[alapahabulldog]

Hey we got a 5 month old alapaha blue blood bulldog. She was supposed to be paper and crate trained when we got her. She isnt. The house training is going ok. She does have some accidents, but is getting better. She is fine in the kennel at night in our bed room, but during the day when we come home she uses in the kennel and leaves an aweful mess from jumping around and trying to get out. The first couple nights she just barked all night. Thats why we moved the kennel to our bed room at night and she is fine. So i built a little bit bigger kennel for her in the basement with room for some paper and a spot to sleep. It didnt help at all she had a mess thorughout the whole thing. Do you guys have any tips to getting her kennel trained? Could it be a seperation thing where she can go 8 hours at night without using, but 4-6 hours in the day when we are not home she cant. Any help would be great thanks.

 

[hanksimon]

1. A 5 mos old puppy can stay in the crate only 5 - 6 hours. A night maybe a little longer.
2. A puppy does not yet have full control of bowels and bladder, so you have to watch her for signals that she has to go.
3. She will bark for about 3 nights because she's lonely, then she may calm down.
4. Thoroughly scrub the crate with soap& water, as well as vinegar or Enzyme cleaner to get rid of the smell. The smell tells the pup where to go to the bathroom.
5. For the first few days, you have to let her out about every 2 - 3 hours, just because she hasn't established a routine.
6. She can't stay in the crate all day long. And she needs lot and lots of exercise when you are there.

 

[doxiemommy]

It's very common for dogs to be able to hold it longer at night. At night bodily functions slow down: heart rate slows, breathing slows, blood pressure is reduced, digestion slows, and as a result, less urine is produced.

Depending on each individual puppy, as they all are a bit different, a 5 month old should be able to hold it ABOUT 5 hours or so. HOWEVER, she's still a baby, and she doesn't have complete physical control of her bladder yet, so accidents are still possible.