Q&A for How to Potty Train a Puppy in an Apartment

Pee pads are great, especially if your puppy gets up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom since they can go without waking you up.

Consider setting aside some of her meal in a separate container, which you then use for rewards when training. You don't need to buy dog treats as most pups will do anything for a tiny sliver of cheese, or a small piece of sausage. If the pup is not food-motivated, then reward her with lots of praise and a game with her favorite toy.

This is a difficult one because a young puppy needs regular toilet breaks (able to hold on one hour for every month of life) and attention to prevent boredom. Speak to your employer and take annual leave for a couple of weeks when you acquire the pup, and arrange for friends, neighbors, relatives, or a dog walker to call in at appropriate intervals once you return to work. The most a young dog should be left for is 4 hours at a stretch, but the more often he is left, the more prone to bad habits such as chewing, barking, or digging out of boredom.

Your dog may start sniffing the ground, scratching, squatting or barking. All dogs are different. Watch your puppy for a while and you'll figure it out.

It sounds like he needs more opportunities to go outside! Take him out every 2 hours and make sure to give plenty of praise everytime he goes in the right spot!

House training a puppy can take weeks or months. It all depends on your consistency, your dog, and the number of accidents. If you potty train correctly, your dog could be not having accidents reliably by 5 months old. A younger pup could be potty trained, but can't hold their bladders very long, so potty training behavior should be continued as a precaution.

Take your puppy outside 10-20 minutes after they've finished eating.

You can absolutely still train him. It will take more consistency and hard work, but every dog is trainable. Talk to your vet about safe ways to socialize him, and the aggressiveness will hopefully get solved too.

Yes. Take him out right after he eats for about a ten minute walk or run, making sure he poops each time. A dog can be trained at any age.

Your puppy is very young and probably doesn't understand what you want her to do. Try getting her comfortable with standing on the pads by giving her treats on them when she stays there. That should help her associate them with good things.

Yes. You can train a dog at any age as long as you're consistent. It may take a little longer, though.

Most apartments will have a balcony. If your apartment has a balcony, you could try moving the pee box out there. Make sure that your complex does not have any regulations against keeping litters and pee boxes outside, however. You could try removing the "pee box" altogether and just toilet training him. Learn his "schedule," then take him outside whenever he needs to go.

He could be doing it for a multitude of reasons. To stop him from doing it more, try keeping the puppy outside until he is completely done and giving him positive reinforcement when he does with rewarding him with a treat.

Take him outside regularly and stay outside until he goes. If he shows signs of needing to go, like sniffing around the floor, take him outside immediately. Praise him profusely when he goes outside.

Build a sandpit on your balcony. This can be done by purchasing a small kid-size swimming pool (available at all toy stores) and filling it with sand.

Leave milk in a bowl for him, and give him milk as a treat. Feed him up to 4 times a day, then reduce his feedings to 3 times a day when he seems less hungry.

If she will not go outside, try standing outside with her and wait until she can no longer hold it and goes. Then tell her she's a good girl and reward her. Soon your puppy will get the idea that pooping outside will get her praise and rewards.