# Potty Training in an Apartment??



## Puppy79 (Apr 4, 2012)

So I'm getting a new puppy in about 7 weeks (he's only 5 weeks old right now), but I live in an apartment (10th floor) in a city. I've been reading that Maltese are notoriously difficult to house train and I'm starting to get very nervous. Though I understand there will be some initial difficulty with a puppy, I don't want to my dog to go the bathroom in the apartment when he's like 1 or 2 years old. Is it true they are that difficult? Has anyone successfully house-trained your Maltese in an apartment or condo building? Thank you!!!


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

I do think they are much more difficult to housetrain than a large breed dog. London is 4 and still potties in the house when she doesn't like the weather outside and it is so frustrating. Preston is almost 3 and he has only had 2 accidents in the house ever which were both when he was a puppy and I didn't take him outside quick enough. He is a good boy and was SO easy to potty train...he just 'got it' right away. We still watch London like a hawk.

So, if you want to outdoor train, it may be a little rough for a while because sometimes they need to go out every 30min if they are being active. If you choose to pad train, it may work better for you since you're up so high and in the city.


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## maltese#1fan (Feb 20, 2012)

It's definitely possible. You just need to be patient. We've only had Bella for three weeks and she is almost completely pad trained. Heidi (who I think was the smartest dog ever) was both pad trained and also would go outside. She only started having "accidents" when she got sick.


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## Zoe's Mom88 (Apr 25, 2011)

I didn't find it difficult at all. I was home full time when I got Zoe and in about 6 days she was fully pad trained. We live in a condo building and she basically uses her pad but she does also knows to go outside. I must say though you have to be on top of it at all times. Often I could tell when she had to go and I would put her on the pad immediately. They usually get the idea pretty quickly. Good luck.


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## babycake7 (Jan 30, 2012)

I don't live in a condo or apartment, but since Bella hasn't completed her shots and we live out in the country where there are stray dogs sometimes passing through, I can't take her outside to potty yet. I have been using potty pads with her from Day One and she "got it" right away. She seeks out and uses her pad for both #1 and #2. I crate her at night for bed and other than the first night or two, she has slept throught the whole night. Now she only uses the pad in her xpen for #1 when we are gone and waits to do #2 on the pad, after we remove it from her xpen, as soon as we get home...this just started this week. So far, she is the easiest dog I have ever had to housetrain.


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## Summergirl73 (Sep 18, 2011)

Our Bella actually was much more challenging than our bigger dogs ever were  . Regardless, once I got the UgoDog, things fell into place very quickly. You might want to do some research on it. It was the smartest $50 we ever spent. I just wish we would have had it from the time we brought her home.


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## doobie mommy (Feb 18, 2012)

I have chosen to move an aprtment now after 25 years in my own home with 2 acres so the indoor puppy training was very new to me.

I use the Out Pads with a tray and cover and love it ! 

I started out with 4 pads near my patio door. One week later 3 pads, another week 2 pads and the down to 1 pad. As I decreased the pads I moved them a little each day towards the hall and down the hall because I eventually wanted his potty to be in the bath room walk thru closet out of sight. 

I decided I wanted Doobie to use indoor potty only, but he will pee outside in his own yard and I don't allow him to stop and pee anywhere else like on the neighbors lawn ! 

He was 100% trained at 5 months and never has an accident, fingers crossed, well except for the poo that may escape the pad if his bottom is not directly over the pad. I never gave him treats but would dramatically praise him "good boy" !!! 

If you have a problem with your puppy playing with the pads just teach him to "leave it" in a firm voice, have a toy ready to give him and he will learn that his potty is not to play with in any way. 

One thing funny early in the training...I had a small carpeted area rug at the entrance door and he used it occasionally, hmmm. What was I doing wrong ??? It was the same shape as his potty tray and almost the same size ! Looked like a potty to him... I took it up and no more problems.

Hope this helps because it has worked so well for me.


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## Puppy79 (Apr 4, 2012)

Hmm I guess I was hoping I could train my Maltese to ONLY go outside and let me know when he had to go. Maybe puppy pads are a better way to go. Do they smell bad? I'm not really sure where I'd put puppy pads that is really out of the way. Where do you keep yours if you have a small place? Is it possible to train my pup to ONLY go outside so we don't have to keep the puppy pads in the house at some point?


