Robin and I were at a new Home Dog Training client in Ball Ground last week working with him and his new Miniature Pinscher (Min Pin) puppy named Waterloo.  This was his first puppy and he had a very long list of questions.  As always, were were excited to answer every one of them as well as go into a long review of what he needs to understand in order to be a great dog owner.  Being that Waterloo was only twelve weeks old and that he had just brought him home from the breeder two weeks ago, his number one concern was potty training.  He knew that all the obedience commands can come a little later; he was just tired of cleaning up all the accidents on his floor and carpets.  We explained that the number one concern of over 90% of our puppy clients was potty training.  We provided him with some great tips that he started to implement immediately. 

I hope you are paying attention because I am going to share one of my biggest potty training secrets.  It really is not a secret, because I teach it in my Potty Training lesson, but most people forget…

Please focus on what you are about to read, because this is going to be quick.  I always find two mistakes my clients make when the potty training is not going well.  Are you ready?  Here they come:

  • Water:  My clients leave their puppy’s water down too long.  You should always pick the water up the same time you pick the food up.  If you leave your puppy a full bowl of water all day long, you will never know when they drink and how much they drink.  This will not allow you to manage their water intake and determine when they should get outside to potty.  With that said, all puppies need extra water. I suggest leaving a small amount of water down (about one inch in the bowl). Monitor that water on a regular basis.  If the bowl is empty, put another inch of water in it. If you see your puppy is going to the bathroom, cut the water back by waiting before you put more water in the bowl.
  • Visibility:  ALWAYS keep your puppy in sight during your potty training period.  If you don’t keep him in sight, you will never see when and where he made an accident.  It is imperative that you know this because it is the only way you can make a logical decision regarding how to adjust his schedule to reach a potty trained puppy.  You can then create a plan to address this issue in the future.

I spend a whole lot of time talking about potty training with my clients, but when the “rubber hits the road” and here is where they fail.  Please take this to heart when you are potty training your puppy. 

Please call Robin or myself at (770) 718-7704 if you are in need of any dog training help.  We have a lot of good dog training advice at Best Dog Trainers Ball Ground Georgia.  Find all our phone numbers, text addresses and email contacts at Dog Training Help Center Ball Ground Georgia.