Paula89 Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 Hi all! In just under 2 weeks we will be picking up our newest family member - an 8 week old, male, Finnish Lapphund. We have a 20 month old son. We know that there are certain challenges to having a toddler and a puppy and have planned ahead to work out solutions for any problems that may arise. However, there is one potential problem that we're not sure how to solve. We will obviously be taking our puppy outside regularly for toileting but are aware that accidents are still likely. My dilemma is, if i see him going to the toilet inside I know I will need to take him outside as quickly as possible to finish his business out there. We have a raised house, so this involves going down a flight of stairs. I'm not sure I would be able to take our son down with me- a puppy in one hand and a squirmy toddler in the other may not be a good idea so he would stay up in the house (alone if my husband is at work). That in itself is not a problem, the house is child proofed and i go outside ocasionally anyway, but my concern is leaving him unattended when there could be puppy poo/wee on the floor. He will eat cat poo if given the chance so i think dog poo would be eaten too. If you've managed to get through my rather long post, do you have any suggestions? As i understand it, time is of the essence in this situation so i can't really clean up before taking puppy outside. Any ideas would be appreciated! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kadbury Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 Just a thought, do you have a playpen ? maybe pop your child in there while you take pup outside. Others will be along with more appropriate advice soon... :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paula89 Posted February 13, 2012 Author Share Posted February 13, 2012 No we don't we do have a play pen type thing for the puppy but it won't hold up against a toddler. I thought about shutting him in a room like his bedroom but he can open doors (plus I think he would get quite upset if i did that) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salukifan Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 (edited) Id make it easy on myself and have either pup or toddler confined. Perhaps have pup outside or crated if bub is awake and about. Then let pup loose when bub is asleep or otherwise 'confined'. If you can't have your attention on the pup there WiLL be accidents. Perhaps a large plastic container or bucket you can drop over any offending accidents might help too until you can clean them up. Edited February 13, 2012 by Telida Whippets Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 you are going to be amazingly FIT ... ideally a baby puppy needs to be taken outside at least every hour ..more frequently if you don't stay outside long enough ,and he toilets when you get back inside ... I will suggest that immediately the pup comes home you watch him outside ..watch where he toilets , use a word that suits , and praise immediately. next time .. same place, same word , and so on. Eventually the word can be used to trigger the dog to toilet ..and makes everyone's life a lot easier ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erinonthefarm Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 He will eat cat poo if given the chance so i think dog poo would be eaten too. we've been there too! I can just imagine that a puddle or nugget on the floor would be very inviting for little hands to rub everywhere too. Its probably easier to keep the puppy in a pen or crate, and be vigilant about a toileting routine for your puppy than to confine your son? I used to have the bobbely things that go over door handles so I could keep my son in his room if need be, I don't know if that would work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erinonthefarm Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 I will suggest that immediately the pup comes home you watch him outside ..watch where he toilets , use a word that suits , and praise immediately. next time .. same place, same word , and so on. Eventually the word can be used to trigger the dog to toilet ..and makes everyone's life a lot easier ;) Oh Yes, I can vouch for this method, it paid huge dividends when we were travelling so our dobe would toilet exactly where we wanted. I also get a giggle when my husband walks around with our dobe going "do wees" :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paula89 Posted February 13, 2012 Author Share Posted February 13, 2012 Id make it easy on myself and have either pup or toddler confined. Perhaps have pup outside or crated if bub is awake and about. Then let pup loose when bub is asleep or otherwise 'confined'. If you can't have your attention on the pup there WiLL be accidents. Perhaps a large plastic container or bucket you can drop over any offending accidents might help too until you can clean them up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paula89 Posted February 13, 2012 Author Share Posted February 13, 2012 (edited) Whoops, sorry about the quote above. Id make it easy on myself and have either pup or toddler confined. Perhaps have pup outside or crated if bub is awake and about. Then let pup loose when bub is asleep or otherwise 'confined'. If you can't have your attention on the pup there WiLL be accidents. Perhaps a large plastic container or bucket you can drop over any offending accidents might help too until you can clean them up. I'm not really worried about not being able to watch them both. DS is very easy, he plays by himself pretty much all day if I let him. All I have to do is glance his way every 2 minutes and play with him occasionally and he's all good. Puppy will be with me at all times, if I'm not able to watch him he will go in his crate. I will try the plastic container, but I think it would get moved very quickly by curious hands! you are going to be amazingly FIT ... ideally a baby puppy needs to be taken outside at least every hour ..more frequently if you don't stay outside long enough ,and he toilets when you get back inside ... I will suggest that immediately the pup comes home you watch him outside ..watch where he toilets , use a word that suits , and praise immediately. next time .. same place, same word , and so on. Eventually the word can be used to trigger the dog to toilet ..and makes everyone's life a lot easier ;) haha yes, I will be fit! We did quite a lot of reading and talking to people (trawled through this board too to see what problems other people have had :)) so I know I'm in for lots of stair climbing. What you have described is exactly what we are planning on doing, I guess the issue for me that I'm trying to work out is what to do in the case of accidents. we've been there too! I can just imagine that a puddle or nugget on the floor would be very inviting for little hands to rub everywhere too. Its probably easier to keep the puppy in a pen or crate, and be vigilant about a toileting routine for your puppy than to confine your son? I used to have the bobbely things that go over door handles so I could keep my son in his room if need be, I don't know if that would work. Oh I wont be confining my son on a regular basis. I don't think that would go down too well. :laugh: . The plan is to have eyes on the puppy at all times or in the crate or pen and outside for regular toilet breaks. I'd like to think that will