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Beagles are intelligent dogs but easily distracted by their nose. It is a common mistake made by many Beagle puppy owners, that they pop their pup in the yard for half an hour and expect them to potty train themselves. Unfortunately, the chances of a Beagle learning that outside is the place to pee, when left to his own amusement, is very slim indeed.
Once outside, the beagle pup is far more likely to fine-tune his digging skills or track that intriguing scent around the garden. Indeed, his ability to be distracted is such that he'll probably forget all about that achingly full bladder...until he's brought back indoors.
Down this road lies disaster with a puppy who comes back inside to toilet on the carpet. Instead, follow our training tips so he successfully learns to toilet outdoors.
Training a puppy to pee outside is part of potty training. It is of great benefit since when a dog pees on earth or grass, there is no clearing up to do. Most of the work lies in teaching the puppy that the appropriate place to relieve himself is outside. Once he understands this, most dogs will go and sit by the door or scratch at it to tell the owner they need to go out. Thus, specific training to ask to go out is usually not needed.
Each dog is an individual and some learn this skill relatively quickly, while others take weeks or even months. What is clear is that the more consistently you apply the rules, the more likely the dog is to learn. However, if the dog is extremely resistant to potty training, then he should be checked by a vet in order to rule out a medical or physical problem.
To teach a Beagle to pee outside, it's helpful to have:
- A yard that is close to the house, preferably with an area sheltered from the wind and rain
- A collar and leash
- Tasty treats
- A treat pouch so that rewards are always close to hand.
The Basic Potty Training Method
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Understand the idea
The backbone of teaching any puppy to pee outside is basic potty training. This teaches the young dog to control his bladder and bowel, and hold until he has access to the appropriate place to toilet.
Prevent peeing in the wrong places
Peeing is habit forming and pups love to go back to a place they previously soiled. This can work for you during training (by presenting the pup with the correct place) or against you (when the pup pees indoors and marks out his own toilet. Prevention depends on thorough deoderization of previous accidents. Blot up as much of the pee as possible with disposible towel and then clean and disinfect with an appropriate product.
Constant vigilance
The other part of prevention is watching the puppy for signs of needing to toilet, and immediately taking him outside. Any sniffing or sidling up to furniture can be a prelude to peeing, so don't take any chances and take him straight out to the toilet spot.
Confine an unattended puppy
Dont give the puppy the chance to pee in your absence. Crate train him and pop him in when you need to leave the room or leave him unattended.
Praise a pee in the right place
When puppy does pee outside, say "Yes" in an excited voice and then reward him. This helps him link peeing outside to good things happening, so that he wants to save up his pee and spend it for treats outside.
The Do's and Don'ts Method
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Don't: Use a cleaner containing ammonia
Many household cleaners contain bleach or ammonia. Unfortunately, both of these contain constituents of urine and can accidentally amplify the scent of a puddle rather than remove it. Be sure to chose a cleaner that is ammonia or bleach-free.
Don't: Punish accidents
Puppies live in the moment. If you punish him for peeing in the house, he won't understand what the punishment is for. This will only serve to make him wary of you and could even inhibit him from peeing in your presence, thus making training harder rather than easier.
Do: Give plenty of opportunity to pee
Young puppies have poor bladder control and when they've gotta go... they've gotta go. Increase the chance of this being in the right place by presenting him with the toilet spot outdoors every 20 - 30 minutes. Also increase the 'hit' rate by taking him out immediately when he wakes up and around 15 - 20 minutes after eating. These are all peak times that puppy may need to relieve himself.
Don't: Leave puppy outside by himself
A puppy outside alone equals puppy playtime. He's likely to get distracted and find a stick to play with, and forget to do his business. Then when you do eventually bring him indoors he's even more desperate for the toilet and uses the carpet. Instead, accompany him outside and gently focus his mind by encouraging him to toilet and discouraging playtime.
Do: Be patient
Puppies are all individuals and learn at different rates. Some learn quickly, other more slowly. It is a rare pup that is properly potty trained ahead of 12 weeks, so don't be discouraged if your baby dog seems slow on the uptake. Also, if he suffers a setback, such as being sick or having vaccinations, his potty training may slip for a few days. If, however, the dog doesn't seem to be catching on at all, then have him checked by a vet in case he has a urinary infection or an anatomical problem.
The Wider Outdoors Method
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Understand the problem
Sometimes we can be so good at teaching a puppy to use a toilet spot outdoors in the yard, that they believe the yard is the only place they are allowed to toilet. This can make walks frustrating as the dog holds on for the entirety of the exercise, only to return home and toilet. Careful planning and a wider strategy can prevent this over-clean habit.
Up and out
Once your puppy is protected by vaccination and allowed to walk on the sidewalk, adopt a slightly new strategy. Immediately when he gets up, (and his bladder is full from overnight) pop on his collar and leash and take him outside into the street. Hopefully he will relieve himself out of urgency. At which point say "Yes" excitedly, and when he's finished give him a tasty treat. This helps broaden his horizons to the concept of peeing outdoors in general, rather than outdoors in one spot.
Praise peeing on walks
Beagles have a fondness for sniffing and following scents. Many of those enticing scent messages require a reply in the form of a quick pee on top of them. When your young Beagle does this, let him know how clever he is so that he decides this is a great idea in future.
