new mom question-potty training-hold it all night?

[OntarioSheltie]

7 weeks is very young to leave her Mom, my breeder prefers a minimum of 8 or longer. One week doesn't seem like much, but it can make a big difference.

Ginny and Sadie were both 9 weeks old when I brought them home. The breeder started crate training both of them a few days before I brought them home and neither one was ever taken out at night.

Sadie only ever had one accident in her crate, and it was my fault, not hers. I confused her.

I don't think Milo ever had any accidents in his crate, but my parent's didn't bring him home till he was 12-14 weeks old.

Ginny is smaller than Sadie was at the same age, and looks less mature. Ginny has been having between 1-2 accidents in her crate a week, always at night.

I'm not worried, she doesn't seem confused and I think tries to hold it, but just can't some times. We're just trying to find that balance where we can get her out quicker and limiting her water before bed just enough.

It just takes time, patience and some trial and error. A good thing to remember is that accidents happen and are not the end of the world. Accidents don't mean set backs in potty training, they are a part of potty training.

I would stop the night time outings, limit her water for an hour before bed and then let her out just before you go to bed. Get up and let her out at approx. 6 am, or maybe even 5 am for the first night. She may have a few accidents but should get the hang of it.

As McGuiregirl said, there are many potty training threads on this forum with lots of good advice and experiences. You'll find them in the Behavior section.

 

[BarbV]

Hi All, I defineatly don't want to use potty pads..don't really like the idea of the dog doing her business in the house. Heck, i'd be afraid of what the 3 naughty kitties would do if one were out, much less soiled.
She is doing great with the potty training so far..a couple of slow people induced potty messes, but nothing bad. Her and the cats have settled in together..playing and barking. I gotta make sure that the cats don't get too rough with her, one will wrestle with her..it's a good thing that he doesn't use claws when he rabbit kicks. It almost seems strange protecting a dog from a cat. LOL. All of the magic blue smoke seems to have leaked of of my camera so I will have to borrow my mom's until i can get a new one.
We took a halting walk to pick my kids up from school today. She got to interact with a couple of kids and adults..she is a sweetheart(so far).
TTLY
Lisa G

Sounds like things are going well so far! As Ontario Sheltie said, mistakes will happen, and they are normally people fault not puppy fault. And it does not set back training necessarily (just make sure the mess is totally cleaned up so they don't smell it and assume its a good place to go).

I've got a visual of the cat and pup playing together! When I had cats, they would NEVER dream of playing with a DOG!

 

[BloodyMary]

First of all, Congratulations on your new baby!

Secondly, in regards to your question, Punkin started holding it through the night at about eleven weeks. Until then she would be up once a night.

What I found worked out well was to make sure that bedtime was consistent. She would go to bed at eight at night, get taken out at midnight and get up with me at four in the morning.

Also, the more tired the puppy, the harder she will sleep. I made it a point to wear Punkin out before putting her to bed.

Punkin has two crates. One is in the living room and is used for when I am up and about during the day and evening. The second is in the bedroom and is solely used at night. To prevent her from getting up and agitated when I would go to bed, I cover the sides of her crate with an old sweatshirt that I've worn around so it smells like me and yet blocks her view.

Just like with a baby, don't jump up at every whimper, bark or whine. Wait and see if she will go back to sleep on her own.

Hope everything goes well!