On Fri, 22 Jul 2005 11:36:01 -0400, DaveR
wrote:

This morning we took the dog out, he peed but didn't seem like he
needed to go further because he ran back inside.

When he was left alone for a few minutes he pooped in the house, in
multiple places in the same room, a same location where he has done
this before.

Since we had just taken him out, is it a reasonable conclusion that he
did this solely to get our attention?

No. I think the most reasonable conclusion is that he needed to poop
but not so immediately that he did it before coming in. When the urge
his stronger a few minutes later, he was inside instead of out, so he
picked his favorite indoor spot. Clean that spot with enzymatic
cleaner and keep it blocked off (door shut or baby gate) if at all
possible. Watch the dog like a hawk when inside for any signs that he
needs to go so you can take him out before he can get the deed done.
Praise him to the skies for doing it outside. Assume that he must pee
and poop in the morning and if he does one without the other, either
don't let him in or supervise him and keep taking him back out until
both have been accomplished. I actually think it is great to have
dogs who want to be back inside as it is a motivator. The dog gets to
go inside only after he's all done with business. In the morning,
that means a pee and a poop. If he heads for the door before doing
both (and the door is closed so he can't get in if he does or else the
dog is on leash), I tell the dog that he has to go potty. Once he is
completely done, he gets praised as we run for the door and go in to
play. It's amazing how quickly they get the idea that if they want to
go in, they should at least make a good effort at going. Several of
the dogs I have had would squat even if nothing came out to show that
they were doing their best and should be allowed to go in. I was
always out there until they were a hundred percent trained so that I
knew whether they had actually gone or not and could schedule the next
potty break and supervision level accordingly.

--
Paula
"Anyway, other people are weird, but sometimes they have candy, so it's best to try to get along with them." Joe Bay