Help - toilet training issue

Hi, I have a Bernese mountain dog who is almost a year old and has had lots of health problems, the latest of which required a 9 day stay in hospital and he can now only get out 3/4 times a day on the lead to pee/poo. Anyway, he was totally toilet trained and always went outside but since coming back from hospital he seems to be quite happy to do it in the dining room, he is confined there while he recovers. We are doing our best to let him out on the lead whenever we think he needs but part of the problem is, he isnt even 'asking out' a lot of the time. He also has bad diarrhea too which, as you can imagine, isnt pleasant! Does anyone have any advice on this? Should we put papers down or will that encourage him? Am so fed up with the smell! Help please!


Lorna

I think putting papers down will make him think that it is an ok place to go and make it harder to correct the behaviour in the long run.

Can you go back to basics with him and take him out every hour to go to the loo, praising him widly when he goes? Ignoring any mess inside, and tidying it up calmly. Have you spoken to the vets? Is there a medical reason why he may be doing this and not lasting as long as he used to?

as catrin says... is there a medical reason?

how long ago was his last stay in the vets?

Aww poor baby he has been through the mill bless him.. Yea I would go back to basics and take him out every hour or so.
Just a thought but if he has been in hospital for a while then maybe they just let them "do" it like in kennels? Perhaps he's just forgot, poor lamb

Thanks for replies, as far as we know there is no medical reason. We think the metacam was giving him diarrhea so we stopped that and he has been getting a light diet of lamb/rice based food but his tummy is still runny. I have been taking him out a lot, probably every hour, except at night, and praising him but the other problem we have is that he doesn't like 'going' on the lead so it's a battle of wills to get him to go, pouring wet here just now too, so it's great fun! he has indeed been through a lot in his first year. 4 eye operations that havent worked. 2 knee operations - the first one he managed to pull the wire and pin loose andf it had to be fixed. And now...he is limping on his front leg. feel so sorry for him as he is such a daft big lump that he just gets on with it. we have to sedate him at night too as he goes a bit crazy after tea time and thats how the last pin/wire popped so he is on ACP too which knocks him sideways, not sure if this makes him complacent about doing toilet indoors? just a thought.....Could really be doing without the toilet issue on top of everything else.
thought the papers down would be a bad idea as I really dont want to go back to that stage. Thanks again for replies,
Lorna

edit - he got home from vets last Thursday, 9 days ago.

Awww poor boy. Did he have lead issues before or have they just started with all the being ill.

I wonder if you could find a nice comfy harness that he could wear if that might break the connection about not wanting to go on the lead? Sometimes they build up these connections but maybe changing from attaching the lead to a harness rather than a collar might convince him it is different and therefore ok.

Good idea Catrin
Just wondering if the sedation medication is making him a bit fuzzy regarding toileting?

Yeah, that's a thought, i suppose it can't make thinking very easy when you are feeling woozy.

given what you have said.. I think its a combination of it all.. the vets.. the ACP.. the horrid weather.. Im sure it will pass quickly... I would say.. just go on as normal just now... see if in another few days things havent improved.. im sure they will have though..

Thanks for replies. Have just cleaned up another poop but thankfully a solid one this morning (sory tmi) I think I will persevere until he is off the medication. I did try my best to get him to go last night but he just wouldnt budge! Looking in to getting a harness anyway as he has problems with pulling and lead biting too! Can you recommend one for a big dog? Thanks again,
lorna