Pee Pad Training Advice?

[TCB]

edited to add second question

One other question, are there any major no no's if we are wanting to train him (eventually) that he will have a pee place inside as well as outside or should you pretty much stick to one or the other?

Hi All,

I'm the proud new owner of a 10 week old Tibbie, he's still getting used to his brand new home but I have a quick question.

Just wondering if anyone has had any success with a wee pad scent attractors? The breeder we purchased him off was using pee pads and said he has a pretty good hold on the idea that that's his place to go, so we're wondering if the scent attractors actually work and may help him out a bit with the change in surroundings

Thanks for your time!

Edited January 28, 2014 by TCB

[Guest donatella]

I tried them once on my tiny pup at the time and all it attracted her to was to have a nibble at it :laugh: I'm not sure what's in them but apparently something worthy of a chew hehe

[minimax]

You'll find most pee pads already have a "pee here" scent in them, so you don't need to use anything additional.

[aliwake]

The only time we used it our boy refused to use his toilet for 2 days. I would just see how your boy goes first. If he's used to the pads already he'll probably do ok.

[TCB]

Thank you all, the ones the breeder was using are just lemon scented so was unsure if we'd need to add something to give him a nudge.

One other question, are there any major no no's if we are wanting to train him (eventually) that he will have a pee place inside as well as outside or should you pretty much stick to one or the other?

[dotdashdot]

I used them with my pup (the Rudducks brand, Puppi-Trainer pads and the Little Stinker brand) who had not used them before, to my knowledge. She seemed to know what to do with very little, to no encouraging. They were only a back up though, we took her out to the toilet as often as possible. I think if you use them in that way, as a back up to you actually taking them out, they work well.

To date, my pup only had one pee accident in the house and that was because we hadn't taken her out in a while. At 17 weeks she is now able to hold her bladder from 10pm-7am (although we often take her out about 3am, sometimes we have slept through though).

[cavNrott]

I've never used pee pads for my dogs and wouldn't use them. They teach the dog that it's ok to pee inside the house.

If you eventually want your dog to eliminate outside in the yard it would be best to train that way from the beginning. Otherwise you will have to untrain him with the pee pads and retrain him to use the yard. This will be confusing for the dog and is bound to cause a number of accidents inside the house while the dog tries to figure out what he should do.

[apocalypsepwnie]

I'm using them atm and the scented stuff.

My pup is 11 weeks and has a really clear understanding on where to go. He is confined to the laundry when we go out and has a pee pad in there which he uses. We put one in his pen at night for just in case and he will aim for that.

When he's hanging out with us in the house he will either bark or walk to the back door to be let out despite there being a pee pad at the back door in case he doesn't make it. He walks right over the top of it.

We take him out every hour during the day when we are home and once at night if we haven't slept through. He makes it from 10pm-5/6am most days unless he's had lots of water prior to bed. He'll whimper a bit at night if he needs to go.

The scent helps to get him to go at night when he's buggering around. I sprinkle some down and he goes right away.

[YvonneM]

I used the pee pads when we brought our puppy home because the breeder had used them and he was used to them. I bought the "more expensive" ones but then bought the cheapie ones and a bottle of the scent stuff - it worked out much cheaper and seemed to work quite well. He missed a few times but his aim was on the pee pad.

I don't agree that pee pads teach a dog that it's okay to pee indoors. My boy used both the pee pads and went outdoors and this transition really wasn't that hard and he caught on pretty quick. Having said that he has had access to a doggy door 24/7 and has used it from day 1, so he never had to rely on me to provide him with access to outdoors because he helps himself.

[Beckybecbec]

We tried a pee pad once.... and once only.

Came home to it chewed to a billion pieces...

Then we just we more diligent on taking them outside to pee.

I can now proudly say my stafford poo's and pees on command... outside

[indigirl]

I have Italian greyhounds who are notoriously extremely difficult to housetrain. I litter train all mine, when they are pups they are confined when inside ( unless I'm playing with them etc) to a crate with just enough space to sleep at one end if the crate and there's a pee pad at the other end. They learn fast if they pee where they sleep it's a long damp night. Once they are consistently going on the peepad I give them a larger crate, with a bit of space between the bed and pre pad. Once that's mastered they get an X pen with bed and pee pad up the other end.

Doesn't take long before they can be in a room and will go straight to pee pad which by now is in a large plastic tub with a doorway.

Mine will all go on newspaper too, as I alternate between pee pads and newspaper.

Edited January 29, 2014 by indigirl

[ChewieTAG]

I find the Little Stinker works pretty well to start with. Somehow I think the scent that they put in there attract both my puppies to do it..

[Dogsfevr]

Given your pup is an American Bulldog i would be training for outside unless your going to provide a big tray inside for his piddles as he gets older

[minimax]

Given your pup is an American Bulldog i would be training for outside unless your going to provide a big tray inside for his piddles as he gets older

THe OP has a Tibbie, which means Tibetan Spaniel, not American Bulldog...

Edited January 30, 2014 by minimax

[Dogsfevr]

Given your pup is an American Bulldog i would be training for outside unless your going to provide a big tray inside for his piddles as he gets older

THe OP has a Tibbie, which means Tibetan Spaniel, not American Bulldog...

It seems part off my post went awol LOL yep now what a Tibbie is

[luvsdogs]

I've never used them but my daughter in law uses them with my granddaughter's 2.5 y/o Chihuahua, she's mostly an inside dog due to her small size but will go if outside.

Twenty-one years ago before getting April I read a lot about puppies & back then they recommended newspaper training, which I did. You start out with several layers in the enclosed room you intend the pup to sleep. At the same time taking puppy outside regularly during the day. As pup gets better at controlling their bladder you make the newspaper smaller & gradually move it to the door the dog will exit to toilet. So you have a small square of paper & then put a corner under the door, moving further under until pup starts holding on to be let outside. Only did that with April & all pups since then just take them outside regularly plus crate train which helps a lot.

[TCB]

Thank you for all the replies.

Taking him outside to eliminate isn't an option for us right now, which is why I said eventually we'd like to do so, though I appreciate the advice.

I'm wanting to use the pee pad attractors as he likes to stuff around a lot at night. I've tried putting him back in the crate for 10 mins and then onto the pee pad but he just wants to play, which is not ideal in the middle of the night. lol

[minimax]

I raised one of my pugs on pee pads due to apartment living. I taught her to pee on command, which helped the transition to outside when we moved to a house with a yard.

If he's not peeing at night, maybe he doesn't need to go? I would do the "no attention, no fun, lower value treat, back to bed in 2 minutes if no wee" for night time wees, otherwise it became a game!

Edited January 31, 2014 by minimax

[luvsdogs]

In that case have you considered one of those artificial grass doggy toilets?

[TCB]

Thanks minimax, we've been doing that, still doesn't want to play by the rules though - the second he's out of his crate it's play time. Spent a good 40 mins trying to get him to go last night - no luck. Put him back in the crate for 10 mins when we went to try again he'd peed in there- second time this has happened now

luvsdogs - we did try one but he started going elsewhere when he was in his pen so we switched back to just the pads.