Meal and poop schedules

[Gracie2006]

I feed Gracie twice a day, usually about 5:30 am and again between 4:00 and 5:00 pm. I usually give her a bit of yogurt around 8:00 PM. She always needs to get up and poop at 2 am, every day. I can set the clock by her. I can't seem to get her to use the pet steps to get off my bed by herself so she can go. I'm getting tired of the 2 am trek to the pee pad. Any suggestions on how to get her to wait a few hours in the morning before eliminating? I was thinking about delaying the evening meal until 7-8:00 PM. Does anyone else have this issue? What feeding schedule are you using for twice daily feedings?

[codysmom]

5:30am? is that because you have to get up for work?

i feed cody at 7 am, and 7:30pm.

How old is gracie?
because i am crate training cody and he can hold it all night all ready and he's about 3 1/2 months.

cody usually poops shortly after he eats. i think you're supposed to make them poop according to your schedule.

[Gracie2006]

Originally Posted by codysmom

5:30am? is that because you have to get up for work?

i feed cody at 7 am, and 7:30pm.

How old is gracie?
because i am crate training cody and he can hold it all night all ready and he's about 3 1/2 months.

cody usually poops shortly after he eats. i think you're supposed to make them poop according to your schedule.

Gracie is 7 months. She is able to hold it, but the poor thing just paces back and forth until I take her to her pad to relieve herself. She never has poop accidents on the bed. I feed her so early because I get up for work, and that is the time the cats are used to eating. I can feed Gracie on my way out the door at 7:00 am or so. Do you think that might work to go to a 7/7 schedule?

[Gracie2006]

Yesterday I put Gracie on a 7/7 meal schedule. She thought she was starving last night until meal time rolled around two-three hours late. Last night, she slept through the night until 6:30 am, much better than 2:00 am! I also spent time yesterday working with her on using the puppy steps by the bed, and put a night light in the bedroom so she could see the steps. When she woke this morning, she paced and wanted off the bed. I sat up and gave her a nudge toward the steps and down she went. She went downstairs and used her pee pad , then pooped on the living room floor about 2 feet away from the pad. . Then she came back upstairs, came up the puppy steps and snuggled in bed with me under the covers. A great Sunday morning all in all!

[Sadie's Mom]

Sadie gets fed at 7 and 7. Her "normal" poop schedule is in the mornings when we get up and when I get home from work. But I recently had to put her on a high fiber diet b/c of some issues she was having & so now she's like a pooping machine. She goes several times a day. But before that food, she went on a schedule every day!

[LunasMomma]

Another 7/7 'er here The girls also have kibbles down all day, though they just pick at those here and there. They both poo about 6:30 am and 6:30 pm, like clockwork

Glad you're seeing a bit of improvement. I'd rather have to pick up poo from the floor than get up at 2 am

[Gracie2006]

Originally Posted by LunasMomma

I'd rather have to pick up poo from the floor than get up at 2 am

Ha Ha, me too! And after 5 months of the 2 am treck, mommy is getting really weary!

[SONYSW]

I feed chelsea twice a day. 7AM and 5PM. She poops 4 times a day. I noticed that if I did not feed her too much she rarely gets up at night. Her poop schedule is 6AM, 8AM (or after meal) 1PM or 6PM and before she goes to bed.
I aslo noticed that it all depends on the dog food you give her. She poops more since I switched her to Nutro (before was Innova). She did not like Innova that much. If she did not poop during the time scheduled I usually give her a spoon of cottage cheese and she will poop immediately.

BTW she is 6 months, 4.5 lbs and no dry kibble during the day.

[debbiect]

Here's my problem. Sparky is 9 weeks old (will be 10 weeks Sunday). When I first got him he was one day shy of being 6 weeks old. The first week or so I kept him in a small crate during the night. He'd wake up whimpering in the middle of the night, sometimes 3 or 4 times and I would get up, take him to the paper and he'd pee or poop...sometimes both. He'd want to play a little, but I'd take him back to the crate and go back to bed. My husband suggested I put him in the kitchen (where the paper is) and put his crate in there and a gate across the door and that way he could use the paper whenever he needed to. I've been doing that about 2 weeks not, but he still wakes me up sometime two to three times during the night whimpering. I'll go in there, place one leg over the gate and stand there. Then he'll cuddle up to my foot and after a few minutes (5 tops) he'll settle back down and go to sleep. I then slip back out to bed til the next time. Am I doing something wrong? Is he just checking to make sure he's not alone? I can't let him whimper long because we live in an apartment and he can get loud. Should I be keeping him in the crate to get him use to holding it like someone said or is this just a phase he's going through?
Also, as far as his feeding, he eats about 6:00 am, 11:00 am, 4:00 pm and 9:00 pm. Should he still be eating that often or should I cut out one of the feedings? He's eating about 2 teaspoons of Science Diet (softened in water) with about 1/4 teaspoon chicken baby food added, heated in the microwave. (I tried to sneak a pill to him through his food at 7 weeks (he picked up tapeworms from dog poo outside)(hence potty training him inside), and he refused to eat the food. The vet told me to get the chicken baby food, and then reintroduce the dog food with the taste of the baby food in it. I was going to stop the baby food, but my husband says, "well he doesn't eat that much and he IS a baby," "he really likes it,". (This from the man that didn't really want me to get another dog). Should I still be softening his food or can he eat it hard?

