Potty Training Methods

[Princess Zoe]

Hi All
I was wondering if anyone has a wonderful technique for potty training. I feel like I chase my 2 puppies around all day making sure they aren't going potty in my house. I read of a technique where you put a leash around your waist and then hook it to your pup... then you are pretty much tied together all the time. They go with you from room to room, and you can watch for signs of needing to go potty, and can take them outside. It works pretty well so far. Any other ideas about quick potty training? Do treats work well? How can I get them to "tell" me when they need to go? Thanks so much for any suggestions! I'm attaching a few pictures of my babies that I took today. My little chihuahua's name is Pixie... she is 12 wks. old, and Zoe is almost 5 mths. on Nov. 1st. Aren't they cute!? They LOVE LOVE LOVE each other!

[YorkieShadow]

AWW I love the pictures . they are so cute.

[chloeandj]

They are adorable!!! Those first few months are tough aren't they? You are probably doing everything just right, they just need a little more time. I posted a thread about my Tinkerbell today, I taught her to scratch the door when she wants out, works very well. She is nine months old and just now has it down.

[SoCalyorkiLvr]

Yeah...I read that too and I think it works....I think the main things are time and consistency and patience.

[twnty_yrs_later]

i must say your girls are gorgeous!

so far with Crunchy i've been putting him in the bathroom to do his business before i go to bed, when we wake up in the morning, and various times throughout the day ...its funny b/c he wont go if im in there, he has to be in there by himself and once hes done hes sure to let me know! barking and howling. hes pretty much caught on that there has to be something on the paper before he can come out. i always wondered about ppl who got their pups to potty on command and i must say im liking this method especially since i cant really take him outside to go since i live in apts on the 3rd floor!

[FirstYorkie]

Originally Posted by Princess Zoe

Hi All
I was wondering if anyone has a wonderful technique for potty training. I feel like I chase my 2 puppies around all day making sure they aren't going potty in my house. I read of a technique where you put a leash around your waist and then hook it to your pup... then you are pretty much tied together all the time. They go with you from room to room, and you can watch for signs of needing to go potty, and can take them outside. It works pretty well so far. Any other ideas about quick potty training? Do treats work well? How can I get them to "tell" me when they need to go? Thanks so much for any suggestions! I'm attaching a few pictures of my babies that I took today. My little chihuahua's name is Pixie... she is 12 wks. old, and Zoe is almost 5 mths. on Nov. 1st. Aren't they cute!? They LOVE LOVE LOVE each other!

Oh, bless you, training 2 at once must be tough!

I think you are on the right track. It takes time and patience! I use high value treats (tiny pieces of cheese or meat) for pottying outside and act really excited when Joey goes outside and praise him heavily. Until I was sure he understood it, I said softly "go potty" every time he was in the act of doing it outside. He now understands the command. Once he started getting it right, I started going back in if he hadn't gone in a minute or two. He can stay out longer, but he doesn't get the treat for going. As a result, he will usually go on "command".

My favorite way of having a dog tell me that he needs to go is to tie a bell on the door that he goes out to potty. It will ring naturally every time you go in and out, and it doesn't take long for them to understand that bell ringing = trip outside. I don't want my back door scratched up so I don't teach them to scratch it. Your choice, though, of course!

Good luck!

PS Crate-training is supposed to speed up the process.