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My puppy won't eat or potty. Night potty breaks & crate time?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Labrador Retriever | Male | neutered | 10 lbs

I just got a new puppy yesterday and it won’t eat it’s old hard food or it’s new hard food and it won’t go potty. He tries to eat my other dogs soft food but he is not allowed to eat that food because it’s not for puppy’s and he has stomach issues so it will make it worse. I also have a couple questions. Do I have to take my puppy potty in the middle of the night or will he be fine? How long can you leave a puppy in a crate? Thank you for reading and I hope you can get back to me soon!

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Angel Alvarado, LVT

Answered By Angel Alvarado, LVT

Licensed Veterinary Technician

Published on February 24th, 2019

You can try warming his puppy food slightly or mixing in some warm water. This could stimulate his appetite. Depending on his age, he may still need to go out in the middle of the night to use the bathroom. The rule of thumb regarding maximum crate time before a potty break is 1 hour for each month of age plus 1 hour. So, if he is 3 months old, that would be a maximum of 4 hours crated before having a break.
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