Potty training 101
You have many choices for potty training; crate training with strict potty schedule or a small pen with a doggy door to the outside is a great option. They are accustomed to a pen with either a brilliant pad, regular potty pads, turf, or pine litter. They tend to prefer pine litter but it is very messy tracking on your floors. I have them potty trained to use an indoor potty area when contained in 16sqft (4x4) - 64sqft (8x8) while you are not actively working with the dog (young and old). The area should be 1/4 open crate(den) filled with soft bedding or hammock bed, 1/2 play area with water bottle or bowl in between the bed and potty area, 1/4 - 1/2 of the pen as potty area allowing it to shrink with age. This should be set up before the puppy comes home. You should maintain this routine for the first few months when you get home for the best potty-training success.
Supply list for purchase before pickup:
*Food: Purina Pro Plan chicken and rice - All life stages 26/16 is what I use. PLEASE DON'T CHANGE FOOD IMMEDIATELY WHEN YOU GET HOME. THEY WILL BE STRESSED FROM THE MOVE AND MAY NOT EAT IN THE FIRST 24 HOURS, THIS DOESN'T MEAN THEY DON'T LIKE THE FOOD. ONE CHANGE AT A TIME. GRADUALLY MIX FOOD AND FADE OUT OLD FOOD IF YOU WANT TO SWITCH BRANDS OVER THE COURSE OF A WEEK.
*Harness / collar: 10-14" harness for shih tzu or collar for dalmatian
*Leash: 20ft leash and 6ft leash
*Exercise pen / baby gates: exercise pen 36" tall, while a 24" may work for most every now and then one can climb or jump out: If you choose to use baby gates the net kind with a flex bottom won't work for inquisitive puppies. Gallon water jugs make good weights to secure the exercise pen with tiedowns or eyebolts w/ carabineer attached to a wall. Midwest brand or any brand carried by petsmart or chewy (not cheap imports from temu, amazon, ebay, walmart) has stronger gauge metal necessary for the safety of the protesting puppy. Even a small shih tzu can bend the metal bars open on a cheaper model and get a head or leg stuck if determined or upset enough. The cage type metal is easier to attach a water bottle to and is easier to move inside to outside. The plastics, acrylics, or European bar types don't fit a water bottle without a bottle holder to hook over top edge and some can be heavier and don't pack and transport as easily. If you want to add on things like grated floor to the crate or a top cage lid for the pen Midwest brand is the brand, be sure to note icrate vs regular crates are different dimensions for the floor grate off by an inch.
*Crate: Midwest crate 18" (puppy size) - 22/24" for shih tzu and a 24" (puppy size) - 36"/42" for dalmatian
*Brilliant Pad system or potty pads - 2x2 is too small as their aim isn't that good unless you put down 4 to make a larger square.
*Pets World 2x3 potty pads are sold in bulk at Chewy.com
*Artificial turf should be 100% permeable (not with holes spaced out) as special pet turf, of course real turf is also an option
*Litter pan: can be used for turf, pads or pine pellet: litter pan for dalmatian - a large or jumbo dog litter pan or a 30"x30"x2-3" deep washing machine drain tray ($30) or 36" hard sided kiddie pool for tall dalmatians ($10 at the dollar store in summer). Litter pan for shih tzu - a pan minimum 24" wide and low entry of 3", a regular cat litter box is too deep / tall as their shoulders are only 10 inches high and the cat boxes are often 8" tall.
