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  1. #1
    Real Retriever sipsi's Avatar
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    Question Changing the potty spot

    Hi

    Our 11 week old puppy came home a month ago. Since then we've been potty training her inside the house. Because our vet doesn't suggest taking the puppy outside at this age because of the stray dogs in our neighborhood. We don't have a fenced yard. We are waiting for the vaccinations and the last shot will be 28 days later. What are the changing steps? How can I train her that she can't do her business inside the house anymore? Is it going to be too late? Should I potty train her outside anyway?

  2. #2
    Real Retriever Laura's Avatar
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    Do you have her going in a particular spot in the house? My breeder had the potty spot near the door, and recommended that I put down potty pads by the door and show him where the pad was. Then when I saw him go towards that door, I could just scoop him up and take him outside. So perhaps if you get her used to going in that one spot, on pads, by the door you could do the same and just transition her to going outside.

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  4. #3
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    If your indoor potty spot isn't already at the door, I'd suggest moving the pad/paper from your spot to the door little by little.

    I used pads/paper indoors and never had a problem with transitioning to the outside.

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  6. #4
    Senior Dog POPTOP's Avatar
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    As you move outside, "seed" the area you want him to potty with an already soiled pad so he knows it's OK to potty outside. Slowly reduce the size of the pad outside to nothing. Now is the opportunity to teach to potty in a particular area if you so wish. Some people will fence off a corner of the yard and put down pea gravel for easy clean up.

  7. #5
    Real Retriever sipsi's Avatar
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    She has a room with her crate on the corner and the potty pads just in front of the door (door of the room) she is doing her business on the pads. But sometimes she has accidents when we play in other rooms if I can't catch her in the act. I considered taking the pads to the door of the house but I thought that might confused her. Because I already changed her spot before :/ If you think another change won't confuse her please let me know.

  8. #6
    Senior Dog POPTOP's Avatar
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    I think by moving the pad in increments, slowly, she'll learn quickly. When she uses the new spot, tons of praise and a treat.

  9. #7
    Real Retriever sipsi's Avatar
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    I have ordered something like a potty tray. I am fed up with peds. Hope this one works. I will first put it in the same place then move it to the front door slowly. But my puppy is still doing her business wherever she finds in the living room It's been a month and she couldn't get the "just one spot" idea. This is my fault though. I confused her by putting her crate and potty pads in the living room first. Because her room wasn't ready yet. What can I do to prevent her do that in the living room? Now it is like she has about 6 potty spots there

  10. #8
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    I've litter box trained my last two black gals when pups. I made a 2" tall cardboard box, 2' x 3', lined it with a heavy garbage bag and put an inch or so of the compressed pine pellets in it. When they should be able to hold it, I wean them off it. I grab a handful of grass from the yard and sprinkle it over the pellets. Day by day I increase the amount of grass until it is a heavy layer. I'll also decrease the amount of pine pellets in it. I believe this starts to associate the smell of grass/outside, as the place to go, rather than pine.

    At the same time I watch them like a hawk while playing inside. At the first sign of having to pee, OUT WE GO! to much fanfare about poop and pee outside and another HUGE praise party when she goes outside... YEAH!!!!

    Sunshine was a little different. There was very little playing inside, if I let her out of prison, we RAN outside! I didn't have a chance to wean her off the box, she just stopped using it at one point. We were up to the point of having a heavy layer of grass on it. The box then became a fun toy while she was contained. I come home, let her out, we'd play for 4 or 5 hours, come back in and she would crash. I'd clean up all the pine and grass, shake her blanket and toys off, mop up the water she spilled..... After a few days of this I just said, no more and took it away. Never had a single accident (that I can remember anyway) after that.

    I also start the first day to praise poop and pee, inside or out. Even outside, if we are running around and she just stops and squats, she is a good girl, Go pee, good girl, pee, YEAH!!! In my thinking, it not only associates the action with the word, but lots of praise and makes you happy when she does it. When you go out and tell her to go pee, she goes pee because she knows the word and wants to make me happy! YEAH!!!

    This morphs into poop and pee on command, a HUGE plus at many times!!! Which also turns into a way to let her know where to go, if we are in a strange place. Let her out, on or off leash, lead her to a spot and say Ok, go pee while pointing to a general area. At over 3 years old now, she still gets LOTS of praise when she goes.

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  12. #9
    Real Retriever sipsi's Avatar
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    Your routine gave me hope! I was using pads but I'll switch to a potty box by tomorrow. Hope that one works and I hope I'll be successful

  13. #10
    Real Retriever sipsi's Avatar
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    She's been doing it on newspapers. Because of stepping on the urine and wet paws, I have come up with this idea. A tray with fake grass. She refuses to use that. It's ok for now because I started to use this thing today. How ever I can't prevent her pulling and destroying the fake grass. How can I make it stop? I thought using pine pellets but it would become digging the pellets. I'm so frustrated. Help ��

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