Puppy potty training is the bane of many new dog parents. That is why there are so many tutorials on how to housetrain a dog, with promises of how it can be simple and effortless.
The fact though, is that potty training requires time, patience, and consistency. How simple or difficult it is, will depend on our dog’s temperament and our own temperament.
Some dog breeds such as the Shiba Inu, are naturally clean and are relatively easy to housebreak. My Shiba was housebroken when we first got him at 10 weeks old.
Shiba Sephy does not even like to eliminate in our backyard. Instead, he prefers to wait until we go for a walk. In contrast, my second dog (a Siberian Husky), was more difficult to housetrain because she did not mind frolicking close to her own waste products.
It took a few weeks to housetrain her.
Puppy potty training also depends a lot on us. If we are naturally calm, consistent, and patient, housebreaking will seem easier and require less work.
Whatever the case, always remember that we can successfully housetrain a physically healthy dog, at whatever age (after the weaning off process), no matter the history.
And that is a potty training fact!
1. Set Up a Schedule
Puppy potty training begins, by setting up a schedule. Initially, we want to bring our dog out often, and reduce the chances of her making mistakes inside the house.
I observe my puppy closely, and try to identify patterns in her potty behavior. For example, she usually has to go when she wakes up, and after a bit of vigorous play. Therefore, I took her out after nap-time and after every 10-15 minutes of play. Different dogs may have different patterns depending on size, temperament, routine, and more.
I stop giving her water about 2-3 hours before sleep time, and take her out right before I crate her for the night. If I need to reward her during that time, I only use moist dog treats such as boiled chicken, so that she does not get thirsty from them.
Fact – Dogs learn through a process called conditioning. They repeat behaviors that get them good results and stop behaviors that get them bad results.
The more we reward a puppy for eliminating outside, the more she will repeat that behavior. When my puppy does her business in the backyard, I mark that behavior (Yes!). Once she finishes, I treat her with something special that she only gets for potty success, and give her some good affection. Then, I reward her more with play-time and her favorite activities.
Similarly, the more a puppy practices eliminating inside, on her own, the more she will go in the house. After all, it is convenient and nobody is teaching her that it is inappropriate behavior.
Therefore, we want to not only maximize the number of successes, but also minimize the number of mistakes. In this way, our puppy will learn that doing her business outside is extremely rewarding and fun. On the other hand, when she does it inside, she consistently gets interrupted and taken outside.
Myth – My dog cannot be housetrained because she comes from a stubborn breed, she is too stupid, she is too dominant, she doesn’t listen to me, she is too old, etc.
Any physically healthy dog can be housetrained. The key to potty training is patience and consistency. Always be around to supervise our puppy when she is inside. If I do not have the time to supervise, then I crate my puppy or put her in a long-term enclosure with puppy pads.
Myth: Screaming and hitting the dog will show her that I am boss and make her stop pottying inside the house.
Screaming and hitting a dog does not work well, and usually makes things worse. How well do you learn when somebody is screaming at you, or hitting you? It is the same way for a dog, especially a puppy.
The fastest way to housebreak our puppy, is to remain calm, and consistently let her know that going inside is inappropriate (Ack, ack), and going outside is appropriate (Yes).
2. Prevent Potty Mistakes
There are three ways to prevent mistakes inside the house:
a) Be there to supervise.
When our puppy shows signs that she has to go potty, take her outside right away. If I do not catch my puppy in time and she starts to do her business, then I interrupt her with a no-mark (Ack, ack) and take her outside.
Myth – I can potty train my puppy by rubbing her nose in it after the fact. She always looks sheepish and puts her head down when I shout at her. She knows she has done something wrong.
Dogs will only learn when we catch them in the act.
If we are not around and our dog makes a mistake, then we have missed a learning opportunity. All we can do is clean up the mess and move on. It is true that a dog may look sheepish when we shout at her after the fact. This is because she knows that we are upset, so she uses submissive gestures (e.g. putting her head down) to try and appease us.
The dog does not know what particular event has caused our anger, but just that we are angry. Shouting and rubbing a dog’s nose in her own waste does not teach her anything. All it does is confuse our dog, as well as create stress and fear. This can make things worse by causing submissive urination.
b) Crate train our dog.
