Week one will not finish a Shih Tzu, and that is normal
A Shih Tzu puppy in week one is learning where toileting belongs, not mastering it. Shih Tzus are famously slow to house-train compared with many breeds, so a good first week means a few clean stretches and plenty of puddles, not a finished puppy. Resetting that expectation matters because frustration is what tempts owners toward punishment, and punishment teaches this sensitive companion only to avoid going near you. Clean any accident quietly, say nothing to the puppy, and treat the puddle as information about timing.
A rhythm built around a very small bladder
A Shih Tzu puppy needs a toilet chance on waking, after eating, after drinking, after play, after being held, and roughly every hour while awake. Carry her to the same sheltered spot close to the door, because a small puppy asked to cross a cold or wet garden will often hold on outside and let go on the warm floor instead. Her squat is low and brief and can vanish under a long coat, so watch for a sudden pause, a few steps away from a cuddle, intense sniffing, or a half-crouch you almost miss. Praise and a tiny food reward belong in the seconds after she finishes in the right place, while you are still there, so she links the praise to finishing, not to the walk back inside.
Between chances, keep her where you can actually see her, or resting in a snug pen or crate used only for sleep and never as a penalty. If you spot the start of an accident, lift her gently without drama and let her finish in the right place, then praise that finish. At night, keep the sleeping area near you, answer the first restless whine promptly, and make the trip short, dim and dull before settling her straight back down.
The indoor toilet option, used honestly
A Shih Tzu was bred for indoor companionship, so some owners use an indoor toilet area as a bridge, and week one is the time to decide that openly rather than drifting into it. An indoor option can help in high-rise living, illness, or severe weather, but only if it is one defined spot, in one place, cleaned constantly, and used with the same cue and praise as an outdoor spot. Scatter pads in several rooms, move the spot around, or leave soiled material down, and you teach a puppy that indoor floors in general are acceptable, which unravels the outdoor lesson. Many owners start with the bridge and gradually move the spot toward the door and then outside as the puppy's bladder and confidence grow.
Staying patient through slow, real progress
A Shih Tzu puppy improves in small wins: one morning with no puddle, one deliberate trot toward the door, one longer clean stretch after lunch. Notice those wins out loud, keep meals and sleep at steady times so toilet times become predictable, and shorten the gap before any slot where accidents keep clustering instead of expecting her to hold longer. Contact a veterinarian if she strains without passing anything, passes frequent tiny amounts well beyond the usual puppy pattern, seems sore when going, drinks far more than expected, or has loose stools alongside the accidents, because those are health questions rather than training failures. For the weeks this breed needs, KinsLe's Care Teams keeps a shared log of trips, successes and near-misses for this Shih Tzu, letting family members hand the next outing over cleanly and celebrate the same small wins together.