[Canyx]

I know each dog is different so I'm looking for anecdotes. I'm having a really easy time with Brae but I just can't remember what the 'general rule' for adult dogs is. Soro seems to have had iron bowels since forever and he doesn't even seem like he urgently needs to go, even if he's alone for 12 hours during the day.

For Brae, he is almost 10 months old and holds it for about 5-6 hours during the work day. He's done 7 rarely. Overnight, he can easily hold it for 8-9, and I think he did 10 once without any trouble.

It's easy enough to continue this, as my partner works a staggered schedule from mine. And I am not in any rush for him to be able to hold it for an 8-10 hour work day. But eventually, I think 9 hours is the realistic number I am aiming for. Right now, he isn't asking to be let out (can't remember the last time he 'needed' to go). I think it's because we are keeping it easy for him and letting him out before it's urgent, which is my intention.

I'm just curious what others have experienced in terms of your dog's ability to hold it as it matured.

 

[Marvel]

The first time Quill had to hold it for eight hours was probably about 9 months. Until then, I could come home on breaks and let him out, but then I was working in the field during the summer and he had to hold it for 8 hours because there was no way to get home. He never had an issue. I still try to come home after about 6 hours when my work schedule allows me because I don't see a reason to make him hold it if he doesn't have to, but he's also gone 10 hours once or twice because things came up and I couldn't get home before then.

But yeah, 9 months was the first time he did 8 hour days.

 

[jojofergy]

Sprocket is about 13 months old now and he's been holding it most days all day so about 9 hrs a day since about 7 months he has a pee pad in his play pen but he doesn't like to use it unless he has to
If I come home and take 20 min to let him out he will use the pee pad I'm sure he's bursting by the time I get home so once he realizes I'm not getting him right away he will go and sometimes if he had a lot of water in the morning he will use the pee pad but in a month he prob uses his pee pads twice while I'm at work
He's a havanese so pretty small so I'm surprised he wants to hold it all day I assumed he'd use the pee pads every day when I got him
I had a bully breed mix that couldn't hold it for more than 6 hrs so really think it depends on the individual dog



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[Lillith]

Probably around 6-7 months Ralphie could hold it for 8.5 hours. I think that dog has bowels of iron, too, because if he wants, he could probably hold it 12+ no problem. Last winter we had a horrible cold spell, and Ralphie would not go outside. He might have gone in the morning before I left for work, but it was so quick I'm not certain. Held it a full 8.5 hour work day. It was windy and horrible still when we got home, still wouldn't go. He had plenty of opportunity, and at that point I wouldn't have cared if he went in the house, but he would not go potty. Before we went to bed and the wind died a bit he finally went out for what I imagine was the longest pee of his life.

 

[CptJack]

Kiran isn't quite 8 months old.

Overnight? Well, last night he crashed early and slept late and didn't budge at all for 14 hours. He's done that once or twice before, depending on how busy the day was. Typical, he puts himself to bed and does 10-12 hours overnight.

Daytime is harder for me to be definitive about, because I don't pay that much attention. Every 3-4 hours, or something like it most days. Rainy days when he'd rather not, it's more like every 5-6. Had a funeral on Friday and he was crated 12 hours without incident, which surprised me. And I'm sure he could go longer, but not really a thing I care about since I don't need to.

That's about average for my dogs - like that is more or less the adult dog's schedule. Thud was a little slower than him getting there, Kylie a bit faster, but overall by about 9 months they've all been on pretty much that schedule.

 

[Jen2010]

Pepper could go 8-9 hours in her crate by the time she was about 4 months old. Kane was maybe 5 months. This was after making sure they went potty outside immediately before being crated.

 

[Canyx]

Wow! It seems like I am being over the top then.

I mean, I have no reason to test it and we are happy to give the dogs a break after 6 hours or so just because. But I am so worried on the days when I have him push 7 and maybe I don't need to be...

 

[Shell]

I am gone about 8.5-9 hours for the day. While not ideal, puppy and young fosters get crated for that time. Most of them are OK with it from around 12 weeks. I mean, i rush them outside before doing anything else as soon as I step foot into my house but I think the 5-6 dogs that have been here under age 6 or so months had fewer than a half dozen potty ooops all added together.

My hardest potty training one was a year+ cattle dog mix who had been a stray and then in the shelter for a few months with mange who peed once or twice a week in her crate.

I am for maximum 9 hours daytime and 12 hours overnight but wake up overnight if the dog asks or stirs a lot.

 

[Canyx]

Are you saying your <6 mo fosters could hold it for 8-9 hours???

 

[gingerkid]

When crated, she could hold it for 9 hours by 7 months. But being confined caused all kinds of its own issues, so I wouldn't say she was reliably housetrained until she was at least a year. Her last daytime accident was at around 14 months or so. (Not counting submissive peeing, which still happens very occasionally).

ETA: She was reliably pooping outside much sooner than she could hold her pee. And for what it's worth, Snowball has held his bladder for upwards of 12 hours (twice - it is NOT something that I let happen if I can at all avoid it, but sometimes blizzards happen, and on those particular times my back-ups were out of town.)

