How Long Can dogs hold their pee and poop?

Overview

When you gotta go, you gotta go! Just like you can't cross your legs and hold it forever, your furry friend will need frequent visits outdoors to "do their business" and prevent bladder issues or messes in the house. If you're a first-time pet parent, however, you may find yourself wondering just how often your pet is going to need to visit the great outdoors. Is your new puppy sniffing at the door because of a need to pee or simply a desire to play? Is that older dog you adopted from the shelter ready to go out again, or are they just desperate for your attention?

Understanding exactly how often your dog should go out to pee can help make you a better pet parent as you take your pet's comfort into consideration.

The Short Answer

On average, dogs need to go outside at least 3 to 5 times per day to have the opportunity to relieve themselves. Veterinarians recommend that adult dogs go no more than 6-8 hours between trips outdoors.

Every Dog is Unique

Just like every person is different--your dad can go for the length of an entire road trip without stopping to pee, while your grandmother requires the entire family to stop at every rest stop, gas station, and fast food restaurant on the highway for a quick "pit stop"--so every dog is different, too. There are several factors that can decrease the amount of time your dog has between trips to the bathroom, including:

• Diet, including the amount your dog drinks

It's important to carefully watch your pet's habits. If he or she is squirming uncomfortably after 6 hours at home or in the crate, you should make a habit of letting your pet out every six hours. Know that your dog can make it 10-12 hours without needing to go if you have to be away from home? You can stretch your walk times out a little bit longer, but keep in mind that holding for too long or too frequently can lead to an increased risk of bladder, kidney, and urinary tract infections.

Age and Bathroom Breaks

Puppies, like human babies, pee frequently. The general rule of thumb is to assume that your puppy is capable of holding it for one hour plus the number of months they are. A six-month-old puppy, therefore, is inching much closer to an adult-sized bladder capacity than one who is only one or two months old! Taking a puppy out every hour during the day, however, is a great way to ensure that your puppy is getting the training and attention that they need. Puppies are also most likely to use the bathroom within fifteen minutes of eating or drinking. If you've fed your puppy recently or observed it getting a drink of water, try to take it out within ten minutes and walk until it relieves itself. That way, puppy will learn to associate going to the bathroom with being outside--the desired behavior for you as a pet parent.

Senior dogs, like puppies, lack the ability to hold their bladders as long. Many frustrated pet parents observe their pet's ability to remember to go outside deteriorating as they get older, but it's typically not disobedience on the part of the dog. Senior dogs typically need a bathroom break every 4-6 hours. That may, however, depend on the specific breed of dog, their weight, and their other health problems, among other issues. Some older dogs may need to pee more often.

If you aren't able to be home to take your dog out, hiring a pet sitter is one option for keeping them healthy and comfortable. It can also be helpful to paper train your dog or provide them with pee pads so that they have a "safe" place to urinate even if you aren't available to take them out or they, like their human companions, just can't make it.

What are the special circumstances?

Large breed dogs are more likely to have trouble holding their bladders than smaller ones. Tiny breeds, on the other hand, have a smaller bladder capacity in general, which means that if they're gulping water, they're going to have to pee more often. Your dog may also have to pee more often if:

• They are overweight to obese

• They are on medications that cause or encourage frequent urination

• They have specific health conditions like diabetes

• They have been outside more early in the day and drank more water than usual

When should I call the vet?

Frequent urination in dogs isn't always a symptom of a problem. Age, weight, and other factors can all contribute to your dog's need to go out more often than usual. There are, however, some warning signs that will let you know you need to take your dog to the vet immediately, including:

• Straining or discomfort when urinating

• A change in the color of urine, especially to very dark or red

• A sudden distinct increase in the number of times your dog needs to go out daily, especially one that's not related to any other symptoms

Your pet's comfort comes first! When you're making plans for your dog, be sure that you take their specific needs into consideration.

Breaking It Down

Puppies and younger dogs may need to go out every hour at first. As a puppy gets older, you can add one hour for each month of the puppy's age.

Senior dogs can usually manage 4-6 hours between visits outdoors.

Adult dogs typically need to go out every 6-8 hours at a minimum.

Crate-trained dogs and those whose pet parents are frequently gone for longer hours may be able to hold for as much as 10-12 hours. This is, however, fairly uncommon and should not be expected of your dog.

