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dog owners please help how the hell to stop puppy crapping on lawn

12 replies

woodstock3 · 29/03/2008 17:21

we have a 9mo black lab, he's really dh's dog and i agreed to get him when we had a four month old baby only when dh promised to train him, walk him and clear up after him. ha HA ha.
he is quite bright ((the labrador, i mean - jury still out on dh ), was easily toilet trained and never messes in the house. however he does crap all over the lawn. as ds is now nearly walking and i really want him to be able to use the garden that's got to stop, but how?
have tried taking him to a corner of the garden to do it but he just thinks he's in trouble, sits there looking sad and then the minute he's released into the wider garden craps on the lawn.
i think he should be walked twice a day, first thing in the morning and last thing at night, and should be able to learn to do it then in the park etc leaving the lawn clear. dh, apparently, can't be bothered - sporadically the dog gets a morning walk, but i think it has to be every day or he wont learn the routine. i work ft and have enough to do getting the baby ready every morning without walking the sodding dog as well. is there any other way? and is it reasonable to expect a dog to be able to hold on until he's out of the garden (if walked twice a day)? we bought this bloody house to provide ds with a garden which, as things stand, he will only be able to look at out of the window.

OP posts:
DoodleToYou · 29/03/2008 19:36

Message withdrawn

Onlyaphase · 29/03/2008 19:38

Our labs are bursting to go first thing in the morning, and wouldn't be able to wait unitl they got to the park before having a dump. Think you may just have to get used to clearing up the mess. FWIW I have two labs and an 18month DD, who just loves walking around the lawn all day. I have a shovel and plastic bag to hand at all times!

hercules1 · 29/03/2008 19:39

Aww, poor dog. It really needs at least one good walk a day. I believe a full grown lab needs about 1 -2 hours a day.

We have 3 dogs and fenced off a part of the garden for the dogs and gravelled a toilet area in their area for them. We went with them for a few days to shove them on to the toilet area and no problems since.

chonky · 29/03/2008 19:40

Good advice from DoodleToYou.

I'd also threaten dh with having the dog re-homed if he doesn't pull his finger out (I have a 6m old lab, so I know how much hard work they are)!

chonky · 29/03/2008 19:41

Inclined to agree that there's no escaping the poo shovelling.

CountryGirl2007 · 30/03/2008 02:56

Labradors are a very high energy breed, they were bred to work so they need a lot of exercise for both physical and mental stimulation.

At least 1 hour a day (1.5 hrs would be preferably and very easily done, maybe half an hour in the morning and an hour in the evening)

Even better if you could take him somewhere where he could run around off-lead on the weekends or whenever you have spare time, i.e. the woods or the beach etc.

Labradors also love to swim (they were bred to do things including swimming out to boats to assist fishermen I believe, that's why their tail is so thick, it's supposed to be like a rudder, helping them with their swimming!) so if you could find somewhere with safe lake or shallow river for him to have fun in the water I'm sure he'd love it!

You could also have games with him to burn off some energy, dogs usually love things like Frisbee and fetch and if you feel more adventurous and having a go at some training, things like flyball and agility are great fun for dog and owner!

A for the "crap" issue, mine always do it on their walk, but you could set aside a part of your garden, maybe cover a patch with sand, and take your dog to that and praise him lavishly and give him a reward if he "eliminates" where you want him. Labradors love their food so use it as bribery lol.

bamzooki · 30/03/2008 14:01

Is the puppy in the house alone all day while you and dh work ft? If so, recipe for disaster with a lab imho, and not fair to the dog either. Sorry.

ScienceTeacher · 30/03/2008 14:06

Dogs poo on grass - fact of life. Just clear it up straightaway, and if you are worried about DS - flush it with water.

My dog gets two long walks a day, and she hardly ever produces on them.

woodstock3 · 30/03/2008 21:58

no puppy is not alone all day bamzooki!! we have a (dog loving) nanny who's in if we're not. and he does get walked daily - but only once, in the evenings, and he obviously cant hold on til then - and played with a lot.
thanks for all your advice - we have tried the fencing off part of the garden idea and taking him to it when he is likely to want a poo/starts doing one elsewhere in the garden and lavishing him with praise and treats. but this just appears to confuse him, he now associates this area with being in trouble and gets anxious and refuses to do anything. last time we tried this he became convinced he wasnt allowed to do anything in the garden at all and started weeing in the house again....shovelling it is then. that and heaping him with exorbitant praise every time he poos outside the garden and hoping something clicks.....

OP posts:
Qally · 31/03/2008 04:45

I appreciate that this may take a while, but if you use a code word every time he craps ("hurry up! Pssssss pssss psss!" is ours) before praising hugely, and then move on to just before he craps and then again with the praise, after a while he'll start to crap/pee on command when he hears that phrase. At that point, you can start to use it whenever he is in the area you want to train him to keep to. (Might be an idea to select a different corner to the one that's caused past confusion, if possible.) It's a chore, I know, but with a lab it really will work. You'll feel a right idiot gaily trilling the phrase, admittedly. But it works.

Also if you have the spare cash, dogwalkers can be ace. They'll do the morning run for you. a paper round - we have a great one in Cambridge, always seeing her conscientiously walking her charges when we are out and about with our woof.

faustina · 31/03/2008 06:58

can't you get the nanny to pick up if the dog craps during the day when you aren't there to do it? generally dogs crap at regular times each day so you will know when to expect it. Also think about what you feed your dog - kibble makes for less crap. If you are feeding your dog too much apparently their poo is softer and more prolific. Also just some food will disagree with your dog. My 9 month old golden retriever when we got her was eating good food but it just didn't suit her and it was horrible picking up. She's on royal canin now (one for food intolerances) and she has two poos in the morning - once first thing in the garden, and once later when we walk, then another after her lunch, and another in the evening. I use nappy bags (much cheaper than dog poo bags) and old carrier bags and it's really easy to pick up. when we go out first thing in the garden she is on a lead and when we get back from our morning walk I know where the first poo is to pick up, then I generally have a wander and pick up any others. Make your dh clear the garden completely which will be the horrid bit, and then do it each day, and have the nanny do it when you're out. if she loves dogs it shouldn't be a big deal to her. Leave the nappy bags by the back door so they're easy to access. If you DO change diet, do it gradually

2sugars · 31/03/2008 07:14

You probably won't want to hear this but for the past nine years we've had to put some of that wire fencing round the bits that the children go in, and leave a clear message the dogs aren't allowed in it. Although lately our remaining dog has snuk in.

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