After Playtime And Naps
There are many other times that a young puppy will need to go potty, besides the first thing in the morning and after each meal. These instances include periods after naps and playtime.
Naps are mini-versions of the morning routine. Make sure that whenever your puppy is sleeping, you take them outside the moment they wake up.
During playtime, the stimulation of the digestive tract may also give your pup the urge to have a potty break. Some seemingly random clues that a puppy needs to go out can include sniffing the floor or carpet, wandering away from the family, becoming overexcited with zoomies, whimpering, or running to the door. If you see any of these signs, take your puppy out to potty immediately.
How Often Should I Take My 8 Week Old Puppy Out To Pee
The average puppy can hold his urine for the number of hours equal to his age in months plus one, according to the Animal Humane Society. Therefore, an 8-week-old puppy will urinate approximately every three hours and a 12-week-old puppy every four hours.
What You Need To Prepare Before Potty Training Your German Shepherd Puppy
Its important to make sure that you have everything you need before you begin house training your GSD pup. Here are some things you may want to be sure and have on hand for the potty training process:
- Collar or harness
- Plenty of wipes and toilet tissue
- Lots of patience, a positive attitude, and lots of love!
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What Kind Of Crate Should You Use
German Shepherds are much bigger than most other dog breeds, so it should come as no surprise that theyll need a larger crate. If you have a puppy, remember that they shouldnt be left in a crate for too many hours, the recommendation is one hour for each month of age, up to a maximum of four hours.
When it comes to crate size,German Shepherds should have an extra-large one, no smaller than 48 inches. This allows for enough space for your dog to move around and stretch out without being too confined to a small area.
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You need a metal or wire crate, preferably a heavy-duty one that will be impossible to break as German Shepherds are strong dogs. Most metal crates will fold down, making them easily transportable, and you can opt for either a single or double door or both, depending on how you wish to position the crate.
I like the Midwest Homes for Pets dog crate from Amazon as it comes with the option of double doors, has a divider panel, and is easy to set up.
You can read more about why I like this crate in this article, 8 Best Dog Crates for German Shepherds
Nonetheless, a crate on its own will not just turn into a safe haven for your dog and keep him entertained. Heres a list of the items that you should have inside of your German Shepherds crate:
How Long Can A Gsd Be Left Alone
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Can You Potty Train A Puppy At 8 Weeks
Start housetraining your pup the moment he comes home. It is important, and surprisingly easy, to train your puppy without him making a single toilet or chewing mistake. Also, of course, make sure you teach your puppy to love his den and playroom.
How Old Was Your Puppy When He Came To Your House
Regularly you can pick up the puppy from the breeder when he is eight weeks old. When the puppy is a bit older, it is more challenging to teach him new things, and so the housebreaking might take longer.
In short, it is difficult to estimate how long it takes for your puppy to be housebroken. It may be that you suddenly realize that your puppy has not done anything in the house for a week, but even then, an accident can still happen. No one method works best.
The prevention of accidents through an excellent potty training schedule forms the basis of the potty training. A crate is an ideal tool to housebreak your puppy. Try to avoid accidents as much as you can.
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Limit Accidents When You Arent At Home
What should you do when you arent there to hear or see your pups calls for potty? With a new pup, it is likely that you will not have much luck with potty training if you cant be around to supervise them 24 hours a day.
The first thing to do when you go outside or run an errand is to take your puppy in a crate immediately, so they dont accidentally eliminate in the wrong place. This process is called crate training, and we will learn all about it in the next section.
It may also help to confine your puppy so that they only have access to certain areas in the house when they are left alone. You can use baby gates or other obstacles to restrict your puppy to one room, for example.
When You Wake Up
Each day begins the same for you and your puppy. When the alarm clock goes off, wake up and get your puppy out of the crate and outside to do their business. Dont stop to make coffee, check emails, or brush your teeth.