Dogs do not generally like to soil where they sleep. Keeping our puppy in a crate can discourage her from pottying because she does not want to soil her sleeping area.
When I got my first dog, I was a bit concerned about crating him. Here is what the Humane Society of the United States and the American Dog Trainer’s Network have to say about crate training
Myth – A crate will magically keep my dog from pottying for any period of time.
The crate is not some magical cure. A crate discourages a dog from eliminating, but if a dog absolutely has to go, she has to go.
Keeping a puppy for too long in a crate, will force her to potty in the crate, possibly traumatize her, and greatly set back our potty training program.
The maximum crate time is dependent on the age of our puppy.
| Age | Maximum time in crate |
|---|---|
| 8–10 weeks | 30–60 minutes |
| 11–14 weeks | 1–3 hours |
| 15–16 weeks | 3–4 hours |
| 17+ weeks | 4–5 hours |
Maximum crate time from ASPCA Weekend Crate Training.
Note – this is just a general guideline for the maximum crate time. I usually take my puppy outside more frequently than that. I take her out as soon as she wakes up, and right after any heavy activity.
At night, I crate my dogs in the bedroom. Keeping our dogs with us in the bedroom will help with the bonding process, and show them that they are part of the pack.
When puppies are really young, they may not be able to hold their bladder throughout the night. It may be necessary to make an extra trip outside at night, or really early in the morning. Once they get a bit older though, this will no longer be necessary.
Some puppies, e.g. pet store puppies, may already be conditioned to eliminate in their crate, because they are kept in there for overly long periods of time. In such cases, a crate will no longer be a deterrent to potty behavior.
c) Put our dog in a long-term enclosure.
If I will be away for a long period of time, I put my puppy in a long-term enclosure. This can be a secure puppy pen, or a secure and safe room (e.g. kitchen).
Make sure there is nothing dangerous in the enclosure that our puppy can destroy and swallow. Put bedding, a water bowl, some puppy pads, safe chew toys, and safe food toys, in the enclosure. Put the pads in a corner as far away from the bedding as possible.
Instead of puppy pads, we may also use an indoor grass system.
However, some dogs may not like standing on or eliminating on the indoor grass surface. Just using regular sod or grass did not work well for me because of drainage issues. The sod gets smelly very quickly because there isn’t anywhere for the pee to go.
When I tried using sod, I had to change it every other day, or my puppy refused to go onto it. This ended up being a lot more work than just using puppy pads.
Myth – We cannot train a dog to potty outside as well as on puppy pads. She will get confused and not know what to do.
Yes, it is true that if we can be around most of the time to supervise, it is better not to let a puppy do her business in the house at all.
However, if we will be away for long periods of time, if our dog has separation anxiety issues (which may cause her to need to eliminate when we leave), or if there are other medical issues (surgery) that make frequent trips outside unfeasible, then it is perfectly fine to train a dog to both potty on pads, as well as outside.
Reward a puppy for going on his pads, and reward a puppy a lot more for going outside.
3. Clean Away Mistakes Properly
During the housetraining process, there will be some mistakes. When that happens, I calmly no-mark my puppy (Ack, ack) and take her outside. Once we are outside, I praise and reward her if she continues with her business.
Then, I leave my puppy in our fully enclosed and puppy-safe backyard, come in, and clean up the mess. Cleaning up messes in front of a puppy may sometimes cause her to mimic our behavior, and engage in eating her own poop. In her mind, she is only helping to clean out the den.
Use a cleaner that is made especially for pets. A popular pet odor cleaner is Nature’s Miracle.
Do not use ammonia based cleaners as the ammonia odor, which resembles urine, may attract our dog to urinate in the area.
4. Make Sure the Mistakes Are Potty Mistakes
Not all indoor urination is the result of housetraining mistakes. Other reasons for indoor urination include:
- Submissive or excitement urination.
- Medical issues, e.g. urinary tract infection.
- Marking objects or territory.
- Stress or anxiety, which results from being alone or other psychological issues.
