When beginning to potty train a puppy, you may not know the best way to begin this process, or if certain actions will damage your puppy’s potty training knowledge.
If you are asking yourself: Should I carry my puppy out to pee? Then, this article is for you!
In this article, we will be answering a variety of questions that you may have about potty training your new puppy. We hope you are able to use this information to your advantage and wish you the best of luck in your endeavors!
Should I Carry My Puppy Out to Pee?
There is nothing wrong with carrying your puppy out to pee. If you notice that your pup is about to drop down to pee somewhere that they shouldn’t, you can pick them up and carry them to the designated potty area.
Puppies will generally need to use the restroom very frequently, so bringing them out to potty as often as possible is the best way to get them acquainted with their designated potty spot. You should reward your puppy lavishly every time they successfully pee outside with great treats and heavy praise.
It is important to never use physical punishments with your puppy when they have accidents in the house, you can instead make a loud/startling noise, and then proceed to bring them to their potty spot.
We recommend picking a designated word to describe the potty spot, such as: potty, go outside, use the bathroom, etc. so your puppy can successfully correlate the phrase with the action.
Should I Wake My Puppy up to Pee at Night?
You should definitely wake your puppy up to pee at night. Puppies typically will not sleep through the night and haven’t mastered holding their bladder yet. You can wake your puppy up to pee at night before you go to bed, and then again a few hours later.
This may mess with your sleep schedule, but it is definitely worth it if you do not want to clean up any accidents your puppy may have had overnight.
Crate training a puppy is also a useful tool when working on potty training. You can acclimate your puppy to feeling safe and comfortable in a crate, and this eliminates the excess area available to them for making messes and causing trouble.
However, it is still important that you bring your puppy out at night to avoid them having any accidents in their crate overnight. We recommend bringing your puppy out to potty an hour before you go to sleep, then again every 15 minutes until it is bedtime.
It would be best to wake your puppy up to go potty as frequently as possible at night.
When Are Puppies Able to Control Their Bladder?
A puppy should be able to hold its bladder by 16 weeks of age, but this does vary from puppy to puppy so don’t stress if your puppy doesn’t seem to hold their bladder by this age.
It can be very helpful to use puppy pads as a tool during potty training, you can place one in the same spot every time and have it close to the area that your puppy plays in most to eliminate unwanted accidents.
This is a great option for someone who cannot let their puppy out every 30 minutes to potty. Keep in mind that patience is necessary for the potty training process and that your puppy may take longer than others to fully understand the concept.
You should set up a feeding schedule for your puppy, which will make it easier for you to determine a potty schedule that works best for your puppy.
We recommend splitting your puppy’s daily food intake into 3 separate feedings, and bringing them out to their potty spot every 15-30 minutes after they are finished eating each time.
Always verify that your puppy has access to fresh and clean water, as you should never withhold water from your puppy!
How to Prevent Accidents in the House
You can prevent your puppy from having accidents in the house by recognizing the signs that your pup will show before needing to be let outside.
These signs can include whining, circling, licking at the groin, and hyperactivity. That said, puppies will need to be let out to use the bathroom very frequently because as we mentioned previously, they cannot hold their bladders very well until around 16 weeks outside.
The best way to begin this process is by bringing your puppy to a designated potty spot every 30 minutes, treating and rewarding them greatly after they are successful.
We recommend verifying that your puppy is fully vaccinated before letting them roam an area that is highly trafficked by animals, as pups are susceptible to illnesses that can be left behind by unknown animals.
If you have a garden area that is secured, this is a great place to bring your puppy out to potty. If your puppy will have housemates, it is smart to make sure that they are fully vaccinated before introducing them to any puppy.
When Should I Start Potty Training My Puppy?
You should start potty training your puppy as soon as you obtain ownership of it. Puppies are typically very quick learners, and the sooner you start potty training them, the sooner they will be able to catch on.
You should have a designated potty spot planned, and be prepared with lots of patience, as some puppies take longer to learn than others.
Potty training works the best when you are consistently working with puppy. If you only enforce potty training some of the time and ignore it completely the next day, your puppy will not be able to retain the information and knowledge that you are training them on.
We recommend consistently brushing up on this skill, even when your puppy is an adult and has mastered it completely!
Conclusion
In this article, we answered many of the questions that you may have wondered about in regard to potty training your puppy.
You now know the answer to the question: Should I carry my puppy out to potty? We hope you are able to use this information to the best of your ability and wish you the best of luck in your potty training journey!