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The doghouse

If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

Original poster

I am absolutely at my wits end with my dogs shitting in the house.

107 replies

Gozdilla · 22/12/2023 09:49

Have 3 dogs. 2 over 5 and one puppy (9 months) who we did not intend to get but was more dumped on us at 10 weeks. But we love her.

We moved house 6 months ago, pup was still having accidents.

Dogs didn't want to poop outside as it was all flags.
So we took up 3mx3m of flags and put grass down.
They were much happier at going outside.

But every night I'm coming down to shit.

The older dogs are doing it and I'm pretty sure the puppy is EATING it.

As last night a chunk had been taken onto my fucking couch and her breath stunk of shit.

They get fed at 5pm. They go out for shits at night but they're still doing it inside.

My husband is on the verge of losing it.

Every morning the first thing we smell as we come downstairs is shit.

I'm sick to fucking death of it and I don't know what to do

Please help me :(

OP posts:
ThisOldThang · 22/12/2023 11:27

@Vroomfondleswaistcoat

I was going to guess pitbull terrier type dogs. They're notorious for trashing homes and failing basic house training.

DustyLee123 · 22/12/2023 11:27

Id start off by separating them. When one does it the others might be trying to cover it. Is there any chance it’s separation anxiety?

RandomMess · 22/12/2023 11:29

My dog doesn't want to go out in the rain/bad weather etc 🙄 I have to be insistent that 1. Goes out 2. Produces something.

Image knows I'm more stubborn than her. She also has one of her Spare Humans she goes to find if she needs to randomly go out during the day, much confusion when that particular spare human isn't here 🙄

Definitely reward reward. My dog only know 4 words - one is "busy busy" if she can be trained believe me any dog can.

Vroomfondleswaistcoat · 22/12/2023 11:30

ThisOldThang · 22/12/2023 11:27

@Vroomfondleswaistcoat

I was going to guess pitbull terrier type dogs. They're notorious for trashing homes and failing basic house training.

I dunno. Mine is a Patterdale. Some terriers seem to have issues with house training (or rather, disregarding all house training when nobody is looking).

Wimbledonmum1985 · 22/12/2023 11:30

Theredfoxfliesatmidnight · 22/12/2023 11:01

This is why dogs are fucking disgusting, and why people dislike them / don't want them in cafes etc. Take the anthropomorphism out of it and they're fucking repulsive animals.

This is in active before the fur baby crowd arrive.

Such wit. I imagine you think you’re very clever.

ItWillWash · 22/12/2023 11:33

ThisOldThang · 22/12/2023 11:27

@Vroomfondleswaistcoat

I was going to guess pitbull terrier type dogs. They're notorious for trashing homes and failing basic house training.

DD's dog shits in the house, and although she thinks she is a pitbull I am fairly happy that there is not an ounce of pitbull in her.

I am absolutely at my wits end with my dogs shitting in the house.
FuckinghellthatsUnbelievable · 22/12/2023 11:36

margotrose · 22/12/2023 10:48

negative attention for accidents inside (what's this? I don't like it. No!) versus praise and treat for business outside.

Please don't tell your dog off for toileting inside the house.

Unless your dog has a medical or age-related reason for having accidents, the reason they're toileting inside is because they haven't been trained not to. That's not their fault.

Surely telling them off/ giving praise is training them? Puppy eating disgusting things is horrendous. If it’s any consolation my dog is now fussy and prefers to wait for proper nice food.

OlderGlaswegianLivingInDevon · 22/12/2023 11:44

Oh dear, you sound as if you hate all 3 of them.

Do they not go to the toilet during their walks ?

You need to restart toilet training with all 3 of them all over again, be with them in the garden, watch what they do - lots of praise.

As for the eating of poo, that's a very common problem - am sure you will find advice on line for that as I can't remember off the top of my head.

Praise and reward, praise and reward, praise and reward...

ItWillWash · 22/12/2023 11:46

@FuckinghellthatsUnbelievable unless you catch the dog in the act any telling-off is at best, a waste of breath, at worst actually teaching them to hide where they do their business.

Dogs live in the moment. By the time you find a half-eaten shit, they've forgotten all about it. They cannot correlate the telling off with what they were doing hours or even minutes earlier. They can associate an accident on the floor with being told off, but not that they caused the accident, isywim?

So, they will shit out of sight because they learned that shit in the middle of the floor is bad but they did not learn that toileting in the house is bad.

margotrose · 22/12/2023 11:46

FuckinghellthatsUnbelievable · 22/12/2023 11:36

Surely telling them off/ giving praise is training them? Puppy eating disgusting things is horrendous. If it’s any consolation my dog is now fussy and prefers to wait for proper nice food.