Avoid returning immediately
However, there is a flaw in rewarding pees on walks. If you praise the pup and then immediately turn to home, he may reason that emptying his bladder means an end to the walk. The clever chap then decides not to relieve himself until the last possible moment, in a bid to get the longest walk possible. This is easily avoided, by making sure you continue walking for a while after he's peed, so that he doesn't make this connection.
Use a collar and leash
It helps toilet training (be it in the yard or on walks) if the pup is on a collar and lead. This is a good way of concentrating the dog on sniffing for a pee rather than investigating an interesting leaf or digging a hole.
Written by Pippa Elliott
Veterinary reviewed by:
Published: 02/06/2018, edited: 01/08/2021
More articles by Pippa Elliott
Training Questions and Answers
Hello, my name is Kirstin and I recently adopted a puppy that was left behind by a hunter in a dirt pen and then later taken to a rescue where he was free to do his business in a concrete kennel. Now that I have him we are working on potty training. I use a lead and collar and take him out right after sleep/naps and right after eating for many minutes. It has been a week and he still has not had a single potty outside. It seems like hes holding it outside because maybe he is not use to going on grass? Right when I take him back inside he pees! Although after this week he is starting to go by the door which is a good sign I guess because he is associating the two. But anywho, I have had several people tell me its near impossible to fully house train a beagle. So I definitely need tips and any help I can get!I have never raised anything but Lab puppies and other than that I have had adult dogs. Please help! Thank you, Kirstin
Oct. 5, 2018
Ryder's Owner
Caitlin Crittenden - Dog Trainer
1128 Dog owners recommended
Hell Kristen, I highly suggest crate training him using the "Crate Training" method from the article that I have linked below. That method includes tips like using a potty encouraging spray, only letting the puppy have freedom outside of the crate when his bladder is empty, teaching him a "Go Potty" command, and rewarding him when he pees outside. The combination of the structured schedule, only giving him freedom while his bladder is empty, and rewarding him for going potty outside should significantly help! It can be more work at first but it tends to be the quickest and most sure fire way to potty train a puppy so I especially recommend it for puppies that got off on the wrong foot with potty training. It will also limit his freedom in your house to break his old habit of peeing inside while he establishes a new habit of peeing outside. That is important for him to be successful. It will be important for his crate to be the right size, or he may pee in there like he would a kennel. The crate needs to be big enough for him to lay down and circle around but not big enough for him to pee in one end and stand in the other end away from his pee. You can either purchase a smaller crate and buy a second one when he out grows that one and is hopefully potty trained by then, or you can buy an adult sized crate that comes with a metal divider, which most wire crates do, and use the divider to block off the back of the crate so that the part he is in is small enough. Here is the link to the potty training article below. Follow the "Crate Training" method for Ryder and purchase a potty encouraging spray to spray on the ground where you want him to go potty outside to help him understand what to do outside more quickly. Do not skip the treat rewards. I recommend putting a bag or bowl of treats somewhere out of his reach by the door that you take him to go potty through to help you remember and make it more convenient for you. Also, when you are home, take him out as often as the article recommends but when you are gone off, at three months of age he can hold it for three to four hours during the day while in the crate, but no longer. I would try not to push it all the way to four hours most of the time though because he might have an accident if he did something like drank too much water. Three hours is a bit safer. As he gets older you can add one more hour to that number for his maximum amount of time. The number will always be one more hour than he is months of age. So at four months of age he will be able to go up to five hours between potty breaks when needed. https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-german-shepherd-puppy-to-poop-outside Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden
Oct. 5, 2018
I sometime used to gently hit my puppy to stop her from certain doings and behaviours later when I read on the internet that it develops fear in dogs I stopped it. But I feel my pup is sometimes scared of me. How can I get back her trust, love and friendship?
June 12, 2018
Coco's Owner
Caitlin Crittenden - Dog Trainer
1128 Dog owners recommended
Hello Mickey, To begin with, at least once a day hand feed your puppy's dog food to her as training treats during handling exercises. To do this, gently touch her paw and give her a treat while you do so. Touch her ear and give her a treat. Touch her tail and give her a treat. Touch her belly and give her a treat. Touch another paw and give her a treat. Gently open up her mouth if she will let you and give her a treat. Repeat this with every area of her body, practicing even more on the areas that she seems uncomfortable with. Make sure that these touches are gentle and that you are calm and gentle with her while you do this. It should be fun for both of you once she starts to get comfortable with it. Second, spend some time every day training her in a fun way. You can either teach her obedience commands, tricks, special tasks, or build on what she already knows, but try to make the training fun, positive, and a little bit mentally challenging. To make it mentally challenging focus on building on what she already knows, so that the training session is just a little bit difficult but easy enough for her to learn still. Teach her a new command, or practice lots of different commands in different orders, rather than practicing the same command for too long each time. Training that is consistent, fair, motivational, and a little bit mentally challenging builds trust, creates a bond between you and your dog, and builds respect without you having to be being harsh or intimidating. Just because the training is positive though that does not mean that you cannot be firm. Your attitude when you need to be firm with her should be completely calm, more stubborn than she is, and patient. You can be consistent and firm when she chooses to disobey a command by being persistent until she chooses to obey, by using something like a long leash to reel her in when you tell her to come so that she has to follow through, by practicing the same command several times in a row, helping her to do it, until she will do it by herself, and by generally going to her and helping her obey a command if she chooses to disobey, rather than simply yelling at her or ignoring the disobedience. Simply being consistent goes a long way in earning a dog's respect. Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden
June 13, 2018