How to stop a puppy from pooping in the house

Training your dog to go potty outside, not inside, requires patience and repetition, but it's well worth the effort.

DEAR JOAN: My son has just adopted a rescue dog and he’s having all kinds of trouble. He can’t teach her to go outside and do her business.

He can take her for a walk, but the dog doesn’t do her business then either. She’s a loving dog, about a year old. She has some terrier in her. She just loves you to death. My son dearly wants to keep this dog, but he’s cleaning up after her all the time in the house. Pooping and peeing and everything.

We’re desperately looking for a word of advice.

Alice, Bay Area

DEAR ALICE: Housebreaking a puppy or adult dog can take a lot of work, but the most important thing is to have a lot of patience. The dog eventually will “get it” and then everyone will be happy.

I think your son’s dog must have previously been in a home where she was neglected and was never potty trained. If she thinks she’s being punished when she is put outside, that’s a sign that she probably was punished in such a way.

The good news is, with some tenderness, love and repetition, she can learn that life with your son is different.

Although the dog is a year old, treat her like she is a puppy. Set up a routine where she is taken outside every couple of hours. Establish a place in the yard where she is to potty, and take her to that same spot every time. Use a leash. Allow her to sniff around and get used to going to that spot, even if she doesn’t do anything.

If she goes indoors and your son catches her in the act, he should very calmly put her on her leash and take her to the potty spot. When she eventually does do her business outside, your son should reward her with a small treat and lots of praise.

Teach her code words. For example, asking her if she needs to go potty — or whatever words he wants to use — and then taking her outside. She’ll catch on.

It’s important that she is never punished or scolded for accidents. Dogs live in the moment and they can’t figure out what you’re upset about if it happened 15 minutes ago. Getting angry only makes them fear you, not regret the deed.

Once she gets the hang of it, your son can lengthen the time between outdoor visits, but he should always go with her on the leash so she gets the idea that she’s not being punished and this is what she’s supposed to do.

There will be accidents and setbacks. If your son doesn’t want to use a crate when he’s going to be away for a while, then consider segregating her to one or two rooms in the house, and spreading piddle pads around to help minimize the mess. He should take her out before he leaves and immediately after he comes in, even if it’s apparent she has already done her business in the house.

Eventually, he’ll only need to take her out first thing in the morning and after eating at night, and perhaps before bedtime. As long as he sets a routine and sticks to it, house breaking should go smoothly.

If it doesn’t, he should consider bringing in an expert to help get on the right track.

Needless to say, there are countless joys to owning a dog. Cleaning up their mess isn’t one of them. As a Dog Owner, you can spend what feels like a lifetime trying to stop your dog pooping in the wrong place. Of course, we dog lovers accept toilet training as an icky but crucial part of the Pet Ownership journey. It may not always be fun, and it doesn’t earn you the same doggy love as feeding them their favourite dog food. However, with enough patience from their humans, our furbabies can learn where to do their business.

Even so, our doggos’ toilet habits are not always a straightforward process. Some puppies struggle to learn where they should relieve themselves, while in other cases, fully-grown dogs can seem to forget. Whatever the case, have faith – a solution exists, and it’s within reach. Join us as we cover how to stop your dog pooping in the wrong place!

This little guy doesn’t realise he’s done anything wrong!

Before you can stop your dog pooping in the wrong place, you should know why it’s happening

There are many reasons why a pooch can fail to go where they’re supposed to. If you still have a puppy on your hands, and they seem to have forgotten last week’s training, don’t fret. Dog Training can be a “two steps forward, one step back” process, and there may be times when you fear your puppy is regressing. By sticking to their potty training plan, and rewarding the right behaviour, your puppy will master it sooner or later.

However, if you have an adult dog who’s started pooping where they shouldn’t, there could be a range of reasons. The first potential cause you’ll want to rule out is a medical problem; from digestive troubles to hip dysplasia, maladies can cause dogs to lose the will or capacity to control their bowels. To ensure your pooch isn’t grappling with a hidden illness or injury, play it safe and book a vet checkup.

Once you’ve ruled out medical issues, you can proceed to the next likely culprit: behavioural problems. In the case of boredom or separation anxiety, your furry friend may have started pooping indoors as a cry for help. For canine stress, they may feel a more frequent urge to expel, and want to do so in familiar locales.

Now that we’ve looked at the why, let’s explore how to stop your dog pooping in the wrong place

Bust your doggy’s boredom

If you leave your furry friend at home while you’re at work, they may struggle with boredom. As we highlighted above, boredom can lead our doggies to relieve themselves indoors. The most effective way to address this problem is by leaving your dogs with a committed carer; this can be a friend, a neighbour, or a Doggy Day Care provider. Failing that, make sure you leave your pupper plenty of chew toys and Kongs stuffed with peanut butter. This way, they’ll have something to occupy them over the long hours. Another hack is to play talkback radio while you’re out, which will expose your doggo to the sounds of voices. While it won’t be the same as human companionship, it sure beats stony silence.

Troubleshoot any causes of stress  

Has their indoor pooping begun recently? If so, it could be a response to some change in their environment. Perhaps your neighbours have just started renovations, or maybe you’ve welcomed a second pet into your home. In any event, you can begin to quench the stress by showing your dog that there’s nothing to fear. When the neighbours are renovating loudly, sit with your pup, speak in a soothing voice, and feed them treats. When the new pets struts into their space, use that same soothing voice, lavish your dog with praise, and intervene if things get rough. Regardless of the problem, if you turn it from a negative into a positive, your pupper’s stress will dissolve.

Create an indoor peeing and pooping corner for your pet

Sometimes, our fully-grown dogs can simply regress from their training. This can be a natural thing, and doesn’t always mean your pooch has a problem. If you’ve ruled out all of the above issues, they may simply be having a “puppy moment” in their lives. In this scenario, don’t worry – just pretend you’re dealing with a puppy. While you may prefer for them to relieve themselves outside, for now, simply focus on creating a toilet corner indoors. To this end, lay down some pee pads, and redirect your pupper every time they do their business – even if it means interrupting them. At first, this may lead to some accidents; after a while, though, they should start using their corner.

When they do, give them that puppy potty training treatment and shower them with praises and treats. Once they’ve comfortably set the trend of using their corner pads, you can slowly reintroduce them to outdoor toilets.

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