Potty training regression after a medical break
A forced break or medical interruption often causes toddlers to regress, leading to accidents, hiding to poop in underwear, and total resistance to going naked again. This abrupt change makes the process feel like starting over, leaving parents dealing with morning floor messes and children who refuse to sit on the potty for more than a few seconds.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Using M&Ms as rewards
- 2Cheering really loud when they go
- 3Trying fully naked on the bottom
- 4Using a big t-shirt if the child dislikes being fully naked
- 5Taking the puppy outside every 20-30 minutes
- 6Rewarding the puppy with treats immediately after eliminating outside
- 7Going back to waking up and taking the puppy out a few times a night
- 8Repeatedly disrupting the steps to the bed
- 9Going back to basics for a week or two like they're 8 weeks old again
- 10Taking the puppy out every 45 minutes
- 11Letting the puppy walk by itself to the grass area
- 12Pulling on the puppy's collar or picking him up while he is eliminating
In their words
Unedited, most upvoted first, each linked to the thread it came from.
“My 4 month old maltese x hadn't quite got the hang of potty yet, but at least he'd been pooping outside and we'd been having fewer accidents with access to a doggy door. Then overnight he regressed!”source ↗
“I find potty accidents the most difficult part, all of our other puppies picked it up so quickly.”source ↗
“I have a 13 week border collie mix.”source ↗
“When I picked him up to come home 3 days ago, he was a mess.”source ↗
“I would follow the same schedule I had been for the past 3 weeks and he would just start peeing on me as I held him and walked towards the grass patch.”source ↗
“Recently, this week, it seems like she is going through a regression.”source ↗
“I wake up to poop / pee on the floor every morning.”source ↗
“My partner decided to create steps to and from the bed and said he’d like her to sleep in bed.”source ↗
“More importantly (…well, to me), it’s like we’re back at step one on the potty training front.”source ↗
“It’s like she’s trying to make sure she has weed and/or pooed in every piece of floor we have at some point.”source ↗
“my pup did same thing at 4 months. one day she just forgot everything we trained and started peeing right next to the door instead of going out it.”source ↗
“My son is 2.5 we tried potty training a few months ago but he doctor said to wait till after his surgery”source ↗
“He hides and poops in his undies. He won’t go naked he wants to wear undies.”source ↗
“He only sits for like 20 seconds and I have to sit there and sing or make him laugh to sit for longer. Any tips on what I could do better?!”source ↗