So I have made lists and double-checked them and I do believe that we are ready for our new lil lady coming home this weekend. I feel like I'm nesting all over again. haha. Only this time it's a furry baby...for my babies!
Maiko is supposed to come home tomorrow night. She had her vet visit today for her first round of shots and was in good health. They said she weighed 1.8 lbs. Teensy! We've got her crate all set up, her puppy pads, some toys and chewys, blankets and a heating pad, small ceramic bowl, tiny collar and matching leash. We even found a medium sized play pen online that is made for critters, so we have something to put her in quickly if we need to leave the room to keep her safe from toddlers that don't know any better.
And I talked the husband into this whole litter box for the dog idea. We will see how long it takes her to get the puppy pad thing and move forward from there. I've done a lot of reading online about how to's and tips on litter box training and feel like I'm fairly prepared.
Here's the game plan: step one, assign a couple of pee pad locations for the puppy. One will be in the play pen. One will be somewhere else in the living room/kitchen area. (lol haven't decided yet!) The next step will just be getting the puppy to USE the pad consistently. These initial pee pad spots aren't where the litter box will end up ultimately. I'd like for the box to be somewhere out of the way, but obviously I can't put puppy pads out of the way or she will NEVER use them. So after she gets decent about using the puppy pads, then I will try moving them into a more out of the way area of the house. I may just add extra pads, one in the usual place and one in what will be the litter box place. Get her used to seeing one there. Get her to use it some. Then eliminate the one in the living area. After a couple of weeks of using the new puppy pad then I will put the litter box out with a puppy pad in it next to the puppy pad. And over the course of a week, gradually work the litter box ONTO the puppy pad, with a puppy pad in the box. Then remove the puppy pad from under the litter box. Once she seems really comfortable about using the litter box with the puppy pad I will start gradually adding litter (probably the paper stuff that they use for Guinea pigs or rabbits, since I don't want to risk puppy or toddlers eating it and getting sick!).
Eventually it will just be a litter box full of litter getting cleaned out daily or every other day. Depending on usage and odor and what not. Dog pee is not nearly as odorous as cat pee. And poop is poop. I have baby poop hanging out in my house already. haha. Dirty diapers certainly don't go out daily. So we'll just see how the odor situation goes! Either way, I will probably invest in another Glade plug in for the litter box room. Which humorously, may be the girls' play room...since it has spare space. Is that weird?
This whole plan is assuming that the puppy cooperates. Which I'm sure she won't. But I'm really excited about not spending 30 minutes every night standing out in the February chill waiting for a puppy to pee so we can all go to bed!
There will be plenty of pictures and I am going to document this whole litter box training thing. Let everyone know how it goes! And I'm hoping it will be a good and easy transition from litter box to outside once she's grown and trained and everything. We shall see!
Showing posts with label potty training. Show all posts
Showing posts with label potty training. Show all posts
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Monday, January 23, 2012
I'm afraid I'm losing my mind
It probably happened about 20 months ago when I found out I was pregnant the second time. But what little sanity I still had left I'm afraid is rapidly fleeing. Why for, you ask?
Well, this weekend, we will be bringing Evie and Elly's new puppy home. Little Maiko, as we're naming her, is 6 weeks old this Thursday. She'll be going to get her shots then and Friday night she'll be coming home with us. So this will be a busy weekend I'm sure.
I'm also strongly considering litter box training this puppy. No. Really.
This is going to be a small dog. Right now she weighs less than 2 lbs. I'm hoping she grows minimally and stays tiny. But she'll probably max at around 10 lbs. Maybe 12 if she gets big.
So, you're probably thinking "what the...?" right. I know. It seems more than a little perverse to litter box train a dog. I mean, that's a cat thing after all. And it's kinda icky. I mean, it is an animal pooping and peeing in your house. Even if it is in a dedicated, odor-eliminating sort of area.
But there are a lot of great reasons to litter box train a puppy. And apparently it can be done.
Here are some sites detailing it:
http://kturby.com/litter/litter.htm
http://www.wikihow.com/Litter-Train-a-Dog
http://isabellasnow.hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Litter-Box-Train-Your-Puppy
http://tracy-rose.suite101.com/litter-train-your-puppy-a16448
This will not mean our puppy will not be going outside. I hope that she is well behaved and will go outside with us and hang around and play in the yard. I'd like for her to learn to go outside and use the potty once she's bigger. But this just seems like a brilliant notion!
