When you finally bring your pup home, the first thing you think about is housetraining. However, it is not a walk in the park, rather a time-consuming activity. You should begin potty training immediately you bring him home. Below, we are going to look at the most common puppy potty training problems.
These potty training could be as a result of human error. Other times, your puppy won’t train because of medical infections.
Human reasons for puppy potty training problems
When your pup won’t potty train, it could be that you are doing something wrong. Well, it takes time to fully house train your dog. You must adapt the best practices for effective puppy potty training. We are going to look at the puppy potty training problems that may be our fault.
Failure to take your puppy outside
During puppy training, you need to be with your pup at all times. You will need to schedule hourly potty breaks as your puppy has not learned how to hold it yet. A puppy might need to pee every other hour. Before you can get used to it, you might need to watch out for any signs that he needs to pee or poop.
Invest in the right size of a crate. A puppy will not soil the same place he eats and sleeps. He is going to try and hold it but only for a short time. Therefore, you need to set your alarm in case you forget. When you fail to take him out often, you will have to deal with house soiling.
Scheduling playtime before and after potty breaks
When you take your pup out for a potty break, do not engage in a pleasurable activity. Wait for him to finish his business and get back inside immediately. When you play with him right after a potty break, it is only going to confuse your dog.
Play sessions should be quite apart from potty break. Consider playing with him in a different place from the potty area. Dogs can be very specific and anything less is just confusing. Use different doors for different reasons. For instance, if your pup’s potty place is in the backyard, you could probably use the backdoor.
On the other hand, when you want to play with him, you can take him to the front lawn. This way, your pup is going to be able to associate both routes with respective activities.
Forgetting to take your pup out after every meal
Most new puppy owners forget to take their puppies out for a potty break after each meal. Well, understand that a puppy will have the urge to eliminate right after each meal. Give your puppy about 15 minutes after each meal before you take him to the potty area.
Also, you must watch out for the signs that your dog wants to eliminate. These may include circling in the crate, sniffing and scratching the door. Take him outside should you spot these signs.
Do not forget to also lead him to the potty area immediately you let him out of the crate and in the morning.
Punishing your puppy
While you want your puppy to eliminate appropriately, punishing him is a major setback. This is because your puppy does not understand the concept of punishment. Therefore, when he messes up and soils the house, refrain from yelling at your pup.
When you punish your dog, he might not pee or poop in the house when you are watching. Instead, he might start going to other secluded places in the house. In the end, you might think that you have trained your pup but you haven’t. It leads to incomplete potty training.
Failure to clean up accidents immediately
While potty training your pup, there are going to be accidents. You must clean up these accidents immediately. Use enzymatic cleaners to ensure that the area is completely clean. The accident spot needs to be free of poop or pee smell and stain.
When you leave it unclean, your dog might pick the smell. He might poop or pee on the same spot since he went there the last time. Therefore, clean up the accidents correctly and immediately.
Inconsistency in potty training
There is a reason why we always insist on being consistent when potty training. It is going to be difficult for your dog to comprehend what you need him to do. Remain consistent with your established schedule.
It means that you feed your puppy at the same time every day. You will be able to predict the time he is likely to eliminate. As we have mentioned above, ensure that you take your pup out for a potty break when he wakes up. Also, right before bedtime, take him outside to potty. This will ensure that he does not soil the house or his bed when you are asleep.
Remain consistent with every activity with your pup.
Failure to use rewards
Dogs have a way to associate their behaviors with certain outcomes. Well, if you want to potty train your puppy effectively, then you must associate potty breaks with a positive outcome. Sometimes, stubborn puppies refuse to potty even when you take them outside.
Use one of the highly nutritious treats to reinforce training. Alternatively, you can use verbal praise to encourage your puppy to eliminate appropriately. Your puppy is always going to look forward to the potty breaks.
Failure to supervise your pup
When you bring a new puppy home, you must supervise him at all times. You may want to take a couple of days off to ensure that he settles fine in the house. Now, you must supervise your new puppy to make sure that he does not soil the house.
Ensure that he is in the crate, especially when you are starting out. He needs to feel safe in his crate as he is going to spend most of his time there. Accompany him to the potty area every time and never leave him on his own.
If you are not using the crate method, ensure that you can see your puppy at all times. To do so, you can tether a leash on his and to you. This way, you will always know where your puppy is. If you are leaving the house to run a few errands, put him in the crate. However, you must not leave him in there for too long.
Allowing your untrained pup to your carpets
Allowing your puppy to access the carpet or your bed might sound like a good idea. However, it is particularly a bad idea. Your untrained pup should actually stay in confinement. Restrict his access to other parts of the house.
Some dogs will choose to potty on the carpets because it has a soft feel. In other cases, if your puppy was initially introduced to toilet training on a blanket, especially for rescue puppies, he might choose to go on your carpets.
Also, consider restricting his access to other rooms. This will minimize the chances of house soiling.
Medical reasons
In some cases, your puppy won’t potty train because he is ill. While some puppies are born ill, others develop certain illnesses that lead to incontinence and inability to eliminate appropriately. These illnesses may include the following:
- Bladder inflammation
- Kidney stones
- Patent urachus
- Liver disease
- Intestinal parasites
- Inflamed pancreas
- Pancreas enzymes deficiency
You may need to visit your vet for a checkup if your puppy won’t potty train at all. The vet will be able to examine and run tests on your dog for a conclusive diagnosis. Thereafter your vet will provide the best medications for your pup. You should not experience puppy potty training issues thereafter.
The do’s and don’ts of potty training
Puppy potty training is not always an easy task. However, it is necessary if at all you want to coexist with your pup under the same roof. Besides, you do not want a pup who keeps soiling your sofa and house, do you?
The following tips should help you solve puppy potty training problems;
- Do not punish your puppy for accidents. During puppy training, it is only normal for your puppy to have accidents sometimes. Clean it up as we have discussed above and get your pup back into his crate or confinement.
- Always reward your pup for good behavior. Carry a treat in your hand and only offer it to him after he has eliminated successfully. Your puppy will eventually associate potty breaks with a positive result. Thus, your puppy will always look forward to going to the potty area.
- When you find him eliminating inappropriately, clap your hands. This will make him understand that it is not acceptable. Also, lead him outside to the potty place to finish his business. Always ensure that you have a leash on him when taking him outside.
- Do not leave him outside on his own. When you take your pup outside, you might be tempted to go back and leave him to finish his business. Do not leave him under no circumstances. He might get distracted and end up not eliminating at all. Always wait up until he is done and then you can go back inside.
- Avoid using a crate if your puppy is pooping in there. Well, some puppies, especially rescue puppies tend to eliminate in their kennels. For that reason, your puppy may not understand that he is not supposed to eliminate in the crate. If so, stop using the crate and adopt another training method e.g. paper pads.
- Provide clean water for the puppy especially if you are leaving him in a crate. This way, you will be sure that he stays hydrated while you are gone. However, do not leave him on his own for too long. He may need to eliminate and since he cannot hold it for too long he will do it in the crate.
- Do not overfeed your puppy. In normal circumstances, you should feed your puppy 3-4 times a day. The amount and frequency of feeding may vary as your puppy grows bigger and older.
In conclusion
Puppy potty training is not always as easy as it may sound. It needs patience and consistency to fully potty train a puppy. The above-discussed setbacks are the major puppy potty training problems. Using the tips we have discussed above should help you house train your puppy completely.
