Housetraining is, at best, an unsavory task.  Although POOP is unpleasant, teaching your pet where his POOP belongs is effective when performed consistently.  Most adult dogs bearing puppies have the natural inclination to keep their immediate living area clean of urine and feces.  So, puppies will generally get a good head start in this area.  When the caretaking transitions to you - the pet parent – you’ll need to make sure your puppy has plenty of access to areas outside of his living area to relieve himself.  If you schedule your puppy’s feeding and his potty time outdoors, and you limit his opportunities for “mistakes,” he will eventually be following the schedule you establish. 

This task is more difficult for some of us than others.  If your pet is not inclined to keep a small living area clean, there could be several contributing factors:

• It could be your dog is still too young.  Dogs are not physically able to control their bladder or bowels until they reach a certain age.  Much like you would be unable to potty train a human child at 2 months of age, most dogs will not be physically capable of going 8 hours without relieving themselves until they are about 7 months old. 

• It could be your dog was never given the option of keeping his living area clean.  Unfortunately, some puppies are inadequately cared for during their first few months of life.  They end up spending several days in a row in a small crate or pen.  With no clear floor space, they are forced to go to the bathroom in their sleeping or eating areas.  They are not even given the opportunity to learn the concept of keeping clean.  This is a difficult pattern to alter, but can be accomplished.  During training, you may want to consider providing your dog with diapers to help him keep his living area clean. 

• It could be your dog has a medical problem.  If your dog is 6 months or older, and he is defecating more than 1 -3 times a day, he may be experiencing a digestive or parasite problem.  The consistency of the stool can also tell you a good deal about your dog’s health.  Even if you’re not sure, it’s always wise to rule out a physical problem before embarking on resolving a behavior problem.  Talk with your vet. 

• It could be your dog is stressed.  If your dog never has an “accident” in the house or in his crate when you’re at home, but eliminates in the crate when you leave the house for even an hour, stress may be a factor.  Much like people, dogs can also lose bladder and bowel control when frightened or stressed.  Even mild distress can upset a dog’s bowels enough to trigger the need to relieve himself.  Look for books, talk with trainers, or call our Behavior Helpline at 643-SPCA for more information about crate-training and helping your dog feel calmer about your departures. Click here to visit the pet behavior page at richmondspca.org.

Much can also be said about cats on the topic of POOP.  In fact, it’s a vast topic of its own.  Stay tuned the week of March 5, when we’ll address litterbox issues along with a host of other cat concerns.

Today’s blog author is Marie Tripton. Marie is the manager of the Richmond SPCA’s Behavior Helpline.

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