Potty Training for a Boy - Chandler,AZ

Updated on July 10, 2009
H.R. asks from Chandler, AZ
12 answers

I was wondering when you potty train a boy is it best to make them sit or stand. My 2 year old (tomorrow) is really confused about what to do. Sometimes he wants to sit and sometimes he wants to stand. He has been training for less than a week. He has an older sister.

A little more info, he started taking his diaper off about 2 months ago, its been getting harder and harder to keep it on when he is at home. Last weekend, he did a pee on the carpet, I shouted and told him to finish on the little potty. He did so and is doing quite a lot now on the potty. If he has no diaper on/pull up on he goes to the potty when needed by himself. This morning he went and did a number 2. Sometimes when he is peeing he stands up in the middle and wants to continue standing up. He seems to want to sit as obviously thats what his big sister does.
I realise it takes a long time for them to be independent. I still help big sister clean her self.

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C.R.

answers from Phoenix on

I would agree that having him sit backwards is the easiest and most comfortable way for boys to begin potty training. Once they are potty trained, you can transition to standing up.

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L.G.

answers from Phoenix on

My 3.5 year old son sits when he pees. He refuses to stand and do it when he's at home. When he's at school he stands when he pees! I'm guessing he learned it from the other boys at school. I don't push it at home...when he decides to stand, then he'll stand. I'm just glad he's using the potty!

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T.J.

answers from Flagstaff on

Like you, I'm not sure what is best. For my 2 year old, we've been sitting down. It works for him, but he needs reminders to hold himself down too. For the last 7 years, I've been a full time Preschool and Pre-K teacher and even at that age, we still have boys that sit down to go. It's easier for clean up for mom, and they can always be taught to stand up as they have more control. Good luck!

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D.K.

answers from Phoenix on

We had our son sit. It is just too much to ask for them to be able to aim properly and they just don't have the coordination.

My son is very clean. Everyone in the house is expected to shut the lid before flushing too. I don't want all that "stuff" spraying all over the place. I didn't realize how good we had it until my 10 year old nephew visited. He never lifted the seat so he usually peed on it. This kid would even pee on the floor! I always made him come back in there and clean his mess. It got so bad that one time there was even pee on the side of the tub. EW!

Anyway, until they are older and able to control things, I would say have boys sit, if for nothing else but sanitary reasons!

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C.H.

answers from Flagstaff on

Well I had my first 2 sons sit. They did that until they were around 3 or 4 then they stood. My third son watches his brothers stand so he wants to stand. I couldn't get him to sit at all. Personally, I don't like the mess when a toddler stands, but that is me, but since my 3rd son likes to stand, that is what I do for him.

I've heard that you can put the boy on the toilet backwards, so he is sitting on the potty facing the tank and that will help when he stands later, but I don't have any experience with that. I remember my mother taught my brother standing peeing into an old coffee can.

With my first two, it helped that my hubby likes to sit and the boys followed their dad. With my third, my hubby isn't around near as often, so he follows his brothers.

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G.A.

answers from Phoenix on

We started our son sitting and he gradually switched to standing. I think it is easier that way.

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D.R.

answers from Phoenix on

We taught our son to sit down first, holding down his lil thing. Once he was comfortable w/that, he learned to stand up.

T.C.

answers from Albuquerque on

Hi H.,
For the first few years, standing was for outside *only.* He sometimes avoids pooping if he never sits, and that can build into a problem with him.
T

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A.H.

answers from Phoenix on

we started with sitting.

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K.W.

answers from Phoenix on

We had my son sit then aroud 4 he started standing.

G.M.

answers from Phoenix on

If he has to pee and poop, then sitting is best. But if he has to just pee, then standing is probably best for a boy. I only say that because my husband started teaching our son by just sitting on the potty (the big potty), and pushing winky downward and going pee. That started out ok, but then one day, while we were out and about, he had to go potty, and my husband took him into the mens room and they used the urinal. It was standing from then on! And he learned a lot better with that way and became more independant quicker.
Going poop in the potty, was a much longer process. My son is four and a half years old now, going on five in October, and even though he's independant on using the potty now, he still needs a little assistance with wiping. But other than that, he's doing great.
Boys tend to take longer to potty train. We tried potty training him at 2 years old too, but it didn't work out for us. Our doc told us that it is normal for boys to be well into their 4 years of age before being potty trained. So we were a lot more patient with him, and we kind of let him lead us into the training process by letting him give us signs that he was interested. You have a while yet. If he is showing confusion now, it's ok. I would hold off, and call this just practice for him and use pull ups during the day and diapers at night. That's what we did with our son.
Hope this helps. :-)

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H.K.

answers from Phoenix on

I potty trained all three of my boys by standing first. They liked to aim thier pee at things so it was a fun game to them.

We never used a potty seat, just a little stool in front of the toliet bowl. They would stand there, throw a few Cherrios (we kept a bowl on the toliet for this purpose) in the bowl to float around and then pee to try and "sink" them. (I think they actually sell little floating things now for this purpose). Potty time became just another game time for them and went much quicker.

Of course we taught them the "tuck" when they had to go poop, but for the most part they enjoyed peeing like big boys. I know they sell a little stand up urinal potty chair for boys now. I would probably buy one of those if I was doing this again because it is so darn cute.

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