Whippet House Breaking Problem - Please Help

[mexicoglad]

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Hi all

I am new to the K9 Community

I am after some advice regarding my 8 month old Whippet. I've had him from a wee pup and we all adore him. He is walked at least twice daily, never left alone for long I literally take him everywhere I can aside from the supermarket! He travels well, gets on with all other members of my family's pets...

My problem is that he seems to lack any understanding of going to the toilet outside!

At night before bed (10pmish), I take him for a 5 minute walk outside the front of my house (we have a large green there) he usually does a (long) wee then he goes in, has a biscuit and is shut in the kitchen over night. I am up by 7 at the latest upon which I open the kitchen door to a huge wee and a poo. I am in absolute despair as to how to combat this. I usually show him the mess then put him out the back door having told him a firm NO. But I am still waking up to the same every day and occasionally I am confronted by this when I collect my son from school (a 10 minute absence) and always if I go shopping, I return to a 'present'.

Does anyone have any advice for me? I must be doing something wrong but I am so fed up of having to spend the first 10 minutes of every day running hot bleachy water and mopping the kitchen floor :angry:

Thanks in advance

MG

 

[Hula]

Are the poos he does solid , if they are a bit runny it may be that he can't hold them in and has just got to go ?

In the evening I would take him out for longer to give him the chance to do a poo . Maybe 20 mins or so if you can ?

In the evening what time is his last meal ?

Saying No to him quite a while after he has done the toilet will have no effect . he won't have a clue what you are on about . You would have to catch him in the act for No to be useful .

Some dogs toilet when left due to stress .

Have you ever thought of crate training him ? Few dogs will soil their bed . I always crate train pups , it's handy when they are being toilet trained . It's handy when they are at the chewing everything stage . It's also handy if they should ever be in a position where they need to be on crate rest eg injured / broken leg .

By the way , hello and welcome !

Don't despair many of us have dealt with this sort of problem and worse !

 

[mexicoglad]

Are the poos he does solid , if they are a bit runny it may be that he can't hold them in and has just got to go ?
In the evening I would take him out for longer to give him the chance to do a poo . Maybe 20 mins or so if you can ?

In the evening what time is his last meal ?

Saying No to him quite a while after he has done the toilet will have no effect . he won't have a clue what you are on about . You would have to catch him in the act for No to be useful .

Some dogs toilet when left due to stress .

Have you ever thought of crate training him ? Few dogs will soil their bed . I always crate train pups , it's handy when they are being toilet trained . It's handy when they are at the chewing everything stage . It's also handy if they should ever be in a position where they need to be on crate rest eg injured / broken leg .

By the way , hello and welcome !

Don't despair many of us have dealt with this sort of problem and worse !

I walk him (proper walk) at 4.30 then feed him as soon as we get in. I take him out several times before bed with the final trip being about 10pm ish. The poo's are solid (at least that makes them easier to pick up!)

I was letting him sleep on my bed but he would still creep down at some point in the night (without me noticing!) and toilet.

I think crate training is probably the best option :thumbsup:

Thank you for your advice.

MG

 

[alsh]

I had the same problem with my bitch but I sorted it by trial n error,its always harder to house train a dog when they are not vocal n don't let u know they need the loo.1st u may want feed him 30mins before each walk so he'll be feel inclined 2 poo,the 30mins just gives his food time 2 settle. As for bed time leave ur bedroom door slightly open n attach a small bell or wind chime to the handle so it wakes you when he nudges it open.also when he poops where u want him to make a huge fuss n he'll soon get the idea! Hope this helps

Alan

 

[TTT]

Treat him to his very own crate! He is very unlikely to soil in it and you can encourage him to feel cosy in there and get used to being left alone for a time. It could be that the messing is a stress reaction to being left, espeially if he is used to constant company.

Also, what are you feeding him and how much and how often are you feeding him? My pup is 9 months old now and at one stage I had to reduce the amount I was feeding her as I think her system was getting just too much. It may be best if he eats a high quality food that produces small firm poops, rather than a cheaper one bulked out with a lot of cereals making a lot of poops.

Good luck :luck:

 

[eve]

Hi and welcome

Is your dog still on 3 meals a day?