Hi there,
Basically i love dogs and i desperately want to keep one But the problem is that i live in flat so i dont have space and no backyard or lawn where my dog can pee or poop So i wanted to ask from you experts that can i keep a dog in my flat and i take him outside once or twice in 24 hours to pee or poop.maybe this is a silly question But i know nothing about dogs and have no experience.Right now i am trying to gather information so that if its suits me i should go and buy a dog bec i desperately want one..Please help me out
Regards
Puppies have less bladder control than adult dogs and their bodies are still developing, so they need to go pee and poop *a lot* more often than that. They are also energetic and need a lot of supervision, training, and structured activity.
Adult dogs that are already trained need less supervision and exercise, but they still need a good amount of structured daily activity. I walk all my dogs daily for at least 1 hour. My Huskies are more high energy so we are out for more than that every day. In addition, I also play games with them, and supervise them while they play with each other. They work for all of their food through grooming exercises, obedience exercises, or interactive food toys.
In addition to the walk, my adult Huskies go out about three or more times daily to do their business. They drink more during hot weather, so they have to pee more. If they are sick and have diarrhea, they may need to go more often and more urgently.
Some things that I learned from my first dog-
1. Dogs are a lot of work. 😀
2. Keeping up with my dogs is more like a marathon and less like a sprint. Like the postman, I walk my dogs in wind, in rain, or in heat. If I am too sick or need to travel, I have to make alternate arrangements for their care and exercise. I have to come home and feed them, let them out, and exercise them – and can’t just take off with my friends.
3. Dogs cost a lot of money. Food, toys, training, grooming, vet bills, and more very quickly pile up. Visits to the pet emergency room are extremely expensive.
4. My dogs like and need a pretty fixed routine. They get stressed if my schedule keeps changing.
5. Dogs may scratch up our furniture, chew up our nice shoes, try digging on our carpets, and more. Dogs may get ticks or fleas when out on walks, from other dogs, or other animals.
Here are some questions I considered before getting a dog.
There are also many good things that come from living with dogs – but they are a big responsibility.
A dog the size of a german shepherd needs regular walks. You need to give this dog a free run of a back yard or walk for at least three hours a day. My suggestion would be to give this dog the three hours of exercise a day or get a smaller dog. We have a cavaschon puppy which needs only half an hour of exercise a day plus the freedom of our back yard.
Hi!
Can someone please tell me if there is anyway I can potty train a puppy in two different houses?
I don’t see why not. I just do potty training exercises in a consistent way in both places.
Hi there!
I am in desperate need of help! My boyfriend and I got a shiba in February. Yoshi was two months old at the time and he was mostly potty trained at the time. He would go outside in our backyard and do his business with occassional accidents as expected with puppies.
However, the last two and half months have been a nightmare! Back in May we had one week where it rained all week and from that point on he would not do his business outside in our backyard. He has held his pee in for 24 hours or until he can’t hold it anymore and he will just pee in the house. He will pe and walk at the same time so there would always be a trail. I feel that at 7 months this should be under control somewhat but I just don’t know what to do anymore.
For a little while we walked him and he would go but it would mostly be marking more than anything. And then we had conditioned him to only go on leash and when we were near by. Now I can’t seem to reverse this!
I am so frustrated and I’m constantly cleaning up his mess in the hosue. At least 4 times day if not more!! =( We’ve tried buying a pee post and phermone spray but that hasn’t done anything for him. He will just sniff it and walk away.
We have also tried crate, outside, crate, until he goes but still nothing. Everytime we think he has gone, he has only gone enough to get some relief and will go again once we let him inside the house.
We have also tried praising and giving him treats if he goes outside but he still does not go .
Any help or advice you may have would be greatly appreciated! I am losing my mind over this!
When dogs that have been potty trained suddenly start to potty in the house, it can sometimes be due to a physical condition, such as urinary tract infection, or something else. Has Yoshi been showing other behavior changes? How is his eating and drinking? Does his pee look clear?
Another possibility is that he is marking inside the house. My dogs are fully potty trained in my house, but they will sometimes try to mark when we go to the vet or training class, because they smell previous urine scent in the place. Dogs have very strong noses, so during potty training, it is important to totally clean up past mistakes.
