A Box With Grass

"Are you kidding me?"

Ok, let's face it. All animals have to find a place to pee and poop, right? When a puppy goes to a new home, that can be a tricky undertaking. First of all, the puppy still probably pees and poops on newspaper that's been spread out on the floor, or he/she pees and poops in the backyard, or more to the point, he/she pees and poops just about anywhere and everywhere he/she wants!

Once a puppy is a little older and goes home with his/her human, everything changes. Agony, misery, oh poor puppy! "Potty training" is on the horizon.

Charlie, like all other good doggies, wanted to show her humans that she was a quick learner. She had always thought of herself as being rather smart. G-Lo and Zayde had this crazy idea that she would use a litter box (yep, that's right... think CATS!) and also go for walks outside. The walks outside worked well. Charlie liked the feel of the grass under her paws, and she knew that meant it was time to pee and poop. She got pretty good at it, though she was caught relieving herself on the nice white carpet that happens to be on the floor in G-Lo and Zayde's bedroom. She just wasn't catching on to the crazy litter box idea. After all, she is a dog. A dog has some pride, you know.

After too many pees and too many poops on the poor white (now sort off-white) carpet, G-Lo and Zayde decided they would try something different. They bought, what else, GRASS IN A BOX!!! This way, they figured, Charlie would feel the grass under her paws and know just what to do.

The first time Charlie went into the box with the grass, she simply sat down.

The second time she went into the box with the grass, she made a couple of circles, then she sat down.

The third time she went into the box with the grass, she decided it might be fun to dig. She dug (just like the "Digging-est Dog") and ended up scattering dirt and grass all over the now off-white carpet in G-Lo and Zayde's bedroom. You can imagine the mess.

Finally, one day Charlie decided to give the litter box a try. She and her humans were sitting in the living room watching TV, and Charlie had to pee. She squirmed a bit, then she crossed her little legs, but eventually she couldn't hold it any longer. What did this cute, smart pup do? She did what any respectable puppy would do... she got up, walked down the hall toward the litter box, climbed inside and...

PEED! (Whew, that was a relief, and it wasn't so bad after all.)

G-Lo and Zayde wondered where Charlie had gone. They ran down the hall and saw her just as she was finishing her "sit." They clapped and hooted and hollered and gave her lots of her favorite treats. "Such a good girl!"

Now Charlie uses the litter box like it's no big deal, and she is very proud of herself.

So are her humans.