First off, as a tiny dog, taking them outside to potty when they are a puppy seems a bit ridiculous. I mean, this dog isn't even tall enough to see through the grass! She's teensy. How overwhelming is it going to be to drop this lil thing out in the grass? Then I expect her to relax and go potty? I have house broken NUMEROUS dogs. This is an exercise in frustrating. You take the puppy outside and you stand around waiting. And waiting. And waiting. And nothing happens. So you finally go inside and the moment you set them down they pee in the floor. Outside it was big and scary. But inside is warm and familiar and cozy. I certainly don't like to pop a squat out in the middle of a big field where who knows what might be. So I don't know why I expect the dog to be different. Heck, we coddle and cozen to our children when potty training them. But expect a house dog to be so much different!
Next, as a small dog she will have a small bladder. Like, needs to pee every couple of hours (once she's grown and able to hold it!) kinda bladder. So, trips to Walmart, car rides, etc all have to be catered to this need. It's a constant problem with Mushu. He can hold it only so long. So if we're gone too long and he's left inside then we risk him having an accident. And if we leave him outside we risk something happening to him. I mean, the lil man weighs 9 lbs. A hawk could scoop him up if it was determined. So litter box training would mean if we wanted to go out to supper or a movie or something we could without worrying about the dog messing in the floor.
Also, having a dog with two toddlers is going to be a challenge. One that I fully understood and was prepared for when I committed to take this poor homeless mongrel into our home. (haha! Like my arm was twisted!) But doing litter training would make the whole thing much simpler. I wouldn't have to worry about leaving my girls to take the puppy out. It might help reduce some of our accidents. And from some of the blogs and what not I have read, it seems like it will be pretty easy to do. Easier than house breaking one to go potty outside. So maybe it will make the whole process less stressful.
Am I crazy? Yeah. Probably. Now that I've been convinced I need to talk my husband into it. Then I need to fix something up to use as a puppy litter box. But I've already got some ideas.
I think I might actually be more excited about the girls' new puppy than they are! haha.
Happy Monday every one!
Well, this weekend, we will be bringing Evie and Elly's new puppy home. Little Maiko, as we're naming her, is 6 weeks old this Thursday. She'll be going to get her shots then and Friday night she'll be coming home with us. So this will be a busy weekend I'm sure.
I'm also strongly considering litter box training this puppy. No. Really.
This is going to be a small dog. Right now she weighs less than 2 lbs. I'm hoping she grows minimally and stays tiny. But she'll probably max at around 10 lbs. Maybe 12 if she gets big.
So, you're probably thinking "what the...?" right. I know. It seems more than a little perverse to litter box train a dog. I mean, that's a cat thing after all. And it's kinda icky. I mean, it is an animal pooping and peeing in your house. Even if it is in a dedicated, odor-eliminating sort of area.
But there are a lot of great reasons to litter box train a puppy. And apparently it can be done.
Here are some sites detailing it:
http://kturby.com/litter/litter.htm
http://www.wikihow.com/Litter-Train-a-Dog
http://isabellasnow.hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Litter-Box-Train-Your-Puppy
http://tracy-rose.suite101.com/litter-train-your-puppy-a16448
This will not mean our puppy will not be going outside. I hope that she is well behaved and will go outside with us and hang around and play in the yard. I'd like for her to learn to go outside and use the potty once she's bigger. But this just seems like a brilliant notion!
First off, as a tiny dog, taking them outside to potty when they are a puppy seems a bit ridiculous. I mean, this dog isn't even tall enough to see through the grass! She's teensy. How overwhelming is it going to be to drop this lil thing out in the grass? Then I expect her to relax and go potty? I have house broken NUMEROUS dogs. This is an exercise in frustrating. You take the puppy outside and you stand around waiting. And waiting. And waiting. And nothing happens. So you finally go inside and the moment you set them down they pee in the floor. Outside it was big and scary. But inside is warm and familiar and cozy. I certainly don't like to pop a squat out in the middle of a big field where who knows what might be. So I don't know why I expect the dog to be different. Heck, we coddle and cozen to our children when potty training them. But expect a house dog to be so much different!
