# Training housebroken fluff to use a potty pad



## Grace'sMom (Feb 22, 2012)

Hi all 

So all the potty training posts reminded me I wanted to get some advice 

I am great at housebreaking puppies... Seriously. Potty training puppies are toddlers is like my "thing" ... Potty whisperer or somethin' :HistericalSmiley:

Grace is fully housebroken and only goes outside. She's 7 months now 

Here is the problem: It is HOT here in AZ... and my little Grace does not like to potty from about 9am - 5/6pm.... so about 8-9 hours during the day she refuses to potty.

I will take her out when Gus goes out and she will run right back inside! She HOLDS IT all day 

We've tried setting up an umbrella, spraying the ground to cool it off, putting shoes on her.... but nope. She holds it until it cools down.

I know she can potty during the day because the last few days it has been cooler than normal and she has been pottying between those hours. So it is a heat thing.

Her holding it causes the UTIs ...and then since she is holding it she isn't drinking much during the day. So I need her to potty.

This is TOTALLY new to me because Gus doesn't have a problem. He will run out, pee, and run in... but Grace just wont' do it. Nope... not gonna! Can't make her.... Too hot mama!

Has anyone trained a fully house broken puppy to be potty pad trained as well? Not instead of but also....

How do I train her to go on the pad? Or is this something we missed out on because I went for 100% outside training?

Thanks!


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## MoonDog (Jun 6, 2011)

Tori, at Petsmart or Petco, I've seen this thing that looks like a a section of grass that you can use to train your fluff on indoors so she'll go on the grass outdoors. I'm not sure what this is called but maybe if you get one of those she'll use it! I'm sure someone will chime in with a much better idea. I agree that Grace doesn't need to hold it.


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## shellbeme (Mar 1, 2011)

MoonDog said:


> Tori, at Petsmart or Petco, I've seen this thing that looks like a a section of grass that you can use to train your fluff on indoors so she'll go on the grass outdoors. I'm not sure what this is called but maybe if you get one of those she'll use it! I'm sure someone will chime in with a much better idea. I agree that Grace doesn't need to hold it.


 
I haven't done it but I think this is an excellent idea!


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## pippersmom (May 21, 2012)

What if you took a treat outside with you to encourage to pee and then once she sees that the quicker she pees, the quicker she gets back in the house she might go. Pipper will pee on command so I can get him to go quickly in this heat. If it was me, I would just worry that by trying to get her to now pee in the house, it might confuse her....."but Mommy I'm supposed to pee outside" :confused1:
I can understand your concern about the UTI's though.


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## spookiesmom (Mar 28, 2010)

Spookie does both. In fact, when we've been out for a while, she will come in and use the pad. I always have one down for her. I think they are treated with a go here scent, or one can be purchased. I use the ones from Publix.


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## Ladysmom (Oct 19, 2004)

I trained Lady to use pads when she was ten years old. I was in a bad car accident and I couldn't walk her with my injuries for quite awhile.

Lady would scratch at the back door when she had to go out so that is where I put the pad. Put it in a Seabreeze pen and left it open on one side. When she would scratch to go out, I closed the third side. I stayed right there until she pottied. At first she scratched and asked to go out until she couldn't hold it any longer. As soon as she pottied I gave her a treat and told her what a good girl she was. It only took about two days for her to realize that going on the pad was a great way to get a treat. Until the day she died years later, she still expected a Cheerio when she pottied!

Bailey arrived pad trained, but also goes outside when I take him for walks. A cross trained dog is a must IMO.


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## edelweiss (Apr 23, 2010)

We have the reverse issue to Grace!
Kitzel will go both in & out, but Lisi will stay outside an hour & come in & go on the pad. In the last month or two she has started to go outside on grass only! Our landlord says that is a no-no on the grass. Amazing since her puddle is about as big as a silver dollar! She now has found a tiny little (& I mean tiny little) spot on the sidewalk between the cracks that she will sometimes use. She is oh so particular!
I think it just requires lots of patience & treats Tori---and a hungry, motivated pooch.


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## Grace'sMom (Feb 22, 2012)

The potty patches won't work for us. Grace is used to going on dirt... we don't have much grass in AZ... lots of rock and hardscape. We got her after moving to a new house without the yard landscaped... that is in the process now. But she will ONLY go on dirt. Even if we are out and I need her to potty... she will walk around until she finds a tiny patch of dirt and then pee right there LOL

Gus, a typical male, will pee anywhere....

Sigh... my Gracie... she's definitely my humbling dog. Reminding me it isn't always one way.... that every little dog is their own individual.

But that is another reason I'd like her pad trained... sometimes there isn't any dirt for her to pee on while we are out, so she holds it, and I worry about accidents in public.... so I need an option for her. 

I do worry that she will get confused.... but I don't know what else to do right now. It gets up to 116+ here in the summer. So standing outside with treats and waiting isn't an option. I learned the hard way with Gus as a puppy that it only takes a few minutes for their feet to burn. And shoes only buy them 1-2 minutes more. They do try to stay in the shade but it is still very hot.

I did try waiting her out when it first got hot. If I make her get back on her dirt area she will go but will sit down, leaning off her paws so she is burning her butt instead of her feet LOL.... Then she looks at me and just waits. I have to go out and get her.

So it isn't a battle I'm up for fighting. Especially since she is getting UTIs and already has liver issues, so don't need to add kidney issues.

