Puppy, inconsistant with pooping

Question
I have a 7+ month Shih Tzu / Yorkie mix, male, not neutered but soon will be, Question....I got him from my son when he was 4 months not potty trained...since I have had him he has been excellent with going out in the am, then again in the evening everyday to do his #1 and #2, eating twice a day consistently, but...recently within the past week he just pees no poop..(no matter how many times I have him start the whole routine again), so now..when I get home I find he has done potty and pee in our laundry room where we keep him during the day (I understand leaving a puppy alone is not good, however I play with him and give him attention before work and when I get home).....and now the past 5 days he is doing his thing in the laundry room...what's happening?????  I've given him treats and praised him "good boy" for doing his thing during his training and to this day.  I do mop up, use clorox and then pinesol to clean up the laundry room area...I realize they have a strong smell and will detect the smallest scent.  Help.  Thank you so much for taking the time to help me and our family out.
Joe

Answer
It is hard to say just what is happening.  When you do take him out, make sure he walks around.  Exercise stimulates the body to eliminate.  Can you find a neighbor or professional dog walker to give him a mid day break?  Leaving him at doggy day care is a great idea if you can.

Restraining him in a crate might help too.  It is only natural that a puppy resists its crate at first.  What the puppy wants more than anything else is to be others, you, anyone else in the household, and any other pets.  In our modern society, even if we are home, other things distract us from the attention an uncrated puppy must have.   The only real solution is to crate the dog when you aren't around.  The dog may be happier in its den than loose in the house.  It relaxes, it feels safe in its den.  It rests, the body slows down reducing the need for water and relieving its self.  Dogs that have been crated all along do very well.  Many of them will rest in their crates even when the door is open.  I think the plastic ones give the dog more of a safe, enclosed den feeling.  Metal ones can be put in a corner or covered with something the dog can't pull in and chew.  Select a crate just big enough for the full grown dog to stretch out in.

Leave it some toys.  Perhaps a Kong filled with peanut butter.  Don't leave anything in the crate the dog might chew up.  It will do fine without even any bedding.  You will come home to a safe dog and a house you can enjoy.

A dog that has not been crated since it was little, may take some work. Start out just putting its toys and treats in the crate.  Praise it for going in.  Feed it in the crate.  This is also an easy way to maintain order at feeding time for more than one dog.

The "shut the puppy in a safe room" is a fallacy.  Very few houses even have a safe room.  How many of us have a room with a hard surfaced floor and nothing else?  Most rooms have electrical cords to chew if nothing else.  In addition to destroying anything a bored puppy finds to chew, it may choke or have intestinal  blockage from the pieces.  I had a friend that left her dog in a "safe" room.  It ate a hole in the floor covering.  The safe rooms fail to give the dog the comfort of the enclosed space their instinct requires.  Nor do they restrict activity extending the time the dog can go without relieving itself.