430. Pee pan with wire flooring - Interview with pet shop operator

Toilet Training Your First Puppy in Singapore

It is interesting to hear from another point of view --- the experienced puppy seller. If the timing is right and the pet shop operator knows me long enough, he told me the following reasons for using the PPWF:

1. The feet of the puppy will not be dirty as his urine flows through the wire flooring onto the play pan. So, the floor of the apartment will not be messy and wet.

"When does the owner use this? Immediately?" I asked.

I was surprised when he said that the puppy should be paper-trained first.
Put the PPWF onto the papers or where he eliminates.
The puppy will climb onto the PPWF and eliminate after eating.
Most puppies poop after eating.

The theory sounds simple. Does it work in the home? Research is never ending!

429. *Woman afraid of the biting and growling Shih Tzu puppy.

Toilet Training Your First Puppy in Singapore

"Shih Tzus with white collar are intelligent," the mother with two pre-teen daughters said. "But my husband likes him."

"The coat colour is not a sign of intelligence in a dog," I said. "This Shih Tzu with the black face and dirty brown coat. Most Singaporeans avoid buying this colour. He is intelligent as he bites you and your daughter. He has dominant leadership quality at such a young age.

The Shih Tzu is only 10 weeks old, but he also climbs on the woman's leg, bites and growls at them.

The mother is scared of his "bad temper" as he bites and growls at her.

WHAT'S THE SOLUTION?
1. Be assertive. Say loudly, "Puppy, NO biting".
This does not work.

2. Time Out.
Never heard of this method.
If the puppy bites, put him inside a dark room for 3 minutes. Wait 5 minutes.
Take him out. If he bites, repeat. Sometimes you need to do it for 20 times.
If the puppy persists even after 5 minutes, keep him in longer time.
Consult the professional dog trainer if the puppy cannot be trained.

3. Pick up the puppy by the scruff of the neck, look into his eyes and say loudly, "Puppy, NO biting." I demonstrated.
The woman dared not do this.

4. Muzzle holding. A strong lady demonstrated to me this method. Grip the muzzle. Spank the muzzle and say loudly "Puppy, NO biting!" It worked for her Miniature Schnauzer.

5. Neuter at 6 months of age? Too late?

This puppy was paper-trained by the home breeder. So, no complaints as he eliminates onto the newspapers. But he is wanting to be the boss, I said to the lady. What can she do? Can a professional dog trainer really solve her problem? Will she pay for professional training?

Now, if there is a proper puppy training school, this will be a good case. Sometimes, it is the branding and the infrastructure that gives confidence to the puppy owner to pay for training.

Mark Richman, Any other ideas?

428. *Pee-pan (automobile) trained in 4 weeks. Follow up.

Toilet Training Your First Puppy in Singapore

I remember this case because the owner recommends the use of the car boot pan, sold at 30, Ave 6, Bukit Batok shop called AutoBacs. The dog is now over 1.5 year old. He came in for booser vaccination.

I will need to go through the files later as I am in National Library typing out this case before I forget.

Instead of buying the pee pan from the pet shop, he used the pan for keeping the car boot clean from liquid spills. I have not seen this pan.

Toilet area:
1. Newspaper on automobile pee pan at home.
2. Outdoors - Grass. Poop on grass. Will scratch the front door to go downstairs at 9 p.m to poop on grass. Dinner at 6 p.m.
3. No specific grass area. Any area. Owner will pick up the poop and put in plastic bag.

Social behaviour
1. Urine marking by peeing on every pillar downstairs, but well behaved at home. Urine marking is characteristic of male dogs.

427. A diaper-trained Poodle wants its crate to be a clean den.

Toilet Training Your First Puppy in Singapore

2 young ladies share their interesting observations about their diaper-trained Poodle.

They bought the puppy from a pet shop. Their friend gave them the crate with pee pan and recommended the use of the puppy training pads, known as "diapers".

TOY POODLE, MALE, 12 WEEKS OLD now.

Toilet location: One big diaper in the kitchen.

Sleeping and eating area: Crate with pee pan in the living area on week 2 after purchase. Slept without whining or barking. Feed bowl removed within 10 minutes of completion of food.

In week 1, put in the bedroom. Messy. Pooped after midnight. Barked on day 3 at 11 p.m. Put puppy onto the diapers. Everytime he barked, put onto the diapers.

How puppy communicates?
A different kind of barking. Barked very loudly, jumped up and down exciting wanting to get out of the locked crate to go to the kitchen's diaper.
If the puppy wants to come out of the locked crate, his barking sound is softer.


How to use the diaper?
Every week, change to new diaper. Very absorbent and keeps the puppy feet clean compared to newspapers.
Spray commercial urine spray onto the centre or edge of the diaper.
The puppy would smell and never pee or poops outside the diaper.
Stools are promptly removed.

Accidents?
Diaper-trained after 3-4 weeks.
Accidents only when the puppy is in a room or the owner is not around.
Pees as it is too late to go to the diaper.
After midnight, puppy pees inside the locked crate. Wire flooring. Urine goes onto the pee pan.

WHAT I PROPOSE?

1. Place another diaper in the living area near the crate.
2. Do not lock the crate.
3. Most likely the puppy will pee and poop on the diaper in the living area if he can't make it to the kitchen diaper.
4. Vinegar:water to neutralise the crate floor and any "accident" area to remove the smell of urine.

OR
1. Place the unlocked crate inside the kitchen. Barricade the entrance with a baby gate so that the puppy can still see human activity.
2. Place another diaper in the living area.
3. After 7 days, open the baby gate so that the puppy now has the living and kitchen area to roam about.
4. Neutralise the urine smell in the floor and crate flooring.

REASONS
Increase the free area from kitchen to the living room.
Neutralise all puppy urine smell areas.
No need to lock up the crate during the daytime when the owners are not at home.
With 2 diapers available, the puppy should be 100% diaper-trained in the next 14 days.