puppy toilet training?

scaredycat

Hi all,

We have 2 dogs, german shepherd and Labrador pup. The Labrador is 8 months now and we have been trying to teach her to poop in the same area outside for the last number of weeks. The problem is, that we recently built our home and there was a huge sandpit outside the kitchen window up to recently and she had a habit of going there as we were not at home to train her. We moved the sand away altogether and now she still goes there. I bring her out every morning (she sleeps in the garage) and she will poop in the grass where I want her to go but if I am not there she will just go anywhere. I would've thought at this stage she would have the understanding to go where she is shown? I praise her loads when she goes but its getting very frustrating that if I am not there, she will go anywhere.
we have a young baby who will be walking by the summer and I don't want to have him walking into poop whenever he's out.
Any suggestions?
Thanks

DBB

Hi op,
It's quite likely, from what you've described, that her pooping in one spot is reliant on your presence. In other words, you've become "part of the cue"... If you're not present, the cue to poop on-the-spot is incomplete.
Pooping is intrinsically reinforcing, so her pooping everywhere when not accompanied has been self-reinforced! I hope that makes sense
What size is the area she's "allowed" poop in?
How often and for how long is she left alone?
Just trying to get an idea if there's a way of gradually removing you from the "poop-on-this-spot" cue

Knine

I keep an area of my garden separate for the kids. I would not have kids playing in an area dogs poop in. It works well for us. The dogs of course all run around the garden with the kids when I'm supervising. I use a dog run & they poop in there. I pick it up twice a day.

scaredycat

Hi guys,

The two dogs are fenced into an area about the size of half an acre...it circles the boundaries of our house as we live out the country. The dogs have the full run of this area as I would feel guilty locking them into a pen everyday as we will be away for long hours when I return to work. (I have absolutely nothing against dog pens btw, its just we have the german shepherd as a guard dog when we are away as our house is quite isolated, so we need him to be able to secure the house perimeter)
My husband has suggested that we leave the grass grow long in one area to allow them to use this as a poop area and hope they don't go in the very short grass? It would be also quite a large area for them?
Like this morning now, I brought both dogs out from the garage and straight to poop area and both dogs peed. Then I went in and I wasn't in 5 min and I saw the pup run over to the kitchen window to poop. I legged it out to stop her and brought her straight up to poop area and she just lay down in grass and went to sleep. I give up!!!

cocker5

OP,

have you considered building a small pen NOT with the intention of leaving them inside all day but for them to poop in?

Each morning bring them straight into this area, close the gate, say a key word ie "toilet" or "poos" whatever you prefer, don't let them out until they have gone... then leave the gate open during the day for them to go in and do their business.

I advised my sister to do this with her cocker puppy, its took a few months but its worked VERY well.... she leaves the gate permenently open and the dog heads straight in for her poos now... and she will poo on demand.

i did the same with my guy when he was a pup, brought him over to a stoney area EVERY time i put him out and said "wee's poos" (sad key word i know), but since then he now ONLY goes in this area and will go on demand when we say the key word.

It will take a few months but it should work.

Like other posters though my sister and i do pick up the poo's twice a day

Best of luck

tk123

Another suggestion - could you cover/block the area you don't want her to go in for a while so she gets used to going in a different spot?

scaredycat

Hi tk123, yeah I think that's what we're going to have to do cos I don't have the time to stand with them every morning and wait for them to poo. (It can take up to an hour at times and I have a small baby so I can't do that). Think we're going to try fence off the area we don't want them pooping in and see if that works... thanks for all your suggestions