Training a French Bulldog to use an indoor litter box and an outdoor toilet

When you get a puppy, new things for him will definitely come into your apartment. A bed, bowls, toys and most importantly, they are diapers.

Dogs, small or large, as puppies are not able to wait to be taken outside to the toilet. Babies go to the toilet every couple of hours, and the younger they are, the more often this happens. In addition, very small dogs do not go out for walks at all until they reach three months of age, have received all the necessary vaccinations, and go about their business in the house. To ensure cleanliness and order in the apartment, diapers are used. Later, when the dog grows up and stops pooping and peeing at home, they are removed, but in some cases, mainly with small breeds, they can leave them for good and even buy a special toilet for dogs.

One way or another, with any puppy we first go through the process of training to a specially designated place.

When should you train your dog to wear a diaper?

Many breeders begin to train babies to pee right away by placing disposable bedding inside the puppy pen.

Particular attention is paid to representatives of decorative breeds, such as, for example, Chihuahua, Yorkshire Terrier or Spitz. After all, it is small dogs that often go to the toilet for diapers, even as adults. This is very convenient, since the dog does not have to wait until a walk, and the owner does not have to worry if he is late at work.

But it is worth remembering that toilet training your little friend at home does not eliminate the need for daily walks. Dogs need walks not only for the sake of the toilet, but also for a full and prosperous life and health, especially mental health.

When the puppy comes into your home, begin toilet training immediately.

Walking and leash training

Walks with your French Bulldog should take at least 30 minutes. Adult dogs are walked 2 times a day, preferably after each feeding. Puppies are taken for walks hourly, at least 6 times a day, after feeding, sleeping and active games. The first walk should be early in the morning, the last - late in the evening.

Choose a soft collar. While the “Frenchie” goes to the toilet at home, the collar is put on him every day for half an hour to accustom him to the accessory. When the bulldog gets used to it, fasten the leash and walk around the house for a few minutes.

How to teach a “Frenchie” to behave decently during a walk:

walk calmly, slowly, so that the small dog can adapt to the steps;
teach your French pet the “near” command;
stop when the bulldog starts to pull on the leash;
Praise your pet every time he demonstrates correct behavior.

Why diaper training?

Pads help keep your floors clean, most floor coverings don't handle moisture well, and these waterproof pads will protect your floor from swelling.

The smell that lingers in the places where the animal relieved itself may later make him want to go to these places again. Numerous detergents may not remove it completely. And since canines’ sense of smell is very developed, the dog can easily smell even a smell that is not perceptible to you.

Special bedding is necessary at certain stages of accustoming your four-legged friend to cleanliness in the house.

Training an adult dog

If a French bulldog appeared in the house as an adult, then the new owner will have to fill the gaps in his upbringing. Grown-up dogs of this breed can be very capricious, especially if they were not cared for by their previous owners. Training your pet should begin with outdoor training: walks on a leash with a collar, basic commands: “come to me”, “fu”. Fresh air will cheer up the dog, and it will be easier for him to learn through outdoor games. If an adult dog cannot be trained, he should be raised by a professional and together attend training lessons from a specialist.

Getting used to a diaper

In order to easily train your dog to go to the toilet in a diaper, you need to follow the basic training rules.

But first, the correct location is important.

Place one or more diapers in places where your puppy can easily reach them, and not too close to bowls or beds.
The toilet should not be located in the passage so as not to disturb or distract the animal.
It is important that during training there are no carpets or rags on the floor in the room, as the dog may confuse them with the restroom.
For larger puppies, use larger diapers.
Keep it clean; many dogs refuse to go on bedding that is too dirty.

Toilet training at home

To do this, you need to equip a special place, it can be a pallet or tray. You can use newspaper or disposable absorbent films as filler.

Sometimes cat litter is used, but it is not recommended for dogs. The fact is that cats have an innate instinct to bury their waste, dogs do not have this. Moreover, small puppies can simply swallow the litter, and this is quite dangerous.

How to train a puppy to go to the toilet in a diaper

After choosing a toilet and placing it in a convenient place, watch the dog. Puppies poop at certain times during the day, such as after sleep, after eating, and after playing. Pay special attention to the baby at these moments: if you notice that the dog is about to relieve himself, immediately take him to the designated place.
As soon as the puppy goes to the toilet on a special bedding, praise him and give him a piece of treat. This will help the animal highlight the desired behavior.
If the puppy still misses, under no circumstances should you scold him; soak a small area of the diaper in the urine to transfer the smell to it and make the next steps easier.
Every time your four-legged baby misses, you need to thoroughly wash the floor in that area. You can use special cleaning and odor removal products.

