# Poop problems with 6 month old



## cindyb85

I'm getting very frustrated with our 6 month old Mitzi. From the start we took her out regularly but she has decided it's fine to poop in the house. There's no recognition that it needs to be done outside. We have a routine when we go out, getting her to ring the bell at the door, praising her, etc. It doesn't seem to matter.

We've gotten very serious about keeping her in the crate when we're not watching her and know her basic poop routine. However, given a chance to run around inside, she will often poop. It happens almost every day. Help.....is it too late to get her to understand? Is there something else we can be doing? Should she stay in her crate almost all the time? I wonder if having a fenced yard where she could just run and be would help, rather than us taking her out with a leash. Thanks so much for any replies.


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## davetgabby

Welcome Cindy. It's back to square one. Here is a good artricle. http://www.dogstardaily.com/training/errorless-housetraining


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## gelbergirl

she is still pretty young, so the training must continue.
I think it helps to know when she will go.
does she show a pattern.
how many times a day do you feed her.
I always suggest peas in the diet, and try to schedule it a few hours before you can get her out.
Again, she is still young so she is learning how to work these muscles and learning so much apart from poops.
I love talking poops.


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## cindyb85

Thank you for the advice. We feed her twice a day. We do know her schedule but sometimes she'll surprise me and go in the middle of the day, it's usually morning and night. We're crating her most of the time now and watching her closely. We're doing clicker training so when she goes outside she's getting a click and a great treat. Hope it makes sense eventually to her.

Why do you put peas in their food? I've only talked poops about babies before, now it's my favorite dog subject. ;-)


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## gelbergirl

hi cindyb85,
Henry poops in the morning first thing, and then there is another poop during the day.
If there is a 3rd poop it is like WOW!

I use the peas (canned, no salt) to keep things moving in his little system, maybe every so often. He seems to like them.
Some folks give carrots or others will have suggestions, depends on what your little one really likes.

Mitzi is still developing her schedule and it will change over time.

PS I just brought him out at 8:30PM and no poops (I love to talk poops too)

I am also very picky about the treats he gets. He throws up new and interesting treats, so I have stopped new and interesting treats, plus the vet said he needed to drop a pound or two.


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## TheVintageVamp

As Dave said, if you really feel she has no clue what this is all about, I believe you need to go back to the very beginning. Treat it as if she has not even been started on potty training. 

Consistency is key here and the article Dave gave you the link to has great information on that. Basically, you are going to have her in the crate or an ex-pen unless she is being worked with on training measures or out for walks, etc. You need to feed and walk on a nice, routine schedule. When it is time for her to wake up, you wake her up if she is not already awake. Take her out to do business, and make it just that, business...treat her and then back in for meal. Back out around 45 minutes after the meal...etc, etc, etc. There are lots of good threads and articles abound on housetraining, but it is essential at this point to go back to the very beginning and get the basics down.


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## scoobydoo

Remember the 3 second rule. When she goes where you want her to you have only 3 seconds to reward her for her behaviour (so she puts 2 + 2 together) So make sure you get really excited and give a treat. And remember put her out of the way when you clean up any accidents


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## Sam375

A doggie door has saved our sanity...except for when it rains:rant:


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## Redorr

Mitzi may be in regression. When Lola regressed around this age, my trainer suggested that when Lola was out of her crate to keep her on a leash so that she could not roam away and poop under the dining room table. She dragged the leash on the floor, and sometimes I tethered her to a table or to me. That way she was never out of my sight. I think the leash was great. I used it to train her on other behaviors, such as leaving the coffee tables alone. If she ever broke the rules, she got a "TOO BAD" and then 10-15 seconds closed in the dark bathroom away from me. Worked like a charm on leave it, barking, off, and potty. A little tiny bit of correction, a lot of positive reinforcement seems to work.

The other aspect is to get Mitzi to poop on command. That means taking her out on leash, to the same spot, using a command, rewarding the right behavior. A regular schedule helps, not too often out the door, rest of the time on tether and in sight. 

In the end this got Lola back on track, but I think also resulted in severe separation anxiety, so it's always something.


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## leena365

Welcome Cindy. I have the same issues with MIYA and she is also six months of age. KASHI I have no problems in the toileting department he goes where he should like clockwork. I have started putting MIYA on a leash and in my vision at all times unless I let her outside to play. I think I may have to read that article as well. Best of luck!

LEENA


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## cindyb85

Thanks so much for everyone's responses. I can't tell you how much better she's doing! These things made the difference: keeping her crated or leashed most of the time, taking her out regularly, and when she goes she gets a click (she's being clicker trained) and three little pieces of dehydrated beef liver. Read in one the the articles that was referenced that beef liver is the cadillac of treats and they should get three little pieces. Wow, this was it. She wants to go outside and is ringing her bell. Hallelujah, the connections been made, now we need to keep it up! Thanks again! Cindy


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## leena365

I have a question. How long do you have to keep up with the treats? How long does it take our pups to figure out this is where I go all the time?


