Katrina: Why my dog pees and poops in the house when no one is watching?
I adopted a 2-year-old "completely house trained" dog 2 months ago. He is crate trained and is in the crate whenever we are not home. I let him sleep in the bed at night, and he used to be perfectly fine, but now he has gotten into the habit of pooping on the floor in the middle of the night when no one is watching him. And then if I'm watching a movie and not keeping a direct eye on him, he will go and pee somewhere. If we are watching, then he won't do this. How do I train him to be OUT OF HIS KENNEL at night and not go to the bathroom in the house?
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Answers and Views:
Answer by Morgan F
Sometimes dogs do these things to get attention even if they have a lot already. or there could be something medically wrong or he found a spot he really likes and just keeps doing it.
Answer by Roni
I'm so happy to see I'm not the only owner having issues when they leave their spoiled rotten little doggie alone for what the dog decides is just too long. My little guy is pad trained but I know for a fact that if I stay gone for more than a few hours that he will poop on the floor instead of his fresh laid out pads. I hate the thought of crating him while I'm gone but it's getting a little ridiculous especially because he knows it's wrong and he's doing it on purpose. There are all those nay-sayers who say dogs don't "revenge" poop but they haven't wrangled with my spoiled little guy. I'm sure he has anxiety about being left alone for too long but I can't even be gone for more than 3 hrs without him taking his revenge poop. He is lucky I'm currently disabled and am not gone at work for over 8 hrs a day. I live in an apt so I really don't want to crate him when I'm going to be gone for over 3 hrs it just feels like I'm putting him in prison BEFORE he does something wrong.
Answer by ScottieDog
Is he neutered? I've found unneutered males will urine mark in unfamiliar surroundings. Since he is still new to your home this could be a concern.
The key here is that he is having inappropriate elimination when he isn't being watched. Crate him when you can't give him your attention. You are sleeping--crate him. You are watching a movie, try using the umbilical leash method. Put him on his leash (6 foot or so) and tie the other end to your belt loop. If he wanders off to pee or poo, grab him and rush him outside. You need to restart his house training from step one. Take him out every one to two hours and do not let him have an ability or chance to go in the house. I suspect that is won't take more than 2 or 3 weeks to get him back on track. And make him earn his way out of his kennel. Again, a few weeks of diligence will give you a lifetime of rewards.
Also, make sure you are cleaning his pee and poo spots with an enzyme cleaner such as Nature's Miracle or Simple Solution. If he is still smelling where he went, he is more prone to repeat.
Note, I'm not giving you a neuter lecture, just saying this could be a factor.
One more thing, if he is pooping at night, try altering his feeding schedule so that he will poop in the daytime. Scheduled feedings equal scheduled poops. You didn't mention if you free-feed, so this can also affect when a dog poos.
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Answer by loopy
in the past, the dog has been told off for toileting inside and so hides when he is doing it, he is still unsure whether to trust and so would rather do that than in front of you if he can than face being told off for doing the toilet.
The timing of his feeds means he needs during the night. He is scent marking since he is not the only dog.
Clean anywhere he has toileted in the house with a biological cleaner.
Change his feeding time to the last thing at night, just before bed, so he needs during the day.
Take him for a 30 min walk in the morning before leaving, then put him in his kennel with a stuffed Kong toy. Someone needs to let him out in the afternoon and walk him for 20 mins plus then back in the crate. Same at tea-time, another 20-30 mins. By now he should be happy to just sleep when you are watching a film (shut the door so he is closed in will also help) You need to check and see if he can go a size down in his crate, there shouldn't be room for him to poop without lying in it, and they don't usually want to do that. Continue with the walk last thing at night too.
ANY time he poops or does a pee outdoors, give him TONS of praise and play with him. This is to reinforce that what he is doing is great, when its outdoors, as when he does it indoors you will ignore him for 5 mins. He will over the next three weeks make the connection and the routine will also play a big part as he will get used to 'going' at those times, which means he will need when he is going outdoors anyway.
Answer by Gabriela
that's normal my dog does that all the time all what needs to happen is the dog needs to get trained
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