Indicating Potty Needs

by Heidi Atwood

Accidents happen! However, house training and the prevention of accidents are our top concerns when we bring a new puppy home. The transition to a new home, new people, and a new potty spot can cause a lot of confusion regarding house training. Many breeders keep the puppies in a large pen with a potty area that the puppies learn to use anytime they need to go. As a former breeder, I know that there is not enough time in the day to individually potty train a litter of puppies, so it is up to the new owners/handlers to establish a potty schedule and help the puppy learn to “hold it” longer and longer between potty breaks, in a gradual way. 

It takes time for a puppy to learn how to let us know that they need to go, and also to learn that they CAN let us know. Until then, we need to pay close attention to their body language and follow the potty schedule closely until they can reliably let us know every time. There is a house training checklist in the “Printables” section of our website that helps keep track of potty successes and even accidents, so that we can figure out a schedule that works. There are also apps for that (of course!), and these tools can send notifications to let you know that it’s time to take the puppy for a potty break. 

If you see your puppy gravitating toward the door to the potty area, sniffing the floor, circling, or looking for a rug, carpet, or other soft surface, offer a potty break. They may eventually whine a bit or let out a little woof to indicate their needs, but don’t expect this to happen right away. Quite often, the puppy’s need is immediate, especially when they wake up. Until they gain more bladder control, I will scoop the puppy up and carry them directly to the potty spot to prevent them from having an accident along the way.

Many puppy handlers have great success with potty bells. It’s important to understand that this method takes some time and repetition (and a lot of patience on our part!) for the puppy to understand that the bells = potty. By hanging bells by the door to the potty area, you will be able to ring them and encourage the puppy to touch and ring them every time you take them out for a potty break, so that they start to make the association that the bells ring, the door opens, and the potty break happens. If the puppy has the freedom to play with the bells, or ring them just to go out to play, you may need to remove access to them after the potty break, and remember to make them available as the next potty break approaches. Until your puppy is reliably going to the potty bells every time and is not having accidents, it will be important to continue to use their potty schedule. 

I realize that over the years, potty training was a bit easier at my house because I have always had adult dogs when my puppies were learning. The puppies learned to go to the door leading to the backyard fenced area by simply following the adult dogs. If I didn’t notice the puppy at the door, they have eventually learned to come to me and give me a look that I recognize, and maybe a little bit of dancing around to get my attention. 

The surface that a puppy is accustomed to using for potty breaks can vary from a litter pan with wood pellets, a turf area, potty pads, a grass patch, or the outdoor environment, which can also vary between grass, gravel, mulch, or even concrete. It’s best to check with your vet for their opinion on your puppy’s safety in the outside environment, based on their vaccination schedule. 

What if you need to start with an indoor potty area, and then transition to the outdoors once your puppy is fully vaccinated? 

By taking the puppy to the potty area on a schedule without giving them free access, you can prepare them for going on a schedule when they are ready to go outside. During the transition to the outside, take them to the potty area on a leash when you know they urgently need to go, such as first thing in the morning, and reward and praise them for going in the designated area. Keep the potty breaks quite short, just 1-3 minutes, and if the puppy becomes too distracted to go, or to fully finish, return them to the crate or keep them close to you on a leash to prevent accidents, and then repeat the potty break in a few minutes. Reward the puppy heavily when they get the business done shortly after getting to the designated area. This helps create a life-long habit of getting the potty break done quickly, which is helpful during times of “unpleasant” weather or if you don’t have much time to offer a potty break. I, for one, don’t want to be outside in a blizzard for 30 minutes, waiting for a puppy to pee!

You can also try to mimic the potty area the puppy is currently using by taking a pad, piece of turf, or even the litter box to the outside environment as a temporary way to help the puppy make the connection that this is the best place to go, making the transition a bit easier. 

Some puppies tend to become distracted very easily by our attention and the expectation of rewards after pottying. For this reason, I like to watch out of the corner of my eye so that I don’t interrupt the process. I hold off on the congratulations and rewards until I know they have fully finished. Some smart puppies will even learn to go several times to earn multiple rewards, so be sure you are not offering attention or rewards until you are sure they are done. Once your puppy is going reliably in the potty spot, you can phase out the rewards by using great praise and positive attention, such as a belly/chest rub or the reward of playing and exploring outside, after the successful potty break. 

By paying close attention to your puppy’s house training schedule, you will be able to notice patterns and figure out when the puppy might need more frequent trips to the potty area. For example, looking back at yesterday’s schedule, you may realize that your puppy might need to go more frequently throughout the morning hours, because they have been eating, playing, and drinking more water than at other times of day. It’s always a good idea to take them right to the potty spot just after meals, before and after play, when coming out of the crate after a nap, and before allowing short periods of supervised freedom in your home, especially in a new area. 

Start by offering frequent short potty breaks, with the idea that you will gradually be able to increase the length of time between them. Your puppy’s ability to “hold it” longer will increase as they grow and learn to control their bodies. Sometimes bowel movements need a little bit of exercise to “get things going”, but you don’t need to let your puppy run around for this. You can simply walk them around the potty spot on a leash to see if that helps, limit their freedom if they don’t go, and then try again.

Help your puppy learn that it is always rewarding to go potty in the proper place. You may want to reserve a “better” reward for this. I like to train primarily with my puppy’s own kibble, but for house training, exposure to public places such as the vet’s office, or during more challenging training, I will bring out the good stuff! This can be just tiny pieces of higher-value rewards, such as freeze-dried meats, bits of turkey or string cheese, or whatever dog-friendly food your puppy considers a great reward. 

Accidents are a normal part of house training, but we want to prevent them when possible. I like to depend on the crate as a safe spot where a puppy is unlikely to have an accident, especially as the next potty break approaches. Offering several crate sessions throughout the day will also help encourage the rest that a growing puppy requires, which is generally 16-18 hours of sleep in 24 hours. I will then offer a bit more freedom in an exercise pen or supervised area just after a successful potty break. Puppies would rather not soil their own resting area, so be sure the crate doesn’t allow extra room to have an accident and then move away from it. Many crates come with dividers that help limit space when a puppy is learning about house training, and then we can make the crate space larger when they are no longer likely to have an accident. 

Prevent access to carpets, rugs, and other absorbent materials, which puppies often consider appropriate places to “hide” an accident. Some puppies can’t handle bedding in their crate at first, and that’s ok! They don’t seem to mind snoozing on the cool, smooth surface of a crate, and they can have soft bedding when they are no longer having accidents. Be cautious of your puppy learning to go potty only on walks, as this can become a habit that may be hard to break at times. Some puppies will learn to go in their own yard, and then hesitate to go anywhere else. Teach your puppy first to go close to their home, and then expand their horizons and help them learn that any outdoor surface that you take them to will do!

We talk about potty habits a lot here at BAXTER and Bella because this is a subject that is important to successfully figure out early in your puppy’s transition to your home, to help establish great long-term potty habits. Doing the hard work early on is well worth the success you will enjoy in the future.