“How do I get my dog to stop using the bathroom in the house?” is a question I receive on a near-daily basis. Whether adult dog or puppy, potty training can be one of the most frustrating things to deal with. When someone approaches me and asks how to potty train their dog, “how old is your dog?” is always my go-to response. This helps me figure out what trajectory the conversation will go. If they say puppies around or younger than six months, my answer will go in one direction. If they have an adult dog, our conversation might look very different. We are going to define what potty training is, explore the frustration behind potty training, as well as any medical, biological or behavioral reasons that dogs will use the bathroom in the house.
For the sake of this article, we are going to define potty training as “diligently giving the dog ample opportunity to use the bathroom outside while teaching a dog to not eliminate in any way while within the handler’s permanent home. ” Keeping your canine stuck indoors for long periods of time resulting in an accident does not mean your dog is not potty trained. Puppies and some older dogs may have trouble holding their bowel or bladder muscles for long periods of time. Keep this in mind and establish your routine with your dog so they are not put in a situation where they might have an accident. It is strongly advised that you never use “pee pads” while potty training; we do not want to teach the dog that it is okay to use the bathroom in the house in any circumstance. Consider having a friend or family member let your dog out if you will be gone for long periods. Consider finding someone on a dog-care community site like Rover.com or Wag.com if family is unable.
Troubleshooting
Let us start with the question, “why do some dogs struggle to understand that they should use the bathroom outdoors?” The answer is simple: dogs do not always generalize very well. This question has the implication that dogs view indoors and outdoors the same way we do, but that is not the case for all dogs. Barring any medical or serious psychological issues, dogs never use the bathroom where they eat or sleep (a lot of times dogs will even avoid using the bathroom in spots they frequently play, but there are exceptions to this). For many dogs, they see the place they eat, sleep, and (sometimes) play as off limits for using the bathroom, and anything outside of that as fair game. Your potty-trained dog may do well within your home, but do not assume that your dog applies those same rules while in an unfamiliar building like a friend’s house, the veterinarian’s office, or at a pet store like Petco. Some dogs will understand this, but a lot of dogs will struggle to generalize.
Next we will consider age. How old is your dog? Is it still a puppy under the age of six months old, or an adult? Before we write this off as canine misbehavior, it is imperative to have your dog checked by a veterinarian to make sure there is no underlying medical issues. I can think back on a handful of situations where a person would come to me and ask about a regression in potty training with their adult dog. Following a visit with their veterinarian, they found out the dog had kidney stones or a urinary tract infection among other issues. Dogs have very few ways to communicate to us that something is not right with them, and sometimes that manifests in abnormal bathroom habits, like peeing on a rug. Before you scold your once-potty trained dog for frequent accidents, think about going to the vet. Medical reasons make up only a small percent of potty-training struggles, but there is no sense in approaching the issue from a behavioral standpoint when it needs to be addressed from a medicinal standpoint.
Peeing or Scent Marking?
After the dog goes to the vet and is determined to have no ailment, there is one more thing to take into consideration before moving towards training. Is the dog spayed or neutered? If your dog is peeing inside the house, we need to determine if the dog is scent marking. Scent marking is most commonly displayed by intact male dogs, but neutered male dogs and some female dogs will also exhibit this behavior. Dogs will scent mark for numerous reasons. Consider consulting with your veterinarian about spaying or neutering if you suspect scent marking.
Scent marking is a biologically-driven behavior. “Among male dogs that exhibit objectionable urine marking in the house, approximately 50% are improved with castration, suggesting an endocrine basis for the behavior” (Simpson, 1997). Not only will neutering your dog significantly reduce your dog’s chance of certain cancers, but it also helps with scent marking. If your dog is scent marking around the house, be sure to clean the areas thoroughly with a quality enzyme cleaner. Dr. Debra Horwitz and Gary Landsberg, DVM caution that potty training can be difficult. “However, even if house-soiling dogs are retrained to eliminate outdoors, indoor sites may continue to be used, since the odor, substrate, and learned habit may continue to attract the dog back to the location”. So be diligent to restrict your dog’s access to things it typically marks, and supervise if this is the case for you.