Show quote history

Dogs live and learn "in the moment". Unless you can catch your dog in the act and whisk them outside, telling them off after they've pooed inside is completely pointless. It may make you feel better but it won't help with training.

In the scenario a PP described, the praise and peanut butter is what trained the dog, not the telling off.

Telling a dog off for having an accident indoors is a very old-fashioned way of doing things and generally only makes the dog even more anxious and likely to have an accident in the future.

margotrose · 22/12/2023 11:47

Great minds think alike @ItWillWash Grin

FartSock5000 · 22/12/2023 11:54

No food down after 5pm.
Take them out 2-3 times after 6pm. Mine go out 6.30pm, 9pm and 11pm for a last piddle and poop. I have 3 chihuahuas and they are lazy and stubborn.
Back to crate training. Put them in individual crates.
Puppy goes back to puppy pads until he has his evening routine learned.

ItWillWash · 22/12/2023 11:58

I don't even tell DD's dog off if I catch it in the act because I don't want to accidentally make it anxious. Atm it will quite happily squat in the middle of the room while maintaining eye contact, which, as disgusting as it sounds makes it a hell of a lot easier to spot what she is doing, grab her, and deposit her in the garden.

We are making very slow progress. She seems to understand now that if I am in a room she should ask to go outside to toilet. Unfortunately, she is not my dog. She spends 90% of her time with DD.

We are supposed to be taking both the little dogs on holiday this summer so I do plan on kidnapping them for a week in late spring to train them. Her oldest Chi is not toilet trained and the youngest one has started guarding. The Amazon delivery man might find a 3-inch tall chihuahua trying to attack him hilarious but I do not.

caringcarer · 22/12/2023 12:08

They need a long walk 40 minutes after eating their meal. Keep walking till they poop.

Ladyj84 · 22/12/2023 12:13

Fed at 5pm there's your answer. Why they not fed at breakfast time? Ours are always fed when we get up a snack after lunch and that's it never had this problem

Citrusandginger · 22/12/2023 12:18

Ours would get into bad habits if we let them after they've been in kennels. We learned to put them in the utility for a couple of nights when they come back.

Dogs don't like pooing where they sleep, so if they have the run of the kitchen & hall they would poo as far away from their beds as possible. Put them in the utility (with late night walks and letting them out early) and they remember not to poo indoors.

mumtumok · 22/12/2023 12:20

no!! Don’t crate them. I have had the same issue but they just roll in it when in the crate so it goes everywhere - and your bathing the dog at 5:30 am ( in your case 3 )

user701 · 22/12/2023 13:39

Feed in morning and after lunch, walk in afternoon, long walk late evening. Shut in kitchen/utility room at night so they can’t eat the sofa.

you’re feeding too late in the day

HappiestSleeping · 22/12/2023 15:25

caringcarer · 22/12/2023 12:08

They need a long walk 40 minutes after eating their meal. Keep walking till they poop.

And then keep walking a random length of time after they've pooped. You don't want to associate that pooping means the end of the walk, otherwise they'll hold on to it to make the walk longer.

Floralnomad · 22/12/2023 19:18

Vroomfondleswaistcoat · 22/12/2023 11:30

I dunno. Mine is a Patterdale. Some terriers seem to have issues with house training (or rather, disregarding all house training when nobody is looking).

Show quote history

I’m sorry but this is bollocks , if your dog , whatever the breed is properly housetrained then the only reason it will poo / wee indoors is if you fail to let them out or they have diarrhoea and cannot hold on . They do not poo indoors because they are wilful or because they are terriers and can’t be arsed .

Original poster
Gozdilla · 22/12/2023 22:01

user701 · 22/12/2023 13:39

Feed in morning and after lunch, walk in afternoon, long walk late evening. Shut in kitchen/utility room at night so they can’t eat the sofa.

you’re feeding too late in the day

They would be freezing in the kitchen!

They're all pug/ shihzu mixes. Little mongrols really.

OP posts:
Original poster
Gozdilla · 22/12/2023 22:02

Thankyou for the advice.

I've taken this all in and am going to formulate a plan of attack.

I have admittedly gotten lazy with walks and routines lately

OP posts:
redboxer321 · 22/12/2023 22:17

I have admittedly gotten lazy with walks and routines lately

A total mystery as to why the dogs shit in the house. No wonder the OP is at her wits' end.

givemestrength9 · 22/12/2023 22:21

Mine did this changed feeding plan fed them earlier and 9-10 stopped unless there given treats or scaps food on night ! Good luck

RandomMess · 22/12/2023 22:23

They won't freeze, my dog has us duped then stayed out one night for 12 hours in -4 degrees 🤬

Plug in heat blanket?