u/Odd-Mastodon1212

10 month old pug mix rescue who is doing reasonably well with potty training and toileting outside. (He tries to do what we want, like he just walked into his crate on his own when we sat down for lunch.) Last night, we missed the after-dinner walk, but pug had access to the patio except when we finally closed it, so he wouldn’t drink water out of boredom before bed, and because the indoor cat sneaks out and we don’t want that. He had pooped and peed outside 3x and peed after dinner, but then later drank the water. I closed the screen door,he came back and sniffed the screen and walked away and we found a big puddle on the tile by the cat box. So it’s like he did his best, but my question is, how can I get him to use the potty bells or scratch the door or bark at the door or anything????? It seems a communication problem in addition to messing up his routine. (He often won’t poop if it’s dark out on his walk because he’s kind of a chicken and our street could be more well lit.)

I hope pug mixes are okay to post here. This little guy’s mama was a black pug and he’s also Shih Tzu among many other things including poodle and German Shepard. He’s a super mutt but 79.2% pug. He is SO SMART and a very polite boy. He’s watching The Isle of Dog with us right now, tilting his head and holding his minty bone in his mouth like a cigar. He’s a puppy, 9 months old.