Housetraining Your Puppy or Adult Dog: a Dog’s Point of View

The most important thing to remember when housetraining your dog is to use positive reinforcement. It is far more effective to ignore your dog when he eliminates where he shouldn't, than to yell at him, rub his nose in it, hit him,... This will only cause your dog to become afraid to eliminate in your presence. If on the other hand you praise your dog, give him treats, pet him... whenever he eliminates where you want him to, he'll quickly catch on to this and try to please you (and himself) by repeating the good behaviour.

Here are some basics you should keep in mind:

-All dogs are "naturally housetrained". By this I mean that every dog will try to avoid eliminating where he eats and sleeps. The mother dog will reinforce this behaviour the first weeks. As soon as you take the puppy home with you, it's up to you to fine-tune it; teach him where and even when he should eliminate.

-At 7 or 8 weeks, about the time you take your puppy home, he will develop a preference of surface to eliminate on. They particularly prefer an absorbent surface like grass, paper, pads and of course your expensive living room rug. You can help your dog make the right choice by using an indoor dog potty like the Wizdog indoor potty.

-For a puppy, indoors is just as good as outdoors (maybe even better; safe, warm and dry). Your puppy focuses on surface, smell and location, so teach him at an early age where you prefer for him to eliminate, for example only on grass or sod, only in your backyard. Keep in mind though that you might someday take your dog somewhere with no grass, sod,...this might cause a problem because your dog might refuse to eliminate altogether. Nothing to worry about if it's only for a couple of hours, but you might want to consider housetraining your dog using a portable dog potty to prevent him from "crossing his legs" for hours on end.

-As dogs prefer to keep their sleep/eat area clean, using a crate can be very helpful when housebreaking your dog. Just remember not to leave your pooch in a crate for more than 4 hours.

-Never forget that your puppy is just that, a puppy. He can't hold up as long as an adult dog, so accidents will happen. But he will send out signals to let you know it's time to go potty. Going around in circles, sniffing are good indicators. If you catch you puppy in the act, you can pick him up and put him where he should eliminate. Puppies immediately stop eliminating when picked up, so you don't have to worry about cleaning up a whole trail.

To start using the Wizdog indoor potty and get a free e-book go to the Wizdog website

Advantages of Wizdog Indoor Potty System

There are several good reasons to housetrain your dog to use an indoor dog potty. But don’t forget, your lovable pooch still needs his daily exercise!

-no need to go outside in really bad weather
-comes in handy when you or your dog are ill
-when you can’t be home on time to take the dog out
-although it can’t replace the social contact and exercise, definitely cheaper than a dog-walker
-no more indoor accidents because the dog owner wasn’t quick enough to notice the dog’s signals
-if it’s portable you can take it with you on holiday, on a boat, in an RV…
-if your dog should have to stay with someone else for a little while, there won’t be any accidents.
-when using something like the Wizdog indoor potty, you won’t have to worry about the dirty paws all over your house, clothes and furniture (your furry terminator can’t shred it to pieces like pads or papers)

To start using the Wizdog indoor potty and get a free e-book on dogtraining go to the Wizdog website now!

Wizdog Reviews: What Is The Wizdog Indoor Potty?

These days, pet products, or should I say gadgets, are all the rage. Some are somewhat beneficial to the dog, some are just plain ludicrous and made only for the dog owners.

At first I thought the indoor dog potty belonged to the last category, you know, a gadget for the lazy owner who wouldn't take the time to properly housebreak a new puppy. The ones I had seen, had in my opinion no advantages to basic paper training, they were just a lot more expensive.Surfing the web I recently stumbled upon the Wizdog indoor potty. It got me thinking about the pros and cons of the indoor dog potty, and I have to admit I changed my mind.

What exactly is a Wizdog indoor potty?
It's an indoor dog potty consisting of a durable plastic tray and fitted grate. It measures 21" X 28" with an elimination space of 15.5" X 23.5" and was specifically designed to fit most daily newspapers (you can also use the store bought pee pads). The paper remains under the grate, preventing your dog or puppy from shredding it. Liquid waste is channeled through the grate to the bottom of the tray, preventing paws from coming in contact with the urine. Solid waste is disposed of by simply lifting and flipping the grate. The grate is only 3/8" deep and is easy to clean. Each Wizdog indoor potty weighs approximately 3 lbs. Each grid cell measures approx 5/8" square and 1/2" deep.

The Wizdog can be used as is, or can fit either newspaper or training pads to absorb the urine. Personally, I like the ecological aspect of that (no added waste like litter,pads or paper are necessary), however it might make cleaning it a bit harder.

For dogs over 40 lbs, 2 Wizdog trays can be combined to accommodate for a larger surface area. Of course, if you have no intention of using the indoor potty after the puppy is fully housebroken and full-grown, there's no sense in buying 2.

Who is this indoor potty designed for?
Your dog, obviously ;-)But seriously, the Wizdog could be a great help for a lot of people.I lived on a 3rd story apartment, no elevator, when I bought my dog. Needless to say, after a couple of months of housetraining the puppy, my physique had greatly improved...I decided to papertrain her at first, so she would know where to go when I wasn't home. Worked like a charm, except for the times when she only put her front paws on the paper or had an identity crisis and thought she was a paper shredder... Kinda wish I had something like a Wizdog back then, would've saved me a lot of time cleaning the apartment.

But the Wizdog indoor potty isn't just for apartment-dwelling dog-lovers; maybe you're not that quick on your feet anymore, disabled, down with the flu, occasionally have to work long hours, stuck in traffic, like to sleep in late, take your dog with you on hotel-holidays, live on a boat,... Or maybe, your dog is terrified of thunderstorms, ill, disabled, afraid of the next-door cat... If your dog knows he can use an indoor dog potty wherever he is, he'll be happier and healthier (I think you'll have a hard time finding kidney-donors for dogs).

Is it really revolutionary?
The term "revolutionary" always makes me a bit wary when contemplating a new product. To me, a revolutionary indoor dog potty would be flushable (you could even teach your dog to flush).

Nonetheless, I think the Wizdog indoor potty is a great idea and it looks like a really good product which does what it claims to do. Of course you still have to put some time and effort in housetraining your dog, it just makes it a lot easier, cleaner and less frustrating. And as with all dog training, some dogs will learn quicker than others, it's up to the owner to figure out what makes his dog "tick".

How much does it cost?
The regular price is $49.95. At the moment they're selling it at an introduction price of $39.95 and including the book "Dog training digest" as a free bonus.

Compared to other indoor potty products I've found, this is a very reasonable price. Especially considering the fact that there are no extra costs necessary to use the Wizdog (sod, pellets, pads,...). And you get a really good guarantee.

Would I buy a Wizdog?
I would, at the moment however I have no need for an indoor dog potty.
Thanks to the good feedback about the product and after sales service, it will be first on my list if the need should arise. One of the other things I like about this company, is how they stress the fact that you should housetrain your dog in a positive way. They also give a 100% satisfaction guarantee, offering a to refund all your money, no questions asked. So basically, you have nothing to lose... except the stress and worry about your dog's potty needs.

Get your own Wizdog indoor dog potty here!

Need more info?
Take a look at the Wizdog website, faq and especially the comparison chart.Also check out the following links to see what users have to say about the Wizdog:
http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-1413.html
http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-1056.html
http://prefurr.com/?p=40

To start using the Wizdog indoor potty and get a free e-book go to the Wizdog website.