Next, as a small dog she will have a small bladder. Like, needs to pee every couple of hours (once she's grown and able to hold it!) kinda bladder. So, trips to Walmart, car rides, etc all have to be catered to this need. It's a constant problem with Mushu. He can hold it only so long. So if we're gone too long and he's left inside then we risk him having an accident. And if we leave him outside we risk something happening to him. I mean, the lil man weighs 9 lbs. A hawk could scoop him up if it was determined. So litter box training would mean if we wanted to go out to supper or a movie or something we could without worrying about the dog messing in the floor.
Also, having a dog with two toddlers is going to be a challenge. One that I fully understood and was prepared for when I committed to take this poor homeless mongrel into our home. (haha! Like my arm was twisted!) But doing litter training would make the whole thing much simpler. I wouldn't have to worry about leaving my girls to take the puppy out. It might help reduce some of our accidents. And from some of the blogs and what not I have read, it seems like it will be pretty easy to do. Easier than house breaking one to go potty outside. So maybe it will make the whole process less stressful.
Am I crazy? Yeah. Probably. Now that I've been convinced I need to talk my husband into it. Then I need to fix something up to use as a puppy litter box. But I've already got some ideas.
I think I might actually be more excited about the girls' new puppy than they are! haha.
Happy Monday every one!
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Potty training...check.
So I don't know what point exactly you classify your kid as potty trained. But I think Evie is potty trained. I mean, she still has accidents from time to time. But those are pretty rare. And I'm still putting her in a pull up at night because, honestly, I don't want to deal with changing sheets more than once a week. Let alone possibly a few times a night. Uninterrupted sleep is just too vital to our family's functioning right now. And two-year-olds are tough enough without adding a lack of rest to the mix.
So yay. One of the first true challenges of parenthood is kinda under-the-belt. I don't look forward to doing it again here in a few months. Though the thought of not buying anymore diapers sounds AWESOME. Nearly six months of two in diapers is more than long enough.
Potty training is a challenge.
And washing your daughter's big girl undies is kinda sad.
But not buying diapers for her..FABULOUS!
So yay. One of the first true challenges of parenthood is kinda under-the-belt. I don't look forward to doing it again here in a few months. Though the thought of not buying anymore diapers sounds AWESOME. Nearly six months of two in diapers is more than long enough.
Potty training is a challenge.
And washing your daughter's big girl undies is kinda sad.
But not buying diapers for her..FABULOUS!
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Pee...pee...everywhere
Okay, not really. But some mornings feel that way.
Potty training is the most confusing, frustrating and nerve-wracking experience of my parenting life so far. I'm sure it'll get worse. Potty training is probably pretty small stuff compared to what we'll have to deal with during teenage years I'm sure.
It's not that potty training isn't going well. I think it is. Largely, Evie is accident-free. As long as I remember to take her to the potty regularly because when she's playing she tends to forget. We are still having an issue with #2. Which I totally don't get. But I'm not a toddler. She gets that she's supposed to pee in the potty and that peeing in her pull-up or panties is bad. She understands that pooping in the potty is good. But somehow she hasn't put together that she needs to poop in the potty instead of her pull-up. If she happens to be on the potty, she'll poop otherwise you'll be changing her.
It's also interesting that some mornings Evie can pee 10 times in an hour. Others she can go two hours without a dribble.
Potty training is just a really confusing sort of thing. I just really didn't realize how frustrating it would be. Because it's incredibly frustrating. Some days are perfect. Others, it's like Evie hit her head and doesn't remember any of this potty nonsense.
We're one month in. First pack of pull-ups (I think there were 56?) down. All in all, going well. But I wish it were over.
Potty training is the most confusing, frustrating and nerve-wracking experience of my parenting life so far. I'm sure it'll get worse. Potty training is probably pretty small stuff compared to what we'll have to deal with during teenage years I'm sure.
It's not that potty training isn't going well. I think it is. Largely, Evie is accident-free. As long as I remember to take her to the potty regularly because when she's playing she tends to forget. We are still having an issue with #2. Which I totally don't get. But I'm not a toddler. She gets that she's supposed to pee in the potty and that peeing in her pull-up or panties is bad. She understands that pooping in the potty is good. But somehow she hasn't put together that she needs to poop in the potty instead of her pull-up. If she happens to be on the potty, she'll poop otherwise you'll be changing her.
