Puppies are cute and adorable, and many people adopt them for that reason. Once they get home, however, they realize that they have inherited a whole new problem—potty training. If you think potty training a toddler is difficult, you have seen nothing until you try to potty train a dog! The best place to start, as with anything, is with the right equipment and knowledge for housebreaking a puppy.
First, choose a corner of the house where it will be okay for the dog to make messes, such as a tiled laundry room. In this room should be all of the equipment you will need for training the puppy. You will definitely need something for the puppy to use the restroom in the house so that you have less mess to clean up. For this purpose, you can use newspapers. However, these are not very absorbent, and can leave marks on your floors.
A better idea is to purchase something like the potty patch, which is offered by the American Kennel Association. This is a device that looks and feels like grass, but traps the liquid in a space underneath the matt. This cuts down on odors and cleaning.
A lot of other equipment might be used for housebreaking a puppy, but it is not mandatory. For instance, some people prefer to train their puppy by using the kennel method. The kennel should be large enough to be comfortable. You should also have a leash ready at hand for emergency walks, and a fenced in yard or dog run to place the puppy in when it has gone inside the house.