[debbiect]

Here's my problem. Sparky is 9 weeks old (will be 10 weeks Sunday). When I first got him he was one day shy of being 6 weeks old. The first week or so I kept him in a small crate during the night. He'd wake up whimpering in the middle of the night, sometimes 3 or 4 times and I would get up, take him to the paper and he'd pee or poop...sometimes both. He'd want to play a little, but I'd take him back to the crate and go back to bed. My husband suggested I put him in the kitchen (where the paper is) and put his crate in there and a gate across the door and that way he could use the paper whenever he needed to. I've been doing that about 2 weeks now, but he still wakes me up sometimes two to three times during the night whimpering. I'll go in there, place one leg over the gate and stand there. Then he'll cuddle up to my foot and after a few minutes (5 tops) he'll settle back down and go to sleep. I then slip back out to bed til the next time. Am I doing something wrong? Is he just checking to make sure he's not alone? I can't let him whimper long because we live in an apartment and he can get loud. Should I be keeping him in the crate to get him use to holding it like someone said or is this just a phase he's going through?
Also, as far as his feeding, he eats about 6:00 am, 11:00 am, 4:00 pm and 9:00 pm. Should he still be eating that often or should I cut out one of the feedings? He's eating about 2 teaspoons of Science Diet (softened in water) with about 1/4 teaspoon chicken baby food added, heated in the microwave. (I tried to sneak a pill to him through his food at 7 weeks (he picked up tapeworms from dog poo outside)(hence potty training him inside), and he refused to eat the food. The vet told me to get the chicken baby food, and then reintroduce the dog food with the taste of the baby food in it. I was going to stop the baby food, but my husband says, "well he doesn't eat that much and he IS a baby," "he really likes it,". (This from the man that didn't really want me to get another dog). Should I still be softening his food or can he eat it hard?
Sorry this turned out to be so long. Thanks for your help!

[Potter]

Originally Posted by debbiect

Here's my problem. Sparky is 9 weeks old (will be 10 weeks Sunday). When I first got him he was one day shy of being 6 weeks old. The first week or so I kept him in a small crate during the night. He'd wake up whimpering in the middle of the night, sometimes 3 or 4 times and I would get up, take him to the paper and he'd pee or poop...sometimes both. He'd want to play a little, but I'd take him back to the crate and go back to bed. My husband suggested I put him in the kitchen (where the paper is) and put his crate in there and a gate across the door and that way he could use the paper whenever he needed to. I've been doing that about 2 weeks not, but he still wakes me up sometime two to three times during the night whimpering. I'll go in there, place one leg over the gate and stand there. Then he'll cuddle up to my foot and after a few minutes (5 tops) he'll settle back down and go to sleep. I then slip back out to bed til the next time. Am I doing something wrong? Is he just checking to make sure he's not alone? I can't let him whimper long because we live in an apartment and he can get loud. Should I be keeping him in the crate to get him use to holding it like someone said or is this just a phase he's going through?
Also, as far as his feeding, he eats about 6:00 am, 11:00 am, 4:00 pm and 9:00 pm. Should he still be eating that often or should I cut out one of the feedings? He's eating about 2 teaspoons of Science Diet (softened in water) with about 1/4 teaspoon chicken baby food added, heated in the microwave. (I tried to sneak a pill to him through his food at 7 weeks (he picked up tapeworms from dog poo outside)(hence potty training him inside), and he refused to eat the food. The vet told me to get the chicken baby food, and then reintroduce the dog food with the taste of the baby food in it. I was going to stop the baby food, but my husband says, "well he doesn't eat that much and he IS a baby," "he really likes it,". (This from the man that didn't really want me to get another dog). Should I still be softening his food or can he eat it hard?

When I got my boy at 12 weeks old, I feed 3 times a day..I am not sure if 4 times is too many, maybe someone else can give you their opinion. As for sleeping, can you crate your puppy with his paper in your room where they can at least see or hear you or what they call the snoring zone? It will help them to sleep better and in turn help you to sleep better. 9-10 weeks is too young and they need companionship especially at night. Mine is 7 months old now and he still whimpers sometimes in the middle of the night when he can't see or hear me and after he checks on me to make sure I am on the bed, he goes back to his bed which is just right under my bed.

[debbiect]

potter
I'm afraid if I change where his paper is, he'll regress (he knows it's in the kitchen). And also, my bedroom is carpeted.

[Potter]

Originally Posted by debbiect

potter
I'm afraid if I change where his paper is, he'll regress (he knows it's in the kitchen). And also, my bedroom is carpeted.

I guess then there is nothing you could do until he is older and can be trusted with going to the wee wee pad. Hopefully he'd get used to sleeping alone in the kitchen at night.

[Gracie2006]

It sounds to me like your baby wants to sleep with you. At that age, they really fear abandonment. After all, they were just taken away from their doggy mom. Can baby sleep in your room in the crate? You can put down a cheap vinyl shower curtain under the crate just in case of an accident. I had Gracie sleep with me in bed from the start and never had any problems with her crying at night. She had one accident on the bed. I banned her from my bed for a night or two. After that, she returned to sleep with me in bed, she would get restless and whimper a bit if she needed to use her pee pad. I take away her water by 7:00 pm to limit the night pee trips. Just this last week Gracie has mastered the bed stairs, so if she needs to go during the night she can now take herself. I am still feeding her at 7 PM and having great success with her sleeping through the night most nights.

[keri1973]

Originally Posted by debbiect

potter
I'm afraid if I change where his paper is, he'll regress (he knows it's in the kitchen). And also, my bedroom is carpeted.

for bedtime i got harley a huge crate (i think 36 inches) where he has room for a bed at one end and a potty pad in a litter box at the other end. that way if he needs to go, he just gets up and goes and i dont even know it. but as he has gotten older, he mostly will hold it until the morning when i let him out. if we sleep in on the weekend, he will use his pad if he needs to.