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First off, I have never had a puppy, and quite honestly never wanted one after watching my mother with her mini goldendoodle, but Dolly fell into our laps with a $350 adoption fee. I couldn’t say no! I have always thought it would be SO cool to own a big dog like the Great Pyrenees, so I thought, “Why not?” Once I started researching more about the breed, I found out that great pyrenees dogs are known to be stubborn because they were bred to think for themselves, so if they don’t want to come to you, they won’t come, no matter how loudly you yell.
This makes potty training especially difficult only because as puppies, if they want to pee/poop in your house, they will do so. We tried a couple of different methods with her. The number one thing I DID NOT like, and every resource warns against this is scolding/spanking if they have an accident. My husband tried this and honestly, I think it is one reason it took her longer to potty train because of it.
The second approach we tried, (and the one I would advise) is watching her like a HAWK. Any time Dolly got up I was on her like white on rice asking, “Do you need to go potty?” “Need to poop?” Etc. If I needed to go upstairs to get ready for the day I would put her in her enclosed space (because puppies are not supposed to be in crates for more than 4 hours a day). I found mine at Theisen’s, but Chewy and Amazon sell them as well. I just feel so much better with her in that instead of a crate. This strategy is what helped us the most, and the one I would recommend. Every time she went potty/poop I would give her LOTS of praise and not always offer a treat because I didn’t want her to expect that every time she went out.
I pulled EVERY rug from the house that I could be less tempting for her, closed the bathroom door (because she used that spot when people weren’t watching), and sometimes would lock myself in the room with her that is by the door to go outside. I wanted her to be well trained so she didn’t bark to go outside, and I make sure she doesn’t bark to get back in either, so when I let her out I watch to make sure she does her business, and then I let her in.
Recently, I have noticed that she is ringing the bell, going outside, literally just sniffing the grass, and trying to come back in. After the 10th time that morning of letting her out, I began to say, “You need to go potty,” and when she didn’t she would go into her enclosure. I would let her out in 5 minutes, and if she rang the bell, went outside, and went potty she wouldn’t go back in her enclosure. I think she just got bored in the morning, but I was sick of getting myself situated and then having to let her out.
I forgot to mention that the first couple of nights she did sleep in her crate (I wanted a big one, but you are supposed to have a crate big enough only for them to turn around in, otherwise they will think it’s okay to poop or pee in one corner if they can go sleep in the other. I got up and let her out in the middle of the night. The second night my husband didn’t make her go potty before she went to bed, so when I came down at 4 am to let her out, she had an accident. Afterwards, though it has been smooth sailing as far as night time goes, and she can sleep in her enclosed space now.
Tips On Potty Training A Great Pyrenees Puppy
- Remember to start by having them in a crate big enough only for them to turn around at night. Don’t have them in a crate like that for more than 4 hours in a day. If you can’t do 4 hours here is my affiliate link for that enclosure we have for Dolly.
- Watch them like HAWKS when they are out and about in the house. You may want to set a timer for 15-20 minutes after they eat/drink and let them out because that’s the most likely time they will want to eliminate.
- It’s okay to give them treats when they go to the bathroom, but don’t make it a thing EVERY time. Unless you want them begging you for a treat for the rest of their lives every time they go outside.
- If times get too frequent, feel free to put them into their enclosure if they aren’t going potty/poop, let them out again, and go about the day as usual when they do.
- Patience is KEY, don’t get overconfident like myself when I started letting her roam the house without being watched too early. Remember it isn’t their fault when they have an accident. It is yours for not watching them, that helped me by not scolding her so harshly.
- PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE them when they do a good job. I sometimes add treats to the praise, but not all the time. I also heard it is better to use a piece of their food as a treat because it’s easier on their little stomachs.
In conclusion –
Potty training a great pyrenees isn’t easy, but if you do the right thing right away it won’t take as long as Google says it will, which is 4-6 months. It is so true that if you don’t even ALLOW them to have an accident, it will help them figure things out quickly. That being said, if you have older children in the house that you don’t have to watch all the time, I feel like having a puppy shouldn’t be too hard. If you have YOUNG children however that you need to keep safe at all times, house training a puppy would be a lot tougher since you have to be watching the puppy constantly.