*Pine litter: Pine crumble litter from chewy ($6 / 25 lbs) Pine pellet "bedding" from farm store ($9 / 25lbs)
*IMAGES OF PRODUCT EXAMPLES AT THE BOTTOM*
Potty training when you get home
DAILY POTTY TRAINING SCHEDULE:
AGE RANGE: 8–20 weeks old or for the first 2 months for any new dog - young or old
MORNING ROUTINE:
6:00–7:00 AM Wake → Immediate Potty Trip
• Quiet praise + small treat
• Short play session
7:00 AM Breakfast
7:05 AM Potty Trip (after eating)
7:10–8:00 AM Play + Training + Supervised Freedom
7:45–8:00 AM Potty Trip
8:00–10:00 AM Nap (crate or sleep zone)
MIDDAY ROUTINE:
10:00 AM Wake → Potty Trip
10:05–11:00 AM Play + Enrichment
10:45–11:00 AM Potty Trip
12:00 PM Lunch
12:05 PM Potty Trip
12:15–1:00 PM Calm play + crate games
12:45–1:00 PM Potty Trip
1:00–3:00 PM Nap
AFTERNOON ROUTINE:
3:00 PM Wake → Potty Trip
3:05–4:00 PM Play + Training
3:45–4:00 PM Potty Trip
5:00 PM Dinner
5:05 PM Potty Trip
5:15–6:00 PM Light play + supervised freedom
5:45–6:00 PM Potty Trip
EVENING ROUTINE:
7:00 PM Calm activities (chews, snuggles)
7:45–8:00 PM Potty Trip
8:00–10:00 PM Wind‑down, crate time, quiet household
9:45–10:00 PM Final Potty Trip
OVERNIGHT:
• Most puppies sleep 6–8 hours
• No water after 8 PM unless medically needed
• If puppy wakes: straight to potty, no play
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GENERAL RULES
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• Potty every 30–45 minutes during awake time
• Potty immediately after: waking, eating, playing
• No corrections for accidents
• Enzymatic cleaner only will remove the scent for the dog, vinegar removes it for people - not dogs.
• Calm praise + small treat for correct potty
• Freedom is earned as reliability increases
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Use close supervision indoors and expand freedom slowly to avoid rehearsing accidents. Dalmatians catch on quickly.
Puppies are often mostly house-trained as long as the space is small enough. They naturally try not to soil their bed or den area, but they do not yet understand that the dining room, guest room, or space behind the couch is part of that same shared space.
For indoor options, untreated pine pellets in a wide bin such as the underbed storage kind or small kiddie pool can work well providing enough width that they can turn in a circle. Potty pads can also be used, and outdoor training is often ideal when practical.
If Using Potty Pads
Replace pads often and use more than one if needed. Many puppies will avoid a soiled pad and choose the floor, couch, or bed instead. They also tend to prefer a potty area that offers a little privacy. As the rule goes that cats require one more litter box than the number of cats in the house, so it goes one more potty pad per dog is required at minimum to avoid refusal due to a soiled pad.
Cleaning Accidents
Use an enzyme cleaner to remove odor and reduce repeat accidents. Vinegar alone is usually not enough, and ammonia-based cleaners can smell like urine to dogs.
Training Principles
A few simple principles can make training clearer and more consistent:
• What you reward / release is what you teach.
• What is practiced will be repeated, for better or worse.
• Keep training simple, short, and positive.
If you do not want a behavior in the adult dog, do not allow it in the puppy. It is much easier to prevent habits than to undo them later.
Food Safety: Foods to Avoid
Some foods are toxic to dogs and can cause serious illness, organ damage, or death.
Avoid:
• grapes and raisins,
• caffeine,
• chocolate, especially dark chocolate,
• xylitol, and
• large amounts of tomato sauce, garlic, or onions, which can cause stomach upset.
If your dog eats a toxic substance or shows concerning symptoms, contact your veterinarian or an animal poison control resource immediately.
Limit table food. Some spices such as spices in pumpkin pie and large quantities of very high-fat foods such as fat trimmings off of meat or large quantities of cheese in potatoes au gratin or other similar holiday foods can cause digestive upset and may contribute to pancreatitis or diabetes. The quantity is by body weight so what is okay for you isn't always okay for them. Ask your veterinarian for feeding guidance that fits your dog.
Introducing a New Puppy to Other Pets
Give your resident pets time and space to adjust to the new puppy. For the first week or two, use baby gates or exercise pens to allow safe visual and scent-based introductions before allowing closer interaction.
Preventing Resource Guarding
During the adjustment period, keep food, favorite toys, and chews separate to help prevent tension or guarding between pets.
Puppy Class, Recall, and Leash Walking
Puppy Class
Choose a positive, well-managed puppy class and focus more on confidence and calm participation than on perfect performance. If your puppy shows stress, step out early and let them recover.
Build Recall Early
Pair your recall cue with rewards often, starting indoors with very few distractions. In open areas or off-leash settings, use especially valuable rewards and avoid repeating the cue if you cannot reinforce it. For any command it is useful to wait for opportunities when they are already doing it then name and reward it. Relaxing quietly - reward, running towards you - say 'come' and reward, already sitting - say 'sit' and reward. Observation and seizing an opportunity is the key to easy training.
Leash Walking