Most puppies do not have full bladder or bowel control until they're around six months old. A good rule of thumb is to expect a puppy to hold it for about as many hours as his age in months. In other words, a two-month-old pup can hold it for two hours in a crate, a three-month-old pup for three hours in crate, and so on, up to about six to eight hours for an adult dog.

Note: This rule does not apply when a puppy isn't crated. Most pups will need frequent potty breaks while they are up and running loose in the house or a pen.

There are three stages to our fail-proof housetraining method.

• Introduce your puppy to her crate
• Set up a playroom
• Start housetraining

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Veterinarian and animal behaviorist Dr. Ian Dunbar and his wife, dog trainer Kelly Dunbar, collaborate on DogStarDaily.com, OpenPaw.org, and DogTime, where they serve as contributing editors. They are dedicated to strengthening the bond between people and their dogs through training in order to keep dogs in their original homes and out of shelters.

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