dog using litter box ?

is there something wrong with this- my parents dog using the cats litter box- i mean is it harmful is there a problem other then it needs to be changed more frequently?

 

A dog can learn many things. It appears to be one of them. I can see no harm in the dog using a litter pan. Some have their dogs use newspaper.

 

great thanks- im hoping a can train my dog to do the same : )

 

I don't see it doing any harm either as long as you keep it clean. You may want to get the dog its own box.

Now what you need to do is video tape the dog using the litter box and send it in to one of those funny video shows. Because that's got to be a sight seeing a dog use a litter box.

 

Actually, there are now litter boxes made especially for dogs.

http://www.kturby.com/litter/litter.htm

You may want to try to find one so the dog has it's own box. It is especially handy for people living in cold climates, people that work long hours or people with physical disabilities that can't take their dog for walks.

 

great- i dont actually have any cats so ill need to get one and it would be all his- i am so excited
he just cant seem to go the night with out an accident

 

Like Rrainea said, litter boxes are out there now for dogs. My wife just got a training video from Purina on their system and some coupons for their free dog litter (they have a special litter). Purina's system is called "second nature" and uses crate training in conjunction with the litter box. We actually got 6 videos that we are going to send home with the people that are buying our current litter of puppies, but I'm sure that if you called Purina, they would send one out. A breeder friend is trying it out right now with her current litter of puppies, so my wife and I are waiting to see what kind of success she has.

As far as making it through the night, depending on how old he is and what time you feed him, he may not be able to make it thru the night. If you feed him like 6:00 PM and nothing after that, you will have a better chance of making it. The Purina video also talked about taking water away after a certain time; not sure how I feel about that one, though. Housebreaking can be a real challenge sometimes; one of our girls took until she was almost 6 months before she was reliable! In fact, my daughter, in frustration, once offered us $500 to keep her puppy til it was housebroken. Hang in there!

Bruce

 

I have a friend who is a breeder. She just started using litter boxes in the whelping box and says it is a wonderful improvement over changing soiled bedding.

 

Just curious, can you train the dog to cover up his calling cards like a cat does instictively? Trying to imagine our 80# golden retriever in this evolution and have to keep stopping typing to wipe away the tears I'm laughing so hard.

 

Just an update on our breeder friend that was trying the litter box and doggy litter.

She found that the puppies were starting to eat the litter as they got older, so she quit using it. We decided not to send the videos we got with the buyers of our two litters. Granted, this was only one trial, but washing bedding is a lot cheaper than the litter and box.

Bruce