Indoor Potty Training for Dachshunds

Indoor potty training is the way to go if you have a Dachshund puppy.  This is true for Miniature Dachshund puppies as well as for those of the standard variety.  I love Dachshunds in general but am partial to the Miniature Dachshund. This article also applies to adult Dachshunds and all other small breeds but the focus is on Dachshund puppies. 

Indoor training will spare you some of the unpleasantries of having a Dachshund that must go outside.  Who wants to get up at 5 AM in the morning, when it is rainy or cold or, when you are watching a great movie?  It is also better on the Dachshund’s bowels and bladder if they can go potty anytime they want.  By the way, indoor potty training can be initiated for a Dachshund at any age.  It is better, however, to start their training sooner rather than later.

Start the potty training as soon as possible once you get your new, best friend home.  Dachshund puppies are quite small so even if they do make a mess it is no big deal.  However, having them make a mess on a hard floor is preferable as it is much easier to clean than if they go on carpet.  For the first few days you have the little weiner at your home, I suggest you have them mostly contained to a room with a hard floor…like in a 2nd bathroom or laundry room.  The space should not be too small but also not too big. 

I suggest not shutting them in their space by closing the door.  Instead, gate them in the room.  Leave the door to the room open but invest in some kind of child or Pet Gate that stretches across the door so they cannot get out.  You control the gate so they get out when you want them out and they are gated in when you want them in.  This is better as the doxie will not feel shut off from the world (as with a closed door) and you can easily look in upon them anytime you wish.  This gate will come in handy for the lifetime of your pet; you will be very glad you purchased one.   

Don’t worry, you can get your puppy out to play and can go into their area to spend as much time with them as you wish.  I suggest having some Nature’s Miracle around when a mess on the carpet (it will happen) does occur.  You will be amazed at the power and efficiency of this product.

Place everything your Dachshund puppy needs in the contained area i.e. their kennel/bed, food and, potty.  If you are lucky, the breeder had already initiated their paper training which will make it easier for you and your new puppy.  Start their training off on some newspaper.  When they make a mess on the floor put a little of the pee or poop  between a few pieces of newspaper.  They will smell this and will begin to associate this as the place for them to do their business.  Keep the top of the paper dry and clean.  Remove the used paper as soon as possible or simply place more paper on top of it and then after awhile, throw it all away and start anew. 

Some people utilize wee wee pads but I never did. I have seen them used a few times and they appear to work pretty well. So, wee wee pads could serve as an alternative to newspaper–you can try them both and see which one you like better.

If you are playing with your puppy some distance away from the primary potty you can always place some newspaper where you are…just in case.  I did this when Charlie was a puppy and it worked well.  As they get older they need to rely solely on the primary potty area. 

Chastise your Dachshund puppy immediately when they don’t perform well; they will feel the disappointment in your voice.  Making an unpleasant noise in general works well in this regard.  For example, the moment you see the naughty weiner going somewhere they are not supposed to raise your voice a bit towards them, clap your hands, gently shake a can with coins in it, etc.  Squirting a doxie with water works wonders also.  A spray bottle like the ones people spray plants with is perfect for this purpose.  Make sure the bottle is clean and that there is no chemical residue on the inside.  Dachshunds hate getting squirted with water so this is a great way to deter them from unwanted behaviors.  Squirt them don’t spray them.  Do not give the weiner dog praise or a treat when they perform poorly.

Please never yell or scream at your Doxie as they are incredibly sensitive and will be very hurt.  If you do yell  you will see how crestfallen they are and you will feel guilty.  Your Dachshund very much wants to please you!  

Just keep working with them and your Dachshund puppy (or puppies) will soon get it right.  When they do get it right praise them and give them a treat.  Your puppy will be so happy!  It won’t be long until they start getting it right most of the time!  You will develop your own little system as times goes by.

One purpose of this article is to spare you some of the mistakes I’ve made over the years.  My Mini Dachshund (Charlie) is almost 12 years old and I experimented with several indoor potty techniques over the years.  I started off with newspaper (paper training) but as your Dachshund grows, you will tire of them stepping in their own urine, transferring urine or, having the urine drain off the newspaper onto the floor.

Dachshunds have a quirk where if their front paws are on the paper they think their entire body is on the paper.  This results in alot of near misses.  Improvement was made when I placed a plastic hallway runner under the newspaper.  At some point, I then purchased a large litter box and then placed newspaper in that and a hallway runner under the litter box.

You will so love your Dachshund that messes won’t matter much.  However, as years go by, the messes have a way of growing on you.  Once Charlie got into his 10th year or so, I started to get quite tired of dealing with the messes.  It is a labor of love however and unavoidable.

Just recently, I discovered and purchased a Wizdog indoor potty system.  How I wish I had discovered this years ago!  Wizdog consists of a large plastic pan with a separate plastic grate on top.  You place newspaper in the bottom of the device. The dog does it’s business on top of the grate and the urine falls into the tray below.  No more wet footprints or urine on the floor.  The poop is easy to clean off the top of the grate.  This is so much better than the intermediate steps I went through over the years.  Charlie has taken to this upgrade well—messes on or transferred to the floor have decreased dramatically.  I’m happier now too as the messes are more contained and much easier to clean up.

Underneath Wizdog is a ”round circle thing” in every corner which helps it stay in place on the floor.  So, I have had no problem with the device sliding around when Charlie is on top of it.  In addition to having newspaper in the bottom to soak up urine I also put some newspaper on top.  I fold a newspaper page in half and place it on the far end of the Wizdog.  When Charlie approaches, he puts his front feet on the newspaper and then is far enough forward that his pee falls thru the grate and onto the newspaper below.   Having some newspaper on top is a kind of a “hybrid approach” I use.  Charlie was use to being on newspaper so this method has worked well for us.  The grate on the top of Wizdog did feel a bit funny to Charlie at first but he quickly got use to it.

Click here to see a picture of my Wizdog

In summary, for indoor potty training of your Dachshund puppy, start off with paper training.  Then, soon integrate your setup and system with a Wizdog.  You’ll be glad you did–trust me!  This will allow you to skip all the intermediate steps I experimented, utilized (and suffered with) over the years.

Please feel free to contact me if any questions arise. 

Sincerely, Link
site administrator and
friend of Dachshunds
everywhere