Our Foster Puppy
Potty training took longer than I thought. The other fosters had their puppies trained in days. It took me two weeks. Why? Because we haven't had a puppy in 10 years and I forgot a few things.
Consistency is Key - I take Bella outside first thing in the morning and after she naps. I also take her outside 15-20 minutes after she eats or plays.
Celebrating Every Drop - whenever she goes potty, we have a party. She now runs to me afterwards for a celebration and then runs off to play.
Potty First, Play After - I learned this from Dayton Cummings of Kilted K9 Dog Training. There were days when she would go outside and run around playing. Dayton suggested putting her on leash until she went potty.
But Cathy and I interviewed Zoe Holloway (The Dreaded Dog Trainer) for Girls with Dogs and she told us that dogs don't have a language center. So, I started
limited my commands to "go potty" instead of "come on, Bella, go potty for me, good girl, go potty....." - it worked. She now understands and will go potty when I ask (if she has to).