The better you know your dog, the better you will be at judging how frequently they need to be taken outside.
As you learn to pay attention to your pet's cues, you'll discover that you're able to easily tell the difference between a request to play and a true need to go outside. Letting your dog out regularly, however, will allow you to increase their comfort and reduce the number of messes around your house.

A question many dog parents want answering while housetraining their puppy or adult dog is: how long can my dog hold its pee?

There is a belief that puppies can hold their pee for those many hours as their age in months plus one. This means: if your pet is 3 months old, it can hold its pee for 4 hours.

We think that the above rule is quite ridiculous. It is unrealistic and makes an assumption that your pet’s bladder is completely empty when the clock starts.

The fact is: we simply cannot generalize how long dogs can hold their pee because there is no definitive answer to this question.

So, let us try and break down this information for you: how long can a dog go without peeing.

After all; this is an important topic. We want all pet parents to know about it as it will help them immensely during the potty training puppy apartment process.

How Long Can Dogs Hold Their Pee

Definitive Information is Hard to Come By

Not all puppies are made the same. Puppies are individuals and they grow at individual rates. That is why there is going to be a lot of variation while answering the question: how long can a dog go without pooping or peeing.

Size Does Matter!

How many times a day should a puppy poop depends on its breed and size.

Smaller dogs need more frequent breaks since their bladders are small and fill up quickly. Larger dogs can do with fewer potty breaks.

However, even the larger breeds, in their puppyhood, would still need more toilet breaks. After all; puppies are small and have proportionately-sized equipment. So it is still necessary to let them go 3-4 times a day no matter what size or breed.

Your Pupper’s Age

Younger puppies have small bladders that fill up quickly, especially depending upon the quantity of water your pet drinks.

For the same reason, younger pups tend to wake up more frequently at night and, in the beginning, may need as many as 2-3 toilet breaks at night.

To avoid accidents, you need to take your pet out 4-5 times a day. At night, you can set an alarm to wake it up for a potty break.  Slowly push the alarm time back by an hour each week. (For example, had you set the alarm for 2 a.m.in week-1, set it for 3 am in week-2, and so on). Slowly increase the duration so you can train your pet to hold its bladder longer and longer

What You Feed your Puppaloo Matters – A Lot!

The foods you feed your pet also decide how long it can hold its bladder.

Liquid foods, broth, stock, wet dog food, rice, and, in general, food containing more moisture will lead to frequent urination in puppies. Dry dog food, on the other hand, would require fewer potty breaks.

This does not mean that you start feeding your pet more kibble without any liquids. After all; your pet needs that moisture for better digestion.

Always check with your vet about dietary changes and follow their advice for your pup’s optimal nutrition.

It All Boils Down to the Human Housetraining Chops

You take on a responsibility when you commit to raising a puppy.

The more number of times you take your pet outside to go potty, the fewer accidents he/she would have in the house.

A puppy being housetrained by meticulous dog-parents who manage to avoid accidents is more likely to get housetrained faster by developing greater control over its bladder.

What About at Night?

Night-time puppy potty training is a different ball-game altogether.

If your dog has learned sleeping well through the night, he won’t need as many potty breaks as he would during the day.

After all: its metabolism slows down and feces and urine are not produced in as much quantity as they are during the day. So, in most cases, the answer to the question: how long can a dog hold its bladder overnight is about 6-8 hours.

Again: this is applicable to pets that have learned to sleep through the night. A younger puppy tends to miss its mom and littermates and could need more frequent potty breaks at night.

Have your pet go potty once before settling down for the night. You can take him outside after his last meal for the day or provide him with the dog pee pads and teach him to relieve himself on them. This can simplify potty training considerably.

Conclusion – How Long Can A Dog Go Without Peeing

If you are still wondering how many toilet breaks does a puppy need, then that first entails answering the question of how long can a dog hold its pee and poo?

The goal of housetraining a puppy is to bring down the number of toilet breaks during the day and especially at night.

Granted – potty training a dog can be a chore, especially at night. But you can greatly reduce that chore by being disciplined from the beginning and by using the best dog pee pads.

After all; dogs can get UTI from holding their pee in too long. So, for the sake of your pet’s health, we recommend at least four elimination rounds during the day (and one or two at night). This number can be increased to 5-6 for small breeds.

In addition, you can learn some useful tips here when your dog accidentally pees on your carpet.

We hope this guide helps you. Do let us know in the comments below!

Good Luck!

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