It's also interesting that some mornings Evie can pee 10 times in an hour. Others she can go two hours without a dribble.
Potty training is just a really confusing sort of thing. I just really didn't realize how frustrating it would be. Because it's incredibly frustrating. Some days are perfect. Others, it's like Evie hit her head and doesn't remember any of this potty nonsense.
We're one month in. First pack of pull-ups (I think there were 56?) down. All in all, going well. But I wish it were over.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Potty Training
Well, it has begun.
Potty training.
And it is HORRIBLE.
Oh my gosh.
So, this weekend, Evie comes into the bathroom and insists on using the potty. I didn't ask her. I wasn't planning on starting it. She just strolls into the bathroom, points at the toilet and says "potty." Then she starts trying to pull down her pants. So I help her with her pants and diaper, put her little potty seat on the toilet and sit her down. She wants to sit there for about 30 minutes. Which is fine. This is her show after all. And finally! She poops and pees. Honestly, I think my jaw hit the floor. It took me a minute to even clap and cheer I was so shocked! So we get off, inspect her work. Cheer again. She flushes. Gets a snickers and then sits in the living room in her pull-ups, watching an episode of Dora on the iPad while she eats her treat.
I then commenced calling everyone.
So she ended up going potty successfully 3 times on Sunday. Three times! I was so excited! I was actually kind of bummed that it was bed time.
On Monday, we got up early because Sissy had her four month check-up at 8:30 a.m. Evie spent about half an hour sitting on the potty. She didn't want to leave the potty but unfortunately we had to go. So we met Ma and I passed off Evie and took Elly on to the doctor.
Long story short, I had to leave Evie at my mom's for the night because the shots made Elly feverish and sick. Elly got lots of snuggle time and I was hoping the one-baby situation at my mom's would make potty training more successful. I was wrong. Evie has gone two days without a single success. All we have to show is a lot of time spent watching her sit on the toilet, a lot of wet training pants and many more soaked pull-ups.
This is so frustrating! And no one has anything encouraging for me. So I feel so lost and aggravated. The only thing I can think of is Evie "gets" potty training at home but doesn't "get" it anywhere else yet. But I don't really know if that's true or not. And right now I have only 2 days a week that I can really focus on potty training and that doesn't seem consistent enough to really accomplish anything.
So any words of encouragement would be greatly appreciated.
This sucks.
Potty training.
And it is HORRIBLE.
Oh my gosh.
So, this weekend, Evie comes into the bathroom and insists on using the potty. I didn't ask her. I wasn't planning on starting it. She just strolls into the bathroom, points at the toilet and says "potty." Then she starts trying to pull down her pants. So I help her with her pants and diaper, put her little potty seat on the toilet and sit her down. She wants to sit there for about 30 minutes. Which is fine. This is her show after all. And finally! She poops and pees. Honestly, I think my jaw hit the floor. It took me a minute to even clap and cheer I was so shocked! So we get off, inspect her work. Cheer again. She flushes. Gets a snickers and then sits in the living room in her pull-ups, watching an episode of Dora on the iPad while she eats her treat.
I then commenced calling everyone.
So she ended up going potty successfully 3 times on Sunday. Three times! I was so excited! I was actually kind of bummed that it was bed time.
On Monday, we got up early because Sissy had her four month check-up at 8:30 a.m. Evie spent about half an hour sitting on the potty. She didn't want to leave the potty but unfortunately we had to go. So we met Ma and I passed off Evie and took Elly on to the doctor.
Long story short, I had to leave Evie at my mom's for the night because the shots made Elly feverish and sick. Elly got lots of snuggle time and I was hoping the one-baby situation at my mom's would make potty training more successful. I was wrong. Evie has gone two days without a single success. All we have to show is a lot of time spent watching her sit on the toilet, a lot of wet training pants and many more soaked pull-ups.
This is so frustrating! And no one has anything encouraging for me. So I feel so lost and aggravated. The only thing I can think of is Evie "gets" potty training at home but doesn't "get" it anywhere else yet. But I don't really know if that's true or not. And right now I have only 2 days a week that I can really focus on potty training and that doesn't seem consistent enough to really accomplish anything.
So any words of encouragement would be greatly appreciated.
This sucks.
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