# Time needed to housetrain



## Coffee'sDad (Mar 10, 2008)

I was really lucky with Coffee. The day I got her I got a crate. She lived in that 100% of the time unless I was with her. We'd play, walk etc. After 3 months I'd let her out to sit, lay down while I read (really watched TV!) I took her out to potty every 2-3 hours (round the clock the first week or two) then 2-3 hours during the day, 4-5 hours at nite. Of course I had the time to be with her allmost full-time. When I did go away, she'd stay in the car. Every time in or out of the car, I'd tell her to do her business and give only a a minute or 2 and praise her if she did. She only had 2 accidents in the first 6 months. I also had a small patio that she did her business on. Although it was concrete, she learned quickly where to go and where not to go.

dg


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## Charlie06 (Feb 10, 2007)

I don't remember exactly how we did it but I do remember taking Charlie out on the leash constantly (about every half hour) and praising him like crazy whenever he went. We took him out around 11 every night before bed and although we didn't set the alarm, when he was making any kind of noise we would take him out. Do you use a crate at all during the day? That worked wonders for us even though I was home with him all day.


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## Abbydabbydo (Jan 31, 2007)

You will start to see more success soon. The only thing I did slightly differently is first thing in the morning and after meals I took them out once, then again 15 or twenty minutes later and for some reason they usually had to go again. It's like the more times you can praise them during the act, no matter how old, the quicker the light is going to go off in their furry little heads! Good luck and hang in there!


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## Dinsdale (Feb 26, 2008)

Charlie06 said:


> Do you use a crate at all during the day? That worked wonders for us even though I was home with him all day.


No we haven't. We borrowed a crate from a friend, and Clover showed very little interest in it. On the only occasion that we had to leave her home alone for a couple of hours we used the gate and door to close her into the kitchen. No accidents or damage on that occasion.

We're not necessarily opposed to crates, but neither are we convinced of their necessity such as to go through the effort of training our pup (and us!) to use it.


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## Jersey's Mom (Nov 25, 2007)

I think the hour/month of age rule may be more guided toward crate training, where the pup essentially HAS to hold it (as they won't soil their "den"). A pup loose in the house, or even in one room of the house, is likely to go more often. In addition to getting her out after meals and naps, after about 15 minutes of excited play is also a good time. Excitement makes it harder for her to hold it. I understand from your post that you have a crate, but I seem to read that when she (or you) needs some downtime that she's blocked off into the kitchen or family room. If you really want to increase her record of success, the crate might be a more appropriate place for right now. Essentially, when she is not in her crate she needs to be under direct supervision... at this age the cues can be pretty subtle: sniffing, pacing, getting antsy, and it differs for every dog... you won't see them if you aren't right there with her. Also, when she has run of the house and she heads toward the kitchen, I would take THAT as a sign and get her out immediately. She may think that area is okay to relieve herself in since she has done it before. It sounds as though you are on the right track, but you may just need to step up your level of supervision. I would consider more formal crate training, but a dog can be housetrained without it if you are opposed. 

Julie and Jersey

PS~ Using the crate at night would also allow you to stop setting that alarm at 2:30am relatively quickly.


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## barrett (Feb 1, 2008)

for safety & sanity crate training is a life-saver. Your pup & you would adapt quickly..only a couple of nights & it's so worth it. Besides the potty trining advantage it has, there is nothing like being able to leave your house & knowing your precious pup is 100% safe from himself & the stuff you forgot to put out of reach!


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## Dinsdale (Feb 26, 2008)

Jersey's Mom said:


> I think the hour/month of age rule may be more guided toward crate training, where the pup essentially HAS to hold it (as they won't soil their "den").
> ...
> PS~ Using the crate at night would also allow you to stop setting that alarm at 2:30am relatively quickly.


In a crate at night a 2-3 month pup can hold it for 6-7 hours?

I agree, we need to be more vigilant, especially in the evenings.


