Has your dog already been housetrained to go potty on grass?

If your dog has already been trained to go potty on grass, then these steps should help you to properly introduce your dog to his new Pooch Potty.

Where are you going to place the Pooch Potty?
Placement of the Pooch Potty  box is very important. If you have a balcony or terrace, that is the best place since it is outdoors and your dog associates going potty with the outdoors.  Please be sure you have doggie proofed your balcony if your dog is going to have access out there.

If you are putting the Pooch Potty box out on a balcony or patio where the access has a sliding glass door, check out the easy to install dog door panels at Pet Safe Warehouse or check out your local Home Depot or Petco , they sell these as well.

Indoor placement
For indoor placement, near a window for some sun is great. Also, where the sod can get some air & breath (near a window that can be opened on occasion). Customers instinctively want to put their box somewhere hidden, like a guest bathroom or laundry room - but if there is no air circulating & no sun exposure, you may not have much success keeping the sod alive.

Imagine a spot that you want your dog to associate with going potty. We recommend you avoid carpeted areas. If you must put the Pooch Potty on a carpeted area, then we suggest you raise the box up (bricks will work or anything sturdy enough that isn’t too tall). The idea is that you don’t want to teach your dog that going potty on the floor is appropriate, only that going potty in the Pooch Potty box is appropriate. Putting the box directly onto a carpeted area may confuse some dogs (especially since carpeting can feel so nice and soft to go potty on!)

Some of our customers with the space to do it and a little creativity have gone to great lengths to make their indoor Pooch Potty a really cute area.  One customer had her handyman build a little indoor deck for her Pooch Potty box, put a white picket fence around it and then put Pet Steps leading up to the deck. (she also decorated the fencing with cute flowers & pretty butterflies) This customer created a successful indoor potty place for her new puppy and housetraining was an absolute breeze!

Raising the Pooch Potty slightly off the ground
Many customers have discovered that by just slightly raising the box off the ground (using bricks or blocks of wood) - that this helps to keep the area underneath the box odor free.  If your dog ever "misses" you can clean up the accident before it rolls underneath the box and gets trapped there. 

If you are housetraining a puppy and this is their first experience with learning where you want them to go potty, you should definitely raise your box off the floor. If you leave it flat on the floor, it can be very confusing for them and they may mistake carpeting or throw rugs with an acceptable potty place. This can turn out to be especially embarrassing if you ever want to travel with your dog or be a guest in the homes of others.

If your adult dog already knows to go potty on grass and you don't believe you will need any additional training - it is still a good idea to raise the indoor Pooch Potty box off of the floor, just to reinforce that their potty place is separate from the rest of the floor.

The first potty of the morning
Try bringing your dog to the Pooch Potty box for that very first morning potty, when you know their bladder is full. Put the leash on, grab your keys and poop bags as if you are going for a walk, and then “walk” them on the Pooch Potty. The first time you see them go potty on it praise them like they’ve just done the greatest thing ever! Some dogs just are looking to you for permission to use the Pooch Potty. Once they know they have your support, then they should have no problem using it after that.

Make it a really positive experience for your dog
Don’t ever yell at your dog or scold your dog if they don’t use the Pooch Potty box immediately. If they associate getting yelled at with the box, chances are you have just dashed any hopes for getting them to use it. By making it a positive experience for your dog, the chances are better that you will have a positive result.

Your dog is looking to you, for permission that this is an acceptable place to go potty
Once your dog gets the box "started" it should be easy sailing from there on out. If they don't use it right away, see if you can borrow a friend or neighbor's dog to get the box started. A male dog's urine is preferable and it could set off your own dog's instinct to cover it up with their own urine.

Don't change your walk schedule or cut back on any exercise time
Please don’t change your walk schedule or cut down on any of your dog’s outdoor exercise time. They really need it (to have a place to put their energy) and they really enjoy spending that time with you on their walks. Pooch Potty is only meant as an extra comfort for your dog and peace of mind for you, it was not intended to replace walking your dog. (one smart dog figured out that his owner was cutting back on his walks and he suddenly refused to stop using his Pooch Potty, much to the chagrin of his owner)

We recommend that you try to get your dog to use the Pooch Potty, praise him, and continue his regular walking schedule.  Pooch Potty is designed to be a back up potty, for your dog's comfort and for your own peace of mind. 

If your dog has not been housetrained to go on grass
If your dog has not been housetrained to go on grass, we recommend you hire a professional dog trainer to assist you.

Warning:  This product has been known to cause wagging tails!