glenmar
Posted : 7/19/2006 7:55:16 AM
I potty train whole litters at a time, so this always leaves me scratching my head...it's just one puppy! [

][

]
First thing in the morning, outside with "lets go OUTSIDE and go POTTY", then breakfast, then "lets go OUTSIDE and go POTTY" (followed of course by HUGE praise for "GOOOOOOOOOD potty", then watch them like a hawk while they run and play in their easily cleaned area. Someone starts to squat, scoop 'em up in a towel to keep you dry..."unh uh, we go OUTSIDE to go POTTY", rush outside, place pup on ground, "OUTSIDE is where we go POTTY....go POTTY".....lots of praise again. Now I'm fortunate enough that any place NEAR me is considered prime real estate to my foster pups and if anyone gets up and starts moving around, well, I know s/he has gotta go.
My setup with a litter is a GIANT crate with an attached exercise pen. The crate itself is for bedding, the FAR end of the ex pen has puppy pads. When I can't watch them and give them 100% of my attention, they go into the crate/pen. The second I open that thing up, it's OUTSIDE to go POTTY.
Pups are fairly predicatable about when they are gonna have to go...first thing after waking, after eating/drinking, after play. Start with those times, use the phrase that you've chosen (and believe me, I learned with one litter that I couldn't just say "lets go potty, cuz they would, right then and there! It had to be OUTSIDE to go potty!) and fill in every hour or so with a potty trip. Be sure that you allow time to play AFTER pottying so the pup doesn't think that outside is only for potty and gee, if I pee, I'll have to go back inside. With ONE pup, you can take her out on a leash and release her AFTER she potties.
NO means absolutely nothing to a dog. And it doesn't tell her what you want her to do. It's just a word, and remember, they don't speak or understand English, nor do you speak dog.
I had a foster who came back....left my home potty trained but the woman insisted that he flat out would not potty train. He came back after TWO months away and had all of ONE accident in my house.....and that one was my fault. I said "unh uh...did you forget we go OUTSIDE to go POTTY?".....very calmly, very matter of factly and he has NEVER made another mistake in the house.
Hitting isn't going to work.....it's only going to teach your pup that you are unreliable and unreasonably angry.....to him you are....he's gotta pee and doesn't KNOW where it's ok to pee.