I also walk Sephy every day for at least 1 hour. He prefers to do his peeing during walks, and it also gives him an outlet for his marking behavior. He only goes in our backyard when he absolutely needs to. Therefore, I usually also take him out for a short walk in the evening as well, because I don’t want him holding-in his pee for too long. He always pees during walks, so it is a good way to manage his pee schedule. He does not like walking in the rain either, so we go for shorter walks when it is raining, but we still go, so he has a chance to clear his bladder.
This article from the ASPCA has a lot of useful information on urine marking in dogs.
As for potty training, the most important thing is supervision. I make sure to always have eyes on puppy so that I can take her out as soon as she starts to show any potty behaviors (e.g. going to corners or circling). The key is to bring my puppy out before she makes a mistake, so that I can teach her the right behavior, and reinforce it with very good rewards, including fun games, attention, and favorite treats that she *only* gets for doing her potty outside. I talk more about what I do in the article above. I make sure to go out with puppy every time so that I can properly mark the behavior and praise her.
If I don’t catch things early enough and she starts to pee, then I interrupt her with a no-mark, and I take her outside to finish her business. My dogs usually do not pee when they are walking at a fast clip. If she continues doing her business outside, then I make sure to reward her very well for it.
The best way, I find, to potty train my dogs, is to minimize mistakes in the house through constant supervision, and maximize potty successes outside. Potty training takes a lot of time and patience, but with consistency, a dog will learn to go outside fairly quickly, because it is much more rewarding to do so.
I am bringing my shiba inu puppy home in 3 weeks. I am curious does it matter what crate I buy? Thanks!
Do you mean crate size or type of crate?
For crate size, this is a good discussion on the Shiba Inu forum-
http://www.shibainuforum.org/forum/discussion/3605/help-please-whats-your-crate-size/p1
I got a 36″ crate for my Shiba, but he is a big Shiba (over 30 pounds). We can use a divider or some other barrier to make the crate smaller (if necessary) during puppyhood and potty training.
I got a more closed plastic crate for my Shiba. He seems to like that more, and will often curl up at the back of the crate. I think he feels safer, more protected, and more relaxed. I got wireframe crates for my Huskies because they get hot a lot more easily, and a more open crate allows for better airflow. They also have much weaker guard instincts, so they seem fine relaxing in the more open crate.
Congratulations on your upcoming Shiba puppy!
Hi ShibaShake,
We’ve had our Shiba Inu for a little over a week and a half now, and he’s 13 weeks old now. He’s had a few accidents, but mostly successes going outside. Apparently he’s lured me into a false sense of security with his good successes going outside this past week, he was even waiting at the door and howling yesterday (I wanted to test what he’d do if I wasn’t present, but clearly wanted to go outside and was impressed he made noise instead of going inside). This morning he had an accident though. I let him have the run of the living room after letting him outside (where he urinated) while me and my boyfriend were busy with the morning routine. When I returned to him there was a nice present waiting on the rug. At least it was solid, easy to pick up, and didn’t leave a stain.
The living room seems to be a common area for him to have accidents (he’s only had around seven inside, three of them there). It is also sectioned off with a child gate most of the time, but we usually let him in after he’s gone outside to the bathroom recently. It’s also his favorite room to play in now (maybe because it’s the most spacious and he can run laps around it; which he does to much hilarity when he’s in hyper-shiba mode later in the evening! I’ve been letting him in the room more and more as I thought the accidents may be due to excitement and unfamiliarity with the room (i.e., he sees it as not being part of the den). I guess we have to be more vigilant about watching him in the living room to catch him in the act.
Do you think it’s a good idea to section off portions of the house that we do want him to consider part of his home eventually? Or should we just crate him if we’re busy with some task and can’t keep an eye on him constantly? For example, right now I’m at home working and I usually keep him around my computer, and close doors to the other areas of the house. He always has access to the door outside to let me know if he has to go to the bathroom though. Should I be keeping doors around the home and the child gate open instead?
Thanks!
Congratulations on your Shiba puppy!
I used baby-gates during Sephy’s puppy-hood as well. If I am in the kitchen, I would keep him in there with me while I do my chores. In this way, he still gets some freedom to walk around, work on his toys, come sit next to me, etc.
