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Litter Box Training for Dog
If you are a busy dog owner, litter box training for dog offers a nice alternative to paper training. It will protect your household and isolate the mess to a litter box.
When you think of a litter box training, usually a picture of a young puppy comes to mind. But because there are some older dogs that were never housebroken, litter box training can benefit them too.
But first…
Why Use a Litter Box?
The fastest way to housetrain a dog is to teach him to eliminate outdoors. But you need to be available to take him outside several times per day. If you work full time, that may be impossible and your best alternative is to teach your dog to eliminate in a litter box.
Even if housebreaking will take longer because you will first train your dog to eliminate in a dog litter box and then retrain him to eliminate outdoors, it's still better than having ruined carpets, furniture, etc.
My advice?
If you have a young puppy and can take him outside every 2 hours, skip litter box training for dog and go straight to puppy house training page for tips on housebreaking young puppies.
If you have an older dog and can take him outdoors 3 to 4 times per day, skip the rest of this page and go straight to dog house training for additional information on housebreaking older dogs.
Litter Box Training For Dog
Before you begin litter box training, you will need to buy a litter box that's right for your dog. Visit dog litter box page for some tips…
Whenever your dog needs to use his litter box, lead him to it on leash.
Why?
First, this is how you will take him outdoors. It will signal to your dog that when you put on his collar and leash, it's bathroom time.
Second, by using dog leash now, you introduce your puppy or dog to leash training, another very important link in the overall dog training.
If you already paper-trained your puppy or an adult dog (visit puppy paper training to learn more) and now want to switch him to a litter box, I have a trick you can use…
Before you introduce him to his litter box, put some old newspapers inside. Since he already knows what the newspapers are for, he will adjust to litter box use much quicker.
Your ultimate goal, however, is to transition your dog from his litter box to outdoors. To make this transition easier, make the condition and appearance of his litter box similar to what he will find outdoors.
Let me explain.
Eventually, your puppy will eliminate on grass or concrete. Depending on where you live and what your puppy's outdoor "toilet" will look like, put a piece of grass turf or a thin slab of concrete on top of dog litter.
And, of course, litter box training for dogs doesn't mean that you never need to take your dog outside!
Whether your puppy is still using a dog litter box or is already housebroken, accidents will happen. To minimize the chance of your puppy eliminating in the same spot in the future, you will need a good dog urine cleaner.
The product that I like and used myself is GET SERiOUS! Pet Stain, Odor and Pheromone Extractor.
It's non-toxic, biodegradable and safe around children and pets. It "bubbles up" stains and odors and brings them to the surface where you can easily remove them with a towel.
More than a neutralizer, it actually removes the pheromone in the odors so pets won't re-mark area. You may even add it to laundry loads or use it as a pre-wash agent for tough stains and odors.
In January 2000, this product was awarded "Best Product for the New Millennium" by Dog World magazine. Dog Fancy editors rated GET SERiOUS! "Best Product of the Year 2004" and Get Serious! was the second product ever endorsed by the ASPCA.
I already mentioned earlier that it's best to consider litter box training for a dog when you need to leave your untrained puppy or an adult dog on his own for an extended period of time. Even then, it's a temporary solution. Eventually, you will need to train him to eliminate outdoors.
To speed up housebreaking, combine litter box training for dog with regular housetraining.
Here are some additional products to assist you during litter box training for dog…
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