How to convince her to poop

[Lunar]

I think, next to her chewing random objects (which is at least an expected part of puppihood) Zoe's most annoying habit is her constant whining to go out. Here's the problem: I KNOW she has to go poop. I know her schedule, she goes first thing in the morning, then about mid-morning, and then after dinner. But especially recently she'll be whining and doing the poop-dance, I take her out right to the poop spot, and she sniffs and sniffs and looks around, and runs around, and walks, and sniffs. Mainly, she sniffs. EVERYTHING. And she won't poop.

 

Right from day one I started using potty words: "go potty" for pee and "hurry" for poop. "Go potty" works perfectly (at least in our yard - when we're elsewhere she's too freaked out to pee on command). But the "hurry" command seems to mean diddly-squat to her, even though I used the exact same process to teach them both. I throw parties for her when she potties outside, have since day one.

 

Two months ago or so I decided she's just doing this constant whining to manipulate me into going outside, not because she had to go, so after I took her out (and she refused to go), I'd ignore it. And she pooped in the living room 5 minutes later. :mad: She when she whines she DOES have to go (well, not every whine - but I can generally tell the "I just want to go play" from the "I need to goooo potty!"), she's just NOT taking the opportunity to go.

 

She has this burning NEED to sniff the entire area, multiple times, before pooping. Sometimes if I wait she'll go. Sometimes she just loses herself in the smells and forgets why she came out in the first place. For the past month I've only been standing there for 5 minutes, then heading back inside - not indulging in her. I don't take her out and play with her on her terms (I'll take her out and play with her if I decide I want to, when she's NOT whining at the door.)

 

It's even worse now that I'm trying to transition her to a different poop spot. She's pooped there before, it's the same place Zeeke poops, you'd think that would be enough of a hint. But still, had to take her out 3 times in an hour after feeding her, and that entire hour she was prancing and whining.

 

I'm getting extremely frustrated. I have to take her out every 10-15 minutes until she goes, and several trips still won't guarantee she'll go. And if I don't do that, she'll try to go in the house. (I've been crating her recently in between trips so she can't have an accident. But it still doesn't change her behavior outside!) She's almost a year old, this is rediculous. How can I convince her that if she has to go, GO!? Now, not an hour later. :confused:

[Allie+Tess&Kipp]

My 1-year-old BC does this, too. He will take half an hour if I am willing to stand out there. I am not. If he wants to go out, I take him out and if he does not go, then he sits in his crate with trips outside every 10 minutes (2 minutes outside each time) until he goes. THEN we have fun and games and treats. This was a huge pain (and did take WEEKS, I'm sorry to say--I don't know what I did wrong in the first place to give him the idea that he was supposed wait forever out there) but it did get the message across, or so it seems so far. He never went in the house (never had the opportunity, since I just crated him if he did not go).

 

I am now starting to teach him to ring a bell to go out. I never taught him before but now he does not seem to know how to tell me he needs to go out and his signs vary (the older one just comes and puts her head in my lap). The bell ONLY means that we are going out for a potty break. No playtimes out there if someone rings the bell.

 

I am just having him touch the thing with his nose right before I open the door each time. I am hoping that eventually he will catch on that he can ring it and I will take him out. Even if he rings it by accident, I take him out to the potty spot, hoping he will make the connection.

[Lunar]

I think I'm going to tighten up my game and do that - trips lasting 2 minutes outside, no fun, just pottying, or back in your crate. I sure hope it doesn't take weeks because she whines and whines in her crate. (Yeah, she still hasn't gotten over that, either.)

[Tammy525]

I guess you have tried especially tasty treats just after a poo-poo?

 

Also, she might be nervous to go in Zeeke's spot if he is the dominant dog, remember last layer of dog doo is the boss dog.

[Dixie_Girl]

You might consider that some dogs need a bit of moving before pooping. When Cheyenne was on the truck with me, I didn't always have time for her fooling around. She quickly learned, if I stop she better go cuz I could drive another 5 hrs. without stopping! But for pooping, she would wait till night, when we were stopped. And she would go out and usually there would just be a strip of grass at the truck stop and she would go up and down up and down then do some circles, smell, and if all the planets lined up right, she would go! She still does this. Jackson will usually make a few runs around the yard sniffing out the correct spot. But when he poops, he won't stay in one spot! He turns or side steps a bit! I don't know how big a pile he thinks he's gonna make, but it cracks me up!

[Dal & Mad's Mom]

I used to walk jewel endlessly. She was 9 months and not trained when I got her. We spent alot of time going out for nothing going right to the crate. I wish I could say how long it took but, I think like potty training your kids once it's finally done you sort of forget about it.

[AK dog doc]

If you're in a hurry, the following trick (which was taught to me by someone who shows) has worked for me. Evidently it's a faux pas (faux paw?) for the dog you're showing to defecate in the show ring, so they want to "empty them out" before entering the ring.

 

Get a book of PAPER matches (which you can usually get for free at any restaurant or gas station). Tear a match off and insert the PAPER end - *NOT* the sulphur end!!! - into the (um) "area of interest". This stimulates the defecation reflex by putting a little bit of stimulus to the local nerves. You can make a puppy paranoid about the whole "going out" thing if you over-use this trick, but it gives you some control if you're in a hurry and allows you to set up a defecation event to help you train.

 

Yep, the world of Veterinary medicine is soooo glamorous!

[Lunar]

:eek: I'm not sure I could use that trick AK dog doc!

 

Sheryl - I think it's that way about a lot of things. Zeeke used to do tons of very naughty things, but now that we're past it all I tend to forget how much progress he's made and what a hellion he was.

 

Dixie_Girl - I think that might be true to some extent with Zoe. I do notice she tends to poop easier after she's done a few "laps" around me.

 

It's Zeeke who does the turning-in-circles while pooping. It totally cracks hubby up, it's like he absolutely must check out his poop NOW, can't wait until he's done squatting!

 

Tammy - That is something I hadn't thought of. I only recently moved her out to the woods - with her having to go out 10+ times a day, it was a friggin pain to walk all the way out there every time, so I just took her to the side yard to go, and he isn't allowed to go there... and she still had problems pooping.

 

Oh the lovely stuff us dog owners talk about. It's a lot like babies - poop is a major topic of interest!

[WyoBC]

I have the same problem with the dog we have now. (a golden retriver) I try to take her somewhere else than the other dog. (a heeler) She is still picky but it works better. That way it's her spot. It might help. God Bless