A pooping issue
Calvin has been with us for a little over a month now, and he has yet to poop in the yard. He goes poop outside, but he saves it for his walks, sometimes only going poop once a day, and never in his own yard. This is starting to make my husband nervous, because he will be back to teaching soon, and unable to take Calvin for his long morning walk into the neighborhood where he (Calvin, not to be confused with my husband :) ) likes to poop. He does the same thing with peeing too. He waits to mark things, not wanting to go in his own yard. We can walk him around for a good 45 minutes and...nothing. And this is after he's been holding it for about 12 hours.
Does anyone have any suggestions to get him to poop in the yard that he lives in? We've tried putting his poop in the yard so that he can come across it when he is out and about. And we have tried making a big deal about it when he does pee in the yard (which has been like, 4 times).
Any help from you guys would...well...help.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Jane Christensen on
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I wish I had the perfect answer! But I don't!
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Permalink Reply by Sam Tsang on
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Hi Joanna! I know exactly what you mean :) Mocha loves to pee and poop outside of our property line, like you said he likes to save it for his big long walk.
There are a few things that encourage BM
1. increase water intake
2. increase fiber intake
3. exercise
Good hydration level and fiber intake will keep his poop in the right shape, consistency and moisture. Exercise will stimulate BM. Make sure your daily feeding and walking schedule is consistent so that he can anticipate when to evacuate.If he still insist on not pooping after a 45 min walk, then go to your yard and play fetch, that vigorous running, twisting and bending should help him loosen up :)
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Permalink Reply by Rebecca Marie O'Bryan on
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Teddy has the same problem. And when he does go he does one little turd and then "says" he's done and I know better. I wait untill he is actualy done. U have to insist that he must poop in his own yard. When we moved to a new area he went a full day without going. Even with walks. U r doing the right thing by puttin his poo in the yard. It will take a lot of patience and time but if u keep insisting that he must go there he will=) and when he does go have a tasty treat ready for him. Teddy has had this problem ever since he was 8weeks. So u could imagine potty training wasn't fun lol but anways don't get fustrated since he can sence that. Go with him every couple of hours and think positive:) if this dosnt work I would talk to the vet. They may have somthing u could use. If u need anymore advice just ask:) I have a lot of experience with this lol
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I also wanted to mention the first few days will be tough but he will pick it up soon. I wish u luck!
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Permalink Reply by Carla on
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I don't know if this is even possible, but could you try and use the walk as the reward for going to the bathroom in the yard? What I'm trying to say is, if he pees/poops in the backyard, then he gets to go on a walk; that way he would have more incentive to do it, and do it quickly.
We've trained Casey to go only in one specific (and separate) area in our backyard, and her "reward" for going there (beyond the regular treats and praise) was that she got to play and explore the backyard. It worked as both a reward, and it also ensured she evacuated her bowels and bladder before backyard play-time (I like my grass dead-patch free, thank-you very much). My motto was: "No poop, no play." Now she hustles over to the bathroom area every time we go into the backyard and gets her business done as quickly as possible so she can play in the yard.
It might also help (if you don't have one already) to have a bathroom command. Then you can take him out to the yard and give him the command so there's no confusion about what the area is for, and what's expected of him. You may have to wait him out a bit (I know we did at first with Casey and her bathroom area) but eventually, she figured out that the quicker she got her business done in the designated area, the quicker she got to play and run and have fun. I would take her outside and stand there with her for 5 or 10 minutes. If she did nothing, we went back inside and she was crated for 20 or 30 minutes. Then back outside, and so on. Once she went in the area, I made a big deal and we immediately went into the backyard to have play-time. I made the connection between bathroom in this area, fun time in the backyard very clear, so she understood what was expected, and what the outcome would be for each decision (potty or not).
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Permalink Reply by Natalie, Lance &Tucker on
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I would add some canned pumpkin with his breakfast and maybe dinner too. You dont want to give too much as this could cause loose stool. You could try starting with maybe a tablespoon with breakfast and see from there, if no results after breakfast then give some with his dinner too, maybe another tablespoon. Hope this helps you out.
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Permalink Reply by Bev Levy on
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Sparty also likes to poop outside of our yard. I trained him to poop on command so if I am not taking him on his regular walk I coax him out and tell him "go potty". It is pretty easy, just always , as soon as he begins to poop give him whatever command you want to use. (I use "go potty") Do it every time and eventually he will get it. It just takes some consistency at first and then it makes it really easy if you are in a hurry or can not get a walk in.