If he is on two meals only, I would suggest feeding him his last meal of the day about 1-2pm then taking him for a toilet break straight after prior to his main walk at 4.30 and subsequent evening strolls. Hopefully by the time it is bedtime (a couple of biscuits) his bowel will be empty.

Hopefully he will start to 'twig' what is expected of him. Lots of praise when he goes 'outside' but as said before, unless you catch him in the process of comitting an 'error' inside, say nothing.

The crate is an excellent idea but introduce it gradually and make it feel like his own 'special place' and not a punishment cell.

One of my dogs was terrified of crates and it took me a long time to get her to be happy in one.

 

[Hula]

Are the poos he does solid , if they are a bit runny it may be that he can't hold them in and has just got to go ?
In the evening I would take him out for longer to give him the chance to do a poo . Maybe 20 mins or so if you can ?

In the evening what time is his last meal ?

Saying No to him quite a while after he has done the toilet will have no effect . he won't have a clue what you are on about . You would have to catch him in the act for No to be useful .

Some dogs toilet when left due to stress .

Have you ever thought of crate training him ? Few dogs will soil their bed . I always crate train pups , it's handy when they are being toilet trained . It's handy when they are at the chewing everything stage . It's also handy if they should ever be in a position where they need to be on crate rest eg injured / broken leg .

By the way , hello and welcome !

Don't despair many of us have dealt with this sort of problem and worse !

I walk him (proper walk) at 4.30 then feed him as soon as we get in. I take him out several times before bed with the final trip being about 10pm ish. The poo's are solid (at least that makes them easier to pick up!)

I was letting him sleep on my bed but he would still creep down at some point in the night (without me noticing!) and toilet.

I think crate training is probably the best option :thumbsup:

Thank you for your advice.

MG

You maybe need to feed him his last meal earlier in the day .

This has probably become a habit now but should be easy enough to sort out .

If you go for the crate option I would put the crate beside your bed at least to start with as he is used to sleeping beside you .

You can always move it later if you want .

Make the crate really cosy like a den .

You can be very reasonably priced crates on Ebay ( new ones )

 

[Rosie]

Hi, I know how you feel as I had problems with Skye on and off for a while at much the same age and even occasionally now at age 2 if she is in season :wacko:

Things that helped us:

Always feed at the same time morning and evening and always walk at the same time each day - that way their digestion gets into a routine. Establish how many poos a day he needs and watch to see he has them before he goes to bed so you know if he needs to go even if it means a longer walk at bedtime.

Set an alarm for a rediculous time like 4am to let him out (gulp!) if you can bear it getting him up before he's been in the kitchen then gradually making this time later over several nights worked with Skye. I prefered getting up for a time than the clean up job :thumbsup:

Whippets are worriers - he may not want to go in front of you as he feels your disapproval when you find a mess in the morning. Completely ignore him if you find a mess and calmly put him outside while you clear up so he doesn't pickup any 'poo is bad' signals. When he goes outside praise him quietly and put a command on it.

I personally wouldn't give him a biscuit at bed, it may make him thirsty so he has a big drink after you've gone to bed which is causing him a problem.

I guess at that age his hormones are all over the place so the increase in metabolism may be a problem in which case he'll improve with time as well.

Hope things improve with him :luck: :luck:

 

[TillynPip]

Can only reiterate what everyone else says and especially the crate. I had a little 1 year old rescue girl who would wee and poo whenever I went out and overnight, regardless of when fed, walks etc. She also had horrendous separation anxiety so I purposefully did not crate her because I thought it would exacerbate the situation and the RSPCA advised me against it ( I will never take any notice of them again for several reasons). However, at the end of my tether but knowing I could never give up on her, I took a deep breath and crated her. I waited for the wailing and leaping around and bar biting. Not a bit of it. She settled down in her warm, cosy den, slept soundly until the morning and, EUREKA, no poos, no wees and an added bonus, she never chewed another thing in the house. (mind you, she'd already ribboned a sofa, eaten the kitchen skirting boards and a door, mobile phones ........etc etc) Give it a go with careful introductions as the other posts suggest and good luck. Let us know how you get on.

 

[FeeFee]

Some very good advice above :thumbsup:

Unfortunately with some dogs this can become a habit rather than a real 'need' to go during the night. My little rescue whippet x girl went through a phase of weeing and soiling in the house at night, and I do sympathise about how depressing it is to wake up to a mess each morning!

