Indoor Dog Potty

As a breeder I am always on the look out for the best way to potty train a puppy. For my own litters I had found that wood pellet in a litter box were very effective...But the problem is the litter falls out of the litter box and gets spread all over. It can be a mess for the new owner to keep using, and the need to purchase litter can be expensive over time. When I got an 8 week Toy Schnauzer for my family, I decided to try a new Puppy Potty System. The Ugodog was the least expensive for long term maintenance, the most clean, very easy to train. It was everything I had hoped it would be. VERSATILE.. You can easily transistion from whatever potty surface the breeder had used for your puppy (Pee pads, litter, newspaper, or whatever other surface.) By putting the familiar surface on top of your Ugodog grates and under it, for the first few weeks, your puppy has the familiar smell and surface and will comfortably use your Ugodog. After the puppy is successfully using the Ugodog for several days you can just use the familiar product under the grates. In time you can use the Ugodog all by itself. EASIEST TO CLEAN. The system is super easy to rinse clean. If you use a pee pad or newspaper under the grate all you have to do is throw that in the trash. The poop stays on top of the grate, and has been very easy to pick up and toss in the toilet. Don't buy artificial grass toilets! They harbor bacteria and will be super smelly in no time. Compact, Descreet, Lightweight. I cannot say enough about the Ugodog. I wrote a blog post describing how we set up a pen (link at bottom of page)with the Ugodog. Our puppy has used it successfully from Day 1 and is as easy to keep as a hampster! Now that she is accustomed to her Ugodog, I will start familiarizing her to also use the woods outside. To do this, I will help her to be familiar with the smell of the woods, by adding a little bit of leaves and dirt underneath the grate. I start this slowly and gradually and she will recognize that smell as a potty place too. I love the Ugodog! If you start using it at 8 weeks old, it is super easy to use! For more info and photos visit my blog... [...]

We purchased this to house train a Mini Doxie we purchased at 8 weeks old. since she is so small and we live in an apt. we thought this would be a great idea. She wouldn't use it willingly, she didn't like standing on it, and when she did use it we had to wash it to get rid of the smell. The dog can only use it once, then you have to wash it or it smells. The pee was easy to wash and rinse off and throw away the absorbent pee pad under it, don't use it without one or it's a mess, it was the other that was so bad to clean out! The poop would get stuck in the grate panel and you would have to use a small brush to wash/clean it out of the small areas of the grate. The dog preferred to go outside, and after cleaning it once, I preferred to also stand outside with her! I would suggest using a cat liter box with cat liter you can just throw away. A much cheaper, easier and less smelly option!