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## Bailey & Bentley (Feb 25, 2007)

Keep in mind the more accidents she has in the house the longer it will take. I would take her out every half hour to every hour for a little while. Consistency is the key. I always found that for both my boys, rewarding them immediatley with a treat after they go outside helped them to learn very quickly that outside was the place to go. Good luck, it does take a little while, but as long as you are on top of it, things will go very quickly for you.


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## Bailey & Bentley (Feb 25, 2007)

Dinsdale said:


> We're not necessarily opposed to crates, but neither are we convinced of their necessity such as to go through the effort of training our pup (and us!) to use it.


We only used the crate for when we are not home. If the area in the crate is small enough they will not pee or poop inside the crate, which is actually very helpful in teaching them to hold it. I would suggest trying it when not home.


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## Dogrunner (Feb 24, 2008)

I don't use crates either. 

You're on the right track. When she's with you and suddenly gets up and leaves, take that as a sign she has to go :.

I have dog doors, which helps with housebreaking, because they only have to learn to go outside--they don't have to learn to ask. I think Shaker took....probably 4 months, maybe a little longer. Berr took 5 days. 

How to housebreak an intelligent puppy in 5 days.

1. Pick out your pup at a reliable breeder. Arrange to pick him up in 2 weeks, when he is 8 weeks old.
2. Have the breeder call you and tell you that you_ must _pick the pup up on time because her children are taking her and her husband on a surprise cruise. Tell her no problem, you'll be there.
3. The day before your pup comes home, come down with the flu.
4. Pick up pup, feeling like you're going to die. Ride home in the cold with the windows down because the puppy has rolled in cow urine.
5. Wash pup, taking a couple small breaks to throw up in the garbage can.
6. Go to bed for the next week. Take the pup with you. When he gets up, take him outside. Stagger to the kitchen periodically to feed him and yourself. While up, take him outside. All other times, have pup in bed with you.
7. On day 6 or 7 (time is a blur at this point), wake up feeling somewhat human. Watch in amazement as pup takes himself outside all day and has no accidents in the house.

The down side to this is that at 3 years old, Berr still sleeps on the bed with me. :sleeping: And if he's feeling insecure (the squirrel made fun of him, he can't find his favorite squeaky, whatever) he sleeps with his head on my shoulder.


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## missmarstar (Jul 22, 2007)

great advice from others about crate training.. i did not crate train so i cant offer advice there. but Sam had his last accident indoors (not even really an accident as it was 100% reliable on a peepad indoors when we were at work, but just for arguments sake) at about 4.5 months old i believe. from then on he held it all day when we were at work, and had been holding it all night from even earlier.


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## Celeigh (Nov 29, 2007)

At 10 weeks, Fergus would sleep through the night with no accidents in his crate from 10PM to 6:00AM. I wouln't have a puppy without one! I didn't crate much during the day, (I'm home full time), but I did you an exercise pen for timeouts and breaks for both of us. Still, he wasn't potty trained fully until about 4.5 months. In there, he would have pee-free days (and only ever had 1 poop accident in the house), but one day it just clicked and he stopped having accidents altogether. 

Oh, and I wouldn't wait until 30 minutes after eating to take him out to poop. It's pretty much right after up to 20 minutes that mine need to go.

One great piece of advice I got from a trainer was to keep a log of all activites and times and potties (accident and otherwise) to get a sense of your dog's personal schedule. I found that he was prone to accidents in the early evening, so I made a point to make extra trips outside during that time. I also saw that he would go crazy right before crashing for a nap, so he would go into his exercise pen at the beginning of the crazies to head off the biting and maniac behavior at the pass.


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## Coffee'sDad (Mar 10, 2008)

Dogrunner said:


> I don't use crates either.
> 
> You're on the right track. When she's with you and suddenly gets up and leaves, take that as a sign she has to go :.
> 
> ...


 
Just goes to show that puppies can put up with any hardship!

dg


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## Adriennelane (Feb 13, 2008)

Lucy's 20 weeks old, and it's been a good month or longer since she's had an accident. She never was really bad about going inside, esp. pooping. Even after bathing her last night to take her out, and she didn't have one. That's always been a real test because she gets so excited and drinks so much water. We've learned that she has to go when she gets nippy, and she knows to wait at the door.


