Pets
NalasMomma618
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Puppy Peeing Problem:( please help!
in Pets
I'm having issues with Nala, she's now 8 weeks and pees in her crate every night and lays in it. I get up with her every 3 hours, and there's already pee in there. I've tried diapers, and she has found a way to get out of those. We have to keep her crate on the opposite side of the house in the kitchen, so that when she pees and gets it out of the crate I can just mop it up with vinegar.
My husband works nights, so he can't get up with her either, and sleeps so heavily during the day that when I'm in class or working she's stuck for up to 4 hours at a time.
I just don't know what to do with her at night, or during that time in the day when I can't be here. I'm so frustrated, and I have no clue what to do. Please help!
Re: Puppy Peeing Problem:( please help!
She's only 8 weeks. A puppy can only hold it 1 hour for every month it is old. You should be expecting to take her out every 2 hours around the clock.
You need to put her in a smaller crate- if she's peeing, it's because she has enough room to pee and escape it.
And I'm sorry, but your husband needs to get up too- if you're expected to get up at night, he needs to get up during his "night". The puppy is BOTH of your responsibilities. And if I recall it correctly, it's your husband's irresponsible friend that you got this puppy at a ridiculously young age (5 or 6 weeks if I remember correctly) He got you into this mess, he needs to contribute.
Tell your husband to set multiple alarms and do his fair share
It was our decision to get Nala, while we weren't aware that she was only 4 weeks, we would either get her or somebody else who would assume she was 8 weeks and neglect to care for her like we did. I see that it's common for women on here to have the mentality to leave an irresponsible owner with a litter of "accidental" mutt puppies, but I have to disagree. I don't mean to encourage them to continue to let their dog run around and possibly get pregnant again, but how fair is it for the puppies to get left with an owner that obviously doesn't care about them? Both of our dogs are from people who's dogs got pregnant "accidentally", and if I didn't have them I can't imagine who would. Nala is also half pit, living in Florida, dog fighting isn't uncommon. I would be willing to bet that at least one of her siblings will be involved in fighting or at least a bait dog.
My husband and I don't regret this decision, we love Nala, we're just searching for any solution that might make it a bit easier to maintain.
We got our Daisy in a similar situation (someones dog had an unintentional litter, couldn't afford to care for the puppies, told us she was 6 weeks and the vet said she was closer to 4). House training in the beginning was HARD. We had to take her out every half hour during the day and 1-2 hours at night, she still had a lot of accidents, and it took a long time before they stopped.
I can say, that as hard as it is right now, it will get better. I think you just need to work on a schedule with her, and make sure your husband is on board. It isn't fair to expect her to hold it longer than she can.
Pretty much all this. My puppy is 7 months and I still have to come home at lunch to let him out because 9.5hrs is still pushing it for him to hold. 8 wks = 2hrs max. Good luck, obviously as she gets older she can hold it longer and it will get easier!
Actually, I disagree with this. I have always read this statement to be meant when the puppy is awake, not when they are asleep at night.
However, that doesn't mean that she can hold it all night long. I think the issue at this point is that she has been used to going in the crate and doesn't feel that it's a bad thing. Yes, sometimes a smaller crate can help but if she is so used to it, I think you want to try to elevate the status of the crate in addition to working on house training.
I would feed in the crate and give yummy kongs and treats in the crate. A divider to make the crate smaller is a good idea. I would also make sure that you do not have toys or bedding in the crate that can soak up the pee. In the beginning to avoid any accidents in the crate that will keep the cycle going, I would take her out frequently like others said even at night. She has to learn to hold her bladder than just going whenever. Take up water a little before bed time. Go for a walk and make sure she potties before bed. When she does potty, treat and praise like crazy. In the house, make sure you clean the crate and any accidents with enzymatic cleaner.
It also might help to tire her out with training and some play time so she is more likely to be sound asleep, not waking up frequently.
As for during the day, you really need to avoid all accidents by making sure that she goes potty before you put her in the crate and then have frequent people coming to let her out. I know that's rough but the more accidents that she has the harder it is to teach her that it's not ok to potty in the crate.
I'd never considered elevating the status of the crate, that makes sense though. Or tiring her out before bed, not that that's a chore at all. Thank you so much!
I agree with this completely
Consistency. Consistency. Consistency.
Set her up for success from the very beginning.
Take her out every hour. Start her on a consistent routine. Provide plenty of praise and treats when she goes potty. Start associating potty behavior with a word/command. For ex. my dogs know when I say "Go potty," they are to do their business. Get a small crate, or a crate with a divider. Dogs are clean animals. They do not like to lay in their urine or feces.
Gradually up the time when she stops making her accidents, and if she starts again when the time increments have been increased, take it back down again.
Thank y'all! She did much better last night and today. I gave the diaper one more try, and she didn't get out of it, but she also didn't have any accidents. Last night I slept through my first alarm, so I got up after 4 hours and she was dry. I think it helped a lot that we played with her a lot before bed.
I also set up a place for her on our screened in porch. I put her crate, water bowl, and some toys out with her so she could play. She would only go outside of her crate to potty, it's not the ideal place to let her play but we don't have a yard. And in case she doesn't like to pee in the rain it'll be an alternative.
Thank y'all again!