348. Bulldog puppy on 20th floor to eliminate downstairs

Toilet Training Your First Puppy in Singapore

A small compact Bulldog 5 months old. The Caucasian owner with white sideburns and beard looked to be in his sixties.

"So, how do you toilet-train him?" I asked.

"He peed and pooped everywhere at first," the slim and tall owner with a teenaged daughter said. "Now, the verandah is his toilet.

"The verandah is much bigger than your consultation room," he extended his hands wide. "I prefer him to go to the toilet downstairs but I was advised not to take him out till he completed his 3rd vaccination."

I knew his verandah or balcony was spacious as I was an expatriate housing agent at www.asiahomes.com some years ago and had been to this condo. This particular condo in downtown Orchard Road area had squarish verandahs or balconies of around 30 sq m., bigger than some living areas of HDB apartments.

"The main problem is how to prevent the puppy from peeing into the lift before you get to the ground floor." I only know of one Caucasian owner who was successful. She lives in a 19th floor condo in East Coast. She distracted the chocolate Labrador Retriever puppy while inside the lift."

"One possibility is to bring his breakfast feed in the feed bowl downstairs," I suggested. "Puppies usually poop after eating."

"But he might not be able to control his bladder," the owner said.

In such cases, withholding of water after 8 p.m may be useful in toilet training.