Litter box

We have found the litter box to be a GAME CHANGER!

House training is the Number 2 (yes punning) reason people give up their IG. This, in the past, was something that laid heavily on our minds when sending a puppy out to its new home.

we, ourselves have tried 

disposable wee wee pads - puppies would shed them more the use them.

washable wee wee pads  - puppies would drag them around. ( We do still use these at times, in the box, if puppies start to play in the litter box kicking pellets everywhere link below)

washable human chux - better but still a lot of washing.

Then one day I read a post on a FB group about litter box with horse stall pellets as litter!

I had heard about litter box training dogs before but never thought about it and the dog litter boxes were pricy to try. 

This breeder was using a sweater box and stall pellets (for horse stalls) as litter! 

Now this was intriguing! something that was affordable to test. 

So, the next time it was time to buy chuxs, I bought a sweater box and stall pellets instead. 

OM! puppies took right to it like a kitten to a box! sure, sometimes I get a gift on the outside of the litter box, but it cut down on cleaning by about 75%.

see, Canidae (dog/wolf/jackal..) don't want to eliminate (due to smell that can lure danger) where they are most vulnerable. where they eat and were they sleep. even young wolf pups will leave to den to "go" outside. So, we gave this a try and it was wonderful!

It uses their natural instincts to eliminate someplace that is absorbent and easy for you to clean.  Just scoop or dump! 

it works best for young puppies if they have it 24/7. so PLEASE keep one in their daytime and nighttime pen. if you use a nighttime crate, please use a large one that you can put their litter box in as well as their bed.  they WILL use it at night. (I have proof of that every morning!) we recommend an X-pen (you can get them through Amazon) on waterproof flooring.

The litter that we use is pelletized pine dust 100% biodegradable.  no more plastic in the landfill from wee wee pads and less detergents in the septic tank. win win!

Update - as a litter grows they will play in the pellets. kicking them all over the place!  when this happens, we change to washable wee pads (from amazon) in the potty-box. hopefully the pup will see the box as a "bathroom" sign so it can be moved anywhere and the pup will still get the idea. if you have just one pup you may want to try the pellets or stay with a wash able weewee. we also change to a bigger potty box. we have found that mid size concert mixing pans are wonderful! those are found at Lowes and Home Depot