# go potty indoors vs outdoors



## sheisaeval (Dec 14, 2008)

So I've been working on training my dog to go mostly indoors right now. We use peepads in the bathroom, and after every meal and after being crated, I take him to the bathroom where he usually pees and poos, if he needs to. He's improving mostly, although sometimse there's an accident here and there.

So anyway, I've been doing a lot of research on dogs and training and such, since it's my first dog and all, and lots of people are very against potty training indoors, because it teaches them to "eliminate inside the house" and it'll be harder to train them go outside when it's easily to do so later (like when I have a yard). What is everyone's opinions about this? How many of your dogs are trained to go indoors vs outdoors? If you dog can do both, what is their primary potty spot?


I live in an apartment right now and to me, letting the dog just pee there in the apartment's grounds is a bit weird since it's not my grounds technically. Also, what if it's raining, snowing, or cold?


Thanks


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## Harley & Dakotas Mum (Jun 11, 2005)

We've always lived in a house with a fenced yard, so I trained both mine to go outside.

I have never trained to use pads, but for some reason, in my mind, I think it would be harder? I dont KNOW this, its just how I think about it.


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## littlemissy (May 19, 2009)

Mine are trained to potty outdoors either on pads on the deck or on an official walk. I live in an apartment as well. I don't like the pads or actual pottying in my living area but that is just me.


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## Purple-peep (May 14, 2009)

Thank you for starting this thread. I'm very interested in this potty stuff LOL!

My husband wants our new puppy to be trained to go outside only. I want to train on the pads.


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## sheisaeval (Dec 14, 2008)

QUOTE (littlemissy @ Jun 17 2009, 10:23 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=793015


> Mine are trained to potty outdoors either on pads on the deck or on an official walk. I live in an apartment as well. I don't like the pads or actual pottying in my living area but that is just me.[/B]


Yeah, ours is in the bathroom


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## littlemissy (May 19, 2009)

QUOTE (Purple-peep @ Jun 17 2009, 11:56 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=793032


> Thank you for starting this thread. I'm very interested in this potty stuff LOL!
> 
> My husband wants our new puppy to be trained to go outside only. I want to train on the pads.[/B]


You can train her to go to either or both but I think the pads are good as maltese don't like rain or inclement weather and may refuse to go or take forever or be thrown off and not go at all. Of course they can be complately outdoor trained too they probably just learn to go quickly when its yucky out. If you do both I would work the pad towards the door you would take her out to go outside potty. Calista can go absolutely anywhere grass, pad, concrete as long as its outside.


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## littlemissy (May 19, 2009)

QUOTE (sheisaeval @ Jun 17 2009, 11:57 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=793033


> QUOTE (littlemissy @ Jun 17 2009, 10:23 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=793015





> Mine are trained to potty outdoors either on pads on the deck or on an official walk. I live in an apartment as well. I don't like the pads or actual pottying in my living area but that is just me.[/B]


Yeah, ours is in the bathroom
[/B][/QUOTE]

If you want to train to the outdoors after allready training to indoors your best best is taking walks and big praise and a treat if they go during the walk.


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## ilovemymaltese (Oct 9, 2008)

Gigi is NOT an outdoor girl. LOL She is civilized and pottys indoors like we do. :biggrin:


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## roxybaby22 (Feb 25, 2009)

Roxy goes in a litterbox with washable pads. She used to go on doggie litter, but she would take it out and play with it, it got messy!


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## maggieh (Dec 16, 2007)

I've had Maltese for almost 17 years and they have all gone indoors - Chicago in January with a minus 37 wind chill and taking the dog outside? I don't think so!


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## princessre (Dec 23, 2008)

It seems like they learn where to go based on smell? Like the puppy attractant on the pad inspires him to go, and the urine from other dogs outside inspires him to go. If I didn't live in a big city like NY with so many dogs, I'm not too sure he would feel like peeing so much outside too unless he were desperate...


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## LittleDogLVR (Oct 24, 2007)

Mine are both outdoor ! Rain ....Sleet....Snow or Shine No problems !

My Neighbors get a chuckle out of me holding an umbrella for them


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

London is outdoor trained only. Our new puppy will be the same, I guess.

I always wanted to use wee pads for London so we tried the washable ones. They were SUPER absorbant, but as soon as she peed on it I could smell a hint of urine, even though it wasn't in a small enclosed area. I didn't use them after that day. She's also a poo eater so unless I'm constantly watching her potty on the pad, she will just eat her poo.

