from wee wee pad to out doors

Question
I have a 1yr old female yorkie she weight about 4 lbs. She was trained to use a wee wee pad. We have had her for about 2 mth. We have her in a create at night. I take her outside fist thing in the morning she will pee outside and i walker her around the back yard and she will no poop and as soon as i bring her back in she poops on her wee wee pad. What are your take on braking her from pooping inside. My 27 yr old son is at home during the day  right now and takes her out side often. But soon he will start a job that will not allow him to be home during the day and she will stay in her create until one of us get home from work do you think she can hold her bladder and bowels from 7:30 am to 5:oopm or do you think we should let her have the run of the house during the day? Thanks so much for your help!
Norma Miller

Answer
Hello Norma!

To get your yorkie to poop outside, you may want to initially try taking a "used" wee pad out to the spot where you want her to go.  Then, once she gets the hang of it you can eventually remove the wee pad.  See this blog post on the topic:

http://blog.gizmo2wizmo.com/2010/02/08/my-dog-wont-pee-outside.aspx

With regard to her being able to hold her bladder and bowels all day, it varies by dog.  At 1 year old she should be able to hold it for several hours, but you probably don't want to give her full run of the house until you're sure.  Try keeping her confined to the kitchen or a room that you choose.  You can even try the crate all day and see how that works for her.  However, if you know her schedule will be changing soon try not to confuse your dog with too many changes at one time.  If you decide you want to give her some space when you are away for the day, you may wish to keep her trained on the wee pads so that she has a potty option while you are gone (besides the carpet or floors of course).  Ultimately, if whatever you choose to try doesn't work, you can check out this next blog post:

http://blog.gizmo2wizmo.com/2009/10/07/stop-your-dog-from-peeing-inside.aspx

Good luck!

Kim