From backyard to high rise - HELP! Hi! It's been ages since I've posted, but Sam, Loki, and I are getting ready for a move from Chicago to Sydney, Australia. We're about to sign a lease in a beautiful new building that's graciously accepted them (which is rare here), and the unit has a fantastic balcony that's convertible to a sunroom. The only problem is that the unit is in a high rise and the lower floors are gone! Sam and Loki ring a bell to go outside, and they are completely house trained. They would look at a piddle pad and think WTF? Plus my preference is for grass. I want to build them a box with grass - the balcony has a drain and a tap for a hose - but it seems most people either spend $300 on a pre-made one with stinky synthetic grass or a 2 week service to replace sod (which is expensive, and not really offered here anyway - though sod is cheap and offered nearly year round, lugging it up in a lift in a fancy building doesn't sound too fun), or build one from scratch, which is fine, but in 2 days of googling I've only found one success story with that. I honestly think they will love the freedom of being able to go in and out, vs. now asking and waiting to be put on a leash. We will also have walking paths and will commit to at least 2 walks a day, which is more than they have now in Chicago with terrible weather half the year. But with two, the alternative is taking the lift downstairs every 45 minutes and I don't want to put any of us through that (me OR the dogs). I knew YT was where I'd find the most amount of experience, so I'm really hoping you can help me! Have you done it? Any warnings or suggestions? Thanks!! |
Hi! Congrats on your move! Have you looked into litter training them? Maybe using the paper pellets for ferrets or rabbits? |
What a big change for you, your family and your dogs! I moved from the States to England some years ago so I can appreciate the journey! Good luck with the move and take lots of pics - I've always wanted to go to Australia but I hate flying! :D Anyway, I have never re-trained a dog from going outside to inside so can't really comment on how successful that is normally. Hopefully some other members can assist you. However, I would assume that since your two are already trained, it would be a case of just re-directing your command to their new place. So, for example, if you tell your dogs to "go pee", tell them the same thing at the new place you wish them to go and then reward them for doing it?? That is the way I'd approach the situation. One thing I know about Yorkies is they are very intelligent and quick to catch on to new training. It wouldn't' surprise me if they picked up on this new training in less than a week and made you wonder what you worried about! |
Rye grain grows very quickly and Is relatively cheap, it looks like thick green lush grass. I have always thought to use wide plant start trays with drainage but very small holes made out of really sturdy plastic (they have them at nursery a to start their plants in and be able to move them around maybe 2'x1' with a two inch depth?) to grow rye grain and winter peas etc for my chickens and rotate them so some could be growing and some could be being eaten. They are about the size of a potty pad, perhaps you could have a couple of trays growing on a table and one or two down for a grass/potty spot? |
All times are GMT -8. The time now is 07:32 AM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Copyright ©2003 - 2018 YorkieTalk.com
Privacy Policy - Terms of Use