- Now, I'll bet you're here for one of two reasons.
Either you're currently struggling with your puppy
having accidents in your home, and it's super-frustrating.
I can totally appreciate that.
Or you've just become or you're about
to become a new puppy owner,
and it's time to do your puppy-training homework.
In both cases, I'm about to give you five
puppy house-training tips that you need to know,
and by following the steps (bubble popping)
mentioned in this video, you're going to save a bunch of time
and a fortune in cleaning products.
I'm Ken Steepe, and welcome back to McCann Dogs.
(guitar strumming) (puppy barking)
Here in our training facility,
we help more than 500 dog owners every single week
who are just like you to overcome
their dog-training challenges, so if this is your first time
on the channel, make sure you hit that Subscribe button
so that I can help you to have a well-behaved
four-legged family member.
We get so many great questions
on our puppy potty-training video,
and I went through a bunch of them to see
the most common mistakes and the most common comments.
Today, I want you to take out your notepad
and write these five things down
because if you're still struggling
with your puppy having accidents in your home,
it's likely that you're overlooking one of these steps,
and that may be the reason your puppy's so confused
about the process.
So, let's get started.
Now, a large number of people who are struggling
with their puppy house-training are using pee pads.
(bubble popping) These pads often create a lot
of confusion for puppies, and if you can avoid using them,
do so, but if there's some reason that you need to use
the puppy pads, all of these same tips will apply to you.
Just replace the word going outside with taking your puppy
to the pad.
Now, there are a few times that you need to take
your puppy outside because they're more likely
to have to go, and being proactive about this
will not only be a good way to avoid accidents in your home,
but it's a great way to help your puppy
to associate being with this, inside this location,
with the relief of going pee or poop,
and it's a much better association
than having that same relieving feeling
in your living room or in your kitchen.
Those times are (bubble popping)
before they go into their crate,
(bubble popping) as soon as they
come out of their crate,
(bubble popping) after a meal,
(bubble popping) after a play session,
and if your puppy has been in their crate
or under your supervision, and you think to yourself,
"Hmm, (clapping hands) puppy hasn't peed in a while,"
you should take them outside.
(bubble popping)
You should really have some sort of schedule
for your puppy to go potty in.
Maybe that's every couple of hours for the first week,
and you can start to extend that time over the next couple
of weeks as long as they're going to be,
as long as they're successful,
but you're going to find your puppy's success
or failure will dictate that amount of time,
and every puppy is just a little bit different.
Using a crate or a limited-space area for your puppy
when you can't supervise him is a really important way
to not only keep them safe, but it's going to teach them
that they have to hold their bladder a little.
Using an appropriately sized crate or area
is going to be really important, though.
We talked a lot about crate sizing
in a recent video.
I'll link the description, in the description below,
but to give you the abbreviated version,
there needs to be enough room for your puppy to stand up,
turn around, lie down, and stretch out comfortably.
If your crate or the space has too much more room than that,
your puppy's likely to be able to pee in one corner
of that area and then continue snoozing in the dry areas
or in the other corner.
Your puppy needs to feel like there's some sort
of consequence for choosing to pee or poop in there,
and that way, they'll feel like they have to hold it
a little, and they'll start to build some more longevity
into how long they go between their outdoor sessions.
Now, to be a responsible puppy owner, you need to keep tabs
on how long it's been since your puppy was out last,
and it's always a good idea to have your puppy's crate
within earshot when you're working on house-training.
That way, you'll start to hear them stir a little bit
if they feel the need to go outside.
Use a leash when you take your puppy out to go potty.
Puppies are easily distracted, and sometimes it's adorable,
but it can also distract your puppy away from the fact
that they need to go.
When you go outside with your puppy, you're all business.
Take them to a safe spot
with the least amount of distractions.
Stand still and be boring.
Keep a close eye on your puppy for your,
for them to get distracted if a leaf blows by
or if they find an interesting stick on the ground.
That may be the reason that you need to use your leash.
Direct them away from these distractions
so that they can sort of reset.
When you limit the amount of area
that your puppy can investigate,
that area becomes a lot less interesting,
and you're more likely to see your puppy pick a spot
to relieve themselves.
If you've been out there for several minutes
and your puppy still hasn't gone, head back inside.
Immediately place your puppy into their crate.
Keep a close eye on them.
In the next couple of minutes, you're going to head back out
to that spot and try again.
