How to Potty Train My 3 Week Old Puppy

Potty training a puppy can be frustrating, especially when the animal is only three weeks old. The most important thing to remember is that no matter how much you want your puppy to know what to do, he still needs you to teach him. Puppies do not come into the world knowing that it is proper to go to the door when they need to go. The website Dog Star Daily mentions, "You can't expect your new pup to magically know where to pee and poop, what to chew or when to bark. Instead, you need to teach her."

Things You'll Need

  • Puppy pads
  • Newspaper
  • Paper towels
  • Carpet cleaner
Show More

Instructions

    • 1

      Watch your puppy closely to see exactly where he is urinating throughout the day. As you clean up each mess, do not yell or punish your puppy. Also, do not baby your puppy. Any feedback toward messes on the carpet can confuse him and result in delayed training. Remain calm and quickly clean the area without showing any emotion toward your puppy.

    • 2

      Locate an area where she is urinating often and place a puppy pad on the floor.

    • 3

      Quickly place your puppy on the puppy pad as soon as you see him sniffing around for a place to urinate or actually in the act. As you move him to the pad, say, "Outside" in a calm, matter-of-fact tone. Do not raise your voice in an angry or overly excited tone. You will need to do this every time so it becomes repetitive and natural for the puppy to go to the pad when he needs to urinate. If for some reason the puppy pad does not work, you can also try newspaper.

    • 4

      Praise your puppy every time she successfully urinates on the puppy pad. It is not necessary to give treats. You can praise her by saying, "Good girl" and petting her.

    • 5

      Gradually move puppy pads closer to the door. Eventually, you will see your puppy going toward the door and know that he needs to urinate. Once this happens, start letting him outside.

    • 6

      Pick up your puppy and take her directly to the door, if the puppy pad method does not work. Act quickly if you can and get her outside before she does anything. Remember to say, "Outside," as you place him on the ground. She will start to associate the word "outside" with urinating. This method may be a little messier than the puppy pad method, but the repetitiveness of taking your dog to the door will teach her where to go.

    • 7

      Stay consistent and stick with the process all the way through. If you quit before fully training him, you can only blame yourself for his potty training woes. Stay positive and give your puppy positive feedback when he has done a good job.