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Permalink Reply by Joanna, Rainy and Calvin on
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Thanks for the advice! It's all solid stuff (pun intended)! We will definitely try to incorporate this into his routine/schedule and see how it goes.
I guess I was pretty spoiled with Algy, who pooped 5 times a day on command, and peed just as often on command, and quickly because he was afraid he would miss something. I think Calvin is totally ADHD, which compounds matters, but he's a good boy and tries! Thanks again guys!!
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Permalink Reply by Beth on
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You've had great suggestions, and hopefully it will work! Just as a caution, my parents Chessie girl HATES to poop in the yard and she will hold it and hold it til she can barely hold it any more before going in her own yard.
If it were me, I would try the suggestions outlined but if it seemed to continue to distress him I would look for another solution. Is there a commercial or unused property within a block or two that you can quickly walk him to, have him poop there (and clean up of course!) and bring him back? Our dogs nearly always are taken off-property to go, but it's easy for us because we are across the street from non-residential property.
Some dogs over-generalize the "don't soil your den" instinct to their whole property and for those dogs it is genuinely upsetting to them to go on-property. Others just have a mild preference and can be reconditioned without much trouble.
Good luck!
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Lance hates to go in the yard after it has rained, so I have had to use the pumpkin solution for him, the pumpkin does seem to move things along faster and make him have to go. :)
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Permalink Reply by Samwise Roxy and Mom on
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How old is the dog? I wasn't sure if Calvin is a puppy or maybe an adult rescue. In the case of puppies, though, two times a day to potty won't cut it. Heck, that won't cut it for an adult dog most of the time. As a puppy, we had to let Roxy out between 7 to 10 times a day until she was about 9 months old. Granted, I was around at the time to take constant care of her, but if I weren't, I guarantee there would have been accidents in her kennel awaiting me.
She went through the same thing Calvin did when it came to potty training, too. I started leash training her at a very early age (3 months) so she got the idea that walk time=potty time. She still LOVES walks. I'm convinced she knows what the word means because she runs to the door when I say it, even if it's out of the blue.
In retrospect, though, this was a mistake. I should have waited a little until she began to get the hang of potty training. We fixed this with a method called crate training. What you do is you keep the puppy in the crate at all times except for feeding and play in the back yard. Eventually, the dog will start just going in the yard like they would if they were in the house. They're puppies, they will poop and pee anywhere. After a while it becomes pretty routine for them. Don't expect to see reliable results until about 8 or 9 months.
This might seem mean, but it's for the dog's own good. Our trainer assured me that it's completely humane and does not traumatize them. The key is to be consistent. Make sure the dog always has access to water so they have to go when you take them outside. We accomplished this by strapping a drip bottle on to the side of her cage and taking it off during the night. Also, leave him in there with a favorite toy or two. Young puppies need to teethe and even adult dogs have a strong compulsion to chew. I let Roxy out every 2 hours. Your results may vary and you should try to figure out the time frame that works best for Calvin. Make sure to keep a vigilant eye out for them and praise them (with affection, treats or both) when they eliminate in the yard.
One last thing that is vitally important DO NOT FREE FEED. This means that you shouldn't just put food down and let him eat whenever he wants to. Instead, feed him the same amount at the same times every day. There's threads about feeding your Corgi, so I won't get into the particulars of food. The main point is that feeding you dog on a schedule will make him have to poo at around the same time every day. If he doesn't go, kennel him, take him out 30min to an hour later and hope he does his business. He'll get the idea sooner or later.
You can also try using things like spot marker sprays. They sell them at most pet supply stores. They didn't do much for Roxy, but they do work on some dogs that I've seen. Also, poop and pee are like doggy e-mail. He's going where other dogs go to leave a message about his age, sex and health condition. The spray may be particularly effective in your case. I've heard it works better with males.
And remember, potty training is serious business!
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Permalink Reply by Renee Kovacs on
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My dog has a bladder made of iron, sounds like your's does too. I used to worry myself sick, but he's 6 years old now and still this way, and never had any issues. We almost always have to INSIST that he go outside in the morning. He also prefers to use an ivy bed as his toilet, rather than the lawn - maybe you can find a similar 'non-lawn' part of the yard?
If I were in your situation, facing the schedule change soon - I'd probably stop the walks NOW, while I was still home to work on this. I'd think within a few days the problem would solve itself. I'd think there would be less chance of those pesky unintended consequences from stopping walks, than with altering his diet or crating him all day just to 'up the motivation' factor.
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