Puppy pooing in the house at night - any advice?

[moshimoo]

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Hi guys,

Am new to the forum and new to owning a dog generally. I've had my four month old Japanese Chin puppy for four weeks and am loving getting to know him. He's obedient, clever and learns so quickly!

He's getting on really well with his housetraining generally. He's a quiet boy and barely barks so we've put bells on the door that we've trained him to ring with his paw when he wants to go out. He does this brilliantly during the day and gets a little treat and praise for weeing / pooing in the garden.

However, the last few nights he has been pooing in the house. My partner gets up at 3 to work nights and takes him out for a middle of the night wee and I am awake by 5. In that time, he poos in the house.

He sleeps in a dog bed on the floor, in a small closed room, and has a crate which we don't close. I really do not want to crate him and reading online, 'crate' seems to be the one word answer given to any toilet training problems.

Moshi gets fed at 6, 12 and 4 and has long plays in the park at 7am and 5pm. He's usually fast asleep by 7.30pm and we give him a final chance at around 9pm to go to the toilet. He's on a good quality food that suits him.

Please help! Any advice, other than to crate him, would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

 

[JoanneF]

You could try training a cue word that lets him know you want him to poo. As he is pooing,start telling him the word you want to use. When he poos, reward. When he gets it, when your partner gets up at 3, have him take Moshi out and use the word. He may have to get up a little earlier to wait with him until he does poo!

Another suggestion is to adjust his meal times. Does he poo after his 4pm feed?

 

[gypsysmum2]

Dawn is the natural time for dogs to leave the "nest" and poo. If you can prevent him from knowing that it is dawn then he might be able to hold on longer. Blackout blinds and a radio playing to drown out the dawn chorus might help.

Also just check that your timing, of the treat for pooing outside, is spot on. He should not walk towards you, after pooing, in order tot get the treat. He will think that he got the treat for coming to you. The treat and the poo must be linked together, in his mind, in order for him to understand why he is getting it. This should encourage him to hold on for someone to get up and take him out so that he can get the treat that is on offer in the garden.

Do, also, make sure that he is not picking up any negative vibes around his poo. If he picks up any hint of disapproval at his indoor poo he may come to believe that you do not like poo and so not be so willing to produce it when someone is around.

If all else fails and you do end up using the crate then try to look upon it as a lovely new "den". Dogs love dens and, properly introduced as a fantastic new toy, the den has its place in dog training. It should never be used as a punishment, just as a place of comfort and safety. It may be that you just have to break the habit for a week or two by using a den.

 

[moshimoo]

Hi guys,

Thanks so much for your reply.

He does poo after his 4pm feed on his walk around 6ish.

He does have a poo cue word but really only urinates on command. He knows why he gets the treat and I time it well. I never shout at him or punish him for pooing.

I'll ask my partner to prompt with the poo cue word and try leaving the radio on in the morning.

We're making the feed-time later now as earlier doesn't seem to be working. We had another poo today despite feeding an hour later and him having a poo in the park. :ermm:

I'll keep you updated!

 

[stashers]

with our whippet we had this and we simply gave him his last meal at 6 and anything he hasn't eaten by 7:30 (unless he's literally at his bowl eating) is taken away.

He has a poop around 10ish and doesn't go again until the morning when we let him out.

now if only he would start sleeping in past 6am...

 

[gypsysmum2]

How confident a character is he? Some dogs are nervous in the dark and feel vulnerable when squatting to toilet. This may make them reluctant to go outside in the dark.

 

[moshimoo]

Hey guys. Problem basically resolved, just carried on with what we were doing. Could've been an age thing. He isn't frightened of the dark and a we have a garden light sensor. I guess some things just come with time. I think the later autumn dawns have helped. Thanks for advice!

 

[gypsysmum2]

Your hard work paid off. I am not a big fan of "time" or of "they will grow out of it".