11 yr old cocker pooping in house

Question
QUESTION: Our cocker has aleays had accidents of peeing when left out alone. Now she has started to poop all over the room at night, be let out then 30 minutes later (no more food) poop all over the dining room. Its solid so its looking like she is sick. could this be her age or another issue? My husband is about ready to get rid of her for destroying the carpets of our new house. I have had her since she was 8 weeks and this is totally new.

ANSWER: The first thing to do is a vet checkup.  At age 11 this could be a bit of cognitive dissonance and there are meds for that (Anipryl).
Take a stool sample and a urine sample with you.

I'd also like to know what you're feeding her - when - and if she's exercised on a schedule?  Does she have any medical problems?
Has she had a full Wellness check annually?

Is this just happening at night?  Can you confine her to the kitchen if that's the case?  Can you take her for a nice long stroll after dinner to give her time to do her business?
Delores



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: We feed her regular dog food, forget the brand, for older dogs. She eats when the kids eat at 6:00pm and is let out every hour to roam the yard. She is exercised when she is interested, which isn't much. No medical problems that we know of, have has urine tests done previously and all was fine. We confine her to the laundry room while we are gone, and she will poop there too. My husband left the house two times today and she pooped both times he was gone.  Could she be getting back at us for something? Its out of character.

Answer
First of all - one meal a day at night is bad for senior dogs and you're probably feeding an inferior food and all kibble.

However, you need to go to the vet.  This could be a digestive issue.

And "letting her out" isn't good enough.  I think you'd see improvement if she was taken out for half an hour "stroll" after eating.  It doesn't matter how fast she goes - just let her be "out" and moving and stimulated.

I'm hoping this isn't a case of "we love the dog but now there's a problem and any effort is too much".  She needs to be walked twice a day and fed twice a day and fed a premium food.  No exercise will ruin her health.  It's a primary need for dogs.

Go to Canidae.com and find a store near you.  It's an excellent food and I strongly suggest using half canned - half kibble. switch her over slowly.
Delores