Potty Training: Simple, But Not Easy.

Potty Training: Simple, But Not Easy. Potty training is simple, and it is. You take them outside CONSTANTLY, and you walk around with them and you watch them. And when they pee, you praise and give them a treat. Then you can bring them inside for about five minutes of scrutiny-free time and breakfast. But right after breakfast, you are all outside again, walking around, looking for that poop! And when that happens, you praise and give them a treat, and then you can bring them inside again, for maybe 10-15 minutes of scrutiny-free time, before you need to go out again for another pee. You take them out after every nap. You take them out after every meal. You take them out after every play session ends. You take them out if it’s been more than 15 minutes since they last "went"! Simple! Not easy! And what if they don’t “go”? Well, the smart thing to do is to pop them into a crate, because very few puppies will potty in a crate, so you can make sure that they don’t have a chance to “make a mistake” and pee or poop indoors, where you don’t want them to while you are not paying attention. It is not possible to watch them every minute, even while sheltering in place! And if they potty in the house (or in your home office), they have just effectively been reinforced for doing so; it feels good to relieve the fullness of your bladder! And every mistake seems to build on itself; it’s far easier to just make darn sure a mistake doesn’t happen. In my experience, if you can get through three days of not letting them make even ONE mistake indoors, you’re pretty much home free with the potty training. They will want to go outdoors to potty and get right to business when you take them outside.