We just adopted a dog about a month ago, and for the first three
weeks
we had very little trouble having him poop outside. Then last week he
all the sudden started pooping inside very frequently. At first I
thought he was trying to hold it while he was outside in order to get
more time, because he would poop as soon as we came in. He goes for
pleanty of walks- they add up to at least an hour and a half a day.
But now he poops inside at random times and sometimes if he's already
gone outside. He gets fed at the same two times every day- in the
morning and at night, and he goes out afterwards each time, first for
half an hour and then again a little while later. Even though he's
fed
at the same times, he seems to poop at completely irregular
intervals.
Sometimes he won't go for almost a whole day, and then he will go
twice in a row.The only way we can get him not to poop in the house
is
to put him in his crate if he hasn't pooped recently, but we don't
like keeping him in there and he cries constantly when he is.
We've never used any negative reinforcement with him- we haven't
yelled at him or anything like that- we know not to 'rub his nose in
it', so I don't think he's afriad to poop in front of us. And he does
poop in front of us- even in the house. He gets praise and treats
when
he goes outside.
He's very picky about where he poops outside, and often takes a long
time deciding on the perfect spot, and he rarely will go in the same
area twice- but he seems to be fine finding places to go inside.
He sometimes indicates that he wants to out, but then he doesn't
always go, and most of the time seems to want to go out just to play.
We really aren't sure what we're doing wrong, so any information
would
be helpful. Thanks!.

First thing to keep in mind is that this rascal is still "new"; he
hasn't finished settling in. So don't give up! He just doesn't
understand yet. This was quite possibly why he was available to you at
the age of a year.

Crate when you can't supervise unless this is a place that he defecates.
(You weren't very clear about that, but sort of seemed to imply that he
does defecate there.) When he goes into the crate, give him a stuffed
chew toy like a classical Kong filled with your choice of stuff like
broken biscuits or dry dog food mixed with peanut butter or squirt
cheese or cream cheese. If you freeze this overnight, it will keep him
occupied for much of the day. Short stays can be covered with a regular
dog biscuit or a raw carrot (size appropriate to dog) or half a small
apple. This makes the crate a good place to be. Also feed all meals in
the crate. (Note that this approach will be of immeasurable help when
he Must be crated.... at the vet's overnight, or a boarding kennel, and
many "at home" situations.)

If he defecates in the crate, it's a whole new problem to solve. A
folding wire pen called an exercise pen can be configured to confine him
safely on an easily cleaned surface. If he's a big guy, you may need
some variety of top.... they are available in the same type of welded
wire as the pen, but a small tarp also can be used, with bungee cords to
hold it in place snugly. I hesitate suggesting giving him freedom of an
entire room, as, at his age, he may resort to chewing up anything he can
get teeth around, including woodwork and plasterboard and.... doors....
furniture, wires... as well as defecating somewhere.

The idea of confining is to take advantage of the dog's "denning"
instinct.... The den is kept clean. Unless the dog has been kept
kenneled in his sleeping area.... then he needs a bit more space.

He should only be loose in the house at this point when someone can
supervise him.... and then only in the same room as that supervising
human. When he starts to sniff intently or starts to circle or starts
to squat, get him outside. He does not need access to nor has he been
trained not to eliminate in every room in the home...... Yet. It is
just possible, since we can't get dogs to talk to us in English, that he
perceives the interior of the house as his "universe", thus someplace
that he can safely defecate. The fact that he usually urinates outside
tells me that he has made That connection thus far....and Can learn to
defecate outdoors.

When he goes out, a human needs to be at the other end of the leash
fastened to his collar. YOU pick the place, and stand there. Tell him
what you want him to do.... "get busy", "go poo", something short and
something that will become the signal for him to defecate whenever you
give the command. This is not the time for a walk or playing fetch....
You can pre-scent one or a few places in the yard using feces you've
collected indoors. You stay there until it happens, praise highly and
give a tiny but super treat (bit of cheese or leftover meat.... pea
size). If at all possible, Then play for a few minutes before bringing
him inside, so he doesn't connect elimination with Always meaning he has
to come inside instantly.

If he does't go after a reasonable period, bring him in and crate him.
It's likely that he will soon need to go; often shown by restlessness.

Once he's getting reliable with a human on the other end of the leash,
you can stand outside the door and supervise to make certain he's going.

Put him on a schedule. Feed at the same times every day, identify play
times, walks, nap times, bed time, as you would do with a puppy. Take
him outside right after waking from overnight or a nap, within a half
hour after meals, after playing hard, after a big drink.... and about
1-2 hours after his last trip out if one of the previous events hasn't
taken place. This will get his body on more of a schedule...... and
give you some degree of a prediction about when he's likely to need to
defecate. Depending on the dog and the food you're using, he should
settle into defecating 1 to 3 times a day at approximately the same
time(s) a day.

