pooping in the house.

Question
we just adopted a dog but can not get him to stop pooping in the house every morning. We let him out every 3 hours for a potty break and at midnight every night. He does not pee in the house just poop. He is a 5 month old black lab and we are taking him to the vet Tuesday. I just want to know is it a habit we can break? if so how can we go about it?

Answer

Hi Sheanna,

I think you can house train your new puppy. You didn't say how long ago you got him, or what you're feeding him. It can take weeks or months to get a puppy house trained, a lot depends on how well you enforce the "no soiling in the house" rule. If you aren't consistent in your training, you can't blame your puppy for not learning. Poor quality food can increase the number of bowel movements a dog has in a day. It's worthwhile to try a higher quality food and see if things improve. If changing food doesn't help, talk to your vet. There are health conditions that can cause a dog to produce too much stool.
If you decide to change your puppy's diet, do so gradually over a period of 5-7 days. Abruptly changing a dog or puppy's food can cause diarrhea. Read about what to look for in a better quality dog food here:

http://www.dogfoodproject.com/index.php?page=betterproducts

You also didn't say if your new puppy has the run of your home, either overnight or any time you're not supervising him. A dog or puppy that isn't house trained needs to be contained to either part of a room, or to a dog crate whenever you aren't able to supervise him and also overnight. A dog has a natural instinct not to soil where it sleeps. If he's sleeping in a small enough area, such as a dog crate, there wouldn't be room for him to soil and also sleep comfortably. The exception to this would be the length of time a dog is in it's crate. No dog should be crated for more than five or six hours- maximum. If accidents occur in the crate, contain your dog by other means, such as using a small room with child gates, or an indoor dog pen. Dog crates aren't for toileting. These are examples of indoor pet pens:

http://g-ec2.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/AXB_pets/Iris/IRIS_CI-604_Pet_Pen._V4

http://product-images.highwire.com/2267573/94123.jpg

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/images/Categoryimages/normal/p-78609-62404C_224.jp

If you choose to contain your puppy to part of a room or a dog pen, lay a thick layer of newspaper down over the entire containment area, so clean ups will be easier.


Here is information on using a dog crate:

http://www.aspca.org/Pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/dog-articles/weekend-crate

http://pets.webmd.com/dogs/guide/why-crate-train-dog

I notice you said you "let your puppy out every three hours". Your puppy doesn't know the purpose of these trips outside (or that it's wrong to soil in your house). He knows the mess upsets you but doesn't understand that he should stop making the mess in your home. If you're literally letting him outside by himself, there isn't anyone around to reward him for the action you're trying to train him to do: namely going to the bathroom outside! Dogs learn through praise and reward, every leashed walk outside is a learning opportunity. Read more about house training here:

http://www.thedogtrainingsecret.com/Dog-potty-training/Dog-Potty-Training-Tips.h

http://dogcare.dailypuppy.com/stubborn-dog-bathroom-1467.html

http://www.petsitusa.com/articles/owner-resources/housebreaking-your-puppy.html

Wherever your puppy has soiled in your home, clean it with an enzymatic cleaner such as Nature's Miracle, or Simple Solution. Your puppy can smell where he's soiled in your home, and he can be attracted back to those areas to soil again and again.

I hope I've been a help. If you've like to give me additional details as to the house training methods you've already tried, feel free to get back to me.
Best of luck,

Patti