So unfortunately we outdoor train.


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## littlemissy (May 19, 2009)

QUOTE (ilovemymaltese @ Jun 18 2009, 12:34 AM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=793049


> Gigi is NOT an outdoor girl. LOL She is civilized and pottys indoors like we do. :biggrin:[/B]


 :HistericalSmiley: Good answer you girls are saints if you can tolerate the smell of pee in your home the difference is Gigi doesn't use the toilet like you do...knowing you... I wouldn't be surprised one day if you posted she did indeed learn to use the toilet :smrofl: * This is a compliment to you believe me *you are an excellent maltese Mom especially for someone so young. You are very informed and treat your girl like the queen she is.


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## Carole (Nov 1, 2005)

*I love it that my girls can go potty whenever they need day or night and not have to hold it till I can help them.
I love it that I can sleep late if I want and not have to get up and take my girls out.
I love it that my fur-gal-pals seem to pick when I am going potty to also come in the bathroom and use their potty....
so I always have fur-gal-pal company. :biggrin: 
I love it that when the whether is miserable I don't have to take my girls out and have them get cold, muddy, or slushy.
I think pee-pads for fur-kids are one the the best inventions ever made!

I guess you can figure out how I voted! :biggrin: *


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## angelgirl599 (Apr 8, 2009)

Lola came home from her breeders paper trained...so we continued that. Even though sometimes her feet get a little dirty from the newsprint, for me, it's much more economical to throw out old newspapers and wash her feet than to buy pee pads. With newspaper, even if we go to a friend's house and forget to bring newspaper, chances are they have some on hand. That's definitely a plus. 

When we started leash training she would just go outside too...it seemed very natural for her. I like the indoor/outdoor thing we have going on right now. It's easy to adapt to based on weather.


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## ilovemymaltese (Oct 9, 2008)

QUOTE (littlemissy @ Jun 18 2009, 11:46 AM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=793220


> QUOTE (ilovemymaltese @ Jun 18 2009, 12:34 AM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=793049





> Gigi is NOT an outdoor girl. LOL She is civilized and pottys indoors like we do. :biggrin:[/B]


 :HistericalSmiley: Good answer you girls are saints if you can tolerate the smell of pee in your home the difference is Gigi doesn't use the toilet like you do...knowing you... I wouldn't be surprised one day if you posted she did indeed learn to use the toilet :smrofl: * This is a compliment to you believe me *you are an excellent maltese Mom especially for someone so young. You are very informed and treat your girl like the queen she is.
[/B][/QUOTE]

I have been teaching her... :brownbag: 

 Just kidding and thank you!

We put the potty pads in a secluded room, and change them a lot so we don't ever smell pee.


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## littlemissy (May 19, 2009)

QUOTE (ilovemymaltese @ Jun 18 2009, 01:45 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=793328


> QUOTE (littlemissy @ Jun 18 2009, 11:46 AM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=793220





> QUOTE (ilovemymaltese @ Jun 18 2009, 12:34 AM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=793049





> Gigi is NOT an outdoor girl. LOL She is civilized and pottys indoors like we do. :biggrin:[/B]


 :HistericalSmiley: Good answer you girls are saints if you can tolerate the smell of pee in your home the difference is Gigi doesn't use the toilet like you do...knowing you... I wouldn't be surprised one day if you posted she did indeed learn to use the toilet :smrofl: * This is a compliment to you believe me *you are an excellent maltese Mom especially for someone so young. You are very informed and treat your girl like the queen she is.
[/B][/QUOTE]

I have been teaching her... :brownbag: 

 Just kidding and thank you!

We put the potty pads in a secluded room, and change them a lot so we don't ever smell pee.
[/B][/QUOTE]

Glad you take some giggles with me :chili: its been so somber here lately just trying to lighten it up a little bit. :grouphug: 

Excellent point, segretating pads to a special room makes a lot of sense for hygiene, etc.


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## Missy&Maggie (Jun 17, 2007)

QUOTE (Carole @ Jun 18 2009, 12:06 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=793227


> *I love it that my girls can go potty whenever they need day or night and not have to hold it till I can help them.
> I love it that I can sleep late if I want and not have to get up and take my girls out.
> I love it that my fur-gal-pals seem to pick when I am going potty to also come in the bathroom and use their potty....
> so I always have fur-gal-pal company. :biggrin:
> ...


