I can remember it like it was yesterday, it was the day I brought home my first puppy. I was so excited to have this new addition to my family and all I wanted to do is play with him. Within the first hour of having our first family dog, there was a stain on the carpet.
The though never crossed my mind about letting the little puppy outside to go to the bathroom. Watching him pee on the carpet in complete shock made me realize that I needed to teach him where to go to the bathroom.
The problem is I had no idea how to do that! Do I just take him outside until he pees? How do I know when he needs to go to the bathroom? How will he let me know?
So I started my quest to learn how to potty train my new puppy. What I didn't realize at the time is was as much of an education for me as it was for the puppy. For me it was getting on a regular schedule that helped us both understand what we both needed to do. Not only did he need to learn to go to potty at certain times, I need to remember to take him out at those times.
One of the biggest secrets I figured out is not punish or yell at him when he did have accidents in the house. When I did get upset and yell at him, it only made him more confused and scared - which set back the training and routine we were building. I just had to bite my tongue and clean up the accidents when they happened.
Once we got on a regular schedule he and I found the spot he liked to go to every time to potty. That made things easier for both of us. We both went to the spot and he started doing his business automatically when we got to "his spot".