If you feel like your puppy just can't go
in whatever location you've picked,
it's worth asking yourself a couple of questions.
Are there too many distractions in the area?
(bubble popping) Sometimes noises or motion
can make it difficult for your puppy to feel comfortable
to stop everything and go pee.
If that's the case, see if there's a quieter spot
that you can take your puppy
so that they can feel more comfortable
and be less distracted.
When your puppy does go pee or poop in that location
that you've chosen, praise them.
Use, you know, "Good boy, good girl,"
whatever language you want to use to let them know
that they're making a great choice, but do not feed them.
(bell dinging) They don't need a treat.
I've heard so many people talk
about how after they've rewarded their puppy with food,
their puppy's asking to go outside more often,
(bubble popping) or some puppies will go out
and phantom pee, where they'll basically squat
without even going.
And what those people have done is captured a behavior,
which is great for trick training,
but it can be a real challenge if your puppy goes out,
phantom pees, and then you go back inside
with your puppy having a full bladder.
The sensation of relief from going pee or poop
is reward enough for your puppy.
Just praise them when they're going potty
in the right location.
Now, good supervision is going to change everything
for your puppy house-training.
We often talk about quality time out of the crate
rather than the quantity of time,
and that's precisely when supervision is going to be key.
Now, if you're struggling with puppy potty training,
you must keep a close eye on your puppy
every moment they are out of their crate.
(bubble popping) If you've just brought them
back inside, even if they've just gone pee,
and you're still struggling with puppy potty training,
don't let them out of your sight.
An important part of the learning process for your puppy
is learning what they aren't allowed to do.
When they have an accident in your home,
it can be really frustrating, but it's a teaching moment,
and it's actually really important.
While you're supervising your puppy,
if they start to have an accident,
you need to mark that behavior.
Mark that moment in time using your voice.
Use something abrupt like, "Uh-uh," or, "Hey."
For some puppies,
maybe even (clapping) clapping your hands is appropriate.
Now, this needs to be done in the moment,
so if your puppy sneaks away and has an accident,
there's no reasonable or fair way to train through that.
Chalk it up as a loss, and be more prepared next time.
They need to know that in that moment
that precisely this behavior is not allowed.
Some puppies will stop going
at the moment you interrupt them.
And if that's the case, then you can take your puppy
right outside so that they can finish going.
When you're out there, you can praise your puppy
when they start going again.
Let them know that while going pee inside is not allowed,
going in this spot outside will get them some praise.
With good supervision, you're even likely to start noticing
that your puppy is signaling that they need to go outside.
Some of the, the subtle signs that your puppy gives you
that it's time to go out.
This takes a keen eye, but I bet some of you
are going to notice it, and if you're really being
a great supervisor for your puppy,
that's going to happen more quickly.
But remember, that supervision time
is all about engagement and quality time
outside of your puppy's crate with you and them alone.
We've actually got a great video with some fun exercises
that you can do with your puppy while they're out
of their crate that'll burn off energy,
and they have nothing to do with going for a walk,
so I'll list that for you to check out
in the description below.
Location, location, location.
I get lots of comments from people who tell me
that their puppy is constantly peeing on their bed,
or every time their puppy goes into the living room,
they have an accident on the floor.
It's worth your time and effort
to set your puppy up to be successful
by not allowing them access to these locations
if they're constantly having accidents in there.
Use some baby gates to set up an area
where they're less likely to have an accident,
or even better yet, exercise that great supervision
we just talked about.
Your puppy needs to earn some of these freedoms.
If they continue to pee on their bed or even your bed,
which someone recently asked a question about,
then don't set them up to fail by giving them access
to these places or things, but if they do go to these places
and they make those mistakes, with great supervision,
you'll be there to give them the right information
and train through it. (inhaling)
You know, you're working your butt off here,
trying to help your puppy to be right,
and to be a great leader for them, you want to do everything
that you can to help them to make good choices.
And if you're clear, consistent, and fair,
you're a lot more likely to be successful
with your training.
Now, tackling puppy potty training is just one element
of your puppy training, but if you're looking
for a puppy-training game plan,
make sure you click that card right there.
It's your puppy training schedule by age.
Now, if this is your first time on the channel,
make sure you hit that Subscribe button.
We publish new videos every week to help you
to have a well-behaved four-legged family member.
On that note, I'm Ken. Happy training.