I agree with Carole 100%!!! :biggrin: My fiance wasn't crazy about piddle pads, but thinks they are great now for many of the above reasons!


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## Sassy&Alyssa (Aug 29, 2006)

The reason so many people have Maltese's and smaller dogs is for this reason. That they can go to the bathroom indoors. I really think it is a convenience, yes, we all love our dogs but is it really fun to go outside in the dead of winter or when it's pouring out in the middle of the night for them to go potty? I'm sure many people would say no. And I'm sure many people here do NOT leave their pups alone outside especially at night! :mellow: Sassy went to the potty indoors, but she wasn't really into the outdoors much, she was lazy. Many maltese, on the other hand LOVE the outdoors so it would make sense to let them go potty outside. If we were on walks, she just peed wherever, but it's just a nice added convenience. I knew someone awhile back who's dog would go outside during the day and indoors at night if he had to pee so bad lol.  It was odd to me at first, because I wonder how they trained him to do that but I guess it makes sense!


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

Gosh, you are all making me wish I would have kept up with London's pad training.  But she eats her poo...so that makes it not possible for us, right?? lol


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## Sassy&Alyssa (Aug 29, 2006)

QUOTE (LJSquishy @ Jun 18 2009, 09:07 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=793556


> Gosh, you are all making me wish I would have kept up with London's pad training.  But she eats her poo...so that makes it not possible for us, right?? lol[/B]



Well indoor training doesn't work for everyone, but Sassy ate her poo too. Yum..  Sorry xD Anyway, we kept the wee-wee pad in the laundry room and when she had to go she'd go by the door and wait. So she wouldn't eat her poo we'd pick it up right after she went or we'd shut the door. There are lots of ways to prevent the eating of poo and still indoor.


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## sassy's mommy (Aug 29, 2005)

Sassy only goes potty inside in her potty box.........on potty pads. I put the pads inside the box and that defines her area. She has to be inside the box to potty. No accidents.


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## trkl (Jun 3, 2009)

We are training Lacey on a pad right now. It's been 3 weeks and we got her from a breeder at 12 weeks. We crate and she is mostly good when confined in her playpen but has no clue when let out to other rooms. We also take her for walks so she gets a chance to go potty outdoors. Are we confusing the poor puppy with the indoor/outdoor thing? How long did it take to train your puppy?


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## pinkheadbaby (Jul 27, 2008)

My sweet Cookie will go on her pee pads or outside - I don't take her out if it is nasty! My Samantha is strictly an outside dog - will wait for whatever it takes!! My whole life revolves around making sure she gets outside!!! She is a much sturdier dog & smart enough to stay under an umbrella! When I take Cookie out - she pees & poops perfectly, just like the big girl she is!! I'm pleased that cookie knows what she is supposed to do in both situations.
Have I mentioned lately that I LOVE my dogs? :wub:


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## bluesyinpa (Dec 9, 2006)

Maggie was trained on potty pads as a puppy. As she got older she started following the older dogs pottying outside. Now she goes out mainly, but uses the pads at night or if she can't hold it during the day.

Rita


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## The A Team (Dec 1, 2005)

Both my girls go both inside and outside, inside on pee pee pads and outside in our "pee pee land" :blush: . 

The boys.....according to them, they only go outside...but I find evidence that clearly shows they too use both....but not exactly how I'd like them to use inside all the time..... :smilie_tischkante:


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## silverhaven (Sep 6, 2009)

Cherry so far has been doing really really well using both methods. I hope she continues this way. I just got the pee pad holders though because she had started to shred the pee pads.


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## Nikki's Mom (Feb 13, 2008)

Nikki is inside potty pad trained, but she will potty outside when we are on a road trip or a walk. She will potty on command. We don't have odor issues inside the house. We use the potty pads from Sam's Club (they are really adult incontinence pads) We tried the washable ones but those didn't work out too well for us. The washing machine was always going and if they were used once, they'd smell.

Being inside potty trained is best for us as we live in an apt complex. There isn't much grass for her, and she's not allowed to potty in many places on the property, except for some yucky places loaded with pine straw (and fleas.) And I don't have to worry too much about ticks, or the hawk that lives on the property. Maybe if I lived in a house with a secured backyard, I'd feel differently, I don't know.