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## mojomama (Mar 19, 2012)

Puppy79 said:


> Hmm I guess I was hoping I could train my Maltese to ONLY go outside and let me know when he had to go. Maybe puppy pads are a better way to go. Do they smell bad? I'm not really sure where I'd put puppy pads that is really out of the way. Where do you keep yours if you have a small place? Is it possible to train my pup to ONLY go outside so we don't have to keep the puppy pads in the house at some point?


hi Puppy79! Congrats on getting a maltese puppy soon...I promise you'll be SO happy with your decision and all the potty training is just a minor obstacle in light of the happiness that a maltese baby provides! :wub:

I live on the 11th floor of a high-rise apartment (though we will be moving in a month to a place with a yard, yay!) Until then, here's what I've been doing with my 12 week old puppy:

He has a small X-pen (I ordered it in XS size and it fits him perfectly: room for XS pee pad, doggie bed, blankie, toys, and food bowls). He has pretty much mastered going to potty on the pee pad when he's enclosed in his X pen (so far no accidents in the pen). And to address the SMELL question: the answer is: his #2's have a little bad smell, but I usually clean up right away and the smell really isn't THAT bad. I mean these are small dogs, so their poos are small too  The pee never smells. 

When I take him outdoors (which I do, I just stay away from high dog-traffic areas becuase he hasn't completed all his vaccines), he does go #1 and #2, with almost no coaxing from me, although I praise him profusely when he does 

Overnight, he sleeps in the play pen and goes on his pee pad if he needs to.

It's the "in between times" when he is allowed out of the pen, and I'm playing with him , that he sometimes pees on the carpet. This has been decreasing in frequency, but I always bring him to the pee pad if I sense he is getting close to a pee or poo (it's fairly obvious with a poo--he circles and arches his back, less obvious with pee). He also poos 2x per day, on a pretty regular schedule, so that helps!

I think eventually, you may be able to train him to go outside exclusively if you crate train him. however, being that this toy breed has small bladders, and if you're going to be gone for >4 hrs per day, I'm not sure it's very humane to force him to hold it ALL day. I think I'll train my Mojo to use both pee pad and outdoors, so that when I start working full-time (in 2 months), he won't have to hold it all day.

Hope this helps!

Items I bought that I'd recommend:
-soft sided, water-proof bottom play pen: Amazon.com: Best Pet Folding Play Pen - M - Burgundy: Pet Supplies
(i bought the XS but will probably upgrade to a medium when I start working full time so Mojo will have more space to roam during the day)

-Puppy pads: I went with IRIS regular with IRIS S puppy pad holder http://www.amazon.com/Iris-FT-500-Small-Protection-Training/dp/B0006ABVG6/ref=sr_1_1?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1333651138&sr=1-1


- the puppy pad holder has been a god-send and really prevents him from chewing on the edges of the puppy pad

- lots of TOYS for him to play with in the pen so he settles down (doggie blanket, puppy kong, soft teething toys)

I've attached pic of his pen so you can see how it's set up.

Hope this helps! B)


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## Snowbody (Jan 3, 2009)

Good info from Mojo's mom. Tyler is now three but I got him at 8 months. He was not at all hard to train on wee wee pads. He goes on them in the house which is a blessing. I work from home and sometimes am gone for very long days so I don't have to worry about someone coming in to walk him.It's also great when the weather is bad out. When I take him out he will also go outside so I have best of both worlds. I have the pee pads in my room. He doesn't like to be seen going (mr privacy) so it's in there. The pads really don't smell - they're treated to absorb quickly and deodorize and it's really very easy. As an apartment dweller I'm so glad with our situation. You know you shouldn't walk your dog outside before she has all her shots. Parvo is very dangerous as we just had a member who lost her Maltese to it. It's a good idea to use the crating/x-pen system when they're little. There are more threads about that if you search too.


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## brendaman (Mar 7, 2006)

Hi! As you've mentioned you'll get a lot of info here and advice for you and your puppy.

I see you're from Washington, DC. I work in DC and live in the Maryland suburbs. I highly recommend the Old Towne School for Dogs, if you're able to get out to Old Town Alexandria. They have a Puppy Headstart program. We are also waiting for a puppy from a breeder and will enroll our new puppy when we do get her. When we first got our beloved Shayna (now at Rainbow Bridge), they helped us design a home-training program, including housebreaking. The program is for a few weeks and consisgts of a one-hour two-on-one (or three-on-one if you're a couple) with the trainer, learning the best way to walk and addressing any issues (e.g. separation anxiety) you may be experiencing with your puppy. You can PM me if you need more info.

Shayna was trained to go outside and on pee pads, and we'd like to train our future puppy similarly. We had housebreaking challenges at first, but they were well worth it for all the kisses, love and entertainment your Maltese will provide!!!


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## shellbeme (Mar 1, 2011)

Personally, I think puppy pads are gross, however, if I lived on the tenth floor of a building, I woulf look into an indoor litter system like the uggdog, or something that fit on my balcony if I had one. When malts let you know they have to go, they really gotta go, I can not see going five flights of stairs or even in an elevator without the dog having a potty accident on the way.


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