# potty training



## Oshal7 (Mar 10, 2014)

Hi guys,

I hope I get a reply on this. I have managed to potty train my dog to use my spare bathroom. Puppy is now nearing 4 months and I need to phase him to go outside the house. He is aware he should not go except in bathrooms. Any thoughts?


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## wyoung2153 (Feb 28, 2010)

Ouch.. just out of curiousity why did you train for the bathrooms?

Also, did you use puppy pads or news papers?


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## KHLOE (Mar 19, 2014)

I would just watch the dog and every time you see them headed to the bathroom take them outside instead. My GSD knows she can go either on the puppy pad in the corner or outside but she prefers to go outside because then she gets to play too.


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## Oshal7 (Mar 10, 2014)

I trained him to go in bathrooms in general as I spend 10 hours away each day  at work. Used newspaper. I guess things will be easier when he doesn't have to go every other hour. He knows he will be grounded if he goes in the house, so if I close the bathroom and watch him looking to get in there then take him outside. Will this work?


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## wyoung2153 (Feb 28, 2010)

Oshal7 said:


> I trained him to go in bathrooms in general as I spend 10 hours away each day  at work. Used newspaper. I guess things will be easier when he doesn't have to go every other hour. He knows he will be grounded if he goes in the house, so if I close the bathroom and watch him looking to get in there then take him outside. Will this work?


Makes sense. So if you moved the newspaper, would he go to the newspaper? Is he crate trained at all?

What you are suggesting sounds about right. Shut the door and when he heads that way, take him outside. Tell him to "potty" and when he does.. PARTYYYYY :wild: treat, make a big deal.. I'd also not always wait until he's heading there. Take him out on your own too. I personally like having a potty word. Mine is..... "Go Potty" And he knows it.. so I'd definitely start adding that to taking him out.


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## Oshal7 (Mar 10, 2014)

Hi again,

Thank you for the responses and help. Well, crate training sounded cruel to me as i had to leave him alone for prolonged periods of time. So i found an alternative, i get a leash and use to have him next to me, leash was long enough to have him move around i used to trap the leash under my coffee table and sit next to him on the floor. Whenver he got up and started sniffing or squealing i just took him to the bathroom. I guess the leash was an equivalent to the crate in this case? He is still 14 weeks old so he has to go every hour or so. I will try phasing out, hopefully it will work. I will post updates and photos once mission is accomplished. Thanks again


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## wyoung2153 (Feb 28, 2010)

so on average, how long are you gone? when Titan was a puppy, I did have to come home at lunch to let him out but after a couple months, he would go about 8-10 hours in there while I worked. I just made sure to wear him out in the mornings before going in, then when I got home he and I would go for long walk or jog and play lots of fetch and games to wear him out. It's not as cruel as you think... and it's a great tool, not to late to start either!


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## Oshal7 (Mar 10, 2014)

On average, i would say 9-10 hours. he has to go once he wakes up in the morning so he always runs to the bathroom. He still has accidents outside but he is now aware that punishment will come if he goes in the house not in the bathroom. So the good is: he is aware that he should not go except in the bathroom. Now if i time myself to jump out of bed and take him outside i guess that would be useful. Challenge: he keeps sniffing around and plays with anything in sight once he is taken outside  and once he is back at home, he goes in the bathroom. my only chance is to put some effort to force him to go outside as long as he cannot hold it for long... once he gets older and can hold it for hours it would be an issue. on another note he keeps biting "playfully" yet painfully . I got him a chewing bone fortified with calcium and his ears shot right up in a couple of days. whenever he starts biting i raise a finger to his face and say "No" then put the chewing bone into his mouth. Any other thoughts?


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## Oshal7 (Mar 10, 2014)

Hi again 

I am happy to say that Billy is now 9 months old, and only goes outside the house. Been accidents-free for months now. What really helped was locking him away of where he was used to go and when he started to sniff around and look at me, i would take him outside and it is done.... Thank you for all the help, guys.


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