When Sephy was young, it was good to have more structure and house rules for him. Structure and routine gives him certainty, lets him know what he can expect from me, and what I expect from him in return. Sephy is more calm and relaxed when he knows what the rules are, and when there is consistency. As he matured and got older, I very slowly gave him more freedom. I make sure the changes happen at a pace that he is comfortable with.
Big hugs to your Shiba puppy and happy July 4th!
We have a Shiba Inu…and we’ve just about tried everything to potty training her. I would let her out every 30 minutes while i was pregnant and since i’ve had my baby i only let her out every hr. Here is where the problem comes into play….SHE REFUSES TO USE THE RR OUTSIDE!!!! I can leave her out back for hours and she wont do her business but the minute she walks in the door she does her business….soon my infant will be crawling and I REFUSE to continue letting our pet use the rr in the house. I’ve aprraised her during her business outside we’ve been taking her on walks, hour long walks at that, and she wont do her business. So I’m not sure what were doing wrong.
With potty training, supervision is very important. During the training period, I watch my puppy very closely. If I cannot be there for even 1 minute, I put her in her crate or puppy enclosure (with pads). In this way, as soon as I notice that she needs to go, I take her outside. I go outside with her to her potty spot and give her the “Go-Potty” command. If she does her business, I make a *very big deal* out of it (after she finishes) and reward her with games, attention, and treats.
In this way she learns that-
Potty outside = Bonanza of rewards,
Potty inside = Get interrupted and taken outside.
I describe more of what I do with my puppy in the article above.
I always try to maximize successes and minimize failures. In this way, my puppy learns what the right behavior is and I can reward her well for it. The more she practices doing her potty outside, the more likely she will do it outside. The same is true for pottying inside the house.
i just have some questions and hope to get some help please!i just got a siberian husky and it’s 2 and a half months old,what’s the quantity of treats can i feed him per day?because i felt it’s gone so hyper and started jumping and wholing in a way which scared me so i started to run and it was following me i know what i did is a bit weird but i don’t know why i always keep in mind that it will bite me or something!!
the next question is how can i train him to walk next to me when i take him in a walk?and how to sit and come to me an those things.waiting for your advice dear!thank u
If I start to run, my dogs will think I am playing a fun game with them and they will give chase. Dogs are very attuned to motion, and their instinct will be to chase a moving object. Running may also trigger prey drive in some dogs.
Sibes are independent and high energy. I make sure to set up a fixed routine for my Sibe puppy and teach her a consistent set of house rules right from the start. I also engage her in positive structured activity, and teach her the right way to interact with people.
Here is a bit more on how I trained my Husky puppy.
This is how I trained her to do a Sit.
This is how I trained her to walk on a leash.
NOTE however, dog training is very context dependent and timing is very important. If we do not time things properly, our puppy may learn the wrong thing. Our own energy is also very important. If I want my dogs to be calm, I need to be calm myself, and teach them what behaviors are desirable to me. Based on what you say, it may be best to get help from a professional trainer. Here is more on how to choose a trainer.
Hi,
I have a 6 month old Siberian husky – Xena, and I am having a really difficult time potty training her. She can go 7 hours overnight without peeing in her crate but during the day when I am home and she is not in the crate she is constantly peeing all over the place. I live in an apartment building but have a huge concrete balcony. When the weather is nice I leave the door open at all times so that she can go outside on her own to relieve herself. This has reduced the number of accidents she has in the apartment. I, like other people that also mentioned it, have noticed that I can walk xena outside only to come home and have her pee in the house 5 minutes later. When we are home we actively supervise her at all times. When she has an accident she usually doesnt present any warning that she is going to pee. She just squats quickly and pees fast – not enough time for me to interrupt her and bring her outside. She has not pooped in the house but she does on the balcony – its not a habit i want to get into but its better than her going in the house. In addition, we live un nyc and xena pees and poops on concrete. She has never walked over to grass to eliminate. I was looking into the artificial grass area but im not sure she would use it. In addition, She just got over having a uti so I know that it is not a medical issue anymore. Please help!
