just a note on the litterbox training...my 2 chis are 100% potty trained to a litterbox, they NEVER go anywhere BUT a peepad in the litterbox if the box is moved they come to me and tell me that its not in its regular place...
ill admit i much prefer a dog to potty outside however in the situation im in its just not feesable for them to be ONLY outside potty dogs, between the connecticut winters, and the weekends on the sailboat, theres no lawn on a sailboat...so it worked well for us...and they will go only in their box (on their pad if we dont take the box) but NEVER have accidents in the house or at frineds houses or while out or on the boat...so while it has to be done with the same consistency of regular housebraking it is possible to box train a dog sucessfully...box training does NOT automatically mean they will see the whole house as a potty...
if it makes any difference at all they were also NEVER crate trained.
i got vixie at 6months old, she'd never seen any kind of formal potty training, the breeder had a doggy door to their potty area...she was in my home 2 days and was 100% reliably using the box, and ive never had a single accidnet with her...
dodger was 4 months when i got him, he too had never seen a potty pad the brreder used newspaper to line the pen his litter was in for ease...we came in, i took him to the kitches where the box is and put him down, he sniffed whent in and pooped and hes been 100% reliable since that day...
just like teaching the dog ONLY outside my chis know ONLY on the peepad. if the pee pad is in the box they go in the box, if the peepad is on hardwood floor they go on the pad, if the pad is on carpet they go on the pad...even my intact male who lifts his leg to pee stands on the center of the pad and pees directly in the center.
they know that the pad is the equivalent of grass (or outside) for an outside trained dog...
as for the origional set up question, looks like its set up about right for those tiems when hes going to be alone for along while...if your planning on having him as an outside potty only dog then your realy gonna have to work hard those days while your there and then try to increase the time between outside without accidents...i agree that it is best to start off the way you want to go on...but sometimes its just not possible...ie when everyone works...