Let me take you back to December 13th, 2020 – a great day in my son Jack’s life, and mine. That was the day we brought Magnum home. We drove about three hours from Simi Valley through the San Bernardino Mountains to Mountain Center to pick him up.
Magnum, seven weeks old and eleven pounds, couldn’t have been cuter, and he slept most of the way home. We stopped about halfway so he could go to the bathroom. As soon as I put him on the ground, I gave him his first command: ‘hurry up.’ The moment he peed, I told him ‘good hurry up.’ Then again, and when he went to poop, the same thing. Back at the car, he got a piece of kibble and plenty of praise.
When we got home, we went straight to the spot we’d already picked out for him to go to the bathroom, told him ‘hurry up,’ and gave him the chance before bringing him inside for the first time.
Before your puppy comes home, it’s important to have that spot picked out. As soon as you arrive, go right to it and encourage ‘hurry up.’ When they go, tell them how good they are and give a treat as soon as you’re back inside.
Once home, keep a close eye on your puppy and take them out to that same spot frequently. Encourage ‘hurry up’ every time, with praise right there on the spot, and a treat once you’re back in. There will be accidents at first, but the closer you watch, the faster potty training clicks.
You also need a plan for when you catch your puppy starting to go in the house. No need to yell – just tell them ‘no,’ pick them up quickly, get them outside to their spot, put them down, tell them ‘hurry up,’ and praise them the moment they go. Treats should be just kibble for the first few weeks.
Magnum turned two a few months ago, and I still tell him ‘good hurry up’ every time he goes, with a cookie waiting when we get home. He’s no dummy – I’m fairly sure I’ve been talked into a few unnecessary potty trips over the years for the sake of a cookie. But he clearly understands the command and exactly what’s being asked of him.
Why teach an actual command for the bathroom? A few reasons. It reinforces and rewards going outside, immediately, sometimes before you’ve even made it all the way home. In a strange place – a friend’s house, camping – you can point to a spot and your puppy will know exactly what to do there. On a bad-weather day, ‘hurry up’ gets business done quickly. And it teaches your puppy the difference between taking a walk and just stepping out to go.
Some people train their puppy to go inside on newspaper or a pad. I don’t believe a puppy should ever be encouraged to go inside. Teaching your pup to go outside from day one is, in my experience, simply the better way to do it.