All our puppies are raised using a litter box. Why? It’s much more sanitary than puppies doing there business everywhere, makes cleanup easier, and most importantly, it fosters the idea that there is a proper place to potty vs just go anywhere. This makes house training much easier.
It’s also great for times you have to leave pup for an extended amount of time. They have very small bladders and can’t be expected to hold it very long. A litter box gives you the option. I don’t recommend potty pads. #1 unsafe if ingested. #2 they look like carpet, rugs, etc. Hard habit to break!
In our litter boxes, we like to use alfafa or timothy grass pellets. These work great because they are safe if they are ate (they’re just grass) so no need to worry about unsafe stuff to ingest. They also are awesome because they’re made of grass, easy trasition to outside grass yard.
So how do you get your puppy to use the outside after being litter box trained? Easy peasy! You can simply put the litter box outside. (anyone else hate cleaning yards?? Litter box can really be a solution!) You can also simply sprinkle timothy pellets/alfalfa pellets onto your grass to help them “get the idea.” I’ve never had anyone struggle with a transition. They are after all made of grass!
I really like using a litter box at night so at a young age, so you don’t have to get up in the middle of the night. Pup can simply use the litter box! I love my sleep. Just me??
Here’s our recommended products:
Litter Box: You can get creative here. You can simply use an older plastic storage box with either low enough sides for pup to go in and out of or cut a door. Another option is a rabbit tray, you can buy these at any farm store like tractor supply or rural king. (pictured below) theres also lots of actual kitty litter boxes to choose from.
Here’s a picture of the timothy pellets we like to use as litter: these are in the horse section of farm stores or feed stores also carry them
If you’re going to use a litter box at night, I recommend using some sort of pen that includes only the litter box and crate. That way pup is encouraged to only sleep or potty at night, too much room and they will wake up and want to play.