Keeping the crate in or near your bedroom lets you hear a whimper or a whine if your pup needs to go out during the night or before your alarm sounds. When theyre still small, you may be able to pick your pup out of the crate to carry them outside. This will prevent them from stopping and peeing on the floor on the way to the door.
Always head out the same door to the same area where you want your puppy to potty, and keep them on a leash outside while training , so you can see whats happening and react immediately.
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How Long Can A German Shepherd Puppy Hold Its Pee
At approximately 20 days your German Shepherd puppy is able to control her bodily functions. In other words, shell eliminate when necessary. At 8 to 16 weeks your pup can only hold her pee for approximately 2 hours. Take her out every hour to be safe.
Tips To Make Your German Shepherd Dog Learn Faster:
- You can always find a proper way of training or do things in a better way than the other.
- Regularly take your German Shepherd Dog from one door rather than changing the way every day.
- Whenever you are taking her out, dont forget to put a rope or strap on her neck so that it can recognize you as the owner and follows you.
- When it eliminates or exhales in the correct spot, try to appreciate her or give some gifts like toys or some feed.
- Take her back inside with the help of the strap or belt from the same passage. By mistake, if she poops out inside the shelter or house, please dont shout or abuse her. Because that promotes various reactions. At the time of the puppys early days, the owner should check twice or thrice during the night time to check pup. The owner needs to take it out for poop if it feels uneasy, standing on the cage, mourning. Unless the puppy gets the awareness of routine works and house rules, never let her go out of the cage.
- Overall the potty training looks like a lengthy process, once it is over, the owner can feel carefree after that.
- When we buy a puppy, buy a small cage for each puppy with a door, small bag of biscuits. Have some cleaning liquids which can remove stains and keep the premises clean always. Dont try to train the puppy by reading and getting information from outside. It has to be always from our inner feeling only. We need to take care of the puppy s or pet animals as we take care of our own children.
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Know Your Dogs Routine
There are certain times in the day when your German Shepherd Puppy will definitely poop or pee.
Dogs or puppies tend to go to the loo first thing in the morning, right after naps and after playing. So if you need to train your pup, take it to the spot so it knows it is time to pee.
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Pee Pads Or Paper Are Not Helpful
Although you can easily teach your German Shepherd puppy to use pee pads or paper, it only complicates potty training.
Why?
Well, because at some point they will need to be transitioned from pee pads or paper to outside.
So essentially you’re adding an extra step to potty training. This can cause confusion and potty training accidents.
Rather go for gold and get your pup conditioned to using their toilet outside!
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Urinary Issues In Dogs And Puppies
1. General rule of thumb for house breaking a puppy is 1 hour for every month old the puppy is plus 1 additional hour. Example: a 3 month old puppy should be able to hold its bladder for 4 hours. With this rule in place, a puppy that is 7 months old or older and an adult dog should be able to hold its bathroom needs for 8 hours. This is a reasonable time frame to ask of any dog over 7 months of age, to wait longer could create medical problems. To increase the time, plan 30 minutes a week. This can be accomplished by adding 5 minutes each day to the length of wait time.
2. Water intake for a dog on average is 1 cup of water for every 10 pounds of body weight per day. Example: a 60 lbs dog would drink 6 cups of water a day. Remember to take into consideration that activity level and outdoor temperatures can vary the water intake. Some breeds like Labrador retrievers tend to drink more water. Urine output will usually match water intake on a daily basis.
Crystals are another concern of urinary issues. Crystals tend to appear with a bacterial infection. In general, a bacterial infection has been present, but the dog showed very subtle signs that can easily be missed. Crystals are very fine sand in the bladder and cause pain during urination. Other symptoms include frequent urinations, blood in the urine and straining to urinate. Antibiotics and a diet change are usually the course of action to resolve crystals.
Be A Positive And Patient Trainer
Positive reinforcement almost always works best when training your GSD.
As mentioned above, dont shout at your GSD dog or puppy if they pee or poop inside. Also, dont rush them when they are outside.
