Thread: Crate Training Going Great! Just Need some advice

Hi Everyone,

Our 10.5 week old pup amazed me with how quickly she has adapted (and loves!) her crate.

Originally we had her in a pen but I quickly realised that it was too big, she was using it as a bed AND toilet. In the night she would wake up, go to the toilet and THEN whinge for me to let her out.

I got her a crate and for the last 2 nights she has been crated. PERFECTLY. As soon as it was set up with her blankets in there she was straight in there laying down, so it's like she didn't even need to be trained to like it, as she was already used to the pen she just accepted it as her little space. She is super comfortable in it.

Her basic routine is as follows:
We Wake Up and put her out to toilet at: 7:30am
Breakfast: 8am
Lunch: 1pm
Dinner: 6pm
Final wee walk and Bed: 11:30pm
Overnight Wee Walk: 2:30am
Overnight Wee Walk: 4:45am

She is inside and outside during the day, with and without company, she gets regular down time sleeps and regular toilet breaks throughout the day while inside (as soon as she wakes up, 15 minutes after food and drink etc) and she has playtime when she feels like it. She was an outside pup and loves her kennel outside and she is left outside for the 2 hours that someone is not home in the afternoon. She is a contented pup outside and doesn't whinge. We have loads of garden beds to explore and rose bushes to chew haha. She is great - We are just so thrilled with her.


My Question:

When would be the appropriate time to stop doing 2 overnight wee walks and just make it 1 at 3am? Every night since we got her (13 days ago) she did a poo in her large pen every night. The night before last (first night in the proper crate) she did a poo on her 4:45am wee walk (success!) Last night no overnight poo until being let out at 7:30 this morning.

I noticed that when she was penned she was itching to get out of the pen for the nightly wee walks (I suspect as she'd been up to the toilet and had room to move and play and was excited to be let out - but since being crated it's like waking up a teenager at 9am on a weekend haha - she doesn't want to get out of bed!

Thanks in advance for any advice :-)

I think at about 14 weeks - I started setting the alarm times for a bit later and later... and by 18 weeks I didn't have to do any midnight toilet breaks. She could wake me up if she needed to.

I sort of rewarded that by a boring walk in the back yard until she peed.

I also trained her to sit and bark at the back door if she needed to go out - which she also uses if she just wants to go out but then she likes me to come out with her - even if she's just sleeping... who is training who indeed.

She conned me into a short walk around the block last night because she would not pee in the back yard. Sigh.

THanks so much for your advice from experience :-) I think I will set the alarm for 2 night time wee walks for the rest of the week and see if there are any more poo stops and if not, will decrease to 1 overnight break after the weekend and see how we go :-)

One formula I read about was the age + 1 rule. Months old + 1 is the maximum hours you can expect a puppy to "hold anything in"

So she is 2.5 months, so 2.5 hours + 1 hour = 3.5 hours contained maximum (and from me calculations I think they are pretty spot on with the formula for the moment :-)

Thanks

I think how long you get - depends a bit on the dog and what you're feeding and when... and how much they drink.

But the fewer accidents you have, by going outside and preventing them... the faster they learn what they're supposed to be doing and where.

Sounds like you are doing a grand job there Schneke.

Cant help but cringe at 2am walk/toilet. I am not looking forward to this in a new pup in a year or so. ewwww horrid. I dont wake up sociable for human babies, let alone canine ones. Night toilet breaks are such fun in winter.

Well done. Brilliant to see a new pup owner, with this level of commitment.

Yeah I was lucky, got my puppy in summer and toilet training was done by Autumn...

She gets her dinner about 6ish and has last drink is about 7 (although that depends on her level of activity) if she has been a crazy girl and has extra activity and goes to where her water bowl is, that tells me her body needs it, so I do let her have a small drink. So from about 7pm onwards, no drinks.

Another night with 2 week walks and one was also a poo - so I'll keep going with the 2 nightly walks until next week.

I think a lot of dogs start off with the ability to be brilliant, but some owners let them down, I'm just trying not to be one of those people. I want her to be stable, loving, not too attached (that's why she already has lots of "alone" time bursts outside) and she will be safely exposed to as much as possible while she is elastic.

One thing that I've realised that I've done wrong, is I didn't differentiate between "on your mat" and "bedtime" which I am starting to do now.

there are two couch potatoes and a nutter in that mix. I wonder what she'll turn out like?

Her mother is the DDB x American Bulldog - Wonderful natured dog. Chilled out and great with their children, on a hobby type farm (no issues with the small or the feathery) so I'll just be sure to keep up the positive socialisation and respect training (she has to earn all her affection)

Some of the males were a little on the yappy side, but she particularly is very chilled out (and one of the larger of the litter)

I guess the American bulldog is why I think she looks like she has some boxer. But by the time people start stating more than three breeds in the mix - I tend to think there's a good chance the parents aren't 100% what anyone thinks they are either.

So you just deal with the dog you have in front of you and don't worry too much about what people say about the breed(s).