# Rewards for going outside to bathroom



## Casskanerva (Jan 10, 2011)

When should I stop giving treats for using the bathroom outside? How should I stop doing it? Tripp is 11 weeks old and we have had him for almost week. He has been very good about no accidents when he has free time in the house and always pees or poops when he comes out the crate.


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## katielou (Apr 29, 2010)

I reward every time for at least the first month then I just start to wean to every other time, every third time etc 

My adult dogs get thrown a treat every now and then for going outside. 

It's far better to fade the treat late than to early.


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## InkedMarie (Mar 11, 2009)

My dogs are 14ish (tho only been here for 3.5yrs), 5 and just about 10mos; I still reward with treats a couple times a day and I still say "good potty" when they go. Heck, I say that when I see a strange dog going LOL


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## Casskanerva (Jan 10, 2011)

Haha. Okay thank you.


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## doxiemommy (Dec 18, 2009)

I say keep rewarding him! He's so young now, and really, potty training is an ongoing process. There are several things that can cause setbacks to such a young puppy, like when he starts losing baby teeth, and getting his adult teeth, the pain of teething can cause potty training setbacks. They can have setbacks when there are changes in their environment or routine, and when the weather changes. Also, when they reach the puppy equivalent of the "teenage" years they can have setbacks.
So, I think continue to train, because as your young puppy continues to develop physically, there could be setbacks, and any encouragement you can give along the way will be worth it!

FYI, we're going through a setback with our youngest puppy. We got a new bed and bedroom furniture, so we've had delivery people in our house, and we've had to rearrange the layout of the bedroom. Even changes like these, that seem small to us, can cause setbacks in our dogs.


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## Maggie Girl (Feb 27, 2011)

Yeah, keep it up so he doesn't regress. If you have to break them into small pieces to keep the diet good, so be it, but I wouldn't stop yet. And if/when you do choose to stop giving treats for it, I'd wean them down. If you suddenly stop he might be like "what'd I do wrong?"


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## Casskanerva (Jan 10, 2011)

I just worry that I'm giving him to many treats between that and training a few times a day. We are also started clicker training today. He had a little bit of diareha yesterday, I'm not really sure what its from. I am in the middle of changing his food from costco brand to Taste of the Wild. Do you think that food is good for a yorkie? I wanted to put him on orijen but the people at the pet store kept saying it has to much protien for a little puppy. He also gets Wellness holistic treats.


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## doxiemommy (Dec 18, 2009)

I don't have any experience with Taste of the Wild. We started with Canidae All Life Stages, but switched to Blue Buffalo.
But, changing food can cause diarrhea....just try to switch slowly.

Also, if you're concerned about feeding too many treats you can substitute some kibble for training. I wouldn't use kibble for bathroom treats, those should be extra special treats. But, you could use kibble for training treats. And, then just subtract however much kibble you use for training from one of his feedings.


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## Indigo (Mar 31, 2011)

Giving rewards on a variable schedule can increase performance. You don't have to uh... reward... better... peeing? ...but weaning them off treats gradually is not a bad idea so they don't take them for granted. Don't stop praising though.
http://www.limbicnutrition.com/blog/20-dont-shoot-the-dog/ (excerpt from one of my favorite dog books about variable scheduling)

If you don't feel like reading that, the gist is... you say "good potty" or whatever it is you say when they pee in the right place, and give them your food reward. Maybe 1 out of 5 times only say "good potty" (or whatever it is you say) and make a positive fuss about it. No food. They will notice something is up, but they won't stop peeing outside just because you didn't give food that one time. They might even think, hey maybe I didn't do it good enough that time! Gradually move to 1 out of 4 times a treat is given. Keep working the ratio down until they are doing it naturally... and then they can get a treat once and a while to remind them what a good job they're doing.

I used this technique to strengthen my dog's recall from outside. He hated coming in on his own, but chasing him around was not helpful, so I started getting him to come in for treats. I varied the times that he actually got a food reward, and always rewarded especially fast recalls. Eventually he would come super fast for no reward at all. Some of dog training seems counter-intuitive, but this method is similar to how gambling addictions start. ...we are making our dog treat gambling addicts. O_O


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