Advice on dog walker & pee breaks from apartment-dwelling folks who work all day

elonepb

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Aug 19, 2013
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Butter
Hello all, my 3rd thread post already as a new member to the community! The fast feedback is really incredible, what a wonderful forum.

We pick up "Butter" on August 31st and I am wondering if some people can offer counsel on how they handled the potty training portion of the puppy years with situations similar to mine. My GF and I work all day (last one out the house at 7:45AM, first one back ~6PM). We live in an apartment that has direct access to the street (no going out to a lobby, elevator, etc.), it's just open the door and you are there.

We need to figure out the right routine for "Butter" that will get him the relief he needs. We have a couple interviews scheduled with dog walkers this week (insured & bonded only) and want to get advice on timing. Friends of ours have offered to come over at 3PM so I figured if I scheduled a walker for 11AM (and as needed when friends unavailable) that would work.

We are crate training (36" crate but partitioned to create small space) and would like to hear any tips people might have about helping move this process forward and how the dog walker should handle their pee break timing (e.g. give a treat if Butter goes potty outside?).

Thanks!
 

DudleysMom

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Jun 25, 2012
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Dudley, 12/26/2010-2/8/16; currently I have Kia, 7 yo femaie
You must be so excited, waiting for Butter! I got Dudley when he was just 8 weeks old. At the time, I was working outside of the house (now my office is at home) and used a crate for him. He NEVER had an accident in his crate...NEVER. I found him kind of amazing. I took him out at about 6:45 am; again at lunchtime (I would run home), about 12:15 or so; and then I would get home by 6. He was so good...I was a nervous wreck for a while, but honestly...he was stupendous!:D
 

jm00ser

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Aug 10, 2013
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Daisy
Dog Walker is def a good idea, We will have to look into one ourselves once my fiancee gets her big girl job! Those first couple of months are challenging to say the least for potty training. Daisy is hit or miss. She's great over night and does not do a thing in the crate, and even when we have to leave for a few hours she will hold it...

But then there are those days where she's gone outside to do all of her business, she's crated, and one of us is only gone for 2 hours and it looks like shes been "pawpainting" on the crate bottom.

Breaking up the day into as many breaks as possible is the best thing to do, but accidents will happen! Butter looks absolutely adorabull!
 

Samantha Orts

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Jul 12, 2013
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June
My bf and I also live in an apartment and both work. June is 11 weeks on Thursday and can hold it over night (from around 10:30p-6a) and we take her out as soon as we wake up at 6a, she eats around 6:45a and goes out again and we're gone by 7:15a. My bf comes home at lunch around 11 or 12 and lets her out, feeds her and lets her out again, and she's good again till about 4:30 with no accidents in the crate. I'm sure Butter will be fine with being let out twice. Accidents will happen of course, but with time and consistency he will learn :yes:
 
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elonepb

elonepb

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Appreciate all the input! We have a friend who wants to come over to let him out around 3PM everyday (her excuse to play with him) so if we get a dog walker for 11-11:30AM I think that would work. In the event the friend can't come over, Butter will have to learn to hold it I suppose.
 

Izzy's Mom

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I guess it will also depend on your puppy. For some reason, after reading many posts here, male bullies seem to do better with potty training... is that right?

We kept a good schedule for Izzy and we also live in an apartment. I started waking up 30 minutes earlier to walk her first thing in the morning and after I fed her. Be patient, you will need it! Izzy did not like the grass at first.... it took her some time to figure out that she needed to poty in the grass only!

So she would go out in the morning 5:45am and then again at 6:45-7am. I used to come home for lunch at 11am and take her and again at 4:30pm. Then in the evenings every two hours until 10pm. She did really good at night but we had lots of accidents in the house with her. Had to remove blankets and crate padding at one point. She just seemed to like peeing on those.