The free shipping makes me tolerate the price a bit more. Other than that, the product is fine (I purchased 2). I have 2 Shih Tzu who are 1-y.o. and 2-y.o. who were previously trained to use puppy pads. PRODUCT The construction of the product seems durable. I don't expect the base to break anytime soon. I believe the grates will hold up for some time as well, though it would be nice if they sold replacements just in case. It is a bit small and makes me wonder how medium-large dogs could ever use this! Sometimes my dogs go off the side so I can't imagine a larger dog (especially if they like to spin like mine) making the mark. Some reviewers have mentioned that it's a bit of an eye sore, however, I find it to be a huge improvement over looking at a pee stained white pad! The product is a bit bulky so I will stick to puppy pads for travel. The bulkiness can also affect cleaning, but I find [if they get really messy if a dog gets sick or something] filling up a bathtub and leaving them to soak with some cleaner and disinfectant makes the job a lot easier. The color and discreetness of the product makes me comfortable with placing it in high traffic areas of the house. The product description describes the system as being built to be used with newspaper to be eco-friendly, however, I wish they'd sized it to also accommodate PoochPad 20-Inch by 27-Inch Pet Training Pad, Medium, 2-Pack . If you're interested in using the reusable pads the smallest on the market (17" x 23") are the best fit, but do leave some uncovered areas(length). Not ideal, but will save me a few hundred dollars a year (literally, not kidding, I did the math) compared to using disposable puppy pads and since most of my reading is online the newspaper idea won't go far with me. TRAINING I'll try to summarize, but will be more than happy to elaborate if asked. To train them I first used it without the grates and placed a puppy pad inside and placed it where they usually relieved themselves (replacing the old pad holder). One dog took to this right away. After a few days I placed the grates on. When they would go near it or look like they wanted to relieve themselves I placed them on the grates and gave them the command to relieve themselves. They looked at me like I was crazy, but after a while (with high praise and rewards when she go it right) my youngest dog became an expert. My older dog was not warming up to the system at all so I had to keep pads out or he would go on the floor instead! I even tried wiping his urine over the grates and stuff to get the smell in to no avail. Luckily I had a week off when the snow storms came through and made it my mission to get him used to it. I started from scratch and treated it like we were house-training all over again. I began with placing the reusable pad on the floor, then moved up to placing the pad in the base, finally put the grates on. I used the same training techniques I did when he was a puppy. If he went to the bathroom in the wrong place and I caught him in the act I said "bad potty" picked him up and put him on the pad. When we got up for the day I took him to the pad and put him on it and gave the command "go potty" so he knew that's where he goes. After a while I think he got used to the feel of the grates on his feet. The first time he used it on his own he got a huge celebration and treats. He's been good since. You really have to be prepared to retrain them to use it. It will take time for some, maybe even a few weeks (or months like my older puppy). SUMMARY The price is ugly, but the initial investment makes it cheaper in the long run than my old system. I was going to give it 3-stars, but settled on 4 because it meets the criteria for the new house-training setup. Not 5 because of the price and sizing. I wanted [and it met]: -Something that would save me money compared to what I was using at the time which was a plastic pad holder and disposable pads. -Something that wouldn't become a toy or project in the middle of the day. My youngest dog started tearing up pads and showed the older one how much fun it could be. -Something that I could use reusable poochpads with. I wish it was better sized to accommodate these especially since they help with smell. -Something that would keep paws dry (especially after moving to a place with wall-to-wall carpeting). -Something that was more eye-pleasing. Most people have to ask what it is now!

I have a ugodog that I purchased for my 12 week old shih-tzu puppy after weeks of less than positive experiences with newspapers, disastrous experiences with Purinas Second Nature puppy litter box and expensive pads. Mi-Joo is now 9 months old and has been successively using the UgoDog since the second day. I had great hopes for the puppy litter box but she spent far more time chewing on the side of the box and even the litter than I had ever anticipated. I promptly traded the expensive litter for newspaper but had the same misfortune. I then bought pads which seemed to work but still had glitches. The entrance to the litter box was simply too high for a 5 pound puppy to get into on her own when she was racing against time. Plus, I would then be stuck cleaning soaking wet foot pads and legs. Disgusting. I have a beautiful yard that I have no intention of turning into a giant toilet so I knew I had to do something. Enter the UgoDog. When Mi-Joo needs to go she simply walks over to the box, circles a couple of times, does her business, waits 2 seconds while I wipe her "whats-it" and then races me to the toilet to flush the tissue. Simple, clean, easy. No more wet paws or legs. The grate is fantastic for catching urine. For poop, well, that can be a nasty little mess. But I figured out a while ago that when she poops all I need to do is place a piece of kleenex down below her rear-end. Then when she is done I fold it and flush it and we're all done. It's all good! For clean up I spray the entire thing down with a vinegar spray and wash with hot water. If I am in a real hurry I will cheat with Dow Scrubbing bubbles spray but either way, as long as you don't let poop get directly on it, it is super easy to clean. Cons: 1) The sides are too low for a young pup and you will have to help them aim. 2) The box is both too shallow and too narrow (in width) to successfully use newspaper - besides then you have to pick up sopping wet newspaper, eeew[...] 3) The grates can allow poop to fall in and create a nasty cleaning event. 4) The box is simply not sized to fit any of the pee pads on the market so you will have to do a little creative fitting of the pads yourself... 5) $50 (including shipping) really does seem like a high price to me. I don't see why this product could not be sold for $20-$25 instead. Pros: 1) The grate system allows for a completely non-messy urination experience, no dripping! 2) The grates are soft and easy on a puppy's sensitive feet, thereby encouraging her to get with the program. 3) The box itself is rather tough and stands up to even vigorous chewers (like mine). 4) The whole system is fairly light weight and super easy to take and go. You can move it to different rooms, even take it when you travel. 5) The system cleans easily. 6) UgoDog prevents even newspaper from leaking onto your floors/carpets. 7) The double grate system allows for quick disposal of even diarrhea (provided you place kleenex down first). 8) Fairly unobtrusive as well, no unsightly giant box to dominate whatever room it is in. Also, the fact that it is so easy to move allows you to easily train your pet to eventually go in the room of your choosing. Bottom line, this is a great product and although I have a couple of tweaks I would wish for I still think this is the best thing on the market. Get it, you won't be disappointed. BTW, Yes, I still use pads (clean go puppy pads are your best bet value wise, btw) but now I use less than half the number of pads I had before.

