Consistency and diligence are the most important factors in teaching your puppy to potty outside.   We’ve already covered the typical life of a puppy – sleeping, eating, drinking, playing, eliminating, and putting things in their mouth.

The first four months of life are extremely important to teaching him to potty outside.   I do not advise total paper training because it tends to confuse the puppy about it being OK to eliminate in the house.

I prefer a direct house training method, which requires you to be nearby to supervise and reward good habits from the beginning.   You have to be able to take the puppy to the same place outside and reward his behavior as he eliminates appropriately.   This is extremely time intensive; it usually takes 4-6 weeks starting at 8-10 weeks old.

Your puppy especially needs to go out after napping and eating.   You may need to take young puppies out hourly during the day, when they are playing and drinking a lot.

Take him to the same area each time and be sure not to distract him once he starts sniffing, other than to say his name and “Go tinkle” (or whatever cue word you want to use).   Once he begins to eliminate begin praising him in a soft, quiet voice; and then be extremely enthusiastic once he has completed his business.

Immediate encouragement is necessary for your pup to learn to eliminate in an acceptable area.

The biggest thing to remember is that accidents will happen!   Puppies don’t really get reliable control of their bladder until they’re about 6 months old.   Punishment for going in the wrong place will not speed up the process, and will cause more problems than it solves. The last thing you want is for the puppy to associate pottying in front of you with punishment, as this will cause him to “hold it” when you take him out, and then relieve himself inside once your back is turned.

The best thing to do is give him frequent opportunities to do the right thing, and reward him consistently for doing so.   When, not if, he makes a mistake inside, simply clean it up and remember to take him out more frequently in the future.

Another way to speed up house training, and prevent damage to your rugs, is to utilize a crate.   Next time we will go over the do’s and don’ts of crate training.