My pups are raised inside my home and I had a puppy buyer email me with this........
A much preferred way to introduce pups to good potty behavior is to have a SOD box area just off the birthing bed. So as soon as they struggle to leave the nest to poop/pee they find the SOD.


Please tell me if anyone has heard of such a thing.

I have heard of people using a piece of sod in the house or kennel to assist with potty training. Very similar to paper training as the puppies learn to go to the area that is not their bed to eliminate. Someone even found fake grass that people who boat with their dogs use. I guess since that is designed for that use it is easier to keep clean than real sod.
Julia

I use pine shavinngs. I like the ones that are bigger pieces not small and dusty - sometimes different batches are not the same so I try to check them before I buy a lot. I think the pine smells like outside and works well. They stay clean that way and really learn to use the potty box very quickly.

We use a product called 'Woody Pet', it's compressed pine shavings and works great! Our pups learn to use the litter box very quickly and it really helps keep the mess confined to one area....I LOVE it!

Dana

I've never heard of it, but it does make sense on one level, however cleaning it would make no sense. I start my potty box as an attachment to my whelping box as soon as I start feeding my puppies solid food...most of the time at 4 weeks. I don't think I'm going to clean SOD for 4 weeks, lol!! Depending on the weather, my guys will also be going outside during that time and getting used to pottying outside in the grass. I use pine shavings or shredded uninked newsprint in my potty area, with flat newsprint underneath. You can always sprinkle some of what you use outside (pine chips or shredded paper, though the shavings make more sense there...send some home with the puppies if the puppy buyers want. SOD. Yikes.

Susan

PS I also use the "Rule of Seven" (googled it and found this which is "loosely" what I do:

THE RULES OF SEVENS By the time a puppy is 7 weeks old (end of seven weeks) it should have:

1. BEEN ON 7 different surfaces: Carpet Concrete Wood Vinyl Grass Dirt Gravel Wood Chips Newspaper Etc.
2. PLAYED WITH 7 different types of objects: Big Balls Small Balls Soft Fabric Toys Fuzzy Balls Squeaky Toys Metal Items Wooden Items Paper/Cardboard Items Milk/Soda Jugs Etc.
3. BEEN IN 7 different locations: Front Yard Back Yard Basement Kitchen Car Garage Laundry Room Bathroom Crate Kennel Etc.
4. BEEN EXPOSED to 7 challenges: Climbed a box Climbed off a box Go thru a tunnel Climbed up steps Climbed down steps Climbed over obstacles Played hide & seek Go in & out doorway with a step Etc.
5. EATEN FROM 7 different containers: Metal Plastic Cardboard Paper China Pie Plate Frying pan Etc.
6. EATEN IN 7 different locations: Crate Yard Kitchen Basement Laundry room Bathroom X-pen Etc.
7. MET AND PLAYED WITH 7 new people: including children & the elderly

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Replying to:

My pups are raised inside my home and I had a puppy buyer email me with this........
A much preferred way to introduce pups to good potty behavior is to have a SOD box area just off the birthing bed. So as soon as they struggle to leave the nest to poop/pee they find the SOD.


Please tell me if anyone has heard of such a thing.

i've seen it as puppies rule of 12's
http://www.dogsadversereactions.com/training.html

7 or 12, its a great reminder of all the things puppies should experience to help them grow into confident dogs

Since I live in the desert and don't have a stitch of grass, guess I would have to do a dirt box.

I bought a pup in and was puzzled when she selectively peed on my big dog beds. This wasn't just by chance - she would run over to the beds and squat.

I finally put two and two together. My beds had cedar chips in them. I can only assume that the scent was close enough to the litter box that she had at her breeder's that she associated the beds with it :)

No different from any other type of housebreaking and she hasn't done it since she was about 8 weeks old, but it made me rethink using shavings :)