[yorkietalkjilly]

I think my Tibbe is like your boy. He just won't use them - he thinks going in the house is just wrong. He won't go at the vet either in those special cages. He holds it until we get home if they don't take him outside. It's so ingrained in him that he should go outside that I have offered him treats when it was pouring rain, trying to show him it's good to use the potty pads in the house or even on the porch and he will not do it. If I or someone else had to retrain him to use potty pads, it would be a very long process. Tibbe was only housebroken using positive reinforcement rewards for going outside so I know he's not afraid of being hurt going inside - he just wants to do it right so badly he'll hold it.

The only way I can think of to retrain this baby to ever learn otherwise is just to confine him to a fenced off area in the house covered until pee pads until he has to use one. And then praise, treat and be very very loving every time he does - though he'll just have to be confined until he does have to go - or you see he has used the pad. You've a whole lifetime to overcome but little bit at a time with gentle persistence and praise and a juicy treat when he uses the pad, you should be able to retrain him to understand that now pottying inside on this pad is a good thing.

I don't think until you confine him and give him no other choice he will ever voluntarily use that pee pad by just taking him over to it. I think he'll have to be - and this sounds bad but you get my point I hope - forced to use it by not giving him any other choice. And even once he knows it's okay with you the first or second times, he'll likely still be so hesitant and frightened every time he does it until he finds out for sure that 100% of the time there will be no anger or hurting him. So it will likely go very slowly until he trusts you to allow him to go in the house. Perhaps you could put him in a room entirely covered with the pads or keep him in his crate covered with pads until he has to go and then you are there to praise and treat and love him when he does so he can get it in his head that now he needs to change his ways.

My Jilly was like this too. She was so reluctant to go in the house she just could not ever use a pad. Finally, when she got around 12 and didn't have as much control, she would potty on the pee pad very occasionally but not until then. Every time I am going to be gone for over 3 hours, I leave a pad down. Once when I was in the ER overnight and my son came the next day to get Tibbe, he found Tibbe had used the pads once on each and but that is the only time he has ever used them - when he had no way outside. My son took him to his home after that so he didn't have to use one anymore.
I hope others have some good ideas that work for you. I'd love to know how it's going and what works for you. If I ever move into an apt., I might have to change a dog to using potty pads too and it will be good to know what really works well in time. Don't expect too much too soon. Thank you for helping this poor guy - it sounds like he's had an awful life. I'm so glad he's with a kind and loving and gentle person now.