Potty training is one of the most difficult parts of being a dog owner. No matter where you are or how busy your day is, you always have to remember to let your dog out on time.
After all, no one wants pee puddles all over their house!
Cavapoo puppies need to go outside every two hours for a pee. Once they reach adolescence at 8 months old, they should be able to hold their bladder for up to 6 hours. However, these timings vary for each dog.
Today we’re looking at how often you should let your Cavapoo outside to go to the bathroom, as well as other tips on how to get through potty training.
Cavapoo Puppy Bathroom Breaks
A Cavapoo’s bladder waits for no one! These puppies are tiny, so we shouldn’t expect their bladder to be very substantial, either.
Their small bladders need emptying much more frequently than adult Cavapoos, so expect to take them out every two hours.
Most potty training guides recommend that you take your puppy out every two hours, even if they’re not exhibiting any signs of needing to go.
Puppies tend to be very excited and will play before telling you they need to go to the bathroom.
So, set a timer and ensure you’re both outside for at least five minutes every two hours.
Puppies reach adolescence after around eight months. This is when their bladders will be mature enough to hold their pee for longer.
Throughout these eight months, they will be able to hold their bladder for longer. However, you should still aim to get them outside every two hours to avoid accidents as much as possible.
Cavapoo Adult Bathroom Breaks
Once a Cavapoo reaches adolescence, it can be left for up to six hours without a bathroom break.
Adolescence is often considered after they hit eight months old, but it can vary from dog to dog.
For this reason, you should always be cautious when leaving your dog alone for the full six hours.
If you try to leave them longer than two hours before they’re ready, you might find an influx of bathroom accidents around your home.
Some Cavapoo owners continue to let their dogs out every two hours until they’re well into adulthood to minimize the possibility of accidents as much as possible.
Making Your Life Easier – Setting Up A Routine
Potty training is inconvenient and annoying. It is very unlikely that you’ll always be around to let your dog out every two hours.
Most owners need to run errands, go to work, and socialize without their dogs, and can’t always make it back home before the two hours are up.
So, what can you do to make potty training a little easier and give you some of your freedom back? Here are some tips and tricks to do just that.
1. Deal With The Puppy Phase
Unfortunately, there’s not much you can do when your dog is a tiny puppy to prolong their bathroom breaks.
They have very little control over their bladders so won’t be able to hold it even for two hours sometimes.
Potty training shouldn’t start before 12 weeks of age. Before this milestone, your dog won’t be able to understand the concept of potty training.
Check out our blog all about toilet training a Cavapoo!
They’ll go whenever, wherever. Make sure that you have lots of training pads around the house.
After 12 weeks, though, you can begin potty training. For the first few months, you’ll need to be with them constantly to let them out whenever they have a drink or every two hours.
Once the first few months have passed, you can begin to test the boundaries and let them out every three hours, then four.
Don’t increase the time between potty breaks too quickly, though – you need to allow your dog to adjust to the change in routine.
2. Keep An Eye On Their Water Intake
Dogs need to be let out every time they have a drink to avoid accidents in the house.
It can be difficult to keep track of every single time your Cavapoo has a drink – especially because they need access to fresh water 24/7.
However, there are a few alternatives to staring at the water bowl all day. One option is a dog camera that you can monitor from your phone.
This will update you when it detects movement so that you can be alerted any time your dog has a drink.
You can then let them out whenever necessary while still being able to get on with your day.
3. Focus On Associations
If your dog learns that the yard is where they pee every time they need to empty their bladder, they’ll be able to start telling you when they want the bathroom.
This is much better than having to take them out every two hours!
Start by giving them a treat every time they wait by the door for you to let them out. You could also give them a treat before letting them out so that they begin to associate the outside with treats.
If you don’t want to give them too many treats, settle for lots of petting and attention instead.
Slowly, you should start to see them waiting at the door for you whenever they need to go to the bathroom instead of waiting for you to take them out.
Set up a camera so that you can see when they’re in position so that you don’t miss their signal.
4. Create A Potty Schedule
If you’re super busy and don’t have time to keep checking a camera, creating a potty schedule is a good idea. You can do this with older dogs who have more control over their bladders.
Decide on the times you can take them out and stick to the schedule no matter what.
We recommend as soon as you wake up, at noon, after work, and before bed. Of course, you might have to let them out more often if their food times don’t correlate with this schedule.
Dogs should also be let out between 5 and 30 minutes after food to do their business.
The most important thing about a potty schedule is that you don’t stray from it. This will only confuse your dog, which can put them back to square one and cause a higher chance of accidents.
Make sure that you have lots of training pads around the house when testing out a schedule, as the learning period is sure to lead to some indoor accidents!
Summary
To sum up, Cavapoos need to pee every two hours when they’re puppies, and at least every six hours once they have reached adolescence.
If they are peeing any less than that you should make sure that they have access to enough clean water throughout the day and are actually consuming it.
If you’re worried about the infrequency of your dog’s urination, talk to a professional vet.
There are many things you can do to make potty training easier on you, such as setting up a schedule, creating positive associations, and keeping an eye on how much water they’re drinking.
After learning about how many bathroom breaks your Cavapoo may need. Take a look at ways to keep your Cavapoo clean and healthy here: