How to potty train a puppy when you work?
I bet you are wondering how!
This guide will tell you how to potty train your dog when you work all day. Don’t forget to check our guide on the best dog if you work all day.
Housebreaking your puppy when you work full time outside the home can seem like an impossible task.
After all, you’re not there all day to get him into a routine.
On top of that, you feel guilty because you’re not there all the time and you think about your poor pup all alone.
Rest assured he is fine.
The fact that you work full time might actually help him get in a more regular schedule.
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Housebreaking Your Puppy When You Work Full Time
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Help! I have a puppy and I work full time! How can I potty train him???”
If this sounds like you, don’t worry! Potty training when you work full time is easier than you might think!
When you first bring him home, you will feel like you spend more time taking him outside than anything else.
Truth be told, if this is how you feel, then you are doing it right. Basically after everything your pup does (eat, drink, play, sleep and nap…) he needs to go out.
Related: How Long Does It Take Puppy to Adjust To New Food?
Don’t worry, this phase won’t last forever!
Read on for five tips for housebreaking your puppy when you work full time! Don’t miss our guide about how to potty train a 6-month-old puppy
Related: What are the Hardest Dogs to Housebreak?
1. Crate, crate and crate some more:
Crating
When you give your new furry friend free reign of the house while you are gone, he will (I promise) relieve himself wherever he pleases.
Why?
Well for one because he has to go and he is still a pup and doesn’t know any better. Do not think picking a small space and confining a puppy while at work is the key to potty training!
He will still end up using it as a toilet.
The idea behind crating is that you give him enough space to turn around, but not enough where he can move away from his waste should he end up doing so.
Giving him run of the house allows him to pee and flee, and then find his warm spot back on the couch, until he has to go again.
Related: Crate training while working full-time job
2. Ask for help:
Leaving puppy in crate while at work is not an ideal situation.
Puppies under 6 months of age do not have the capability of controlling their bladder and bowel for more than 3-4 hours at a time.
Well, let me rephrase that.
Physically he is capable, however, he doesn’t know he is supposed to.
See if a friend can help you, go over while you are at work and let the little fella out for you. Or maybe you live close enough you can run home on break?
You could also consider hiring a dog sitter. Let the pup out, use your commands for doing his business and bring him back to his crate (with a treat for doing what you asked).
RELATED: How To Keep My Dog Calm While I’m At Work
3. Schedule:
You work well with a schedule right? (I am assuming you don’t need one to go potty, but for other important things in life).
So does your dog.
With a potty schedule, he will learn that after he eats and wakes up and before bed that he will have the opportunity to go to the bathroom.
This way, he doesn’t have to find a place to do so in your house (which eventually could be right where you place your feet in the morning, so this is as much for you as it is for him).
Dogs are smart, he will catch on.
He will also catch on if you don’t have a schedule and he will think “oh you aren’t going to take me out? Ok, I will go right here, in your favorite shoes, right before you leave for work”.
You might want to read: Tips To Prevent Separation Anxiety In Your Puppy
4. When you can’t crate:
If crating really is not an option for you, you do have another option.
You can block a small space for him preferably in the kitchen or some place that is tiled, just not carpeted (much harder to clean).
I know I said earlier that this isn’t ideal, but sometimes you have to do what you have to do!
RELATED: How To Teach Your Dog To Recognize Their Name
Save all your newspapers (yes some people still get those) and line the floor when them, giving him a place to go and a place to get away from him.
Nothing is worse than coming home to your poor little pup covered in poo because he didn’t have a choice but to use his sleep place as his toilet.
When you return home, clean up his mess, wash the floor with a good cleaner (keep reading) and take him out.
Related: How to Housebreak Your Puppy Without a Crate
5. A good cleaner:
When you are out buying cute little toys and treats, don’t forget the urine remover. Do not think you can use just any old cleaner.
Even if you can not smell it any longer, your dog can. You need a cleaner specific for cleaning up his mess, it will remove the smell for him as well.
A dog will continue to go where he can smell it. Ever see a dog sniffing the ground when looking for a place to go?
This is why, typically he is looking for a place he has gone before, or a place another dog has. I like OdoBan
Most people do not have the luxury of being home more than they are at work, yet they still have puppies and dogs.
Which means it is possible to housebreak your puppy when you work full time (as I have clearly stated for you).
I worked full time when I had my first pup on my own and she did great!
You might want to read: what to do with puppy when at work all day
