8 Best Alternatives To Puppy Pads To Toilet Train Your Puppy

The biggest issue with potty training onto pads is that you lose progress with training when you try and eliminate the pad and ask your dog to go outside. 

With Fresh Patch? That's not the case.

Because it uses real grass, we're then teaching out puppies from step one (whether you're on the 25th floor or the 1st), that the acceptable place to pee, is on grass. 

So, when we eventually take that away? Hey presto... puppy knows they pee on grass and not the other places in your home. Think of this as your doggie lawn. 

They last 2-4 weeks, and may need a little spritzing with water (but don't water it!)

(This is also perfect for larger breed dogs!)

This self cleaning puppy pad is probably the smartest piece of kit we've ever looked at here at Rebarkable. It's got a camera, Wifi & an app so that you can monitor your dog, how often they're 'visiting', and use it for your training. 

The idea is that your puppy goes on the mat roll, and then the smart little pad detects it, and automatically rolls in the dirty (including solid waste!) and leaves only a clean roll behind it. Meaning that you should keep a cleaner home, and create less waste with the roll system (which are also compostable by the way!)

The big restriction here is that it's only for dogs under 25lbs, so if you have an extra large dog, you'll only get a few weeks out of it.

Likely the most versatile of the pet potties available. This artificial grass solution is self draining. It will water and rinse the pee out of itself, and it will either drain via a hose into a local drain, or into a pan that you can manually empty. 

Sure, it doesn't deal with the poop, but it does give a pretty-looking alternative to your regular puppy pad, and one that's a lot less wasteful too! 

It's also one of the best options for larger dog breeds as it goes up to 120lbs.

Branded as a dog park in a box (very funny!), the Bark Potty is made of natural fibers and odor neutralizers, comes in a leakproof tray, and comes in two different sizes up to 30x20 inches, each one bragging that it lasts up to a month (Which good potty training should only need about a month!).

Then, where it uses only natural fibers of wood and similar, it does mean that the product will maximise transfer of training! 

Like a lot of pads, you'll have to clean up the number twos, but it does come with a roll of poo bags for ease too! It's pretty clever really.

Using this with doggy litter can make a good alternative and less wasteful option than a puppy pad, they're also usually quicker to train given the paper pellets are more 'fluffy' than a puppy pad, and can create a spot where your dog will happily go to the bathroom.

Petsafe are a brand I trust, and they've been in the industry for a long time, so it's not a shock to me that this option does really well for large breed dogs. 

It's artificial grass again, so it does take a little more care than the real grass alternatives, but it is a good example of what it is, and a lot more affordable than other options in the same category.

The PetSafe Pet Loo isn't the prettiest-looking thing though... so maybe if you dressed it up a little? 

This is a stunning doggy bathroom, please don't get me wrong. And it works really well for what it is.

However, it's small. 

Perfect for a pomeranian, but less so for a poodle. It's just too small and without different sizes available, you're restricted to a 10x14 inch opening - so small dogs only.  

It also relies on artificial grass, and if it's not cleaned regularly, it can get a little stinky in there too. 

These washable pads are (shock...) machine washable! |Which means that you buy a few of these and they replace your puppy pads entirely. 

However. They're kinda gross. You have to pull off the #2's and if they leave a residue? All that's going into your machine. 

You can cut them to size, they're BPA/Phthalate free which is awesome... but it does mean if you have a puppy who shreds, they're gonna shred this too.

The biggest risk here, in my opinion, is how we teach the difference between "you can pee here, but not on the antique persian rug", it also won't create a transferable skill when you do want them to only go outside!