3- Month Old Puppy Poops in the Middle of the Night, Advice?

[Casey]

Hi, all! Our 3-month old Stanley still has to wake up once in the middle of the night to go poop (and pee). He is crate trained, and he enjoys his crate (he goes in on his own when he is tired or in need of a break). We would really love for him to sleep through the night. I have read about just letting him "whine it out." But, that seems terrible when he legitimately has to go out to poop. In the middle of the night, we are ALL business. We don't play, and he doesn't try to play with us. He goes straight to his corner to do the deed, then he comes straight back in and gets in his den to fall back to sleep. Maybe I should just be glad that he is crate- and house-trained and lets us know when he needs to go.

So ... will he ever sleep through the night without having to poop? (He's slept through maybe 3 times since we've had him).

He eats a very high quality food (2 meals a day at 10 and 4, per the vet's suggestion), and he doesn't overeat. We are very particular about his schedule.

At this age, is it normal for him to have to poop in the middle of the night? Also, how many times a day does your young puppy poop? Stanley goes more each day than our previous adult dog, but I am under the impression that it's normal for pups to go a little more often.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I've noticed that some dogs seem to need some exercise or running around to get things "moving". Maybe a good walk or play session in the evening would help him to do his business before bed? 

I'm also a bit confused about the feeding schedule your vet recommended. He's getting his two meals only 6 hours apart and then nothing for 18 hours? That seems unusual, especially for such a young puppy. 

[Casey]

Yes, the vet recommended just twice a day feedings. I'd love to hear from others if that's really unusual. How often did you feed your pup? 

Casey

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Well, I haven't had a puppy for 25 years, but I do run the Food Group and have an awful lot of experience with feeding dogs. Even most adult dogs would have trouble going 18 hours without food. Young puppies are typically fed three times a day until somewhere between 4 and 6 months. But even with twice a day feedings, they're normally spaced out more evenly. It takes more than 6 hours for a dog to digest a kibble meal. 

[Casey]

Thank you for your advice!  This is very, very helpful.  

[Casey]

I think we'll try feeding him 3 times today.  Feeding him twice didn't seem right to me. I probably should have gone with my intuition.  It's probably hard for his little body to absorb everything from larger meals. Thus, less absorption, more output ;) 

Casey

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'm more concerned about his going 18 hours between meals. You could try staying with 2 meals but spacing them out more.

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

I did do 3 meals a day until about 5 months, and then they were big enough to hold 2 larger meals in their bellies. I feed at 6 am and they start bugging me at 4:30 pm (on the dot). So I figure that they are hungry and feed them then or by 5:00. (they are adult dogs and have us very well trained) lol.

I wouldn't intentionally let them go 18 hours unless there was a real good reason and especially not a growing puppy. 

Suggestions for pooping at night. Do you take him out before your bedtime? Even if he is asleep in his crate? Exercise with a light activity an hour or so after eating by walking, some game in the house?  Some do take quite awhile to find the right special spot, so spending enough time outside is sometimes a challenge to us, but as long as he's not playing around, I would think he'd get down to business. 

BTW; what quality food are you feeding? And to answer how often is normal? When younger, my two usually went 3 times a day, after meals, and now 2 times a day after meals, sometimes less.

[Casey]

He has been going 5-6 times/day. Yes, we take him out before bedtime for a little romp, and then we take him out one last time before we fall asleep. He eats a good food (Canidae Pure Foundations Puppy).

Ugh. I feel bad for having him on a feeding schedule that isn't good. Poor little guy. We were using our vet's recommendation. I wish I'd stuck with my gut. Puppy parent guilt! He was eating the right amount of food, but the meals were probably just too big to digest properly all at once.

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

Don't feel bad, we have all fallen prey to our Vets uneducated feeding suggestions, from brands of foods to feeding schedules. But you are one step ahead of the game when you already have those parents instincts to see something is just not right. And you are the expert when it comes to your dog.  Consider just how little they know about nutrition and take the Vet's suggestions and do what you want anyway.  You came to the right place to ask some very good questions. Try the 3 times a day feedings and let us know how that goes?

[Casey]

Thanks for the reassurance. We are really just trying to do what's best. It's frustrating to get questionable advice from the vet.  

I'll let you know how it goes after a few days on the 3 small meals. :)  

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Many of us here have learned the hard way that when it comes to food and nutrition, the vet is not your best resource. They study medicine, not nutrition, just like human doctors. The big difference is that your doctor doesn't sell food or recommend certain brands, lol.  

[Laurie, Wally & Charlotte]

My dogs are fully grown now, but when they were puppies, we fed them three times a day, with the last meal being between 5:30 and 6 p.m. We switched to a twice-a-day meal schedule when they were about 6 months old. We also picked up the water bowl at 7 o'clock each night. If you want the best chance of Stanley making it through the night without having to go out to relieve himself, try to take him for a good walk an hour or so before you go to bed, and then let him out for one last peeing opportunity right before shut-eye. Maybe switching up his schedule to something like this one will help. I hope so!