Are you trying to guess when your puppy needs to go outside? Are you trying to avoid having him urinating or defecating in the house? Of course, you are! So now you’re taking your puppy out every hour, give or take a little. But is that the best way to train a puppy?
It’s kind of like the chicken and the egg. Seriously. Did you take your puppy out because he had to “go” or did your puppy “go” because you took him out? Most often than not, your puppy urinated simply because you took him out and put him on the grass. 
How about this? When you put your puppy down on the grass does he just stand there, sit down, lie down, or run around not knowing he’s supposed to go to the bathroom?
Here’s another issue you may encounter. You take your puppy out and he squats to urinate. Then he comes back into the house and urinates again. Sound familiar?
Keep a sheet of paper on the fridge or kitchen counter and log the time you took your puppy out and if your puppy urinated or defecated. You might find that your puppy urinated every time you took him out and yet he still has accidents in the house.
If you’re taking your puppy out every hour or so, ask yourself the question I asked you earlier. Did you take your puppy out because he had to “go” or did your puppy “go” because you took him out? If you take your puppy outside every hour you might avoid any accidents in the house but you’re conditioning the puppy to “go” too often and he is not being taught to “hold it in” for an extended amount of time. Additionally, if you take your puppy out every hour, what will you do when you’re not home? Are you creating a bigger problem than you already have?
The best way to know if your puppy really should be taken outside is to keep a log of every activity or event and follow a routine schedule noting when your puppy should eat, drink, sleep, play, be crated, be confined, have playtime, go for a walk, etc. Going for a walk and going to “GO” or what I refer to as “going to the bathroom” should be two completely separate activities.
The most common time for a puppy to urinate is first thing in the morning, after eating/drinking, after napping, after running around a lot, and after crating.
If you would like a CUSTOM-DESIGNED SCHEDULE made for your puppy, plus TWO (2) WEEKS OF ONE-ON-ONE PRIVATE INSTRUCTION please contact me at Jenna@murphdog.net
