house breaking

[Sansal]

It depends on where you want him to go. If you want him to go in the yard that's fine, if not then take breaks on your walk and give him time to sniff around and he will probably start going during those walks.
I would be careful with one hour long walks at his age, though. Make sure not to overexercise him. His bones are still soft and can be damaged easily.

 

[eliboxer]

@eliboxer: I would wake him up at least once or twice every night. At ten weeks there is no way he can hold it through the night.
Even the four hours during the day might still be too long for him. A puppy at 10 weeks does not have the capability to hold it for that long.
Unfortunately, if a puppy gets used to peeing in the crate and laying in it's mess it can become a habit and just the normal thing to do. And it will become very hard to break that habit and delay the whole house breaking process. Besides the fact that laying in it's own mess is very unpleasant for the dog.
Crate training is about teaching the puppy bladder control. Therefore a puppy should never be left in a crate for longer than it can hold it. For a 10 week old puppy that might be only 45-60 minutes. (Usually longer during the night when puppy is sleeping). When you take the puppy out after spending an hour or so in the crate the puppy will have to go to the bathroom and now you can take it outside and praise it for relieving itself in the appropriate spot. Success! However, if a puppy is confined to a crate for longer than it can hold it and ends up having to pee in the crate you are not helping the puppy to establish bladder control, you are teaching the puppy that it is okay to pee in the crate. See what I'm getting at?
Is there a way that someone you know could take the puppy out once or twice in the morning while you are gone? At least for now? Once your puppy is a little older 4 hours in the crate should not be a problem anymore.

Thank you for your feedback!
I made some changes and I take him out at 3am every night now (he is so cute then ! ), and then 6am again. He is doing much better, but we don't want him to get used to that (3am walks every night?!? ). I will keep doing it for a bit longer, until he will get more comfortable with holding it for more than 4 hours. I see him being more relaxed and happy now
We also used divider in his crate, no blankets or towels at one point and he would still go pee inside his "house" :( (we keep him in crate up to 4,5 hours at a time the most, when we are at work and at night).
We keep him active and outside with us most of the time. Sometimes it's hard to get him go potty, but we are all working on that !
I appreciate your help and thank you again!

 

[eliboxer]

2 things i can think of. When we first started crating Boa, we gave him too much room, and he would also go in his crate. So we put the divider in the crate, and only gave him room enough to stand up, turn around, and lay down. Also, you can take the blanket/bed out of the crate as well, as sometimes the blanket/bed absorbing the urine is enough to allow the dog to remain comfotable laying in it. But the dog will not be comfortable laying in a puddle on a hard non absorbant surface. You can try adding the bed/blanket back later when you know the accidents have stopped. Good Luck.

We tried it and it didn't stop him. He was quite upset with that, but we wanted him to realize that this is how it will be, if he keeps going in his crate. Now, I started to take him out at 3am every night and he is doing much better
Thanks for your help, though. It's always good to hear we are doing the right thing

 

[Caney Creek]

He is doing much better, but we don't want him to get used to that (3am walks every night?!? ). I will keep doing it for a bit longer, until he will get more comfortable with holding it for more than 4 hours.

Instead of one day just stopping the 3am breaks, gradually make them later and later. In a week move it to 4am, then a week later 5am, and so on. It should be a much easier transition for him that way.

We also used divider in his crate, no blankets or towels at one point and he would still go pee inside his "house" :( (we keep him in crate up to 4,5 hours at a time the most, when we are at work and at night).

This is probably not so much an issue of space but that he really needs to go out more often. The "rule" for a pup's potty schedule (which is more an issue of their physical capability at any given age) is that they can "hold it" for 1 hour per month of age (this rule is for daytime, they can usually go longer through the night). 10 weeks is about 2 months, so right now he needs to be let out every 2 hours during the day, and really that's all you should *expect* of him at this age. He simply cannot hold it for 4-5 hours at a time yet.

I would strongly advise hiring a pet-sitter to come by and let him out that often while he is still young. If you cannot hire someone, I'd nix the crate during the day. The last thing you want is for him to get used to sitting in his own mess -- which is basically inevitable that it will continue for at least until he's old enough to hold it for 4-5 hours. But, if he soils his crate so often already, by the time he's actually capable of holding it he might not even try to, because he will be used to his own "routine" by then.

 

[eliboxer]

Instead of one day just stopping the 3am breaks, gradually make them later and later. In a week move it to 4am, then a week later 5am, and so on. It should be a much easier transition for him that way.



This is probably not so much an issue of space but that he really needs to go out more often. The "rule" for a pup's potty schedule (which is more an issue of their physical capability at any given age) is that they can "hold it" for 1 hour per month of age (this rule is for daytime, they can usually go longer through the night). 10 weeks is about 2 months, so right now he needs to be let out every 2 hours during the day, and really that's all you should *expect* of him at this age. He simply cannot hold it for 4-5 hours at a time yet.

I would strongly advise hiring a pet-sitter to come by and let him out that often while he is still young. If you cannot hire someone, I'd nix the crate during the day. The last thing you want is for him to get used to sitting in his own mess -- which is basically inevitable that it will continue for at least until he's old enough to hold it for 4-5 hours. But, if he soils his crate so often already, by the time he's actually capable of holding it he might not even try to, because he will be used to his own "routine" by then.

Thank you!!! I agree and I actually tried it last nigh... i took our baby boy out at 4am (one hour later than usual) and he was still sleeping on a dry blanket (YAY!). I will keep doing it for another 3 weeks and then move to 5am every morning.