be enough to avoid accidents but that's probably not realistic :laugh: I forgot you can child proof door handles, we're so used to DS going wherever he wants in the house that the idea didn't occur to me. I will have a look next time I'm at the shops, although I'm still not 100% keen on locking him in one room while I am outside. Edited February 13, 2012 by Paula89 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WeimMe Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 I'm in a similar situation to you puppy and stair-wise at the moment...I don't think I'd cope too well with a toddler thrown into the mix! You must be made of sterner stuff than I!! Let's just say that Hugo has his own peeing and pooping schedule that doesn't fit in with the 1 hour rule at all. The hour thing that you read about fails to take into account that puppies also need to toilet immediately after waking up from a nap, shortly after eating and that they seem to pee more often when they are playing or very active or even if they get excited... It might average out to once an hour for me over the course of the day but seems to be more a case of a few hours with no pee break while he sleeps, and then taking him down every 20 minutes or so while he's awake until he wears himself out. That's how I'm finding it at any rate, maybe your puppy will be a bit more predictable. If you live in a Queenslander or a home with a back verandah of some kind it might be worth considering temporarily putting a doggy toilet or pee pads there while you are toilet training your puppy. It's not ideal, but otherwise you will be leaving your little one alone and unsupervised quite frequently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aussielover Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 I don't really think moving the puppy outside while it is toileting is necessary and it can end up being even more messy! I'd just wait for the pup to finish and then pop it in a crate or out of the way and clean up. Accidents are bound to happen and despite some people basically implying that if you let your puppy toilet inside accidently you are an extremely bad person who is never going to be able to toilet train your dog, most puppies readily learn to go in the appropriate spot fairly quickly (even though it may seem like an eternity to you lol). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jumabaar Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 I will suggest that immediately the pup comes home you watch him outside ..watch where he toilets , use a word that suits , and praise immediately. next time .. same place, same word , and so on. Eventually the word can be used to trigger the dog to toilet ..and makes everyone's life a lot easier ;) Oh Yes, I can vouch for this method, it paid huge dividends when we were travelling so our dobe would toilet exactly where we wanted. I also get a giggle when my husband walks around with our dobe going "do wees" :laugh: I agree with this. In all honesty Demi (who is related to your pup) managed to hold on quite well from the beginning. I really can't remember having any issues training her which I am guessing means there were very few accidents. She went out when she woke up and after her meal. Just watch for the first few days to see if she likes to wee once, twice or three times before she is finished Demi ALWAYS went three times so once you know that you have to count to three before letting them back in you shouldn't find it all too difficult to keep track of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simply Grand Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 I agree with aussielover, I would (and do) let the puppy finish once they've started. I haven't had much success with interrupting them and taking them outside, it's just ended up with a trail across the house... If you stick to your routine, same spot, same word outside etc I don't think having the odd accident inside will ruin your training and puppy in pen when finished and quick clean up straight away will be less stress than trying to juggle puppy, mess and toddler while getting outside and downstairs in time for puppy to actually realise that you're taking him outside for the toilet! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dogsfevr Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 So the puppy will also have to learn to use the stairs plus go to its toilet spot?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christina Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 Have a few toilet rolls in handy spots & grab a piece if you see puppy has made a mess. Wipe poo up, grab puppy & take both outside until you can dispose of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freundhund Posted February 14, 2012 Share Posted February 14, 2012 I would like to wish you all the best with your puppy in the future. Okay, don't stress, firstly just remember to worm puppy and toddler regularly. :) Toddlers and clothes wash, you might try a child gate which you can put your son on the otherside of, you might find one where it will fit in multiple doorways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paula89 Posted February 18, 2012 Author Share Posted February 18, 2012 Thanks for the suggestions everyone. I think I will invest in a few baby gates and those child proof things for door handles just to be on the safe side. I agree with aussielover, I would (and do) let the puppy finish once they've started. I haven't had much success with interrupting them and taking them outside, it's just ended up with a trail across the house... I didn't think about the trail! That would be even more cleaning up :laugh: In all seriousness, I think you and aussielover have a point. The most simple option and yet one that I didn't even think of. Thanks again everyone. We get our boy on Friday, I'll let you all know how he goes :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LizT Posted February 18, 2012 Share Posted February 18, 2012 Take the puppy out as often as possible when you are able and use either newspaper or pee pads for the possible need to go nows that you will inevitably miss. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Willow Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 could you train him to use an inside dog loo instead? You could set it up so it's accessible to the dog but not your son. Incidentally, I have a 21 month old daughter, and have successfully taught her that dog poo in the garden is dirty and not to be touched. She will point to it and say "Dirty, don't touch". Obviously I don;t know what she would do if I wasn;t watching her, but it might be worth teaching that to your son too, on the offchance he finds himself alone with a tempting nuggett!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paula89 Posted March 1, 2012 Author Share Posted March 1, 2012 I thought I'd come and update you all. We have had Kody for a week now and he has been going very well. He slept through the night right from the start which was a pleasant surprise. We have had a few accidents inside (wees only) but by the time i got to him it was too late and he was done so i decided there wasn't much point taking him outside. So i haven't had to worry about the poo issue, although ds knows they are poos and generally avoids them in the backyard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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