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©Scott Sheaffer, CBCC-KA, CDBC, CPDT-KA, USA Dog Behavior, LLC

Housetraining can be an issue for puppies as well as adult dogs. I frequently find adult dogs who have never been properly housetrained - this article applies to these dogs too.

If you have a properly housetrained adult dog who abruptly develops housetraining problems, there may be more going on such as a physical issue (e.g., urinary tract infection) or a behavioral issue (e.g., separation anxiety). See your dog’s veterinarian and/or a behaviorist if this is the case.

What do human parents use to potty train their children? Diapers. These can also be a tremendous tool in housetraining dogs for a number of reasons. The idea of putting your dog in a doggie diaper while housetraining may sound unappealing; however, it’s much easier and more convenient than you think - and can be quite effective.

Diapers keep your dog from ruining your floors and furniture and they reduce the impetus for your dog to continually urinate or defecate in the same areas of your home because odors are stopped from being added to your carpet and furniture in these areas.

Dog diapers are available for male and female dogs. Belly bands are diapers that only capture urine with males and can be very effective for male dogs who are only urinating inside. Most dogs tolerate wearing diapers quite well. Dog diapers are available at all pet supply stores and a plethora of dog related e-commerce websites.

While following good housetraining techniques, add doggie diapers to your housetraining efforts as follow:

Have your dog wear diapers any time they are out of their crate (and inside your home) since most dogs don’t soil the inside of their crate.
Take the diaper off immediately before letting your dog outside. This is a perfect opportunity to see if your dog has eliminated since the last time they went out. This “score-keeping” is one of the biggest benefits of using diapers in housetraining as it lets you know how your dog is doing. If they’ve made a mistake - just ignore this as they won’t make any kind of connection to your scolding and their accident.
If you observe your dog eliminating in their diaper, be sure to change the diaper immediately. You don’t want them to acclimate to a soiled diaper.
After a few weeks of no diaper accidents, it may be time to discontinue the use of diapers.

The only cautionary note I have with the use of diapers as a dog training aid is that this doesn’t absolve the owner from following strict good housetraining techniques. If the diaper is just collecting waste, nothing is being learned by the dog or you.

The diaper is a “just-in-case” device that also keeps score on how your dog is doing. The goal is to have your dog wear diapers with zero accidents for several weeks before weaning them off.

If you have a dog who is only marking in your home (i.e., urinating to mark territory, but not defecating), using diapers for females or belly bands for males can aid in stopping this behavior because it keeps them from repeatedly adding a scent to your furniture that only increases the chance they’ll mark again.

Marking behavior is difficult to catch and detect. Most dog owners underestimate how much their dog may be marking in their home. The evidence of this behavior can be seen by shining a handheld blacklight flashlight on vertical surfaces in a home, especially furniture.

Consider using diapers as a short-term tool to help housetrain or re-housetrain your dog.