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## Katiesmommy (Sep 10, 2006)

Katie was fully housetrained at 4 1/2 months. The biggest key to working your pup to being fully house trained is watching how much water you are giving them. When we first got Katie we just had water down and she would drink but had peed before we could get her outside. We started only giving her small amounts (half a inch to 1 inch) a couple times a day and she stopped having accidents in the house. After we reliazed that housetraining became a breeze.


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## Dinsdale (Feb 26, 2008)

Score one for ineptitude!
Last night I set the alarm for 2:30.
Woke up to pee myself at 1:30 - debated taking her out but figured I'd wait until the alarm.
Next thing I know I look at the clock and it is 5:45, and I'm trying to remember if I had taken her out in the middle of the night or not.
I check the alarm and feel like that marathoner in Seinfeld - *"It was the AM/PM, man!"* I had set the alarm for 2:30 PM. But no accidents.
Yippee!


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## Adriennelane (Feb 13, 2008)

Lucy isn't formally crate trained, we keep her in her own bathroom where she can't get out, at night after she gets tired of being in bed with us (about an hour after bed time), in the mornings when we're at work, and when it's just too ugly for her to have her afternoon of fun in the sun. It is HER room too, let me tell you. However, when we were home I wanted her to start to think of the whole house as hers, like her room , so she would hold it like she does in her room. Finally, we've got to that point right around three and a half months, I guess.


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## paula bedard (Feb 5, 2008)

Dinsdale said:


> Score one for ineptitude!
> Last night I set the alarm for 2:30.
> Woke up to pee myself at 1:30 - debated taking her out but figured I'd wait until the alarm.
> Next thing I know I look at the clock and it is 5:45, and I'm trying to remember if I had taken her out in the middle of the night or not.
> ...


arty::banana::appl::banana:arty: YEAH!!!!!!


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## Katiesmommy (Sep 10, 2006)

Trust me as your "Puppy" grows up. They will tell you they need to go. Katie sleeps in our bedroom with us. She hasent used a crate since she was 11 weeks of age. She sleeps on her blanket close to my husband and when she has to go out she usually gets up and walks to one of us and we know she has to go. Shes been holding her bladder from 11 pm til 7 am since she was 4 1/2 months old. Things do get easier but remember they rely and trust US "Humans" to know when they have to go!!!


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## jak_sak (Jan 23, 2008)

Have you tried teaching him with one of those tinker bells? I have more of a xmas bell that Cassie rings to let me know he wants out!


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## Dinsdale (Feb 26, 2008)

jak_sak said:


> Have you tried teaching him with one of those tinker bells? I have more of a xmas bell that Cassie rings to let me know he wants out!


Yeah, we tried that very briefly, and she thought it was great fun to play with! 

I swear, she seems to be part cat the way she gravitates towards playing with dangling strings and such. At the time it seemed to me to be more effort than it was worth, trying to dissuade her from just playing with the bell, while trying to convince her to use it to signal a need to go out.

Along the lines of what I personally expect/desire from a dog, that took a pretty remote place.


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## Dinsdale (Feb 26, 2008)

Another update - just shy of 11 weeks, and 2 of the last 3 days she slept thru the night without an accident. The other night I woke up myself around 2:30, and since I was awake I took her out and she pee-ed.

I'm not sure whether it is she or us who is better trained by now, but when she has accident now I think it is generally because we slipped up and did not take her out when we should have. I cannot remember the last time she pooped inside. And when we take her out, she seems to pee very readily as soon as we put her down. So basically, if she has an accident inside it is because we didn't take her outside to "empty herself" often enough. 

She pees inside maybe once every 2-3 days. Last night we went to a school concert, leaving her in the kitchen for 2.5 hours, and no pee nor damage.

The first couple of weeks are rough, but they pass quickly.


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## Adriennelane (Feb 13, 2008)

It's very much a mutual training for both puppy and owner. I know that the last time Lucy had an accident, which was over six weeks ago, was when neither of us paid attention to her trying to tell us she had to go.


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