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## susieg

leena365 said:


> I have a question. How long do you have to keep up with the treats? How long does it take our pups to figure out this is where I go all the time?


Lola is about 7-1/2 months old and I still have a potty party with treats and praise every time she goes outside. I might occasionally forget to put a treat in my pocket....but try to have one every time. She hasn't had an accident in 3 weeks. I think she finally gets it. Hope writing that doesn't jinx it!

Every dog is different. I had no idea it would take this long to potty train her. I thought she would NEVER be potty trained and would get so discouraged when she was still having accidents at 6 months. She seemed to be getting it and walking to the door when she had to go around 5/6 months but was still having accidents every now & then until around 7 months. Can't tell you how happy I am that I think she gets it now! A lot of people on the forum have said their dogs are reliable around 6 - 8 months.


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## newhavaneselover

scoobydoo said:


> Remember the 3 second rule. When she goes where you want her to you have only 3 seconds to reward her for her behaviour (so she puts 2 + 2 together) So make sure you get really excited and give a treat. And remember put her out of the way when you clean up any accidents


Ok why do you have to put them away when you clean up any accidents? Is it a mental thing with them or because they will rip the paper out of your hands?:redface:


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## leena365

Are you saying that we should treat our puppies even when they become dogs? Will our puppies have accidents even when they come out of the puppy stage?


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## davetgabby

leena365 said:


> Are you saying that we should treat our puppies even when they become dogs? Will our puppies have accidents even when they come out of the puppy stage?


Leena , I would keep using the treats until they go two months without accidents. Then gradually fade them out . Even then use a sporadic reward system for a few more months and keep them guessing as to when they might get a reward. I always praise Molly when she goes and occasionally throw in a treat. We have only had two accidents with Molly in five years both were simply a case of her not being able to hold it for 7 hours or so. (our mistake). She was reliable at 12 weeks. And we never used a crate with her. The more you take them out and reward them from the beginning ,the faster they learn.


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## grace132

Murphy will be 6 months old tomorrow, and we've gone almost 6 weeks without an accident. I had purchased bells for the door, but had only shown them to him once or twice (with no reaction) before taking them down when decorating for the holidays. I put them up again once the decorations came down, and he has been ringing them religiously ever since. I was shocked when he first went to the door and nudged them with his nose, since we'd barely spent any time showing him what they were for. What a smart boy!!

I was treating him each and every time he did his business outside, but have gradually lessened the number of treats he gets. Now I may only do it once or twice a day, but will give him a full biscuit instead of just the pieces he used to get. There was a point when he was about 4 months old when I was convinced he would never be house broken, but then one day he just "got it" and it's been smooth sailing ever since. He goes on his "get busy" command, which makes it really nice for a family on a schedule. He is a joy!


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## davetgabby

grace132 said:


> Murphy will be 6 months old tomorrow, and we've gone almost 6 weeks without an accident. I had purchased bells for the door, but had only shown them to him once or twice (with no reaction) before taking them down when decorating for the holidays. I put them up again once the decorations came down, and he has been ringing them religiously ever since. I was shocked when he first went to the door and nudged them with his nose, since we'd barely spent any time showing him what they were for. What a smart boy!!
> 
> I was treating him each and every time he did his business outside, but have gradually lessened the number of treats he gets. Now I may only do it once or twice a day, but will give him a full biscuit instead of just the pieces he used to get. There was a point when he was about 4 months old when I was convinced he would never be house broken, but then one day he just "got it" and it's been smooth sailing ever since. He goes on his "get busy" command, which makes it really nice for a family on a schedule. He is a joy!


good going Grace. That Murphy even looks smart.


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## grace132

Thanks, Dave. Not that I'm biased, or anything...;-)


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## scoobydoo

newhavaneselover said:


> Ok why do you have to put them away when you clean up any accidents? Is it a mental thing with them or because they will rip the paper out of your hands?:redface:


Because you have to be careful what you teach. It can encourage them to try and help you clean up (as in eating the evidence) and because they read you better than you think. If they sense you are stressed out they connect "poop = unhappy owner" not what *we* are really thinking
"poop in my house = unhappy owner".

Hope this makes sense


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## leena365

Dave, how did you potty train your Molly if you did not use a crate?

Leena


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## leena365

Sorry, I just read you used the bell system. Does that mean you give your Molly free roaming of your home?


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## leena365

Dave, I read the article you sent us, I ex-pen my puppies at night in the living room and in that ex-pen is their crate on one end and their ugodog on the other end. In the article it says that the puppies should not lie where they potty how is that to be avoided in the amount space one has in an ex-pen?

LEENA


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