How to train a puppy to relieve itself in a diaper

Training should begin as soon as the pet is in its new home. You must first remove all carpets and rugs. After urinating once on the carpet, the baby will get into the habit of going to the toilet there, because the smell of his urine will remain there.

You should be prepared that training your pet will take some time; it is unlikely that you will be able to do this in a couple of days or even a week. In addition to the owner’s ability to train, it depends on the age and character of the baby.

Due to physiological characteristics, a small puppy goes to the toilet about 30 times a day, so at first it is recommended to fence off a corner for him and cover this area with diapers.

A one-month-old puppy is still small and inexperienced; he will not immediately understand what they want from him; in choosing a “closet” he will be guided solely by his instincts. The most often favorite place for these purposes is the area near the entrance or balcony doors, as well as near windows. If the previous owners said that the animal is accustomed to a diaper, but in the new place the dog is confused and goes to the toilet wherever necessary, you should patiently begin training from scratch. You can quickly train your dog if you follow these rules:

It is best to immediately allocate a room or territory for your pet, fencing it and covering it with diapers. There, the puppy is given a place to sleep, food and a bowl of water are placed.
Since the entire area is covered with rugs, the dog will one way or another have to relieve himself, large and small, on them. Gradually, the pet’s territory should be increased, and the amount of hygienic bedding should be reduced. 1-2 diapers are removed weekly. At the same time, the remaining rugs are gradually moved to the designated place for the toilet. This is best done when the dog is sleeping or playing.
This way, the puppy will develop a habit and end up with only one diaper left in the right place. If the rug needs to be moved, it is important to do this gradually, moving no more than 10 cm each day.
It should be remembered that after waking up, eating and drinking, the dog will have the urge to urinate or defecate; at this time, it should not be pulled out of the enclosure. If the baby freezes during active play, starts whining, sniffing or fidgeting, this is a signal for the owner that the dog should be immediately taken to the diaper.

You can train your puppy faster if you follow a routine: feed the baby at the same time, and after feeding, immediately move him to the diaper.

If your dog urinates where it shouldn't, you should immediately wash everything and treat it with an ammonia-free detergent or acetic acid, which will help get rid of the smell of urine. Otherwise, the dog will continue to mark this area.

If the puppy has chosen an inappropriate place for his toilet, place a bowl of his food there for a while.

Important points

Be patient, it is very difficult for a young puppy to understand cause and effect and it may take a lot of repetition to learn the required behavior.

To quickly teach a puppy to wear a diaper, it is very important to reward the baby for every successful time. Rewards include praise, treats, play, and affection. Praise is most often used in combination with puppy treats.

You can express your dissatisfaction with a dog’s misdeed only by catching it at the crime scene. 3 seconds after the deed, she will no longer understand what your dissatisfaction relates to. However, if the dog goes to the toilet at home for reasons of age or his condition, the dissatisfaction should be kept to himself so as not to worsen the behavior.

How to arrange a toilet

Dogs do not bury feces like cats, so cat litter should not be used. A French pet may accidentally swallow litter granules and become poisoned.

While the dog goes to the toilet at home, use moisture-absorbing diapers. For a French bulldog, buy a tray with low sides and cover the bottom with a diaper.

Using a detergent without ammonia, immediately treat the floor where the dog accidentally soiled. Ammonia is part of her urine, so it will make her want to pee in that place again.

How to accustom a “Frenchie” to visiting the litter box:

choose a secluded corner for the dog toilet, where household members will not distract the animal from a delicate task; do not change the tray and location of the toilet until you have successfully trained the dog;
do not place a tray in the toilet room, it can be closed by a household member from the inside when the bulldog wants to defecate;
put the puppy on a diaper every time he eats and sleeps;
keep the dog toilet clean;
remove carpets from the floor, which the French dog may choose as a toilet.

Signs that your puppy needs to go to the toilet

How to understand that a puppy wants to go to the toilet and that it’s time to put him in a diaper:

he spins around in confusion;
whines quietly;
looking for a secluded corner.

Sprays to help train your pet to the toilet

Spray is a specific smelling product that helps toilet train a pet. It contains aromatic substances similar to the smell of natural dog feces. When a dog smells a familiar smell, it develops a reflex to defecate in the area where the aerosol is applied.