My 7 month old, 10 lb (Male) Morkie has been doing his business indoors since he was 9 weeks old. First with puppy pads alone, then with one of the pad "Trays", but the wet paws and tracking were always an issue. One that I *thought* I had solved by finding the UgoDog Indoor Potty system. Unfortunately, this thing was more of a headache than a help for us. I'll list reasons below. 1. The picture makes it LOOK like the grates are recessed, but in actuality, they're almost flush with the sides/edges of the bottom tray. Problem with this is, unless my dog has perfect aim, the mess goes spilling out onto the floor. My dog is male, and he lifts his leg to go. Maybe if you have a female who squats, this won't be an issue. 2. The tray doesn't fit any of the standard pads on the market. So I was using two pads to cover the bottom-when the whole point was supposed to be using FEWER pads to save money. 3. The grates just aren't comfortable for his little paws. He was VERY reluctant to step up on it-even with praise and treats-even though he's been stepping up on a tray for the last several months! I can only assume that this is a problem specific to this unit, because this afternoon I received the "replacement" item of another brand that I purchased (It's blue AND cheaper!) The second I put it down, Puppy hopped up onto it & did his thing with no complaints. The replacement item also has more of a recess between grate/tray-so even though this "visit" was aimed at a corner, no spillover mess on the floor. I gave the UgoDog 2 stars only because: It's more attractive than comparable items on the market-it's actually a nice mauve/purple that I liked. It DOES keep paws dry as advertised! And the 2 grates instead of just 1 make it super easy to take apart and clean. Still- I hate this thing! TOTAL waste of money! I'm going to attempt to sell mine somewhere, but I'm thinking the market for used dog pottys is pretty small, seeing as my dog has already "marked" it as his territory, lol....

For a week I read reviews and looked at all the doggy potty products and tried to be optimistic about this but its just not working. pros: it contains my doggy's pee. cons: - stinks stinks stinks. i cant imagine someone using this inside. i used it outside my front porch and it still had a strong urine smell when I walked by, especially when its hot and there is no wind. -The pee beads up on the grate so if my puppy dog goes 1 and then gets back on to go 2, she steps right on the pee covered grate. - stools can get stuck in the grate a little. - its just plastic, so way over priced If you plan to clean this EVERY day, then the smell will be bearable, but honestly with the busy schedules we have now days, cleaning it that often is impractical. And this is in regards to urine, for number 2 you must clean it before they use it again. I am getting rid of this after only 3 days of trying it. However, if there is no other solution for you, this works alright. The smell is bad but if you have the ability to clean it constantly and there is no other choices for you, then its something that will do. I have a small little area with gravel that my dog now goes on, i just have to dump a water bleach solution on it weekly to help with the stench. If something like this is possible, i recommend it as it is much simpler than cleaning the ugo pan. also, another good idea is to get one of those small trash cans with a lid (usually seen in a bathroom) so that you can put your doggy number 2 bags in there instead of bringing it into the house to the kitchen trash can.

