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Originally Posted by limelightofdawn  Hi Bluebells, thanks for your reply! Your opinion is exactly what I was after so thanks very much! I'm not sure what he weighs now at 16 weeks but he was just under 1kg at 8 weeks and then he was 1.34kg at 12 weeks (a vet check up). He has obviously grown quite a bit this past month. I'm not sure if he is big, small or average to be honest! I agree with you though, want to avoid accidents or making him uncomfortable so I'll stick with my 4 hours for now and increase to 5 in a few more weeks. In the meantime if anyone else has an opinion please do share it with me!
Thanks Lovetodream, the only problem with that for me is his crate is downstairs and I'm unlikely to hear him (it isn't convenient to move him upstairs to sleep). I let him out regularly anyway but he has just started asking (pining) to go out recently when he needs the toilet unexpectedly which is great. He used to just stand by the door and look outside but he has added a whimper now which makes life easier haha. He is doing great so I'll stick with what I'm doing for another couple of months. Hopefully then I can get a bit more sleep  |
I can understand if there’s a temporary impediment to putting his crate in your room, or at least within easy hearing distance, but you’re really not going to be able to stretch out his sleeping time if you can’t hear him if he needs to go potty. Dogs are no more capable of absolute regularity than people are — they can have an upset tummy or an occasional need to potty in the night, just as people do. If you can’t hear him if he asks to go out, you will just teach him that he has to potty in his crate if he really needs to go. Besides, as LoveToDream said, dogs are pack animals and he will be far happier if he’s not alone without his pack all night, every night. It might not be convenient, but it’s best for him.