The aerosol is sprayed 30 cm from the dog toilet. The procedure is repeated periodically, as the product evaporates quickly. The spray is harmless to humans and animals and does not contain aggressive substances that corrode surfaces. Suitable for use both at home and outdoors.

Popular means:

BioVax;
Api-San;
Mr. Fresh;
Animal Play;
Puppy Trainer.

How to work with learning difficulties

Place several diapers in those places where the dog most often misses. Gradually remove the less popular ones, those that the puppy uses less often.
Pay attention to which diaper the dog wears most often. Perhaps he tells you the most comfortable place for him.
If the puppy regularly misses and walks to the edge of the designated area or nearby, try buying a larger oilcloth or placing two nearby.
If your baby tears up disposable bedding, plays with it, or drags it around the room, don’t swear. This is normal and natural for the baby. Offer him other toys, glue the bedding to the floor with masking tape for a while, so they will not rustle and provoke the dog.
If the puppy refuses to poop in the diaper, watch the dog more closely, catch and take it to the designated place on time, and when it does, be sure to praise it.

We advise you to read: When does a puppy open its eyes?

Common Mistakes

Punishment is absolutely unacceptable when training a dog to wear a diaper. Scolding an animal, hitting it or poking its nose into puddles is the worst thing you can do. This will only scare the baby, make him afraid of you and undermine trust in the owner, but will not teach him anything. In addition, the puppy may be so frightened that it will try to hide traces of its vital activity from you, for example, by peeing on pillows or its lounger. Be very careful and never try to scold your dog for its natural needs.
Incorrect placement of the toilet, incorrect choice of size or type is a common cause of problems.
Dirty disposable or reusable ones that have acquired an odor after washing. Be sure to wash diapers only with unscented powder, and when buying disposable ones, make sure they are not scented, as foreign odors can confuse your dog.
Frequent changes in the type of diapers or their location.
Start praising your pet immediately after peeing, and not during the toilet, so as not to distract the dog.
Clean up any accidents thoroughly and promptly.
Don't change the diaper too often or too rarely. Frequently changing bedding prevents the puppy from getting used to the smell and remembering the place of the toilet. And too infrequent changes confuse some dogs; they are not ready to go to an excessively dirty place.

How to train a dog to use a litter box

A plastic tray for four-legged animals is a small flat container into which a diaper is clamped with a special frame. In some cases, film is not required if the toilet for small breeds has a special mesh surface.

Such a tray is often used for an adult dog as a permanent toilet at home; for males, sometimes a post is installed in it, on which they raise their leg. With puppies, a post is usually not needed. Some toilets are equipped with a side wall to protect the walls of the apartment.

What breeds of dogs go to the litter box?

In most cases, a plastic toilet is used for decorative breeds of dogs. Since large and medium-sized breeds are rarely trained to go to the toilet in the house. In general, this is due not only to the desire of the owner, but also to the species characteristics of the canines. It is natural for small puppies to relieve their natural needs in a hole, since predators should not recognize from their tracks that there are vulnerable young animals in the pack. As the animal matures, its normal species behavior will be a desire for cleanliness and removal of the toilet outside the burrow. Therefore, most dogs learn to go to the toilet only outside at a certain age, but many owners of small breeds teach their pets to use a litter tray for everyday toileting at home. This allows you to vary the time of walks, since they will not be tied to the need to give the pet the opportunity to defecate.

These are breeds such as Chihuahua, Pomeranian Spitz, Yorkshire Terrier, lapdog, Russian Toy and others.

Toilet training outdoors

Of course, the home tray option is just a temporary solution . The dog must go to the toilet outside. Although some owners keep French bulldogs like cats and they mostly go to the litter box, even as adult dogs.

Once your French Bulldog puppy has received all the necessary vaccinations, he should be taken outside every two hours. Ideally, after every meal. Thus, he will begin to gradually get used to the regime. To make it easier to get used to walking, you need to feed the puppy strictly on a schedule, this helps a lot. It is also advisable to go for a walk at a certain time.

At the first sign that your pet needs to go to the toilet, he should be taken outside as quickly as possible. After he does his job, he should be praised. This way he will understand the correct model of behavior.

Important! If your French bulldog puppy still doesn’t do his business outside, then you should increase the walking time and take water with you, drink and feed him.

This way your pet will want to go to the toilet faster and do its business where it’s supposed to. After this, be sure to praise and pet your pet.