Use an enzyme based pet cleaner-deodorizer to clean up the places he's
gone indoors. Even if it doesn't appear to have "stuck" to anything,
the scent and tiny fragments have, and he's likely to return to that
place. The enzyme(s) literally "eat up" the protein left from urine or
feces. Nature's Miracle is one such product, an there are now many
others. I have not found any version of Febreeze to be particularly
useful for this. Follow use directions.

You will get there, and it's fairly likely that it will just suddenly
happen..... the connection will be made. With fewer mistakes over a
short period, then the problem will be solved.

Keep us posted.... and there probably will be more ideas from others.

Jo Wolf
Martinez, Georgia

On Sat, 13 Nov 2010 06:41:43 -0800, sstina1414 wrote:

so I don't think he's
afriad to poop in front of us. And he does poop in front of us- even in
the house. He gets praise and treats when he goes outside.

I would stop giving him treats when he goes outside, short verbal praise
should be enough followed by 3-5 min play and/or short walk.
Perhaps he figured out that after he 'goes inside' he'll get a treat too
so he is trying to be awarded again.

He's very picky about where he poops outside, and often takes a long
time deciding on the perfect spot, and he rarely will go in the same
area twice- but he seems to be fine finding places to go inside.

I assume you do clean incidents inside right away, it is a good idea to
clean outside without much of delay too. Water with bleach will do
outside, inside a good you can use water mixed with a vinegar (1/4th
vinegar)

More good hints in Jo Wolf reply.

On Nov 14, 10:31*am, sonofdog wrote:
On Sat, 13 Nov 2010 06:41:43 -0800, sstina1414 wrote:
so I don't think he's
afriad to poop in front of us. And he does poop in front of us- even in
the house. He gets praise and treats when he goes outside.

I would *stop giving him treats when he goes outside, short verbal praise
should be enough followed by 3-5 min play and/or short walk.
Perhaps he figured out that after he 'goes inside' he'll get a treat too
so he is trying to be awarded again.

He's very picky about where he poops outside, and often takes a long
time deciding on the perfect spot, and he rarely will go in the same
area twice- but he seems to be fine finding places to go inside.

I assume you do clean incidents inside right away, it is a good idea to
clean outside without much of delay too. Water with bleach will do
outside, inside a good you can use water mixed with a vinegar (1/4th
vinegar)

More good hints in Jo Wolf reply.

Thanks to both people who responded. He has never gone inside his
crate- just in various places on the floor, so that is helpful. We'll
try to get him more comfortable in the crate- so far he hasn't been
receptive to our various bribes. We have the kong, but he won't use
that, or anything else while we're gone- even treats are left
untouched until we come home. Maybe that's another issue all together.
And yes, we always clean up right away with an enzyme cleaner. We're
keeping a closer eye on him while we're home, and feeding him at
regular times so I hope he'll settle into some sort of a routine. I
will definitly try to pick a place for him to go- that would be
incredibly helpful if we can get it to work. I think he's very
trainable- he seems smart and has picked up on 'sit,' 'heel' and
'come,' so I figure its just a matter of time and us figuring out the
right approach. Again, thanks for the replies.

"Amanda George" wrote in message
...
I'm wondering if your new dog feels the same as our dog (we rehomed her
back in July this year) - she refuses to leave the house when it's dark
and/or wet... she holds it in for as long as she can then ends up doing
it in the house because she just doesn't like being outside unless it's
daylight and not wet - could it be the same with your dog?

Amanda George

Good point. A lot of dogs don't like going outside in the wet and dark so
is best to go out with them and make sure they do go to the toilet and not
just sit on your door step waiting to come back in.

"sstina1414" wrote in message
...

We just adopted a dog about a month ago,

Me too!
What breed of dog did you adopt and do you know anything of his background
history? Is he just pooing indoors or weeing too?

Thats a good idea to keep a closer eye on him and watch for signs that he
wants to go to the toilet.
When he does go outside, say something like Go Potty and praise him as he
is actually in action doing it. You need to get your timing right and not
say it before he goes or after he has finished Keep doing this and he
should make the connection between the words and the action of weeing or
pooing and you can then let him out and say go potty and hopefully he will
go.
Al

Another thought is to make sure you keep the outdoor areas clean as in
removing the existing poop. You mentioned he doesn't go in the same
place twice? Scooping the poop can go a long way to making the outdoors
more desirable to poop in.

If I don't keep Dakota's favorite spot cleaned up she will move to a
different one until I clean it. Just a thought.

--
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http://books.gityasome.com
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On 11/16/2010 8:04 AM, Sharon Delarose wrote:
Another thought is to make sure you keep the outdoor areas clean as in
removing the existing poop. You mentioned he doesn't go in the same
place twice? Scooping the poop can go a long way to making the outdoors
more desirable to poop in.

Especially if you feed crap in a bag. Those huge smelly poops are gross!


If I don't keep Dakota's favorite spot cleaned up she will move to a
different one until I clean it. Just a thought.