MaggieDog Posted September 15, 2007 Report Share Posted September 15, 2007 So I've been spoiled: Maggie has always been good about pottying on cue, very helpful on wet nights or at agility trials. Unfortunately she seems to be picking up on my exasperation more and more recently regarding her not pooping when I know she needs to. I have a feeling this has something to do with living in an apartment with no yard for the first time and with the influx of foster dogs, but still, it needs to STOP NOW! I'm sick of having my dog looking like I beat her when I ask her to potty and I'm tired of walking around for hours trying to get her to potty when I know she needs to but not getting anything out of her. I'll admit that a lot of this is her picking up on my frustration, but it's a nice little loop: she doesn't poop, I get worried, she senses the worry and stresses and won't poop, I get frustrated, she gets more appeasing, and so on. The last two days she's gone w/o pooping for 24 hours and I'm starting to get concerned for her health - it can't be good to "hold it" that long and there's no reason she should be doing it: we were on a normal walk schedule and feeding routine and have been for the past week. I'm at the point that I'm going to spend tomorrow doing nothing but taking her out to a grassy area near my door for 3 mins and then back in over and over, but I feel bad for putting her in physical discomfort just for the sake of my need for a dog that potties on cue - please tell me that I'm on the right track and this will help her get over her issues!! Has anyone else dealt with a dog that picks up on frustration like this?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelpiegirl Posted September 15, 2007 Report Share Posted September 15, 2007 Could she be constipated? Sometimes you need to not focus on things, and then they happen. So, I would take her out and when she goes (after not asking for it) tell her what a good girl she is and give her a treat, and then move on. Take the pressure to perform away. So I've been spoiled: Maggie has always been good about pottying on cue, very helpful on wet nights or at agility trials. Unfortunately she seems to be picking up on my exasperation more and more recently regarding her not pooping when I know she needs to. I have a feeling this has something to do with living in an apartment with no yard for the first time and with the influx of foster dogs, but still, it needs to STOP NOW! I'm sick of having my dog looking like I beat her when I ask her to potty and I'm tired of walking around for hours trying to get her to potty when I know she needs to but not getting anything out of her. I'll admit that a lot of this is her picking up on my frustration, but it's a nice little loop: she doesn't poop, I get worried, she senses the worry and stresses and won't poop, I get frustrated, she gets more appeasing, and so on. The last two days she's gone w/o pooping for 24 hours and I'm starting to get concerned for her health - it can't be good to "hold it" that long and there's no reason she should be doing it: we were on a normal walk schedule and feeding routine and have been for the past week. I'm at the point that I'm going to spend tomorrow doing nothing but taking her out to a grassy area near my door for 3 mins and then back in over and over, but I feel bad for putting her in physical discomfort just for the sake of my need for a dog that potties on cue - please tell me that I'm on the right track and this will help her get over her issues!! Has anyone else dealt with a dog that picks up on frustration like this?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaggieDog Posted September 15, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 15, 2007 Ok this is freakin impossible - even when I wasn't saying anything she did the whole "beaten dog" thing. I wish I had a YARD! We're going on 14 hours w/ no pee and about 29 hours with no poop. That can't be good, but I HAVE to get her back into pottying on short walks or it'll just get worse and I really can't afford to spend 2 or 3 hours on walks trying to get her to poop every day - that's what I'm afraid will happen if this continues. I know she's not constipated because when she goes through these "poop strikes" she never even tries to find a spot or attempt to squat, she just walks around. She's getting yogurt or pumpkin every night as well to help normalize things and force things to move along in this case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
painted_ponies Posted September 15, 2007 Report Share Posted September 15, 2007 Tried "matching" her? You don't actually have to use a match - which I guess in this day and age is not something most people have in their pockets. I've seen people use grass stalks. Anything soft and flexible without sharp edges (if you use matches, use the paper kind!), that you can pull back out if you need to - just insert gently and wait. If you're using a match or something dry, lick the end of it before insertion. Usually once they've pooped they'll also pee. I'd also try a long line so you can stand way back from her and not look at her - Vi sometimes finds my hovering and/or staring at her a little too much pressure. Dog show handlers used to use this method all the time - and may still for all I know, since I haven't shown breed ring since my misspent youth. It's really tough to get a client's dog, who doesn't know you and is in a strange place, to go, often on asphalt, in the few minutes you have sometimes between classes. Matching them works like a charm! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaggieDog Posted September 15, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 15, 2007 Oh I've considered it, but I dunno - I wanna see if I can just wait her out and get her over the hurdle itself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TheRuffMuttGang Posted September 15, 2007 Report Share Posted September 15, 2007 Why not just crate her and wait her out? If you don't poop, you don't come out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BCjetta Posted September 15, 2007 Report Share Posted September 15, 2007 I had/have the same problem with my family's dog (my first dog) Jetta. Sometimes she just doesn't want to go wherever it is that we are. For some reason she's being picky and doesn't like any of the spots. And I know she has to go cuz sometimes you can almost see the poop starting to come out and then she just sucks it back in because she can't find the perfect spot. She's 13 now and has done this on and off her whole life. Usually I just walk back and forth along the stretch I want her to go in for 5 mins or so and if she won't go, we just go back in and she has to hold it. With Hannah, I've trained her that she has to poop before I'll go to a field etc to play ball/frizbee because I don't want her pooping in the middle of a public field. I tell her to go and if she does, as soon as she's done we start playing. If she doesn't, then back inside and no play. She caught on to that fairly fast and I can usually get her to go (and if she doesn't have to go, she'll pee instead because she knows if she does something then we'll play). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaggieDog Posted September 15, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 15, 2007 See Maggie used to be trained on cue and would potty all she needed to w/in 2 mins of the cue, but I accidently poisoned it w/ overuse and stress intonations. She's doing this refusal thing even on normal walks in the same places we always go. Today she has been out every hour on the hour for 5 mins each time and nothing - she started to squat twice but didn't pee. We're at 16 hours w/o peeing and 33 hours w/o poop right now. I'm about to give up because I don't want her to hurt herself, but I don't want to teach her that if she waits long enough she can go on a walk instead either. I don't crate her when she comes inside, but she's not getting any play or attention to speak of in the house right now - she has crate anxiety so she's never crated. On another board I was pretty much told that I'm a horrible dog owner for wanting my dog to go potty w/in 5 mins outside and on cue and that I should just take her on a long walk. *sigh* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaggieDog Posted September 15, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 15, 2007 Woo Hoo - success!! We'll do what we did today again tomorrow and see how it goes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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