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Hobbes · 10-11-2008, 10:55 PM

Hi! I've been training my 4 month old Yorkie, Hobbes, to use the Ugodog for the past month since I brought him home. I'll try to share some insight (but keep in mind Hobbes is not fully potty trained yet).

Okay, so Hobbes was originally paper trained-ish by his breeder, but he still had many accidents when I brought him home and tried to train him to keep going on the newspaper which I had put in a pee pad holder. Then I switched to the Ugodog, but I put a sheet of newspaper in front of the Ugodog and half a piece over the grating to try to ease the transistion. With this setup I've been using the normal training technique of constant vigilance (whenever possible) and positive reinforcement when he goes in his spot. After about a month, I'd say he is 85% "accident" free and improving every day. Every few days, I give Hobbes a slightly smaller newspaper area around the Ugodog by tucking it under. I'm hoping that eventually he will not need the newspaper in front or on top any more and he will just go right on the grate. At any rate, it's very convenient even with him peeing on the newspaper on top because it doesn't soak through to our floors, instead, if it leaks through the first piece of paper it goes through the grate and is absorbed by the paper underneath the grating. Generally, I think the Ugodog is great for training a mostly-indoor dog because it's pretty easy to clean and it doesn't look bad either (compared to other similar indoor dog potties).

As far as the smell and clean-up goes: Yeah, using any type of indoor dog potty is going to smell... bad. You'll have to clean it very frequently to minimize odors (just as you would with a litter box system) probably with a bleach based spray. What I do is I throw away the piece of newspaper that he has peed on as soon as possible after it happens and I pick up the potty with toilet paper and flush it down the toilet. This might sound a bit gross, but this tip has really worked for Hobbes with the Ugodog: soak a tissue in a bit of your dog's urine and slip it under the grating so that your dog recognizes his/her scent when looking for a place to go to the bathroom.

Good luck to you! Hope the potty training goes well, whichever method you end up choosing!!

10-11-2008, 10:55 PM	#2
Hobbes YorkieTalk Newbie! Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Gig Harbor, WA, USA Posts: 3	Ugodog Hi! I've been training my 4 month old Yorkie, Hobbes, to use the Ugodog for the past month since I brought him home. I'll try to share some insight (but keep in mind Hobbes is not fully potty trained yet). Okay, so Hobbes was originally paper trained-ish by his breeder, but he still had many accidents when I brought him home and tried to train him to keep going on the newspaper which I had put in a pee pad holder. Then I switched to the Ugodog, but I put a sheet of newspaper in front of the Ugodog and half a piece over the grating to try to ease the transistion. With this setup I've been using the normal training technique of constant vigilance (whenever possible) and positive reinforcement when he goes in his spot. After about a month, I'd say he is 85% "accident" free and improving every day. Every few days, I give Hobbes a slightly smaller newspaper area around the Ugodog by tucking it under. I'm hoping that eventually he will not need the newspaper in front or on top any more and he will just go right on the grate. At any rate, it's very convenient even with him peeing on the newspaper on top because it doesn't soak through to our floors, instead, if it leaks through the first piece of paper it goes through the grate and is absorbed by the paper underneath the grating. Generally, I think the Ugodog is great for training a mostly-indoor dog because it's pretty easy to clean and it doesn't look bad either (compared to other similar indoor dog potties). As far as the smell and clean-up goes: Yeah, using any type of indoor dog potty is going to smell... bad. You'll have to clean it very frequently to minimize odors (just as you would with a litter box system) probably with a bleach based spray. What I do is I throw away the piece of newspaper that he has peed on as soon as possible after it happens and I pick up the potty with toilet paper and flush it down the toilet. This might sound a bit gross, but this tip has really worked for Hobbes with the Ugodog: soak a tissue in a bit of your dog's urine and slip it under the grating so that your dog recognizes his/her scent when looking for a place to go to the bathroom. Good luck to you! Hope the potty training goes well, whichever method you end up choosing!!