How do I get my puppy to go outside in the rain?
Puppies often refuse to step outside or onto wet grass when it is raining, freezing in place or refusing to budge. Standing outside with them or guiding them manually helps, but because they won't ask to go out and may resort to indoor accidents if doors are shut, owners struggle to maintain consistent outdoor potty habits.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Standing outside with the puppy in the rain
- 2Using treats as positive reinforcement when they potty outside
- 3Spotting the puppy squatting and manually opening the door
- 4Using puppy pads indoors when the door is closed
- 5Hanging a bell or strap on the door handle and training the puppy to ring it
- 6Using a training button that the puppy hits with its nose
- 7Taking the dog out on a strict schedule
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Obviously if I spot her squatting, I open the door and she goes out, but she just doesn't / won’t _ask_ to go out.”source ↗
“If a puppy pad is down, she will use it, but i want her to go outdoors really.”source ↗
“Although she always wees/poos outside when she _can_ go outside, if she finds the door shut, she just wees or poos on the kitchen floor.”source ↗
“I’d like to know as well.. My lil pup won’t budge outside if it’s wet. He doesn’t even like the wet grass in the morning.”source ↗
“Love in Seattle and got 2 puppies back in March. It wasn’t fun, but I literally stood there with them.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 7House-trained dog won't go to the bathroom outside after moving
- 15Puppy too scared and overwhelmed on walks
- 4Where can an unvaccinated puppy safely go to the bathroom outside?
- 4How to potty train a puppy with a busy work schedule
- 5Why does my puppy pee indoors right when I come home?
- 3Why does my dog carry water in their mouth and spill it everywhere?