So basically I should just put her in her xpen with the potty pad when she asks to go outside? Then when it cools down I can take her outside when she asks?

Use the disposable pads so she doesn't get confused and pee on blankets? I will consider getting a frame for them... but i have a ton of pads from when we first got her (she never used them)..... 

I will give that a try. Have to do something...she woke me up the last 2 nights to potty a few times. Which she hasn't done ever...even when we first got her home. So she is flipping her time on me... holding it all day, wanting out all night.

Thanks for the tips and letting me know others are dual trained.


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## Grace'sMom (Feb 22, 2012)

Sandi... Lisi sounds like Grace LOL .... so finicky on what she will do and where!


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## edelweiss (Apr 23, 2010)

One hair-brain idea :w00t: is to bring in a little puddle of dirt & put it on the pad??? :HistericalSmiley::HistericalSmiley:
I say "whatever it takes!"


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## Grace'sMom (Feb 22, 2012)

edelweiss said:


> One hair-brain idea :w00t: is to bring in a little puddle of dirt & put it on the pad??? :HistericalSmiley::HistericalSmiley:
> I say "whatever it takes!"



:HistericalSmiley:

Maybe..... Who knows, right? 


I might get ehr a tray. It may be more "dirtish" if the pad is more secure LOL

My little mud puppy...she LOVES the dirt!


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## ThatBrunette (Jun 14, 2012)

I know Lowes and Home Depot sell astroturf. I was tempted to make a section of the deck a potty area because of the heat. It's expected to get to 107deg here in Maryland, today. 

Are you looking for something indoors or outdoors? I think I saw one at PetSmart for $70. If you are crafty, you may be able to get the same elements at Lowes for less. Then again, both involve going out into the heat to get to the stores...


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## Grace'sMom (Feb 22, 2012)

She won't go outdoors.... she won't even piddle on the cool patio outside. She doesn't want to be out at all when it is too hot. Wants to be inside.

So I am trying to pad train her inside for the hot days... still going outside once it cools in the evening and first thing in the morning.

I'm going to make some puppy pads... and get her a litter box to put them in. Will define a potty place for indoors... in her xpen. So hoping that will cut any potty confusion and at least get her peeing more often during the day.


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## Ladysmom (Oct 19, 2004)

I forgot to mention to scent the potty pads with her urine. I used a paper towel to scent the first one, then would just touch the wet part of a used one to the new pad when I replaced it.


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## roguefishfood (May 17, 2012)

When I got Swag he was outdoor only, and I wanted him to use a pad with a grate over it. He didn't get the idea at all the first few times, but here's what helped:

If you have access to some pee, and can get it on the pad, that seemed to be the biggest lightbulb moment for him. (In my case, I messed up and he had an accident and I used the pad to blot it up before cleaning it fully. Next time he saw the pad, he was like I GET IT NOW!!) I also put the pad behind a couple of doors (in my case, on a little patio) and put the leash on him each time we went to the pad, which helped him know what to do because of the routine.

He got the peeing bit down in probably a week or so, but pooping was a whooooole different story... took WAY longer. But you don't seem to have that problem with poo, I guess!


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## Grace'sMom (Feb 22, 2012)

No...she only poops 1-2 times a day. She isn't a great eater, you know?

And she will only poop outside in a specific place. She's so finicky.

The pee pad training is going well. I made up some pads without waterproof backing. I'm using them in a litter box.... so don't need them to be waterproof. I will make a few that are for trips or whatever reason..... 

She always has to pee really bad after a bath...so I use that as my pee pad time. Seems to be working. Will add in a few times in a day or two.


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

It sounds like she is quite stubborn so you may have a bit of a challenge ahead of you!

Marj is the expert on training from going from outdoors to indoors so I would follow her advice.  At one point I wanted to indoor train London but after she peed once on a washable pad I gave up...I could smell it right away! I wasn't about to wait for her to poop on it. LOL! Plus, she actually will eat her poop if she has an accident inside...

Anyway, if you decide to change your mind on going with pads inside, I would just take her out on her leash to potty. She can't run back inside and if you only take her out a few times, she will probably go right away so she can go back in. I do that with London & Preston when it is really hot, or rainy, or snowing. London needs to go out a million times per day, but Preston likes to hold it for a long time.


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## Bethie (Jun 12, 2012)

Maisy picked up on going outside potty really quickly to be so young. But after the suggestions from here I decided to keep her inside until she's older. She seems like she has forgotten how to use her pee pad. (She was really good with her pee pads the first day or two until she got the hang of going outside.) She has been running under the kitchen table when she has to poop now and she did it once in the hallway, I think she was so used to doing it outside away from the house that she's trying to get it as far away from her "living space" as possible. Has anyone tried those attractant sprays? These pee pads are supposed to have a built in attractant but I thought I would use the spray as well in hopes of encouraging her. She gets treats and praise for every time she potties on her pad but it's not very often that she's accurate anymore.


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## CorkieYorkie (Apr 10, 2012)

Ozzie will sometimes pee on the pads, sometimes not, so now we are strictly outdoors.... which has been working except last night RIGHT after i took him out after work for pee/poo, he comes in, eats/drinks a bit... then proceeds to pee RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME on one of his beds.. guess he was holding too much??. Le sigh.... he is not a puppy either. :-/


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