[harrytr]

Hi everyone, I have a Chihuahua 6 year old, i found him in the street like one month ago. i took him to the vet and we found he have a heart condition right now he is on medication one of the pills made him thirsty and increase the amount of pee. Now my question/problem is how i can teach him to go on a pee pad? he hold during the night when i create him for around 8 hours, but during the day i can't create him because of his condition and the issue is that he prefer to urinate the rug and not in the pee pad. what you recommend me to do? maybe confined him in a puppy pen? try the artificial grass pad??
I will appreciate any tip or help.

Thank you

 

[NadiaK]

I have a new puppy that I am training using pee pads. I have a section of the kitchen gated off. Maybe 4 ft. by 8 ft. Inside is her crate and the majority of the floor is covered in pee pad. So far she is doing pretty well with going potty on the pee pad. The biggest issue I have is she also loves to shred the pee pads. But maybe you won't have that issue since your dog is not a puppy. Good luck and thanks for taking him in.

 

[Lillith]

If you don't mind me asking, why can he be crated for 8 hours at night, but cannot be crated during the day? If he can be confined to a puppy pen, why can't he be confined to a crate if you know it works to encourage good potty habits?

It would help if we knew a bit more about your routine. Like, if you're gone at work during the day. Is there a reason you can't take him outside to potty more frequently?

Some dogs don't understand the difference between rugs and pee pads. Both are soft, flat surfaces on the floor. Try confining him to a certain space in your house that is free of carpets and rugs that he could confuse with a pee pad, preferably a kitchen or bathroom or any space with hard floors, when you can't supervise.

When you can supervise, make sure to take him to his potty area frequently and praise and reward for going on the pad.

And, some dogs never understand the difference between a rug and a pee pad. In that case, you might want to develop a visual marker so the dog can see the clear difference between his potty area and not potty area. With a small dog it wouldn't be that difficult to make him a "potty box" or something that is very clearly different from all the other soft absorbent surfaces in your home.