We have had our now 7 week old for about a week. We started her right off in a kennel the very first night. Every night, I have sleep in a bed near her. Every time I hear her wimper I get up and take her out to go potty (about every half-hour to an hour) (Im loosing much sleep). She seems to go every time I take her out. A friend at work said I should ignore her and wait until morning. Is this right? I think the kennel we have her in is too big at the moment. It's made for a large full-grown Boxer. She has gone the bathroom in it every time we have left her in it for more than 2 hours when we leave. She has never been left in it for more than 3 hours.
Am I doing her harm, and loosing the battle?
- Thread starter chrisdcut
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Laila63139
Boxer Booster
I think 7 weeks is way too early to just "ignore" her all night. Are you restricting her water before she goes to bed? At 7 weeks Laila was waking us up about twice a night (between 10 and 5) to go potty. We would cut off her water about 8 and make sure she went out about 3-4 times between then and bedtime.
The rule I have read on the boards is...their age in months plus one...this is how long they can hold it in hours. At first Duke woke us up every 2 hours. It was tough of course, but it will get better. If she is going every time you let her out I would keep doingt it.
Like you said the kennel may be too big. If they have room to go in it they will. I would definitly not ignore her all night. That would be awful for her.
Good Luck!
Like you said the kennel may be too big. If they have room to go in it they will. I would definitly not ignore her all night. That would be awful for her.
Good Luck!
Shakira's Ma
Banned
Like cody&duke said the time frame for your pup to hold her pee would be 1 hour for each month plus one hour, so at 7 weeks old you are talking less then 3 hours. I will tell you that 7 weeks old is too young to be away from it's mom and siblings and if you have had her for a week already you got her way too soon, that is what happened to me and I have found here on BW that that is too soon to leave it's family. The pups learn socializing from their sibs and learn bite inhibition. On the crate, if you bought it new, it should have a divider laying on top or that came with it to section off a smaller area for your baby so she doesn't soil the crate. Have patience it will get better, I would also eliminate going to her everytime she wimpers as this will let her know that you will come if she whimpers, if there has been about 3 hours to pass then take her out, but I wouldn't everytime she whimpers, I also fell into this one too and when I realized she was getting what she wanted by crying then I quit and within 2 days she did too. 
I don't think you can ignore a 7 week old puppy's need to empty her bladder. Yes, there's an issue around responding every time she whimpers, but there is no way she's going to last all night without a potty stop, however little water she's consumed or how little room she has.
One technique that's often recommended here is to set an alarm a couple of times a night to take her out to eliminate. That way you don't inadvertantly teach her that whining/crying gets her your attention or out of her crate, but at the same time her toileting needs are taken care of. As her bladder grows and her control of it improves, you can gradually reduce the number of scheduled toilet breaks until she's sleeping through the night. On average, I'd say that's around the 15-16 week mark. Certainly worth a try
One technique that's often recommended here is to set an alarm a couple of times a night to take her out to eliminate. That way you don't inadvertantly teach her that whining/crying gets her your attention or out of her crate, but at the same time her toileting needs are taken care of. As her bladder grows and her control of it improves, you can gradually reduce the number of scheduled toilet breaks until she's sleeping through the night. On average, I'd say that's around the 15-16 week mark. Certainly worth a try
lost1700
Boxer Booster
You should deffinately be taking her out probably for the next few weeks until her bladder is big enough to hold it a little longer. You should also have a divider in the kennel. Until she is potty trained the kennel should only be big enough for her to lay down, stand up, and turn around in. Boxer's won't pee where they have to sleep, but if the kennel is too big she will pee in one side and sleep on the other side.
You need to make the crate smaller. If the crate didn't come with a divider, you can get a large cardboard box and put it in the end. It must fit quite tightly.
I pick the water up about 3 hours before her last trip outside. Set your alarm, every two hours to start with. You need her to be successful. When she can manage to go for 2 hours, you can extend it to 3 hours. If she knows that you are going to let her out she will try and hold it. Before you know it she will be sleeping through the night.
Good luck!
I pick the water up about 3 hours before her last trip outside. Set your alarm, every two hours to start with. You need her to be successful. When she can manage to go for 2 hours, you can extend it to 3 hours. If she knows that you are going to let her out she will try and hold it. Before you know it she will be sleeping through the night.
Good luck!
NuBoxer Fan
Boxer Booster
Zuzu is 11.5 weeks old, and she sleeps through the night (10-ish to 6) with nary a whimper, and no accidents. We usually pick her water up around 7pm and make sure she goes out a few times between then and bedtime. We are not harming her in any way by NOT getting her up in the middle of the night, are we? Sometimes in the morning she takes her sweet time doing her business, and other times she can't wait to get outside. Just want to make sure it is OK if she is choosing to sleep through the night...
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