We have a toy dog (morkie) that is currently 3.3 lb at 4m. We used to have a pee pad in his pen until he learned to destroy it - he is otherwise crated during the day. I purchased the UGODOG potty based on the other positive reviews primarily to protect the pad and b/c I am not as handy as the other reviewers at making my own. Since we live in Wisconsin, our goal was to have our dog primarily trained to eliminate outside, but also have the option to eliminate inside when it's too cold or snowy to take him out. We've been using the pad for about a month and he has successfully learned to eliminate (pee and poop) when he's inside on both his own and on command at > 90% success rate (and climbing). So far the only accidents we've had is when he gets so excited he doesn't want to stop playing and loses bladder control and pees without squatting (kind of like little kids). We no longer has a pee pad in his pen and instead we have it in the corner of the house behind the couch so it's well outside 'his space', but still in the main room he plays. We have no pee or poop smell as we always clean up any accidents/messes immediately. The pad is a tray with two grates. It's soft plastic and very easy on the paws. We use this with pee pads from the pet store as we are not fans of the idea of the rewashable/reusable ones sold by UGODOG. They don't fit exactly, but we fold the excess under and it works well enough that we are only switching pads every few days when the pad is super soiled or he gets poop on it. The price seems high for the material and the dimensions are just bizarre (like designed to not fit with ANY other pad on the market). We bought a 50 pack of pads when we got our puppy about 2 months ago and we were going through a pad a day until he got sick and then it was like 2 or 3 a day sometimes. Now it's every few days, which is much nicer. Our puppy was sick from parasites so he had diarrhea. Yes, it gets through the grates, on the pad, and is a mess. We pick up as much as we can into a doggy bag and then wash the rest out in the tub, which has a removable shower head, so it's about 5-10m to spray it down, clean the tub, dry the grates, change the pad, and fix it back up. MUCH faster and cleaner than a mess made on the floor or carpet. Since our pup has gotten better with regular poops, as another reviewer mentioned, a pet wipe is usually enough to just wipe down the grate. As was mentioned, the potty is raised with no guards so yes, there is occasion when he'll try to poop off the edge -- I never let him go w/o one of us home so we just nudge him into a better spot. Our guy has a habit of walking around in a circle WHILE pooping and so, the two grates for a little guy is just the right amount of space for him to do his business. If you had two really small dogs (<5 lbs), then I imagine, yes, you could have each on a grate at once, but usually dogs need space to circle. I have NO idea how a medium dog will realistically use this based on the size. Also, if you have a boy dog that raises his leg, then I don't think you can use any sort of pad without guards (ours doesn't raise his leg yet). Anyways, we are very happy with the product, and though pricey, unless you are handy enough to make your own, I feel this was a good investment compared to the other pee pads we looked at online and at local stores. As with any dog/pet product, a lot depends on your pet and the amount of time you're willing to invest in training. This worked great for us and if you're having the same issues we were, good luck!

I got this for my small breed puppy. I was using puppy pads but wanted to save money and help the environment by trying this instead. After trying it for just over 2 months I really wouldn't recommend it. First of all, it's 100% made of plastic, so I don't know why it's so expensive. I can get plastic litter pans with metal grids for my rabbits for $12 so I really don't know why one for my dog was $50. It's also very thin. I tried using it with newspapers under the grid, but it made my bathroom smell horribly like dog pee, even when I replaced the paper after every time my puppy went. I tried it with a few different types of litter, including pine pellets, but the thing is so thin that I wasn't able to put a thick enough layer of litter. The pee just soaks the whole bottom of the tray and then the pee soaked litter sticks to the bottom of the tray so instead of just being able to scoop up the pee soaked areas, I had to empty and scrub the whole thing or else it would smell. So much for saving money. About the only thing that worked well for me to use to line the bottom of this thing was Puppy Pads, which was what I was trying to get away from in the first place! It's such a pain to clean this thing too. If it's pee I can just rinse it but my puppy was sick for awhile and it was horrible cleaning his loose poo out from the cracks in the grid, gross! Another thing is that this tray has no edges so a lot of the time my dog will accidentally hang his back end off the end of it and miss the tray completely. And I don't know how my male dog would use this once he starts lifting his leg to pee? Honestly it was such a pain I went out and got another thing of Puppy Pads. I think I'm going to try a different dog litter box - one with high sides and a deeper tray. I really wish I didn't spend so much money on this thing.