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I am VERY frustrated right now and I'm not sure how to train this little puppy of ours (almost 12 weeks old, we've had him for 4 weeks).
He was doing okay with potty training. We were having some accidents in the house but for the most part he was doing well.
In the last two weeks he has started peeing and pooping in his crate. He still does really well overnight (sometimes he wakes once but normally he's sleeping through).
We crate him when we can't watch him like a hawk. When he comes out the first thing we do is take him outside and we don't come back in until he pees.
Once in the house he's allowed to play, supervised, for about 30 minutes then it's back outside to pee again before going back in his crate.
This is when he tends to pee in his crate which has been such a chore because everything has to come out, get cleaned down with nature's miracle and then bedding and soft toys have to be laundered. If he poops in there we toss whatever is there (I will not launder poopie in my washing machines!).
He is given plenty of opportunities to eliminate outside and he only goes in his crate when I cannot keep my eyes on him 100% of the time (usually to do laundry upstairs or if I'm occupied in the kitchen with meals and dinner).
Could he need more exercise? Usually we go out in 20 minute increments about 3-4 times daily and we work on his puppy skills inside 2-3 times a day for about 10 minutes at a time.
I'm not sure what we need to change in order for him to stop peeing and pooping in the crate. It is sized so that he only has room to stand and turn so there is no empty corner.
He has been to the vet recently and did have a parasite but has been treated and cleared for it. The only other thing I can think of is a urinary tract infection but would that explain the pooping in the crate too??
If it's not a medial issue, how do I even go about stopping the elimination in the crate?
*we do have a vet appt tomorrow, but the Vet hasn't given me any tips since this has started execpt that he'll outgrow it.
In general a puppy can hold his blader for 30 minutes per each month of age. In your case 90 minutes on average. I would suggest more frequent potty breaks. As soon as he wakes up, after he eats, after he plays, etc. He is not old enough to have the muscle control or to even understand the physical signs that he has to go.
Have you figured out how long from the time he eats until he has to poop? You should time this so that you can give him the opportunity to go when he has to.
You don't mention a breed, but some breeds are typically harder to housebreak than others. I have had dogs that were housebroken in a day and I have had dogs take 6 moths to figure it out. I promise you that he does not want to sit in his own filth and is not doing it just to make your life more difficult.
Same thing happened with us...hang in there it will go away I promise.
1. She had a UTI that we didn't know about. As soon as we started medicating it stopped.
2. I did all kinds of research and sometimes they go through a phase where they pee and poop in the crate. Your vet is right, they do outgrow it. Try putting her in for shorter periods of time and praise her when the crate is clean, then take her right outside to go.
Like I said, hang in there, here we are 2 yrs later with 2 dogs and NO crates at all. It will get better.
How big is the crate? Could it be too large for the pup at his current age? The crate should be of a size where the pup can stand up and turn around comfortably, but not have lots of extra space.
Does he cry before he pees and poops in his crate, maybe trying to let you know he has to go? I am wondering how long you leave him in there? We have a 12 week old puppy too, and so far she is doing well. Like your puppy, she generally sleeps through the night. In the mornings she is up around 5:30-6:00. Then she pees and poops outside, and has her breakfast, sometimes she poops after breakfast instead of before. But I know her schedule, she is pooping 3 times a day, morning, noon and night, so I'm very watchful of her. After she is awake about 2 hours in the morning, running and playing, she likes a little nap. She stays in her crate for maybe a half hour, then she's back out again for an hour or so. Once or twice a day she is in her crate for an hour and a half to two hours a day, and I take her out just before going in, and immediately after coming back out. I will say, our puppy is getting a lot more exercise than yours, then again I'm home with her most of the day. Maybe you could try leaving your puppy out for a little longer than 30 minutes after first waking up? Since he usually holds it in all night, he might not be completely emptying his bladder those first few times he pees after waking up.
We had a dog who would pee and poop in his crate, it was very difficult. He outgrew it when he was around 4-5 months old, in fact we did away with his crate altogether by then, as he was well-behaved in the house. Maybe your puppy will outgrow it.
It sounds like the puppy spends an awful lot of time in that crate. I'm wondering if it's associated pottying in the crate with being let out? Also, if you feed in the morning and you're not taking puppy for a good long walk within half an hour or so you may not be giving him/her enough time to go.
That said, my co-worker adopted a dog from me last year that's about 2 years old that has recently started to potty in her kennel too. Nothing in their life or household has changed and she can't figure out why she does it. She doesn't potty at night. Just when mom is at work. I'm wondering if it's just some 'terrible two' stage she's going through. I hope so. I feel horrible for her!
How big is the crate? Could it be too large for the pup at his current age? The crate should be of a size where the pup can stand up and turn around comfortably, but not have lots of extra space.
His crate is sized so that he can stand up and turn around but he doesn't have excessive space.
He goes all night without having to use the potty (usually 11:30 to 6:00).
As far as potty goes, we take him out VERY frequently, usually about every hour or so. I also make sure to take him out about 20 minutes after he eats his meals and this is typically when he poops.
Most of the time he will go pee on command while we are outside but sometimes I'll take him to his potty spot and wait a little bit, if he doesn't go then we walk/play and we try again which usually does the trick.
Typically we stay out about 20 minutes at a time. It's VERY hot here (it's been in the high 90's and very humid) so I don't want to keep him outside longer than that at one stretch but he does get to run in the backyard (he has a pool that he loves as well which we fill with fresh water for swim-time).
Like I said, we also work on some training inside and the other times the kids are playing with him.
He goes in the crate when I cannot watch him like a hawk, so typically when I'm making meals and doing laundry (so probably about 20 minutes at a time during those times) as well as for his longer naps. He also has to go in his crate while we are out of the house but I always limit that to less than an hour and half.
I just took him out before and after lunch and his poop was FOUL and watery so I'm wondering if his tummy has not been feeling 100%. His poops up until then have been pretty normal, a little soft but the vet said to expect that as he transitioned from his old food (that was done over a 2 week period).
I just called the Vet and they had an appt open up today at 3:00 so I've got his sample in the fridge....Yuck! (triple bagged and in a disposable tupperware).
I am going to try keeping him outside a little longer after his morning pee and after nap potty breaks....someone on here mentioned that he may not be completely empty so hopefully that will help.
**just talked to dh on the phone and he said his poop was runny this morning too....hmmm, wouldn't he think to SHARE that information with me???? GRrrrrr
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