How much water do I allow puppy to drink?

Wow, um, I TOTALLY disagree. Limiting the water before bed is reasonable, but not as early as 5... maybe two-three hours before, and your puppy really needs water more than 2 times per day. Going out every hour or two is just a fact of life with a puppy. They can't hold it and it's detrimental to them to force them to 'dry out'. He should have unlimited access to water for at least several hours a day. Please reconsider this, for your pups sake?!?!

Hi
Drinking water is a fact of life...literally.  In limiting your pup's intake of water, you are forcing his body to use up supplies of water in body tissue and fluids needed to aid in digestion and other bodily functions.  The less water given, the thirstier the pup or dog will become until, in a catch-22 situation, the only thing your dog will want is water!  
 I do not agree with trying to change the entire digestive system of a young pup to coincide with a family's work schedule.  This pup didnt ask to be brought into your home or your life.  It sure didnt ask to be locked up for hours at a stretch with no water to drink.  ..not even at lunch.(!!??). 
There are myriad training schedules online and many can be found on breeder websites.  It would behoove you (for your pup) to check out some sites that might better fit your schedule and that of your pup.
Sincerely
Carol
 

Free access to water all day up until about 2 hours before bedtime.

     I agree with the general consensus here. You NEVER want to limit his water intake, although you can cut it off before "bedtime". SO figure around 7-8pm, he gets to drink his last bowl of water.
     Also you may want to consider other facrots besides age contributing to the frequent urination. Dry food will cause tremendous thirst when compared to dogs who eat canned, cooked or raw diets. I cook up large batches of home made recipes, as well as adding raw & leftovers into my dog's diet primarily because it helps reduce bathroom breaks. They are not constantly in a state of digestion or drinking the copious amounts of water the way they are on kibble. Some kibbles are actually much worse than others in causing the water cravings.
     Finally, there may be a health issue going on here, such as a urinary tract or bladder infection, which may stem from the copious amounts of water this pup is drinking. When the pH of the urine is too low, its a haven for bacteria to grow unchecked. Make sure this dog is on a meat based kibble and try adding in cooked or raw meats to further acidify the urine. Vitamin C tablets will also further acidify the urine. On this note, try to avoid fish based diets, because they do significantly lower the correct pH of the urine.

Brian Kilcommons, a trainer who I believe is well thought of here? Recommends limiting water while potty training in the book "Good Owners, Great Dogs". To give reference to where this idea may come from...not just this post but other folks as well...Brian's sold a lot of books.
 
In his book, water is offered with meals and after hard play sessions. In between times ice cubes are given...and water AND food are taken up at 7pm. He even has a formula in his book for how MUCH water should be given, but I'll be darned if I can recall how much.
 
If you confine a pup with water...and are not there to walk it...one of two things will occur. The pup will cross its legs and hold it for longer than it should...which itself is bad for the body. OR it can urinate in it area....thus creating an even bigger issue of a dog that does not mind at all lying in it's own waste.
 
Better would be to widen the area he's confined in....including a litterbox or potty area...and leave the water down. I do this with my pups and 3 week old's will leave the whelping box to toddle out, pee poop and return. It doesn't need to be a big area...in fact smaller is better. there should be only 2 options...laying down quietly/sleeping/playing spot....and pee/poop spot.

I agree with limiting water 2-3 hours before bed and not at any other time. Also, an 11 week old puppy should be eating more than 2 times a day. You might want to split his food into 3 meals instead.

It also sounds like he's trying to tell you he needs to get out of his crate and go to the bathroom. Listen to his messages and take him out so he isn't forced to pee in his crate. Most puppies can't make it through the night until they're a bit older, so set him up for success by taking him out earlier and more often. If you can't be there to monitor him, let him have a place to pee inside in an exercise pen as suggested above.

Although it would be ideal, I do not want to give my dog a playpen to hang out in while I'm at work.  Then I will only train him to go on his newspaper in a kitchen and not outside.  I want to houseBREAK him fully!! 

He sleeps happily thru the night.  He can clearly hold his bladder while sleeping overnight - we do not FORCE him to hold it.  We wake HIM up at 5am to go out and pee and eat and drink.  He's been an angel in that sense, and for that we are very grateful.

I think we will try the unlimited access to water thing and see how it goes.  It makes sense that I shouldn't limit his access to water in an effort to dry him out to the point where he doesn't HAVE to pee.  However, not everyone feels this way, so before you all judge, I'm not trying to kill my dog or make him sick by limiting his water intake. 

After considerable research, I learned that the feeding schedule for a puppy can be reduced to twice daily as of 10 weeks.  I didn't just decide one day that I didn't want to feed him 3-4 times a day anymore, although we did when he was younger.  I understand some people feed their puppies thrice daily right up until 16+ weeks, but I chose a different schedule that is still healthy from what I know/understand.  

I would check with your vet just to be sure that limited his water in the way described will be OK. 

On this note, try to avoid fish based diets, because they do significantly lower the correct pH of the urine.

 
Can you please elaborate on this--Willow has had past urinary issues and is eating a fish kibble in the mornings.