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## almitra (Apr 24, 2009)

QUOTE (trkl @ Jul 25 2009, 06:45 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=809848


> We are training Lacey on a pad right now. It's been 3 weeks and we got her from a breeder at 12 weeks. We crate and she is mostly good when confined in her playpen but has no clue when let out to other rooms. We also take her for walks so she gets a chance to go potty outdoors. Are we confusing the poor puppy with the indoor/outdoor thing? How long did it take to train your puppy?[/B]



First off, what a little cutie pie you have there!! Congratulations on adopting such a precious fluff.
Pepper came to me at 12 1/2 weeks of age and was already crate trained. NOT housetrained at all. I live in an upstairs apt and have taught her that the entire place is her 'den', and as such, cannot be peed or poo'd in. Potty training her to outdoors only took 10-12 days of *constant* supervision, several mistakes a day((sigh--my fault as I got distracted from time to time with life and kids), and taking her out every 15-20 mins. Rain or shine,cold or heat, we go out and always have.......no midnight runs to the potty, however. Nope, not my thing. She crates at night and stays dry for about 13 hours or so. When she was 13 weeks, she stayed dry at night for about 8 or 9 hours, but only if I took up the water dish around 6:30 pm for the duration of outdoor potty training. I also fed her at scheduled times so I could predict poo excursions.  She walks to the door and stands there in front of it whenever she needs to go-that's how I know when she needs to go outside. Remember that when potty training in _any_ manner, restrict access to only a couple rooms of your home at first, then gradually expand the area they can roam in as they learn where it is appropriate to "go" (or not "go", as the case may be). The more time you can invest in being with your new little one, the quicker potty training will go.
Best of luck and let us know how it's going.


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## lawgirl (Jul 22, 2009)

Great question, as I faced this issue myself. My dog was pee pad trained for a couple months, with about 4 accidents during that whole time. Most of the accidents were brought on by excitement and fear when new visitors came into the apartment, so I was very happy with his progress! Then, when I visited a house with a backyard readily available for three weeks, my dog naturally started going outdoor-only on the grass, even though I provided pee pads by the door. Upon returning to our city apartment, he would hold his pee/poo until let outside.

He now absolutely refuses to go inside on his Nature's Miracle scented pee pads, despite my 12-hour attempts to re-train him through confinement, walking to pee pad every 20 minutes (on leash or not), saying "go potty," and preparing to treat him when he did. He just held his pee/poo, looked uncomfortable, and waited until I got worried about UTI and took him out. The second his paws hit pavement, he relieved himself.

The upside is, Darcy has not had ANY accidents at all since becoming an outside-only pup. Overnight, he can hold it as long as necessary, and waits for me by the door in the mornings. Based on my experience, I think outside-only truly teaches the dog that the whole home is the "den" and yields far more consistent results (no accidents inside, dog learns quickly) than pee pads. But the tradeoff is convenience for the human, as I take him out 4x a day.

Regarding snow and rain: my dog despises bad weather and at first wouldn't poo in the rain, but I find sidewalk areas sheltered from the rain by building overhang or awnings, and wait patiently. He has been getting the message that the sooner he goes, the quicker we return home.

QUOTE (sheisaeval @ Jun 17 2009, 10:51 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=792955


> So I've been working on training my dog to go mostly indoors right now. We use peepads in the bathroom, and after every meal and after being crated, I take him to the bathroom where he usually pees and poos, if he needs to. He's improving mostly, although sometimse there's an accident here and there.
> 
> So anyway, I've been doing a lot of research on dogs and training and such, since it's my first dog and all, and lots of people are very against potty training indoors, because it teaches them to "eliminate inside the house" and it'll be harder to train them go outside when it's easily to do so later (like when I have a yard). What is everyone's opinions about this? How many of your dogs are trained to go indoors vs outdoors? If you dog can do both, what is their primary potty spot?
> 
> ...


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## Scoobydoo (May 26, 2005)

Scooby is a totally outdoor boy and refuses to use a potty inside no matter the weather out, I wish now that I had trained him to do both because when the weather is bad it would be nice to not have to go outside.  
Koko has always used his wizdog potty inside and he is so very good about it, plus if it's nice weather he also likes to go outside too, so he is basically an in and outside trained boy  He has a potty both upstairs and downstairs and he uses both very well


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## =supermanskivvies= (Aug 7, 2008)

Tiffany mostly goes outside, but she'll use a pee pad occasionally (usually if I'm asleep). For some reason, she always folds up the pad after she uses it. She nudges it with her nose or grabs the edge with her teeth. I guess she's trying to bury it.


