Ask any dog owner and they will tell you that the question of how can such a small creature produce so much poop is second only to the meaning of life – there is no known answer.

Potty training and accidents around the house are one of the biggest hurdles you will have to overcome with your new puppy and how you train her and the way you handle yourself will go a long way to creating a happy, calm and healthy dog. It is very easy to get angry and upset when you have been doing potty training for many weeks and your puppy looks up at you wagging her tail while sitting next to a small puddle. There are some horror stories on how some dog owners go about puppy potty training which sometimes goes under the guise of housebreaking, but hopefully after reading this guide you will pick up some new techniques to make the process as easy and mess-free as possible.

First and foremost though you should know that your puppy will go potty around your house. Even after several weeks of training, it will still happen, unless your puppy is kept outside you can expect to be cleaning up her accidents several times a day.

There are so many factors to consider. Some experts say stick to a routine of feeding and walks, others say read the signs that your puppy needs to go potty, and others say reward your puppy with affection when they go potty outside. The truth is that it probably requires a combination of these factors and none is more important than the other.

Looking for the signs that your dog is looking to relieve herself is very important because you can direct her outside to teach her that if she has that feeling she needs to go outside as soon as possible. The ‘look’ can be anything from whining to barking to sniffing around in the corners of the room. If you take your puppy outside and she does go to the toilet, make sure you reward her with plenty of affection. The major issue with the ‘look’ is that just like babies, puppies are not aware of bladder and bowel movements and they can be 16 weeks old before they start to understand the signals they are getting that they need to go potty.

Now looking for the signs is all very well if you are in the house all day and able to keep an eye on her 24/7, but it’s much better if you teach her to go at a set time of the day, which is often during walking time. By taking her out for a walk at the same time each day, and when she’s learned that going to the potty should be done outside, eventually she will be able to hold on until when you go out.

Potty training is a process that should be richly rewarded when she does something right and corrected when she does something wrong. If you happen to catch her just after the event has taken place indoors, look at her and use the “No!” command, then immediately take her outside. If she happens to go again while outside make sure you lavish praise and affection on her.

One method some people advocate is the crate training method. This is based on the fact that dogs don’t like to go potty in the area in which they sleep, so if you keep them in a crate while you are out of the house, they will hold on until they can go. Obviously if a puppy doesn’t have awareness or control over their bodily functions until 16 weeks then this method means that they will likely end up sleeping in their own mess.

At the end of the day, everyone needs to be involved with the puppy potty training, everyone needs to know about the tell tale signals that she needs to go and that she should be taken outside as soon as possible and rewarded if she goes. Similarly if there is an accident, then saying “No!” and not getting angry is essential.