Puppy Pads?

K

KarenW

Forums Regular
Never used puppy pads was wondering what makes them so special? Have never even seen one out of package. Reason I'm asking, fence won't be able to be put in until spring thaw...n I forgot what fun it is to stand in rain .. I can handle 10 below or snow but hate rain. Would I confuse Prancer now(12) weeks if I put them in garage for bad weather days? Don't want to do anything to hinder house training.
Thanks
Karen
 
If Prancer is on his way to good house habits, then I wouldn't confuse him now. Look at the bright side. He is learning to toilet in all kinds of weather. Not a bad thing.
 
I agree with Tagg. If you are already making good progress, don't change now. It's a very good thing for your pup to learn to do his business in all sorts of weather.

I get the 'I hate rain'; I hate going out in the rain also. But rain is a fact of life and dog ownership. Regardless of the weather, they need to go out. The best thing for you to do is grin and bear it.

It may be a great opportunity for you to teach him to do his business on command such as "go pee", "go poop", and/or "hurry up". All said calmly and well rewarded when they listen. I trained "go pee" and "go poop" while they were actually in the process of going, "Good go pee" etc. It's a great command to have when you are in a hurry, travelling, etc.
 
No offense to anyone who uses them, but I can't stand even the theory of puppy pads. That is teaching your puppy it is ok to go in the house. It is extremely difficult for a puppy to understand it's ok to go in the house (on a pad) but really they're supposed to go outside. Plus, they smell and they're a pain and they get pricey over time. My mother used those with her dogs and they never got out of the habit. They never could understand why it was ok to go inside then all the sudden it wasn't. They were never properly house trained.

Just stick with going outside. It's a pain sometimes but it's worth it.
 
In addition to the previous posts about undermining the house training by allowing dogs to go inside on puppy pads, I have found that my dogs will chew up the pads.

Then you have a mess to clean up with shredded paper/plastic everywhere!
 
Thank you all. I think I will just suffer through the rain...thanks for putting a postitve spin on it. I needed that.
 
I'm with the potty on command crowd - - we know "go pee" "go poo" "go potty so we can go in the car" and "do you need to go MORE potty, I think you do". Clearly, they key in on pee, poo, and potty even if I flesh it out with more words. The shepherd clearly knows "go poo so we can go in the car" because he also knows the word "car" so that is really effective and exciting and involves voiding and a great deal of excited bouncing around. It's really great to have that command before we enter the training facility too for a class and will be crucial later when we go to rally competition so as not to void on a course.
 
Don't worry, lots of us have to suffer through the rain. I seriously miss having a fenced in yard... best thing about going to PA for visits is utilizing my parent's fenced yards. Usually dogs will learn quicker they go the quicker you go inside. Some like to play in rain though... like Ruutu. That makes it fun because then I come in all muddy. :o
 
I actually started my puppy on these - I got her a few weeks ago and we've had a crazy amount of snow in NJ this year., with lots still on the ground. Plus, she just got started on her shots and there are lots of dogs in the neighborhood (and I don't have a fenced yard).

Now that the weather is warming up and she's had more of her shots I'm transitioning her to going in the grass outside the garage, which she is doing well with. She knows what 'go potty' means.

But I think if I were to do that occasionally it would be confusing to her - and I would certainly not use them in the house. Eventually she will be going outside in all kinds of weather like my other dog does.
 
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