# Q about potty training



## shmish (Nov 18, 2017)

Henry is about 9 months old and he still poos or pees in the house every 2nd day or so. I've read lots here and elsewhere about keeping the dog in a crate or close by, basically restricting his space. With this, the only way Henry would pee or poo would be when we take him outside.

The thing I wonder about though, is if this is training him or us? Clearly he has some conditioning because for the most part he holds his pee until outside. At this point though, he doesn't seem too concerned if he eliminates inside sometimes. Henry's signs are very subtle. If we watch him like a hawk we can prevent the inside elimination. But again, is that training him or us? Watching Henry 24/7 or keeping him in a crate is tiring!

thanks!


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

shmish said:


> Henry is about 9 months old and he still poos or pees in the house every 2nd day or so. I've read lots here and elsewhere about keeping the dog in a crate or close by, basically restricting his space. With this, the only way Henry would pee or poo would be when we take him outside.
> 
> The thing I wonder about though, is if this is training him or us? Clearly he has some conditioning because for the most part he holds his pee until outside. At this point though, he doesn't seem too concerned if he eliminates inside sometimes. Henry's signs are very subtle. If we watch him like a hawk we can prevent the inside elimination. But again, is that training him or us? Watching Henry 24/7 or keeping him in a crate is tiring!
> 
> thanks!


Potty training puppies is all about establishing good habits. The more you prevent mistKes (by confinement and/or supervision, the faster they train. The more mistakes you let them have, the longer ot will take. Unfortunately, if he still has the opprotunity to make a mistake every other day, it is going to be harder to break that habit than it would have been with the "clean slate" of a young puppy. It really is as simple as that. He CAn learn to become more reliable, but it will only happen by preventing accidents.


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## Hava Novice (Aug 30, 2016)

I would say it ends up being pretty much equal, training the owners as well as the pup. Initially it will be training you to be in tune with his cues, which in turn will prevent him from having accidents. The longer he goes without an accident, the better trained he will become. Eventually it will all converge and end up with the pup being trained. Good luck!


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## CaroleG (Aug 13, 2016)

Tether him or her to you so you can watch and guide him/her. It is a process. Crate is awesome.


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