Bottom line: you cant limit his water intake to help with potty training
What are the resources that say limiting water is ok? Because you are correct when it comes to food but water is a differnet story. I think the better question would be what are you doing to potty train him? I asked that in the pther topic you posted so we could help ypu but got no reply and you persist on taking away the poor things water.
 

A lot of people use paper training in addition to potty training outside. I did and it was fine; we transitioned to outside-only when she was about 5 months with no problems. It doesn't work for everyone, but it certainly can be done and, in my view, it is preferable to inadvertently teaching the puppy to pee in his crate. The crate is only useful for potty training if your dog doesn't pee in there; if he *wants* to pee in there, you'll have to figure out a different method of training and if he *doesn't* want to pee in there, you should provide him with an alternative.

11 weeks is still REALLY young and I'm worried you're expecting too much too soon. How long a puppy can hold it during sleep at night isn't really an indication of how long a puppy can hold it during the day and that should be taken into account when you're deciding how much crate time is appropriate and helpful.

ORIGINAL: inne



11 weeks is still REALLY young and I'm worried you're expecting too much too soon. How long a puppy can hold it during sleep at night isn't really an indication of how long a puppy can hold it during the day and that should be taken into account when you're deciding how much crate time is appropriate and helpful.

 
ditto, a dog usually goes pee more when it has hightened activity. A lot of dogs cannot even go poop until they get suffucient blood flowing, ha ha!

ORIGINAL: sheprano
What are the resources that say limiting water is ok?  I think the better question would be what are you doing to potty train him? I asked that in the pther topic you posted so we could help ypu but got no reply and you persist on taking away the poor things water.

 
I didn't see where you asked that in another topic.  Someone else clearly listed above, a resource that promoted the limitation of water and ice cubes in between "water times".  I would never make this stuff up.  Whether or not the majority agrees is another story, but I didn't just "decide" I was going to turn him into a prune.  I heard and read that limiting water was OK.  I believe the real issue debated is HOW MUCH limitation is acceptable?
 
We potty train him like any other dog owner.  We take him out every couple hours, or every hour for the 3 after he's eaten.  We say "Outside to go pee" a whole lot on the way down the elevator, we say "outside to pee!" while he's outside, and we praise and treat him for outside pees and poos.  He definitely gets the whole "outside to pee" thing.  He's too young to indicate if he needs to go before or after we've already taken him, so we do still have accidents.  Not every day, but I would say regularly.  Again, he's only 11 wks old.   Sheprano, I don't "persist" on doing anything.  This is my first puppy and I'm trying to do it properly, but it's hard, and Leroi didn't come with an Owner's Manual.  If I've made a mistake then hopefully more experienced people will help guide me on the right path.  I've been nothing but honest and forthcoming with our schedules and methods so ease up on the judging!  I'm not avoiding any questions or advice - I really need and want to learn. 
 
inne, I believe I am expecting too much too soon, you're absolutely right.  I guess I get excited after a few days of successful "outside to pee" and assume he's got it down cold, but then we take a few steps back and I realize it'll be awhile before we're consistent.  Leroi was paper trained when he came from the breeder's but we nixed that because we wanted to fully housebreak him ASAP.  I realize because I chose this that I will be dealing with some accidents, but I'm prepared and have my Petzyme cleaner handy! 
 
One last thing, because I don't think I explained properly.  Leroi is a clean animal and would never pee in his crate if he didn't have to.  We have only ever had a few crate accidents - 2 being the first 2 days he was ever crated when we went back to work after getting him, which is understandable.  We also learned the hard way that he needs to go out twice with me before I leave for work.  I come home to a dry crate 80% of the time - I believe if I could tire him out enough in the morning before leaving for work, then he'd just snooze in his crate until I came back at lunch.  That is difficult due to time constraints and crappy canadian weather, but we're working on it! []

Leroi,

I agree with the general consensus here.  When I raised my pup I would take up the water after 9pm.  Our last out at night before bed was 11pm.  For the first month I got up every three hours and took him out.  Second month only once during the night-usually around 4 hours.  Some nights he didn't HAVE to go, but I did it anyways.  I wanted him to really know that outside was the right place to potty.

You can strategize with the water rather than eliminate it completely.  Take small bowl containers and freeze them.  In the morning before you leave put that into his crate with him.  That way the water source is there, but not as readily available for immediate consumption. 

Another option is the rabbit bottle.  That way you can monitor exactly what Leroi drinks during any given period. 

The trick with the water is to provide enough of it that he thinks water is readily available and he doesn't need to hoard it all. 

Start with whatever program on a weekend.  Get up at the same time you would during the regular day, and try to follow the same schedule, including crate time.  I think you'll be surprised at how well Leroi does.

As you know water is very necessary for every vital function, especially kidney function.  If not enough water is present to flush out the wastes in the kidneys, it provides an environment that is condusive to the formation of kidney stones.  It's necessary for digestion, temperature regulation, cardiac function, cell nourishment and proper brain function as well as a multitude of other body requirements. 

It's only been a short while on this program so I don't think any damage has been done.  I would to see health problems manifest later in life though.

Good luck, feel free to PM if you feel the need.[]