House Training Puppies: Indoors or Outdoors?
Before you get started with house training puppies, you will need to determine if an indoor or outdoor method is preferred for your home. Indoors can work for small breeds such as Maltese and Chihuahua. The advantages to an indoor potty are that you do not need to take the pups outside late at night, and it may be convenient for you and your puppy to use an indoor potty. However, there are disadvantages to an indoor potty that you need to consider before choosing what is best for your situation. First is the location of the indoor potty area within your home. When the area is soiled, it will not look or smell pleasant. It can be difficult to choose a spot within the home that is discreet enough and away from view, but also easy for your puppy to get to when nature calls. If you have a large home or multi level home, it may not be possible for your puppy to get to the right spot on his own. Puppy training pads are available as washable or disposable, depending on your preference. The soiled washable puppy training pads need to be kept somewhere where the odor is contained. The disposable ones make cleanup easier, but some puppies will shred them into a million pieces, so depending on your individual puppy, one type may work better than the other.
Outdoors tend to be the preferred method for most people. If you live in an area with inclimate weather, your puppy may be averse to going outside in the rain or snow. Another consideration is that if you are not at home during the day, your puppy may not be able to hold his bladder for 8-9 hours initially, and you will need to keep your puppy to a confined space such as a bathroom while you are away, to minimize the mess. In general, people find that dogs naturally tend to want to go outside, so house training dogs to go outside can be the easiest route to take.
Whichever method you choose for house training, dogs have their own individual personalities and some will prefer one option while another dog shows a different preference. For example my first Maltese happy goes potty on her washable puppy training pads, while the second Maltese (gotten a year later) never learned to go only on the pee pads, and went all over the house initially. Then we began taking her outdoors, and she goes right away, no problem. And no more puddles on the hardwood floor! You can order puppy training pads directly through Amazon (click here).
Aug 18, 2009 | 0 | House Training Dogs, House Training Puppies, Puppy Training Pads
