over-the-toilet 'potties' vs. regular training potties:

[lunarx]

am curious about what others think the pros/cons are of both of these. also why you would recommend one over the other?

:)

how old/big ? dd barely used the potty and was happier to use the toilet very quickly, ds on the other hand was more secure on the potty then a toilet seat insert (is that what you mean ?). At elast if they are ont he toilet you have less to rinse, wipe and flush around and it means they are easier to take to the toilet when out and about. Using a potty at home independently may come easier than a toilet though.

DS1 was too tall to use the potty - his knees came up round his ears! He used the seat thing over the toilet. I suppose mostly it depends on how you manage when you're out.

I had both when I trained ds,he still uses the over the toilet variety,rarely the potty,may through them out.

Any ideas on encouraging him to sit on toilet without his seat on it gratefully received.

he's 23 months / 3 feet tall / 28 lbs.

the toilet insert is what i mean, i dont know what they are really called!

me and dh are trying to weigh which is going to be better for us in the long run (and for ds too!) i have concerns about when we go out though if we use the toilet insert thingy, do i carry that with me? (sorry first-timer here!)
or do i have a small potty to bring with me?

Both of mine (now 4.5 and 2.5) outgrew the potty within about 2 weeks of toilet training, which was fine by me as I hate having a slopping pot of wee and poo around. Both of mine have loved the toilet seat insert and it seems much more sensible. You can hang them on a small hook out of the way, as well. It doesn't get so messy either - a bit splashed but rarely more than that.

For the downstairs toilet we have a toilet seat with an integral small seat which is brilliant - have you seen these? Just made of wood like an ordinary toilet seat and the smaller seat sort of "tucks up" into the lid and flips down when needed. I have an aversion to plastic bits and pieces, and thought that as we would have really quite a few years of small bottoms on big toilet seats it was worth the outlay.

When we go out to other people's houses/public toilets they just get helped/held over the toilet seat.

I think it depends on whether you have a downstairs toilet or not. If you don't you may be better off with a potty as your ds might not make it upstairs in time!

For travelling with ds we had a Tommee Tippee fold up seat but never used it for dd as she would happily "perch". Never took a potty out, they learnt early on to hold it and run for a toilet ! It helps to have sussed out the facilities in advance.

DD hated the toilet seat thing. She had a potty chair, and then moved straight onto using the toilet normally.

thanks ladies! anyone else have some input? (i want to share this with dh too!) :)

My ds would not sit on a potty - he said it hurt him! He has a toilet seat which is padded with handles and he feels a lot more secure on this. No problems with doing wee or poo down toilet as long as he's got his seat!

Both mine refused to use the potty, we opted for the seat on the toilet and a step. I also encouraged them to hold it until somewhere suitable. Would usually make them go before leaving the house and then again when reaching destination.

my dd (2 1/2) uses both the potty and the normal toilet. We do have a step thing that you can open and it has both a potty and a toilet insert but tbh we dont use the insert - she is good at holding onto the normal toilet seat herself. We have the step thing in the downstairs toilet and it helps her sit on the toilet by herself. She does use the upstairs toilet too if we lift her onto it. We have a bog standard plastic potty in the living room and our bedroom too - can never have too many potties . They were 99p from Morrisons. (dd has only ever pooed in the potty - not the toilet - yet!!)

\link{http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/3753835.htm\ 3 in 1 potty trainer}

thanks for the link Seona1973!

we ended up getting a toilet insert and a potty (and stool). i dont want ds to get confused with the insert and potty, is that likely to happen?