# How long can your dog go overnight?



## Middleagedmum

Hi all. Our BT is now nearly 14 months old and doing great. 
We know that she can comfortably go 7 hours overnight without needing to go,out but after that she gets restless and asks to go out - she sleeps in her bed with us in the bedroom so we know what her needs are.
This is not a problem and I often let her out during the night if she wakes up when I go to the loo (which is every night thanks to age!). Then we can lie in the next morning if we want to.
I just wanted to check out with other forum members of this normal, especially for a small breed dog with a relatively small bladder. We want her to be comfortable and she wants to be clean and dry.
Thank you


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## Fleur

my boy used to be able to hold for hours and hours - if it was wet or cold he would often hold until walks later in the morning 
However both my girls are probably a maximum of about 10 hours - and infact I've noticed since having a dog flap fitted they will take them selves out during the night to toilet, so although they can hold they prefer not to.

So I guess the answer is how long is a piece of string


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## Sarah1983

Spencer usually goes 7-8 hours before waking me to go out. But he's not desperate then, I think it's more habit than anything. But 7 or 8 hours is long enough imo so habit or need I don't mind.


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## Muttly

Goldie goes 8 hours at night (he is 1 year old) When I get up, the first thing I do is offer him to go out, but he rarely does. He will then go out about half an hour later. In the evening we come back from his walk at half 8 and then he won't want to go out normally until bedtime at about 11 or 12.
It's not a case of small dogs, small bladder. They will still the drink the same in relation to their body size, same as a big dog.


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## mysti

My 15 week old puppy goes just over 9 hours overnight (approx 10.30pm til 7.45am) & has since he was about 9 weeks.


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## mylesaminute

My dog is 5 and has gone from 7am on a Tuesday to 4pm on a Wednesday without toileting as I got stuck on a train and wasn't able to get home. It wasn't ideal but it's nice to know how long he can go without a toilet break. He had food and water available for him as well.


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## Muttly

mylesaminute said:


> My dog is 5 and has gone from 7am on a Tuesday to 4pm on a Wednesday without toileting as I got stuck on a train and wasn't able to get home. It wasn't ideal but it's nice to know how long he can go without a toilet break. He had food and water available for him as well.


He went 33hours????????


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## mylesaminute

Yep...I let him out when I got home and then trawled the house looking for mess but found nothing. I expected to come home to a sewage tank for a house! I can't even go that long.


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## BoredomBusters

My dogs regularly go 9 hours overnight, and they are the size of a BT. I go to bed around 9pm with one, and get up at 6am, my son goes to bed at 12 with the other, and I get the poor dog up at 9am.

Dogs do get used to what they get used to though. If I have to go to bed earlier than 9pm (I have an issue with sleep in Winter that puts my body clock too early) then Fred will reliably tell me it's time to get up 9 hours later!


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## Amelia66

She can probably go about 12 hours sometimes longer depending on the weather in the morning. Only because she would rather hold on forever than pee inside, but if shes desperate she will wake us up and let us know.


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## tarobson

Our 13 month old lab used to go every night before bedtime. But the last month or so, she doesn't always go. Especially if it's raining! This would mean her last wee could have been anytime between 3-5pm. It used to really worry me as thought she would mess in her crate overnight but she never has, thankfully. She's in her crate for 8-9 hours and then will go down the garden first thing in the morning. She's our first dog so we are still learning but I'm guessing it just depends on the dog?


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## Sarah1983

Mine have all learned to pee on cue. Roughly anyway. And that we don't go back inside or anywhere exciting until they have been. RSPCA faces all round when it's been pouring with rain and I've insisted on dog emptying before bed lol. Doesn't bother Spen but the treats mean he's willing to pee when I ask him to 

Rupe was sneaky though, he'd run out, lift his leg for the briefest second and try to run back in lol. It must have worked sometimes because he kept trying it, it was often too dark to see properly.


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## Dogloverlou

Mine will hold themselves for long periods of time - 16/17 hours is the longest! Not for my unwillingness to let them out either. Take tonight for example, last walk was around 6.30 this evening, and that was the last time Ty went to the toilet despite me offering him to go out on the garden since. So he will now hold himself until tomorrow morning. Whether living in a flat had any bearing on the length of time they hold themselves I don't know. It's possible, because only their walks of the day were toilet opportunities with a night time pee break out the back.


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## catpud

I haven't really had to test past the 8 hour mark - that is the most I sleep, and I am in the habit of letting Shadow out last thing before I go to bed and first thing in the morning (the routine is basically, me get ready for bed, have a quick drink, open the door, and yawn my head off waiting for him to come in, and in the morning downstairs, open back door, then make my coffee :lol: ) 

To be honest having a dog that wants to sleep outside makes night time toilet breaks a pain in the bum because it takes a while to persuade him to come back in sometimes.


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## Delilahdog

I agree with Boredom Busters, they do 'get used to what they get used to'
We take our dog out last thing at night for a wee and again first thing in the morning (usually 10pm - 7am)
There have been accidents when the clocks change or when we haven't been able to go out for such long or such frequent walks as normal. So I know now to change OUR routine if we have unwittingly had to change the dog's routine (we don't lead a particularly routine lifestyle but we try to be consistent with hers.)
There have never been accidents if we leave the dog alone during the day so I am pretty sure this isn't the result of poor training or a dirty protest.
Generally I think it is wise not to take it for granted your dog can hold out though, my theory is chewing and other destructive behaviour can be the result of frustration on this account.


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## Rahoulb

Winston's about 3ish (rescue so we're not entirely sure) and seems to have one or two wees per day. As he holds it for so long, they last for ages and really stink!

Unfortunately, he's got into the habit of needing a wee at between 2 and 3am now. Even if I let him out and make him go before we go to bed, he won't, as he's waiting till he's desperate.


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## Siskin

After having what appeared to be "the incredibly leaky pup", it's now quite difficult to get Isla to go sometimes. I force her outside at 9pm and stand at the door waiting for her to have a wee and won't let her in til she does. Sometimes it's the case of who gets bored and gives up first. She's let out at about 8.30am, but invariably doesn't go and waits until I walk her to collect the paper about half an hour later. The capacity of some dogs bladders really surprises me.


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## spots

Our BTxJRT will hang on for however long it takes to stop raining!
He gets out of bed, goes to the back door, then lets out a heavy sigh when he sees the rain and scarpers back under a duvet for a few more hours


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## Wilmer

Betty generally goes 7-9 hours overnight, and doesn't seem particularly desperate when I open the crate - in fact, I usually have to play with food bowls to get her up (total teenager!). 

I try not to push it too much, I'm still slightly traumatised from a holiday we had when she was 8/9 mos old. We didn't realise that she hadn't had her pm/evening poo and got up in the morning to find poo-maggedden in her travel crate. Still have no idea how our accommodation's cream carpet came out of it completely unscathed (but very happy it did!)


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