Do Not Punish
Now, let’s say we have ruled out any medical conditions and have ruled out marking. What is next? Potty training an adult dog will look very similar to potty training a puppy. Remember, we never want to punish our dog for using the bathroom in the house. Scolding, hitting, or screaming at our dogs may only cause more anxiety. Dogs do not have the mental capacity to think back hours prior when it used the bathroom in the house. What it usually learns is “when my handler is in the presence of this mess, they get mad” (American Humane). This does not teach the dog what not to do, it just teaches the dog to be scared in your presence. They do not make the connection. Punishing a dog will not fix the behavior, it just displaces the behavior or makes it worse. If you cannot catch it in the moment and interrupt it, you are too late.
Why would a healthy dog that was once potty trained still eliminate in the house if it is not marking? Has anything changed in your daily routine? Moving to a new location, new furniture, or adding or taking away carpeting or rugs can all potentially play a role in a dog having accidents again. “…some of the more common behavioral causes are a change in owner schedule, a change in housing or any change in the pet’s home that might lead to anxiety… Dogs that are exhibiting an increase in anxiety may begin to eliminate in the home, due primarily to a loss of control when anxious and not due to spite.” (Horowitz and Landsberg 2013). Your dog is not wandering off and peeing to be spiteful, it may just be a continual lack of control. This is why supervision of an unreliable dog or puppy is so important.
Management
Like humans, dogs are very routine creatures. This makes routine and supervision extremely important. If you have a puppy or just adopted a dog, getting your dog in a routine and restricting your dog’s ability to roam around unattended is the biggest part of potty training. If you recently adopted a dog, realize that your new dog has gone through a massive change, from the kennel to a new, strange place. Your dog may not understand that this new place is now his or hers, and might think it is okay to eliminate. If you have a new puppy, be mindful of your dog’s age. A puppy’s bladder and bowel muscles, on average, do not develop until between the age of 4 months old and 6 months old. So no, your twelve-week old puppy is not being stubborn, it is likely just unable to “hold it” in most cases. An interesting thing to consider is the fact that puppies may hold their bladders longer at night than during the day. This is due to the amount of stimulation going on during the day (daylight, people walking by, the sound of cars passing) versus the little stimulation during the night.
Countless number of times people have approached me about their puppy wandering off to use the bathroom. If your dog struggles with this and has the ability to just stroll into another room and eliminate, they will. “Dogs that eliminate indoors are in essence performing a self-rewarding behavior because they relieve themselves and do not perceive that the area they have used is inappropriate” (Horowitz and Landsberg 2013). The more they use the bathroom in the house, the more the behavior becomes reinforced. What we want to do is break the routine by limiting the free range of the dog. We can do this by crating the dog for short periods of time if we are too preoccupied to watch our dog, or we can do this by closing doors or putting up gates to keep the dog close.
In doing this, we are able to supervise the dog and read any body language cues they give that they will need to go out. Dogs communicate through very complex body language. Dogs rarely eliminate without warning, so watch for signals such as the dog increasingly smelling the ground, pacing or running around, or going to a frequently-used elimination spot. Hezekiah would hold his tail high and smell the ground simultaneously when he was a pup. This told me he was about to use the bathroom. These are very clear indicators that our dog needs to go outside, and if we miss these signs, it is our fault and not the dog’s. It is not always as obvious as whining at the door. Once we see our dog’s cue, we know to stop what we are doing and take our dog outside. If we can’t stop what we are doing, consider putting your dog in a crate or a doggy playpen for a short period of time with something like a stuffed Kong to keep him occupied. It is also very important to note that you should never put a puppy or young dog in a crate without sufficient exercise (Stonnie Dennis 2015). Remember the four rules: the dog must have eaten, had something to drink, used the bathroom within a reasonable amount of time, and must be exercised before going in the crate. All your dog or puppy has left to do at that point is sleep!