Both of these things can lead to scared/fearful behavior, and negative association, which only compounds the problem.
You dont want your GSD to feel bad about needing to go potty, or going potty in places inside the house out of your eyesight.
Always stay calm, but firm and clear with your verbal commands and body language as a trainer.
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Common Mistakes You Should Avoid
There are some common mistakes that could make potty training your German Shepherd puppy go less smoothly than you intend.
Watch out for these little things
Give It Time And Patience
Following these steps will give you the best chance of success, but expect it to take some time.
Dont rush into increasing the time between potty breaks to keep accidents at a minimum. Nevertheless, accidents are inevitable sometimes and all you can do is be patient with them and carry on and make sure you clean up your puppys accidents thoroughly.
The good news is that you only need to endure this once in your GSD puppys life. Once they get it, its unlikely that theyll regress. So, persevere and trust that itll all pay off soon.
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How To Potty Train A German Shepherd
Expect more accidents like this to happen when you have a puppy. Lucky for you, German Shepherds are the third most intelligent dog breed in the world next to the Border Collie and the Poodle. Which means it is the most intelligent large dog breed. Being obedient is natural for them. They can learn tricks in a snap of a finger. Plus, their character trait of being a pleaser makes them highly trainable. So, that makes German Shepherd puppies one of the easiest dog breeds to potty train.
Using Dog Potty Grass Pads
Sometimes, you may find it hard to stick to this strict routine of potty training your puppy. For example, you may overstay at work at times, and no one is at home to take your pup out to pee. And some days, the weather outside will be unfavorable to take your puppy out to his designated bathroom place.
With such a scenario, what do you do? Such are tough situations that founders of using grass potty pads like the Doggielawn grass potty pad had.
So what are grass potty pads? These are rectangular or square patches of artificial or real grass that help make house training your puppy easy.
Such grass pads come sitting on a base or a tray. With such a grass pad, you can either place it indoors, outdoors. After all, youll still achieve better results when house training your puppy.
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Teach Your Puppy A Word Or Phrase To Go Potty
One way to make it easy for you and your puppy to communicate when they need to go potty is by teaching them a word or phrase such as go potty or hurry up. Pick one word or phrase and stick with it.
When you take your puppy out to potty, wait until they are about 10 seconds away from going potty and then let them know that they need to go right now by saying their word or phrase loudly and firmly. At the same time, use a hand gesture like a clap or tap on the ground to get their attention. This will help them to know that its time to go potty right away.
What Happens If A Dog Holds His Pee Too Long
Theres potential health risks associated with forcing your dog to hold its pee for too long. Although he physically might be able to do so, extended periods of holding it in can lead to urinary tract infections or urinary crystals and stones. The inability to urine can also lead to behavioral issues.
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How Much Exercise Do Golden Retrievers Need
Many dog behaviorists believe that you can eliminate up to 90% of behavior problems if you exercise your dog adequately. Remember that Golden Retrievers were bred to retrieve ducks and other game birds for hunters due to their strength, stamina, and high work ethic. So how much exercise do Golden Retrievers need?
The exercise requirements of a Golden Retriever depend on their age and general health. Puppies need five minutes of exercise per month of age, twice a day until they are fully grown. Adults should have at least two hours of activity per day. Senior dogs might only be able to manage 10-15 minutes.
Large breed puppies should not be over-exercised as this can cause joint and bone problems while growing, but dont worry as you will soon get to know your dog and recognize when hes had enough.
Some days your Golden Retriever might want more exercise, some days less, a bit like humans! If your dog doesnt get excited when you pick up his lead, he is tired and wants to rest or isnt well. Listen to what hes trying to tell you!
My dog will put the brakes on, sit down, and looks up at me if she gets tired during a walk. Its her way of saying shes had enough and wants to go home!
Exercise should include many fun activities, not just leash walking. Retrievers love off-leash running, fetch, tug o war, frisbee, swimming, and agility.
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