Moving to an apartment: upstairs possibly - Page 1

Hi everyone. I am moving to an apartment for just a year with my 3 year old shepherd who is used to a yard. Hes very active, as I will have to be, obviously, and I am. I do work long hours at times, but thats never stopped me. And on weekends I will take him to a friend's who also has a dog he will stay with because I work out of town then. I have actually believe it or not looked into turf, well real grass to have laid on my porch. Because the porch wood, ill have to have a huge box made under it, but basically turn the whole thing to grass real grass so he can pee or poop just in case he needs to go to the bathroom. I dont like the idea of him having to hold it. And ofcourse, i have a dog door for the sliding glass door I used at my 3 bed house hoping it fits, or I'll be stuck buying a new one. I have a lot of worries about this new life, but life kind of changed and got a bit hard right now and this is only temperary God willing. I dont want to be one of those people who give their dogs away just because they are moving. He's my responsibility. Anyways, I welcome tips. He's my baby, and this transition will be tough for us both. Oh ya, and he will be getting neutered. He hasnt yet. Maybe that will help?

The only thing neutering will do is stop him from making puppies.

How big is your  deck.

Laying sod on top of wood means the wood will rot and you may have to replace it.

Why not box train him.  Make a box with a bottom lined with plastic put in  it and if the deck has no cover you can make one when you do the box. Only needs to be 4 x 4  we do this to train the dogs that go to shows and need to learn to go in small areas you can had a pole in the middle if you like.

1. sand and then some sod.  Sod is not a good choice

2. kitty litter 

3. shavings.

 

Thats what I was saying. Making a box because the balcony was wood. But i cant do fake grass because my dog is wierd and I know he wouldnt touch that haha. He'd only do real. The balcony is pretty big actually. Maybe 5 ft long. 4 ft wide. Something near that.

You can teach him to use shavings, litter or sand with some encouragement.

If you use sod on top of sand it will not be easy to keep the sod alive or clean to keep the smell down

You could use a kiddie pool if your deck has a cover.

of course 5 x 4 is not a lot of room but he may share with you and leave you half.

Get a chair and go out there and sit with him.

Watch the sunsets and sunrises and look forward to better times together.

Thats a good idea. He's basically like my shadow. He definitely would not do wood shavings. Home depo has the grass thats already grown. A couple inches high. I was just trying to think what to put it in. If I had moved down stairs it would have been cement but they messed up and gave my rental away. 😡. Lame. What ever I do, I just dont want him to have to hold his pee for 10 hours or so. Hopefully he doesnt jump off the balcony trying to get another dog or cat. That too is a huge fear of mine. Are dogs afraid of heights? Lol. Ugh, the fears. The apartments are pet friendly. It has a dog park. He's a good dog. But like I said, totally new experience, and he's been staying with a friend of mine while I've been getting some of my life together a bit these past couple of months so hes gotten a little wild but he falls in line a bit when moms around. Pray for me. 😫🙏

Hiring a dog walker is a responsible option.

Also, I had a Labrador, long time ago, and a second floor apartment with a covered but open front porch. He did manage to get himself out on the roof, which caused all kinds of attention to himself. Never jumped off, but we were never gone ten hours at a time.

A couple more ideas if the complex will allow.

If you are lucky and your deck is 6 x 4 you could by a kennel and place it on the deck dog is safe and you can use it when you move.

By a panel or two from Tractor supply, some are 16' long, cut them to size use wire or hog rings to connect them and dog is safe.