There are a few secrets to toilet training although much of
the emphasis will always rest with you! Here are the facts about puppy toilet
training:
Just as when a baby needs to go toilet they go, so it is
with puppies - when a puppy needs to go they will go! So to start with you have
to get them outside before they toilet inside. That is your job! If you fail,
then blame yourself.
The best way to show your puppy where you want them to
toilet is to show them the correct place. The best way to do this is to take
them out when they need to go and then praise them when they go. You will be
amazed how quickly they will learn if you give them an amazing treat for going
in the right place. Think of it like this if the treat is a little piece of
cheese, your puppy will after only a few toilets in the correct place start
looking for the cheese treat saying “Hey where’s the cheese I just toileted on
the grass!”
At a very young age 8 weeks or so a puppies bladder is very
small and they can only hold on for sometimes 30 minutes or so before they may
need to go again. So you must be vigilant.
After a meal, puppies will often need to go within 60
seconds so always take them straight outside. You should also take them outside
as soon as they wake up, as their bowls will start to move and also last thing
at night.
Associate a word that everyone in the house sticks to such
as “go toilets” this way your puppy will start to hear the word and know what
it means.
If you puppy does not go then be aware that they may still
need to relieve themselves soon and restrict their movement to a smaller area
that is easy to clean until they are taken outside and definitely toilet.
You should never rub a puppy’s nose in it to teach it a
lesson. A puppy’s nose is 1000 times more sensitive than a humans and this will
never teach them not to do it again. They will simply not know what they did
wrong and do it out of sight the next time such as behind the couch!