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Training process

The stages of litter box training coincide with diaper training. And if you plan to train your dog to use the litter box on an ongoing basis, start doing this right away. However, small breed puppies may have difficulty getting into the tray if its walls are too high, in which case you will first be trained to a regular diaper and only then purchase a litter box.

At first, you will need to place the usual bedding in the tray; it can be removed only when the dog begins to confidently use the tray.

The dog toilet should be located according to the same principles as indicated above.

We advise you to read: When does a puppy open its eyes?

Purchased tools for potty training a dog

If a person does not have time to constantly monitor the animal, then store-bought tools for potty training dogs will come to his aid. The drugs are available in the form of sprays that contain enzymes that attract the puppy to the tray. Having smelled the smell, the pet begins to want to urinate.

The spray is sprayed onto the diaper or onto the bottom of the container. After this, the puppy is seated next to the tray and waited for him to show interest in it. The surface is sprayed 2 times a day. Within a week, the pet will remember where its toilet is.

Spray "Simple Solution Puppy aid training"

Note! The most effective products for dog litter are: Api-San Smart spray, SaniPet and Simple Solution Puppy aid training spray.

Sprays for toilet training dogs

The concept of a spray for accustoming a puppy to a diaper includes several different means. These are products that attract dogs to shit in a specially designated place, scare them away from inappropriate places and remove odor. Let's look at each in order.

Attractive sprays are special sprays that have the smell of a mark (urine) - with these sprays you spray a diaper to create a scent mark on it, which dogs are guided by when choosing a place to go to the toilet.

Such products can be purchased at pet stores; they are presented by various manufacturers of pet products. The effectiveness of such sprays has been proven, they are harmless to animals and are widely used as an aid in toilet training.

However, it is worth remembering that all dogs are individual and this spray will not necessarily help all of them.

Basically, you can get away with soaking the diaper in your puppy's urine, but sometimes a spray is a great help.

The second product, which is understood as a spray for correcting dog behavior, has the opposite meaning. Namely, means for scaring animals away from places not intended for the toilet. Such sprays usually have a very pungent odor, which is designed to scare the dog away from sniffing the future toilet area. The effectiveness of these remedies depends on the specific case. They are usually used in situations where the animal regularly displays unwanted behavior and pees in inappropriate places. Canines have an extremely developed sense of smell and experience very unpleasant sensations when interacting with this product - this will be a strong punishment for them. Therefore, before use, make sure that you have done everything to train your four-legged dog to use the toilet, consult with a behavior correction specialist.
And the third tool that helps in teaching dogs to be clean is a spray to remove the smell of urine or marks, the product you will use to wash the places where your puppy has made mistakes. Similar compositions are also available from various companies, sold both in the form of a spray and simply in the form of a bottle of liquid, which requires dilution with water to wash the floor. Typically, these products not only eliminate odor, but also disinfect, and they are often used for routine cleaning in an apartment where dogs and children live, since the products are as safe as possible for children.

If, following all the rules, you cannot accustom a puppy or an adult animal to a diaper, then be sure to consult a dog behavior specialist or trainer.

And remember that diaper training will soon end and the next stage will begin - training the puppy to use the toilet outside!

How to toilet train a dog in an apartment depending on age

Many dog breeders do not know how to quickly train a puppy to use a litter box in an apartment. In fact, there is nothing complicated in this process. The most important thing is to be prepared for misfires. Puppies under 1 year of age relieve their natural needs more than 20 times a day. In the first days of the pet's stay in the house, the owner will have to monitor him around the clock. The baby can get too excited and accidentally make a pile in the wrong place.

Dogs go to the toilet a short time after feeding. To make the task easier, the owner should observe the puppy’s behavior after a meal and it is advisable to place several trays around the house in different places. The dog himself will determine which container is most convenient for him to go to.

Advice! As soon as the pet does its business, it should be petted and praised.

If the owner lives in a private house and plans to let the dog outside in the future, then in this case the best option for the puppy will be an enclosure. The enclosure should accommodate a tray, a sleeping place and a bowl of food. The floor should be covered with diapers or newspapers. When the veterinarian gives the go-ahead for walking the pet, the enclosure can be removed, but the tray should be left.

Adults, such as Labradors or French bulldogs, who are not litter trained, are more collected and therefore able to tolerate. It is recommended to walk them outside in the morning and evening. Training them to use the dog toilet is a pointless idea.