin on the back of the neck outside. Put the puppy down where you want it to go. Stay with it and watch. (This may take awhile.)
When it goes, pick it up and pet it and praise it. Take it back inside. Repeat as needed.
Eventually the dog will whine or bark at the door to go out.
The reason this method works so well is that, in nature the mother dog picks up her puppies by the neck like that to discipline them.
By irish/german chick, July 17, 2010 @ 8:24 pm
don’t even think about giving her away! I just got a puppy last year and I went through the same thing. Start by taking her/him out on the leash until it goes. Give LOTS of praise (you know, "oh what a good girl you are!!!") Praise works best if you do it in a stupid voice. DO NOT forget to give it a treat. Oh, and while it "goes" say, "go potty" or "hurry up". This will teach it to relieve itself on command. repeat this every time it goes out for the next month or so and he/she will get the point. I don’t even have to take my pup out on a leash anymore! I just open the door and she does her stuff.
Oh, and when I was Potty training my dog, she ate her own poo and I had to fish it out of her mouth at 4:00 AM. Not nice!
By teresa s, July 17, 2010 @ 8:24 pm
Unless you are paying attention to your puppy, he should be in a crate. I firmly believe in crate training.
That said, when you are not sleeping or at work, you should be able to keep an eye on pup, right?
When she eats and drinks, take her out.
When she sniffs around, take her out.
When you let her out of the crate, take her out.
When you are about to put her into her crate, take her out.
if it’s been a little while since you’ve taken her out, then take her out!
It that fails, keep her on a leash when she’s not in her crate. This way she’ll be tuned in to the fact that you are in charge at all times.
Also, when you take her out, and she looks like she’ll go potty or poop, say "go potty." And if she does, say "Good dog" with enthusiasm, and give treats or attention. Eventually she will know what "go potty" means and she will be able to (mostly) go when you want her to.
Don’t rub her nose in poop. Dogs can’t really understand that what they did 5 minutes ago will result in punishment/reward. They understand best if it’s immediate, but even then, punishing for peeing or pooping in the house only confuses the animal. Praise for what she SHOULD do.
Good luck!
By smurf, July 17, 2010 @ 8:24 pm
First off a 2 month old puppy can on average hold it’s bowel/bladder for two hours… so have patience..it’s just a baby. and picking up crap is part of owning a dog whether it goes indoors or out.
To potty train..put body harness and 5-6 foot leash on the dog. Tie leash to ytour belt whenever the dog is not in crate (hopefully you’re crate training too). With the dog tied to you, you’ll be forced to watch it… and you’ll see when it signals/circles/scratches/sniffs that it has to go. Immediately walk the dog to it’s designated potty area and give the command word (to be used consistently), give lots of praise and when completed treat immediately (make sure you have them in your pocket all the time).
All dog owners should have on hand a good cleaner designed to break down enzymes to clean up messes. Not just an ordinary household cleaner that cleans up visible signs of a mess. I use Orange TKO (or Nature’s Miracle for dogs).
But most important…have patience…owning an animal will require that always.