My dog has lost her routine & is pooping in the house

I could really use some advice!

Over the past month and a half, Molly has started to go to the toilet in the house on a regular basis. At first I wasn't too worried because I just thought it was because she was ill (She had stomach troubles for a while) but since then, it has started getting more and more regular to the point where she did it multiple times a day, every single day last week. It is like she's completely lost all sense of routine and doesn't know she needs to go outside anymore. I don't know how to get her back into a routine again

I take her out before I go to work (8:30) and my mum takes her out before she goes to work (10:00) but she won't 'do' anything. Then when my mum gets home at 2, she has pooped in the house.

We live with my mum during the week and at my flat at the weekends and I'm with her all day but even then, she has the same problem. For example, on Friday I took her out when I got home from work (5:30) then took her out when we got to my flat (7:00) and then went to the shops. I was only out for 15 minutes but when I got back, she had pooped in the house! I took her out again before we went to bed and got up at 7AM (Our usual routine) but she had pooped overnight. Then I took her out in the morning, she wouldn't go to the toilet so I took her back in and within half an hour she'd pooped in my living room!

The thing is, she's not giving me ANY warning that she needs to go out, which she used to do all the time. Yesterday I was playing with her and all of a sudden she just stopped and pooped in the house. She didn't ask to go out, she didn't give any indication that she needed to go, she just suddenly stopped playing and pooped!

Sorry that was long. I just feel really bad because I feel like I've messed her up by starting work and not giving her as much attention as she got before I want her to be happy, she seems so miserable all the time now. What can I do?

Hi, is your dog going in the same spot in the house each time, or is it in different places?

If its the same place might be worth trying one of those pet odour disinfectants (can get them for carpets if it was on a carpet) as it might be that he can still slightly smell the previous poop? We wouldn't be able to smell it but as dogs have such sensitive noses....

Forgot to add, also worth getting him checked out at the vet (if not already done) just in case it's due to something medical?

I hadn't thought about getting a pet disinfectant, I've just been using normal carpet cleaner. However, she does tend to go in different spots so I'm not sure it's that.. But I shall try it anyway, thanks!

She's been to the vets and had her stool tested (She had a recurring stomach problem for a month or so) so I don't think it's to do with her health.

Does she have access to a garden? If she does, why not make walks contingent on emtpying herself (if that is what she finds reinforcing).

So she only goes for a walk if she has already gone to the toilet in the garden? That would probably work at my mum's house but my flat doesn't have a garden so I couldn't keep up the routine at weekends. Would that make a big difference or do you think just doing it during the week would work?

I train my dogs that they do not get to go out until they have emptied themselves.

This has several advantages

If I am ill and cannot go out they are happy to offload in the garden so I do not have to drag my body out in the cold.

Dogs quickly learn that many owners will put the lead back on as soon as they have emptied themselves outside so delay actually going.

It means I do not have to cart poo bags around

As they come with me when I travel, this habit transfers to getting out of the car or hotel first thing and emptying before they get let off the lead or whatever. It is essential that my dogs empty on command with the lifestyle they lead.

So I see no reason why you cannot do this during the week and just insist that your dogs empty at the nearest available point to your flat before you take them further afield.

I trained several dogs to spend on command BUT with one, who had tummy problems from a young age, it was almost impossible to get him to be totally clean on a walk. He would also poop on a walk if stressed. It is not always possible ir easy to get a dog to spend on command and it also takes time and consistency, your lifesstyle doesn't really fit to it that well to train it initially, unless your dog can stay at your mums for a couple of weekends.

If I were you I would take it right back to basics. Take her out every hour or so. If she does spend ( including wees) reward her verbally and with food. Praise her verbally immediately in a really excited way ( once she has finished) and then run in and praise her IN the house with a treat. Do it everytime for a week or two. If you want her to do it on command as she is spending say the word, we use busy, she will soon cotton on.

If she spends in the house, ignore it totally, no sigh no
nothing. Just clean it up.

Hope this helps

That sounds like a great idea I shall try that, thank you! It'd help with daily things too because she knows that once she's been to the toilet in the garden she has to come inside so it's got to the point where she has to be forced to go into the garden to go to the toilet.

Unfortunately I tried to train her to go on command but it didn't quite work out. I followed all the rules etc. but getting her to go on command just never worked. She has always been much better with signals than vocal commands though so maybe that has something to do with it!

As for taking her out every hour, that's not really realistic for my situation as she has to be alone for 4 hours a day during the week and there's no way around that unfortunately. Sorry! I always ignore when she goes in the house and clean it up without her in the room but it doesn't seem to make a difference.