Steps to Take to Ween Your Puppy From Potty Papers

Your darling puppy understands what the potty papers, wee wee pads or puppy pads are for--but how to move on to the next stage of house training? There are simple steps to take so that your puppy will be trained to associate the outdoors with relieving itself instead of a pad inside your house.

  1. Limit the Pads

    • Instead of laying down potty papers/pads at multiple locations, narrow down these to just a few places. Eventually, if you can, have the pads at only one location.

    Move the Pad

    • Once the puppy has an assigned place to do its business, move the pad to the side of the door that will lead to the outdoors. It may take your puppy a few tries to catch on to the move. Once this happens, place two pads side by side, one indoors and one out.

    Take It Outdoors

    • Give your puppy a choice of the inside or outside pad. Generously praise and reward it when it chooses the outside pad. Once it is firm in always choosing the outside pad, take up the inside potty papers. Keep some outside (anchored with a rock), but continue to praise your dog generously, especially when it poops or urinates off of the pad. When it expresses disinterest in the pad, it will have made the connection between the outdoors and what it should do there, and potty training will be finished.

    Considerations

    • This is a move that may be confusing for your pet, as it first learns that it's OK to go inside the house, then it's not. Be patient as your dog adjusts to make the switch. If you are not at home for most of the day, or if you live in an apartment, consider litter box training your dog as an alternative.