I started crating her at night and she was clean and dry in her crate and never woke me to go out. Interestingly, when I get up I always open the back door straight away for the dogs to go out, but she often took herself back to bed and didn't seem to want to go out until later, so she was obviously not bursting to go. After about 3 months I started leaving the crate door open and then removed it altogether and she's remained clean and dry in the night.

Other things that can help are to give the main meal in the morning and just a small meal at night. Also make sure you clean up any accidents with something that breaks down any residual scent like dilute bio washing liquid or Simple Solution, a dog's nose is so sensitive they will pick up the slightest trace and that will encourage them to go back there. If they go in a regular place sometimes just blocking off access to that place can be enough to break the habit.

Good luck, I hope you manage to sort things out :luck:

 

[mexicoglad]

Thank you all for your advice

I feed him two meals a day and always on good quality food as I know Whippets can have sensitive tums. I have started giving him his last meal a bit earlier but after today when I got up at 4.30am to a kitchen awash with wee & poo, I am going for the crate option. I cleaned up the mess this morning calmly and put him outside. I then brought him back in ad went back to bed until 6.45 only to get up to yet another wee AND poo! Grr. When I get paid this month I am investing in a crate and will let you all know how we get on.

Thanks again

MG

 

[Nicola]

Good luck. It looks like this has become a habit...I speak from experience of my own male whippet. Another thing may be too tog him up at night, as he won't settle so well if he's cold. Waking up continuously with the cold will automatically make him want to go to the loo. A nice warm jumper at night in the crate should help.

 

[Rosie]

Thank you all for your advice I feed him two meals a day and always on good quality food as I know Whippets can have sensitive tums. I have started giving him his last meal a bit earlier but after today when I got up at 4.30am to a kitchen awash with wee & poo, I am going for the crate option. I cleaned up the mess this morning calmly and put him outside. I then brought him back in ad went back to bed until 6.45 only to get up to yet another wee AND poo! Grr. When I get paid this month I am investing in a crate and will let you all know how we get on.

Thanks again

MG

You poor thing :blink: he's got to be a bit stressed out to produce all that surely :wacko: I haven't used a crate myself but sounds like that has to be the way to go. Maybe ebay would have a cheap one second hand?

:luck: :luck:

 

[mexicoglad]

I'm feeling really bad now because so many people have mentioned stress I absolutely adore him & do whatever I can to keep him happy. I hope that a crate will help with the problem and that I can post some happy news soon

MG

 

[FeeFee]

Please don't feel bad, lots of people have been through similar with their dogs at one point or another, I'm quite sure it's nothing you are doing wrong.

The point made above about making sure he's not chilly at night is a good one, he's more likely to sleep through if he's snug.

I know it's hard to judge but do you feel he generally produces a lot of poo? Also is what he produces usually solid (sorry to be graphic, but discussion about poo come with the territory of dog ownership :lol: )? I am just wondering if he has a slight food intolerance that means he's not fully absorbing the food you are giving him. Some dogs, for instance, don't do well with food containing wheat or other grains so a change of diet might help.

 

[TillynPip]

DON'T FEEL BAD. Lots of us have been there for one reason or another and you will get it sorted out. Get him crated asap but do it gently and don't make him feel it's a punishment. Feed him in his crate (what a great place this is mum!), put a new toy in there to have a play and if he really likes one particular toy. give him that in there but when he's finished playing with it, quietly take it away. Bring it out again another time and put it in his crate and make it his special toy. Make the den cosy and warm, if you can put it in a corner (but so that he can still see out and feel part of everything) so much the better and half cover it with a towel or blanket. My dogs have about four layers to sleep on so its nice and thick and, now it has turned much colder, they each have a duvet. We have a great shop by us that sells branded seconds, I bought four cot duvets for £12 the lot.

I know it's frustrating and there were times with Pip when I wondered whether we could ever get her sorted out. We did and she was worth every poo, wee, destroyed piece of furniture and sleepless night! I can't remember whether you've had him checked out by a vet and certainly if there is no improvement in the crate, this may be the next step and a look at his food.

One step at a time. Good luck and keep us posted. :thumbsup:

NB I wouldn't put paper down in the crate, that's just telling him it's okay to toilet in there.