Some things that helped with Lara during her potty training period –
1. I try to anticipate when she is going to potty. For example, she will usually want to potty when she wakes up and after she plays with my other dogs, so I take her out as soon as she wakes up, and after about 10-15 minutes of play (depending on age). I also set up a consistent routine for her, and observe her routine so that I can better anticipate when she has to go.
2. I go out with Lara and reward her very well for doing her potty outside. This is very important because it teaches her that potty outside = a lot of attention, games, treats, and more. I make sure to reinforce her potty outside behavior *every time*, so that she starts to associate the behavior with something really good. This will motivate her to go outside because pottying inside gets her no rewards, and she just gets taken outside.
3. In potty training, I have found that consistency is very important. I take Lara outside when I think she needs to go, and reward her well. If she goes to the door and indicates that she needs to go, I also go outside with her and reward her well. If she makes a mistake, I always no-mark and take her outside anyway. She gets rewarded if she continues to go outside. If she does not, then we just come back in and there are no rewards.
Another technique that some trainers suggest for potty training young puppies is to tether the puppy to us. In this way, the puppy is right there with us all of the time and we can quickly interrupt and take her outside if necessary. I have not tried this with any of my dogs though, and I am not sure how well it will work with an older puppy.
That’s an AWESOME name for your Husky!!!! I’m going to do the same if I ever get one!!! 😀
Hello,
I just got a 7 week old male shiba inu, I know that patience is needed but I am confused as to what I am doing wrong. I live in a condo and I have a very good sized balcony that I have one of the grass potty systems on. I will sit outside with him for up to 30 minutes and he will not go potty and then as soo as I let him insdie he will go to the bathroom on the carpet. Any suggestiong, I think he might not like the sounds outside since we live on a busy street. I need help please!
Thank you
NIcole
Yeah, Sephy is also very picky about his potty spot. He likes going on bushes, trees, posts, and such (vertical objects). He prefers to potty during walks, or in our front yard. He does not even really like going in our backyard.
My guess is that Shiba pup does not like going on the artificial grass system. Does he go onto the artificial grass on his own to explore? One possible test is to bring the potty system inside to see if he will go on it. Some dogs don’t like the surface, some don’t like the smell, there may not be enough room to circle, etc.
When he was at his breeder’s place, did he potty inside the house or outside? On regular grass or some other surface?
I try to bring my puppy out when she is most likely to go (e.g. when she first wakes up, or after very rigorous play). In this way, she will very likely potty when I take her out, which means I can reward her really well and reinforce the behavior.
I also try to minimize mistakes inside. As soon as she shows any potty signals (going into the corner or circling) I take her out right away. If I miss the signals and she starts to go, then I no-mark, interrupt her, and take her outside. She will usually continue when I take her out, so I can reward her well and further reinforce the behavior.
In this way, she learns that –
Potty outside = Lots of attention, treats, and a fun game,
Potty inside = Get interrupted and taken outside.
Hi,
I just got my Siberian Husky Kona the other day and so far things are going as expected. I know there will be messes to clean up, and supervision and time is needed to train him. There is one thing that needs to be stopped asap though, and that’s whining/howling when he’s in his crate. It’s non stop and very loud and will go through the night. I have roommates that are very dog friendly and ok with me having Kona, but they need the howling to stop. It can be heard throughout the house. Do you have any suggestions? I can put him in the garage where he can be barley heard but that doesn’t seem like its solving the problem. I could also leave him in my own bedroom with everything out of reach and clean, but he’ll still whine/howl and it kind of defeats the purpose of having a crate for training. Any suggestions would be much appreciated.
Does he only vocalize when he is alone? Puppies often get anxious when they are left alone, especially in the beginning, because they have just been separated from their littermates, and are in a totally new and unfamiliar environment.
When Lara was young, I put her puppy enclosure in the tv room, so that she can always see and be with people. Using a puppy enclosure in the beginning also helped, because then I had more time to train her to get used to her crate.
Once we made good progress with crate training, I also tethered her for brief periods of time to her crate (only under supervision and only with a flat collar or harness). This was a useful intermediate step for us, because it gave her a bit more freedom, and got her used to calming down and resting around her crate area.
Here is a bit more from the San Francisco SPCA on crate training.
http://www.sfspca.org/sites/default/files/crating_0.pdf