Dog Barking

Question
My shih tsu is just over 2 yrs old.  I would put her in the laundry room with door closed after see does pee at bedtime.  Never was a problem until a week ago.  She would bark and bang on the door & I would think she might have to go poo.  Only once in a week did she have to poo but otherwise just try to come back in the house after I try letting her out.  Once back in her room, 2 minutes later she starts again.  Usually it lasts 5-10 minutes but now (last night) she barked/whined and banged on the door for 2 hours.  I checked on her only once after one hour and she did pee on the floor. I think it was from getting excited since she had already done her business before bedtime.  Nothing has really changed in the house or routine.  I'm not sure how to handle this.  Right now I let her bark because I know there is nothing else that she needs.

Answer
Hi, Christie,

Have you had your vet check her to be sure there isn't some medical reason, like a urinary infection, causing this change?

Here are some documents dealing with barking.

http://www.marinhumanesociety.org/Behavior/Handouts/BarkControl.pdf
http://www.ddfl.org/behavior/barking.pdf

You might try using a kennel for her, since she's a small dog, and putting her in it and then in your room at night.  It could be that she's lonely; dogs are happiest and feel most secure when around their people.

http://www.ddfl.org/behavior/crate-train.pdf
http://www.marinhumanesociety.org/Behavior/Handouts/Housetraining.pdf
http://www.marinhumanesociety.org/Behavior/Handouts/Anxiety.pdf