# crate training and puppy pads



## sesa70 (Jan 25, 2016)

My new puppy will be coming home in about 2 weeks. I'm doing as much reading as I can before he comes home, but I really want to be successful with housetraining him. I've only ever had big dogs, so I don't really know how the whole pee pad thing works. Most of what I'm reading says to keep him in a pen with a pad while we are gone, with a pad for him to go potty on. But ultimately I would like him to only use the bathroom outside. So what do I do?

I'm afraid he'll use things that remind him of the pee pads, or that he won't be potty trained all the way if he goes on a pad. Just looking for some guidance on this! Thanks.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

The people who have the hardest time potty training small breed dogs are those that don't want them to have an indoor alternative. I agree that pee pads are not the best option... They get dragged around, torn up and mistaken for scatter rugs. But a litter box or a pad in a grate, like a UgoDog cannot be mistaken for anything else in the house, and puppies quickly learn to use them. 

I haven't had a problem with any of mine quickly learning to ALSO use the outdoors, and to actually prefer it. in fact, Panda is 15 weeks old, I've had her for 2 weeks, and she's already going outside most of the time. She will use her litter box if outdoors isn't an option, but she troops out and goes with the older dogs, or if I take her out and say "go potty", she does.

Of course, like my older dogs, Panda was taught how to use a litter box by her breeder, so we already had a jump start on potty training.


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## Molly120213 (Jan 22, 2014)

I am a stay at home pet parent who did use a crate to potty train my dog. I think it was successful because I was home so much and treated potty training like a full time job. As I go through another winter here in Western New York, I am painfully reminded how nice it would be if I had trained Molly to use an indoor option as well. I am not sure what the weather is like where you live, but you may want to consider using the tips Karen has given you and train for both inside and out. Good luck with your new puppy, whatever you decide to do.


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## ShamaMama (Jul 27, 2015)

Diane, it's seeming like Shama (a runt) may not end up weighing more than 6.5 pounds or so even though her mother (also a runt) weighed 8 pounds. How long does Molly go before needing to go potty? Shama has a Richell Paw Tracks Mesh Training Tray within her 2x6-foot ex pen while we are at work, and a dog walker comes to take her out at noon. When we're home, we like her to hang out with us, but she continues to pee fairly frequently. Following the advice of a local trainer, we were trying to get her on a schedule of taking her out every two hours on the weekend, but she would pee within the two hours. Now we try to take her out every hour, but she will still occasionally pee between outings. She doesn't go to her training tray when she's out and about in the house; she'll just pee wherever she is. We are thinking her small size may be complicating the potty training. (Karen, we may have to go the litter box route. When we bought the tray, we thought pads would be a temporary - puppy - purchase only. I.e., we envisioned a day where we would no longer need them.) We are loving our Nature's Miracle Urine Destroyer! (Attached is a photo of our sweet baby with a paper towel tube . . .)


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

ShamaMama said:


> Diane, it's seeming like Shama (a runt) may not end up weighing more than 6.5 pounds or so even though her mother (also a runt) weighed 8 pounds. How long does Molly go before needing to go potty? Shama has a Richell Paw Tracks Mesh Training Tray within her 2x6-foot ex pen while we are at work, and a dog walker comes to take her out at noon. When we're home, we like her to hang out with us, but she continues to pee fairly frequently. Following the advice of a local trainer, we were trying to get her on a schedule of taking her out every two hours on the weekend, but she would pee within the two hours. Now we try to take her out every hour, but she will still occasionally pee between outings. She doesn't go to her training tray when she's out and about in the house; she'll just pee wherever she is. We are thinking her small size may be complicating the potty training. (Karen, we may have to go the litter box route. When we bought the tray, we thought pads would be a temporary - puppy - purchase only. I.e., we envisioned a day where we would no longer need them.) We are loving our Nature's Miracle Urine Destroyer! (Attached is a photo of our sweet baby with a paper towel tube . . .)


If Shama is peeing anywhere but outside or on her potty, she has too much freedom. You need to set things up so she can't make a mistake. That might mean having a litter box (or a second grate system) more accessible to her. Because we have an adolescent and a baby puppy at the moment, we have a litter box in the ex-pen, one in the kitchen, one in my office and one in the bed room. These are the ONLY places Panda is allowed, because she's to young to be reliable with more freedom. As long as she's in the same room with a litter box, she will use it. Pixel occasionally uses the one in the bed room right before bed (they all do) but downstairs, she tends to either use the one in the kitchen or ask to go out. (Her first choice unless the weather is really bad!). Kodi will also use the litter boxes on occasion... Again, usually in really bad weather.


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## Molly120213 (Jan 22, 2014)

I don't think that Shama's size is the issue. It sounds like she is not fully potty trained. I agree with Karen that you are giving her too much freedom in the house because she is peeing wherever she wants, and not seeking out her tray. Molly is about 6.5 lbs. and she can go a long time between potty trips, even during the day. When I am home with her it seems like we go about 4 hours between trips, but she tells me when she has to go out. On a couple of occasions I have had to leave her set up in my mudroom for an extended period of time. I just figured she would potty on the tile floor if she needed to. She held it with no problem. I am not sure how old Shama is now but if she is peeing that frequently I would certainly have her checked out at the vet to rule out a UTI. Then I would go back to basics with your potty training plan. Good luck.


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## mekdean (Nov 27, 2015)

Just want to 2nd what Diane said about Shama's size not really being a factor. Maisy is in that same size range (somewhere around 6 - 7 lbs, haven't weighed her in a bit) and she can definitely hold it longer than 2 hours, even at 7 months old. I have found crate training to be extremely helpful at teaching young dogs (big and small) to learn to hold their urine. When they are very young they just do not know they have the capacity to hold it. I will look for a good article on using crate training for housebreaking.


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## mekdean (Nov 27, 2015)

There is a ton of good info out there, but here is one article I liked:
How to Housebreak Your Dog without Losing Your Sanity


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

mekdean said:


> Just want to 2nd what Diane said about Shama's size not really being a factor. Maisy is in that same size range (somewhere around 6 - 7 lbs, haven't weighed her in a bit) and she can definitely hold it longer than 2 hours, even at 7 months old. I have found crate training to be extremely helpful at teaching young dogs (big and small) to learn to hold their urine. When they are very young they just do not know they have the capacity to hold it. I will look for a good article on using crate training for housebreaking.


I have a little bit different take on this. I think that dogs should be allowed to go when they need to go... at least most of the time. Whether that means letting them outdoors when they ask, or giving them access to an indoor potty solution.

I think that a dog that doesn't have a urinary tract problem or perhaps some vaginitis is going to stretch out the times they need to eliminate naturally as they mature. I have a litter box in the area where Kodi stays (my office) when I'm out of the house, and he RARELY uses this... even if I am out of the house for 4-5 hours. He can and will if he needs to, but he doesn't choose to. I NEVER had to confine him without the ability to relieve himself to teach him to "hold it". The same is true with Pixel, who is 11 months old. Panda (15 weeks) absolutely does go more frequently, but that's fine. She's going where she's supposed to (outdoors or in one of the litter boxes) so the frequency only gives me more chances to reinforce her good choices with TONS of praise.


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## Laurmann2000 (Sep 12, 2015)

mekdean said:


> There is a ton of good info out there, but here is one article I liked:
> How to Housebreak Your Dog without Losing Your Sanity


LOL. I love the title of that article.>


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