Pottying on patio and not grass

[AmyWhite]

Hi! Bandit is getting better about pottying outside, but he really doesn't like going on the grass when it's cold/wet/etc. On the one hand, I feel like I need to praise him for pottying outside, but on the other I really don't want him pottying/pooping on the patio. It's getting bad - we can't seem to keep the patio washed off and clean.

I saw a post on here saying that we should take him out into the yard on a leash to help with this - is there anything else we can be doing? Bandit's only three months old and is doing OK with potty training so far, but I don't want pottying on concrete to become a habit.

Thanks so much!

Amy White
Bandit, 5 months, flashy fawn

[gmacleod]

Taking him to where you want him to go is really the only way. At three months, it is important that you praise him for pottying outdoors (will help you avoid regressions once he hits adolescence) but as you've already noted, you don't really want to be praising him for pottying somewhere you actually don't want him to. Well, the leash is the best way to teach him where the correct place is - he won't figure it out on his own.

[Cami]

We had some issues with our girl doing her business on a part of our driveway that is along the side of our house and fenced in. DH decided to use the pressure washer to clean the area and she has been going in the grass every since.

Perhaps cleaning the area and using the leash will get things back on track.

[AmyWhite]

Thanks. I tried taking him out on a leash last night and praising/treating him like crazy when he did his thing on the grass, so hopefully he'll catch on pretty soon. He's very smart (I think) so I'm not freaking out over it just yet.

I think we're also going to try powerwashing the patio to get the old mess off and (hopefully) start with a clean slate. One of my friends recommended some sort of treatment for the concrete that will make Bandit not want to go there, but I haven't researched that yet.

Thanks again!

Amy and Bandit