 

[Canyx]

Yeah, blizzards... Soro's longest was 24 hours when my dog sitter couldn't get to him due to a blizzard over the holidays. I almost wish he had just gone inside, but nope!

Had a funeral on Friday and he was crated 12 hours without incident, which surprised me. And I'm sure he could go longer, but not really a thing I care about since I don't need to.

Was that 12 hours daytime?!

 

[Shell]

Are you saying your <6 mo fosters could hold it for 8-9 hours???

Yes.

Mick was about 10 weeks when I got him, he stayed here about 3 weeks. I think he had one pee and one poop in the crate in that time. Cupcake was 4-5 months old and stayed I think about a month or 6 weeks here. Excluding after her spay, I think she had maybe 2-3 crate accidents. Cashmere was 6 months and stayed here about 3-4 months, I don't recall any crate accidents during a work day, maybe one total. Beau was about 11 weeks and stayed here 3 weeks or so and had zero crate accidents but did piddle at the door stop when I was opening it to get him outside at the end of the day.

Edit to add: I did not consider them fully housetrained at that point as it was clearly the slowing down effect of the crate. Each was crated with enough space to avoid touching an accident if it happened.

 

[Canyx]

So do you expect them to be able to hold it at that age or do you just not mind crate accidents? Potty pad in part of the crate? And why this setup versus crate plus pen with pads?

 

[Shell]

So do you expect them to be able to hold it at that age or do you just not mind crate accidents? Potty pad in part of the crate? And why this setup versus crate plus pen with pads?

I accept accidents for the fosters. Basically, I know it is not the best setup since I do not have a lunch break potty time for them or similar but it beats the shelter or worse. I do not have a good space for an expen and I do not want to set back training for future owners by using pads even if I had space. Don't trust expens to hold back lively pittie pups anyways.

So I have a full size crate suitable for a 50-60 lbs dog which gives good turn and move space for pups. If the pup does not chew, i use fleece blankets in the crate.

Overall, the result has been very minimal crate accidents and a few outside the crate excited accidents. I have rushed many times outside though by carrying a pup out the door.

 

[Canyx]

Well that is insane that such young puppies could hold it that long!

 

[CptJack]

Well that is insane that such young puppies could hold it that long!

Confined puppies can hold it a REALLY long time when they need to. Well, most, not all. Partially because most puppies also sleep a lot, I think.

 

[dogsule]

My newest puppy we got at 9 weeks of age. She slept through the night from day one and could hold it for 7+ hours overnight. During the day it was much less though, she peed all the time unless crated or in the xpen. She is 7 months now and just this past sunday had the longest daytime x-pen crating so far, she was fine for 7 1/2 hours.

 

[lauren17]

My first dog was pretty young when we started leaving him out all day (Less than 6 months) and he never had accidents. My other two were much older. Roo is going on 4 and I've just started leaving him in the house loose this past summer, he probably would've been fine earlier but I was renting and didn't want to risk it. Newest pup is 14 months and she's not ready. She can hold it the full 12 hours in a crate except for when she can't.. over night has been no problem for awhile tho and she is loose now. I think the big difference in my two younger verses my first dog is that my work day is so long now (12 hours) that I never liked leaving them in a crate that long so they had a kennel set up where they could potty so they never had to learn to hold it all day. Even at night the past few years I had a senior dog on meds that made him have to pee often so everyone got potty breaks several times throughout the night.

 

[Life With Atlas]

I was able to err on the side of caution and Atlas went to my parent's house until he was about 8 months old, so he generally wasn't left alone for more than a few hours during the day. (He also got to play all day with their dog, which made for a happy and tired puppy!) When spring came, we eased him into staying in his crate all day as my dad was able to come do mid-day potty breaks for a couple weeks. Then one of the roomies was laid off, so he wasn't crated for much of the summer/fall during the week as someone was home. We are back to crating again, and at a year and a half, of course he's fine with it. (He also has a XL sized crate and x-pen attached so he has lots of room and the option of finding cool floor space.)

During the night, he has been able to hold it from about 5-6 months on. This is usually a 9:30-5:30 time frame. I do often get up early most weekends to take him out (I can't fault him if he's used to early morning potty breaks), but the days I've slept in a bit longer he seems fine. Weather is definitely not an issue for him! But... going out alone is. If I put him in the pen and go back inside, he will usually just sit by the gate and wait. So, because he's crated again during the day I go out and stand in the pen with him (in the dark) so he will go and potty. If he goes out with the labs from downstairs, he has no problem, but he's kind of a wuss when he's alone. This is totally because I baby him, and I will make more of a serious effort to wean him off of needing my company! Haha. But I will say he was very easy to housebreak, with maybe only 5 accidents between both houses, so I'll take the needy over cleaning up pee!

 

[InkedMarie]

Mine never had to until I went back to work in July 2016.After a few times of Boone peeing in his crate, Steve came home once during the day to let them out. Boone has always been a dog who, if he really really has to go & we ignore him, will pee wherever.

Steve changed jobs this past July and now they go 7 hours from the time he leaves & i come home and he’s only peed twice.