I adopted a puppy a few weeks ago. I obviously did loads of research for months beforehand to make sure I was ready to welcome him in the best possible conditions! I've read pretty much everywhere that you have to get up during the night to take them out so they learn to be house-trained more quickly.
I wanted to ask today if this process is actually useful or even necessary? My pup (11 weeks old) seems to have a very tiny bladder: he wees every 45 minutes to an hour during the day, and the longest he's held it at night is 2 hours...
I’ve been getting up every 2 hours to take him out since day one, just like I was advised. I also read that puppies should soon be able to hold it for a bit longer at night and that these night-time wake-ups would only be needed for a few days or weeks.
My puppy is still doing just as many wees and can only hold it for 2 hours max at night; even then, most of the time when I come downstairs, he’s already had an accident in the living room (poos as well...). He’s starting to understand really well that he needs to go outside, because as soon as I take him out (day or night), he goes straight away in the garden. So, we're on the right track!
I’m starting to get really tired from such broken sleep. Getting up every 2 hours is becoming harder and harder to manage for my own wellbeing and exhaustion levels, and I can’t even imagine what it’ll be like when I start my classes again next week!
That’s why I was wondering if I really need to keep getting up to train him, or if it isn't actually essential in the end. I obviously know what I signed up for when I adopted my little one, so if this is truly necessary for house-training, I’ll keep doing it, no problem!
Thanks in advance for your replies 🙂
Translated from French
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Of course, you should take the puppy out as much as possible for their own comfort.
But my point is that it isn’t really "training" as such. I’m saying this because it causes a lot of confusion; you can see it clearly when browsing the threads on this forum. People think they need to scold them or praise them, and so on. They think their puppy is house-trained because they’ve finally "understood" what’s expected of them.
That’s a completely flawed way of looking at it. No one I know has ever done that, and I’ve never seen an adult dog go to the toilet indoors.
There’s no complex strategy to it, but I think setting your dog up for success can really help.
Right, here’s how I see it: you wouldn't expect a human baby not to have an accident or go in the house; you'd put a nappy on them... I look at taking them out, even in the middle of the night, as being like that nappy. It’s the same way I’ve always approached training my dogs, much like raising a child (mind you, they're still dogs—I'm not being overly sentimental or anything).
After all, we’ll happily get up in the night to change a baby or give them a bottle, so why not for a dog?
That’s just my take on it, of course, and I respect that others might disagree, but I don’t think it’s too much to ask to give one the same care you’d give the other.
So, let’s get that little bout of diarrhoea sorted first, then keep up the momentum. I’m sure things will start moving in the right direction with your furry friend.
Before she was house-trained, she’d always get as close as possible to the garden door to have a wee, instinctively... and that was without me doing a thing.
As soon as she was physically able to, she’d hold it in until that door was opened in the morning.
I think we need to stop believing that house-training depends on all these complex strategies.
House-training is mainly physiological; for me, it’s not really about training, it’s simply the natural development of a puppy living indoors with access to the outside to do its business.
Once they are physically mature enough, they naturally choose to go outside...
The only thing I did to house-train my dog was to open the door at regular times.
I never once got up during the night and I never told her off.
Hi,
We never actually got up in the middle of the night to take Yuki out. We’d take her out at midnight and then again at 6.30 am. We just cleaned up when we woke up (and we even used to place bets on it!).
When she had an accident indoors and we caught her in the act, it was a firm “NO”, and we’d clean it up out of the dog’s sight. Well, that’s the basic advice anyway. And when she went outside, we made a huge fuss! “YEEESSSS, GOOD GIRL!” plus treats.
She was fully house-trained by four and a half months.
IF he’s having digestive issues, it’s not going to make the training any easier; maybe try to get that sorted out first.
@Furania I missed this bit, sorry... "As for the poo, it's even worse, he isn't regular at all. He doesn't have solid stools even while on the tummy meds, so when I wake up I always find one or two accidents in the living room..." On tummy meds?? Was that prescribed by the vet? Being on those must be affecting sleep for both of you...
Yes, he has diarrhoea (he’s a White Swiss Shepherd...).
In any case, those tummy meds are supposed to firm things up, not act as a diuretic...
Regarding that other post by @Cboillot about their puppy...
Just a quick copy and paste...
Poor little thing, he can’t carry on like this. Hasn’t the vet prescribed anything?
To help with the diarrhoea, you can use organic blonde psyllium husk (available from health food shops, supermarkets, or online).
Choose the powder rather than the capsules – it’s much easier to measure out (even for yourself).
The ml measurements are for a measuring spoon, which isn't usually provided (1ml is roughly 0.65g).
Cats: 1 to 2.5ml per day.
Dogs: 2.5 to 5ml per 22 lbs (approx. 1 stone 8 lbs) per day.
Mix the psyllium powder with five times its volume of water, wait for the gel to form, and then stir it into their meals.
Stop as soon as the stools are back to normal.
Then, pick up some Bénéflora from the chemist (use the children’s version, half a sachet a day) to rebalance and stabilise the gut flora.
And have you thought about trying a diet without kibble?
It’s definitely worth a try...
When it comes to his digestion, your puppy’s gut flora is far too unbalanced; he clearly needs probiotics. He needs natural probiotic sources as soon as possible.
While you’re waiting to get some Bénéflora, you can give him a quarter of a mashed ripe banana an hour after he’s eaten.
That will help him...
https://www.pinterest.fr/Doudou229/volka-en-m%C3%A9moire-de-notre-chienne-labrador-choco-i/
@Furania
I missed that bit, sorry...
"As for the poo, it’s even worse; he isn’t regular at all. He’s not passing firm stools even though he’s on Smecta, so when I wake up I always find one or two accidents in the living room..."
On Smecta??
Why, was that prescribed by the vet?
Being on Smecta like that, it’s clearly having an impact on "your nights, for both of you"...
Yes, during the day it's not too much of an issue. I take him out after every nap (not that this little fella sleeps much...), after he eats, after he drinks, and about 30 minutes after he’s had a big drink. I'm managing the daytime quite well; it's like something "clicked" about a week after he arrived. He has far fewer accidents indoors during the day now (except when I'm out, obviously); he's understood that when we're outside, it's time to do his business.
Night-time, however, is a bit of a disaster. I wake up every morning to two poos and three or four wees if I haven't got up during the night. Even when I do get up every two or three hours, there are still always a few wees. He goes when I take him out, but then by the morning there's always another poo or two... 😐
I'm going to try to work out exactly what time he's pooing so I can get ahead of it; all I know so far is that it's somewhere between 5 and 7 am.