Teaching What We Want
As we break the pattern of behavior, we also need to follow up the appropriate behavior with a reward. As soon as the dog finishes using the bathroom, reward the dog with a high value food reward and a lot of praise. It is pertinent that you reward immediately when the dog finishes using the bathroom. Not 5 seconds later, or when the dog comes back inside. The high value primary reinforcer will drive into the dog’s head that “good things happen when I potty outside, but nothing happens when I use the bathroom in the house. So, I want to make sure I use the bathroom outside!” Once your dog starts to be more reliable with this, you can start phasing out the food reward and give lavish praise. In this case, we react to our dog’s cues, but we also want to be proactive.
Know your dog’s bathroom routine by scheduling your feeding times and keep a journal of food, exercise and bathroom breaks. This will help you know a timeframe where your dog is more likely to need to use the bathroom, as well as help your dog pick up on your routine. There are several critical moments, especially for puppies, that make the dog more likely to need to use the bathroom. Be prepared to take your puppy (or dog) outside within 5-10 minutes of eating or drinking (even if just a small amount), playing (whether it is tug, fetch or wrestling around with another dog), or anything stimulating like car rides, meeting new people, or going into a new place.
Be Proactive!
Keep this in mind the next time your puppy goes outside for a long period of time, then comes back inside and poops on the rug. Your dog is not being spiteful (though, some dogs will prefer to use the bathroom inside—this is why we want to use high value food rewards for eliminating outside), it was just too wrapped up smelling around and playing. This can stimulate your dog’s need to use the bathroom. So, what do we do if our dog doesn’t potty when we take it outside? Hopefully, if we are being proactive, we give our dog ample amount of time to go to the bathroom and we do not just rush to our next obligation. If your dog does not eliminate, come back inside briefly and supervise your dog while you continue your scheduled daily tasks. Let’s be smarter than our dog—if they did not use the bathroom outside, they will eventually. I’d rather take the dog out and the dog not use the bathroom than be stuck with my back turned and the dog have an accident in the house.
If you are unable to supervise, put your dog back in the crate for the short time. Keep your dog nearby. If you’re incorporating potty training into your morning routine, for example, have them close by as you drink your coffee, brush your teeth, or get dressed. Then immediately go back outside. Keep your dog on a six-foot leash outside and wait. Wait around 10 minutes, then go back inside and repeat until your dog uses the bathroom. It will not be long before your dog starts to learn this routine.
Patience and Diligence
If you follow all of these steps diligently, you and your dog will accomplish your potty-training goals. Remember to rule out any medical conditions through your vet first, and make sure your dog has not established a marking behavior. Supervise your dog, and when you cannot, tighten down on the access your dog has to certain parts of the house, utilizing play pens and crates. Be proactive and take your dog out as you establish a schedule, but also react to your dog when you notice certain cues that they may need to go outside. If your dog still uses the bathroom inside, you are likely not setting your dog up for success. Possibly you are giving your dog too much freedom too soon, or maybe you need to be more consistent. Whatever the situation may be, it will always be worth the time and effort to teach our dogs not to relieve themselves in the house.
Bibliography:
Dennis, Stonnie, director. Puppy Housebreaking Secrets. YouTube, YouTube, 30 Apr. 2015, www.youtube.com/watch?v=FN8GuyRVQ8M.
Horwitz, Debra, and Gary Landsberg. “Dog Behavior Problems – House Soiling.” VCA corporate, 2013, vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/dog-behavior-problems-house-soiling.
“Housetraining Puppies & Dogs.” American Humane, 25 Aug. 2016, www.americanhumane.org/fact-sheet/housetraining-puppies-dogs/.
Simpson, Barbara Sherman. “Canine communication.” Veterinary Clinics: Small Animal Practice 27.3 (1997): 445-464.
The Power of Positive Dog Training, by Pat Miller, Wiley Pub., 2008.