Also, you may want to control water intake to make your life easier. Izzy drinks TONS of water... if I don't tell her to stop she will drink bowls and bowls of water. And that means lots and lots of pee after! When I take her to the dog park she thinks the bayou is her personal water bowl and stays in there with water all the way to her ribs and drinks... drinks.. drinks...

Just hang in there! Focus on enjoying every second of your puppy's life and buy tons of paper towels, just in case! ;)
 
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elonepb

elonepb

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Also, you may want to control water intake to make your life easier. Izzy drinks TONS of water... if I don't tell her to stop she will drink bowls and bowls of water. And that means lots and lots of pee after! When I take her to the dog park she thinks the bayou is her personal water bowl and stays in there with water all the way to her ribs and drinks... drinks.. drinks...

Eek! I got a small waterbowl to clasp on the side of the crate. He will be there morning and days before the pee breaks. Should I remove it?
 

Izzy's Mom

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I also have a plastic water bottle attached to her crate but it takes tons of licking for her to drink 1/2 of the bottle! Now if we have her regular water bowl filled all the way to the top after 7pm she will gulp water like a camel!!!! I guess it will depend on your puppy, just watch Butter and soon will learn exactly what to do! :)
 

sunkissedpr1ncs

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Apr 3, 2013
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Barkley and Pippen
We got Barkley when he was about 4 months old and crate trained him from day 1. My husband and I both work all day and are gone from about 7:30am - 5:30pm. We tried to take him out during our lunch breaks for the first week or so but our work schedules/distance to home didn't really allow for that on a consistent basis. Then we realized that he was fine holding it all day and was house trained in no time. He only had an accident in the crate maybe the first couple weeks and never has since then. Even when we get home now and go to let him out, he really has no interest in going out and we sometimes have to push him out the door!

We have a large water bowl that attaches to the side of his crate that I fill up every morning before putting him in and he drinks almost all of it throughout the day and is still fine. We also used to take him out 5-6 times a day but now that he's a little older (and hates going outside! haha) we only take him out 3 times - Once in the morning, once when we get home and once before bed.

Good luck with the new pup! :)
 

jdotlim

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Jul 4, 2013
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Tonka
I got Tonka around 4 months. I crate trained him. He would have a schedule. I would take him out as soon as I wake up. 6am-6:15am. Feed him around 6:45am and I leave the house by 7am to work. I'm back at the house at 4:50pm and take him out again right away. The first month was hard cuz he would pee in his pen area. I didn't have a choice. I worked 30 mins away. So my lunch house would be home by the time I came home and drove back to work. But eventually he leaned to hold it on his own because I guess he didn't like peeing where he laid down. Now I only have him out 3 times a day. Morning, when I get home and before bed, unless he drinks a lot of water. I take him out one more time. They will eventually learn to hold it. You have to make him hold it to learn. Hope it helps. Good luck! And show some pictures of butters! And yes let the dog walker give a treat to butters and praise butters with hugs and petting to show him that peeing outside is the best thing in the world.
 

JAKEISGREAT

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Mar 25, 2011
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Jake
Eek! I got a small waterbowl to clasp on the side of the crate. He will be there morning and days before the pee breaks. Should I remove it?


No..don't limit the water. Pups and all Bully's need access to fresh water. He will have a few accidents. But learn to hold it.
 
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elonepb

elonepb

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Butter
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No..don't limit the water. Pups and all Bully's need access to fresh water. He will have a few accidents. But learn to hold it.

He seems to be doing OK without it. He gets full access before he goes in, when he gets out, etc. We don't take it away until like 8PM-9PM at night. Should I put the water back in? I feel like he's just going to chew it all day.
 

JAKEISGREAT

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Mar 25, 2011
14,802
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He seems to be doing OK without it. He gets full access before he goes in, when he gets out, etc. We don't take it away until like 8PM-9PM at night. Should I put the water back in? I feel like he's just going to chew it all day.


Ive just always been told never t o withhold the water. But if he has it all day and just not while sleeping overnight, I think that's ok..he should be sleeping...right? ;)
 

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