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## ann80 (Jun 13, 2009)

Zoey has been trained indoors on pads & from the moment I brought her home she always uses her pads. After the cold winter in CT is over, we will use outdoors on the nicer days. She does pee many times during the day on her pads so I am constantly replacing them. Does anyone know of a place/online to purchase them in bulk at a good price? The best I have found is Target, 75 for $23. Thanks.


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## iheartbisou (Feb 13, 2007)

Bisou is trained only on the pads (she was already trained when I got her). She has never used the bathroom outside even though we go on long walks together. She'll wait until we come home to do that. I do wish that she'd go outside once or twice, just to prove she is an actual dog and not just a little angel of love sent from above. 

I do go through a lot of pads a day though..she'll only use a pad twice for pee, preferably once. Also I also perform 'maid service' right afterward and we don't have any problems with smells at all.


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## remy (Jul 9, 2009)

QUOTE (Ann80 @ Nov 2 2009, 09:10 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=846635


> Zoey has been trained indoors on pads & from the moment I brought her home she always uses her pads. After the cold winter in CT is over, we will use outdoors on the nicer days. She does pee many times during the day on her pads so I am constantly replacing them. Does anyone know of a place/online to purchase them in bulk at a good price? The best I have found is Target, 75 for $23. Thanks.[/B]


i buy wee wee pads from maggie-8 on ebay. she sells 200 pads for $9.99! i live in nyc so pads + shipping = $23.99 which is the best price i found so far. she ships from MA so since you're in CT, your shipping cost will probably be a bit lower


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## Reenie (May 1, 2008)

My breeder had Chloe trained on "Pish Pads," which they are trying to get a patent on (they're like wee-wee pads, but they have plastic on the bottom and can be washed and dried). We did this inside for about a year, then I decided I wanted Chloe to go outside. People told me I wouldn't be able to train her to go outside after a year of going on pads, but "we did it!" It took a lot of patience. I started by taking a soiled pad outside, taking her out and putting her on the pad and telling her to go potty. Then she started venturing off of the pad to go outside. It took a few months, but the Maltese are so smart, she got it.

Now she goes outside when we get up, a few hours later, in the afternoon, before eating dinner, and before she goes to bed. My hubby insists (and I disagree but can't get him to stop...grrr) putting down the pad at night in case she HAS to go and can't hold it. She LOVES froliking outside, meeting people, going on walks, smelling everything, meeting dogs, etc. It's been a great improvement, even to getting to know our neighbors!

Good luck!


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## I found nemo (Feb 23, 2006)

QUOTE (prince lex @ Nov 2 2009, 09:36 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=846647


> QUOTE (Ann80 @ Nov 2 2009, 09:10 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=846635





> Zoey has been trained indoors on pads & from the moment I brought her home she always uses her pads. After the cold winter in CT is over, we will use outdoors on the nicer days. She does pee many times during the day on her pads so I am constantly replacing them. Does anyone know of a place/online to purchase them in bulk at a good price? The best I have found is Target, 75 for $23. Thanks.[/B]


i buy wee wee pads from maggie-8 on ebay. she sells 200 pads for $9.99! i live in nyc so pads + shipping = $23.99 which is the best price i found so far. she ships from MA so since you're in CT, your shipping cost will probably be a bit lower 
[/B][/QUOTE]
I also order from her. I get 4 boxes and the 5th is free! So I get like 1000, usually lasts me close to a year. 
Nemo is trained on pads, I am to lazy to walk around in the cold, rain and snow. :biggrin:


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## EmmasMommy (Jun 2, 2008)

Our Katie the sheltie aged 12 is a completely outdoor dog.........she uses a dog door.

Emma was a Peepee pad indoor dog for over 1 year and then she got brave enough to venture through the dreaded ( Loud flapping) doggie dog. Now she is peepee pad trained at night and if she is being lazy but sometimes I notice she goes out to pee. She poos almost exclusively outdoors. The pads are in the bathroom.........on porcelain tile..........at night if I forget to put a fresh pee pad down she has peed in the open design shower !

Mimi is being peepee pad trained.......she is with me OR in the expen .............I take her to the expen every few hours and anticipate after she drinks/eats and when she gives clues ( sniffing, circling etc) we have almost all of the expen lined with pee pee pads and slowly I will remove them more and more , then let the expen open and then finally remove the expen. It worked for Emma and Twinkle. Luckily she id very scared of that mean old loud boggie man doggie door....down in the laundry room...........


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