My lab is now 12 months old and up until recently has been quite happy to do both no1 and no2's in both back and front gardens. Now he won't go at all and cries until I take him for a walk. That can be awkward at times if I have company and he decides he needs to go. Can someone suggest how I can reverse this issue and help me to get him to go in either. Up until now toileting has not been an issue, even when he was puppy training. He's not had a fright of any kind that I'm aware of either. Thanks for your help Shelly x
Could it be bonfire night related? Have you tried putting him on a lead in the garden? Does he get plenty of walks otherwise? (He may have found a clever way of getting a walk )
He gets around 4 walks a day, a run in the field in the morning, two walks round the field in the early and late afternoon then an hour at 6pm. It was happening before bonfire night, so doubt it is related. I've just got back from the field now. With me being disabled I struggle walking so to do the field is awkward for me, but I walk as far as I can and he gallops like a horse round the field, coming back at me so fast I used to think he would knock me flying lol, I have a dog walker at night as I can barely stand by this time. But I always take him out the back before bedtime around 10 10.30 but he's stopped going. I do wonder if he has thought 'if I cry enough she'll walk me if I don't go outside' they are so clever. I even tried just closing the door and letting him do what he needs to and watch from the window, but he just cried to get back in when he saw I wasn't there. I can't leave the door open or the cats will get out (3 house cats). So I'm stuck?!
I have a dog with a similar routine - although I want to walk him often, plus use a dog walker as dog care while I work, and he has had joint problems, so it's better for him to get his exercise in short sessions, rather than in one big lump. So it works for us. He also rarely goes to the toilet in the garden, he will have a pee on cue, but really he is squeezing out a bit in order to get his treat rather than needing to go. When he was injured though, he had to go to the toilet in the garden. While it might be a little uncomfortable for them trying to hold it in, given plenty of opportunities to go to the toilet in the garden they will eventually go - and if they are really uncomfortable, they will definitely go. Perhaps not before you give in and take him for a walk though. And that's the thing. He cries, he gets a walk - why wouldn't he do that? I think it sounds like you are being manipulated, really. If you want to continue with the routine you have, then go ahead (it's similar to mine, and I like it, it suits me and my dog likes it). But if you don't, and you wanted to, say, cut down to 2 walks a day then just implement a new routine and stick to it. Give him the opportunity to pee and poo in the garden (and give him stacks of treats if he goes) but otherwise just carry on with your new routine.
Once my dogs got old enough to have complete control of sphincter they all preferred to keep their own yard clean and would wait to toilet on a walk. Not a problem except the odd day we are unable to walk before heading out somewhere. Then having words for both pee- Hurry Up and poop - Finish is a big help. Still, normally on a walk he will poop twice but I can only command him to do it in our yard once. So I have to make a pit stop somewhere but then we are not in our yard so it's usually ok. The really odd day we have to go somewhere and I can't make a pit stop he can hold on for hours. If your garden is not big I think this wanting to keep it clean business is a strong possiblity for this happening. Sorry, you need to know how to combat this and my only idea is tp keep your property scrupulously clean of dog poop. Just an idea.
That's plenty for poos and wees. My Tatze uses the garden, no problem - but often only has two wees there - one when she gets up and one at bed time. She gets only one (long) walk a day and usually wees once then. So, on a normal day, that's only 3 wees. She only poos once, first thing in the morning. If he's really desperate he will use the garden - I would just give the opportunity if he cries and leave it at that.
My garden is clean from poop, as soon as he did one it got cleaned up straight away, and the hose was used on his pee area, I was advised not to clean the wee as he needed to know where he'd gone so I stopped. By the sound of it he has me wrapped round his little paw, so maybe I need to be hard and say as I always did....Go Toilet! If he doesn't then it's his tough luck if he doesn't. It's just the incessant crying that gets on your nerves. So I give in and take him for a walk.
I also should point out that I'm home almost all day every day due to my disability. So no excuse for not getting chance to go out. He just refuses to go in either front or back garden, I've seen me put him out front he will wander round roll in the grass, sniff everywhere and then want in, so I open the back door he goes out there, sniffs around, comes back in and cries to go out properly for a walk and won't go until he's out the back gate.
Max is exactly the same. We only have a small patio area and while he was happy to toilet there when he was little he stopped using it at least 6 months ago (he's 16 months old). It's not usually a problem for us as he goes out for 3 walks a day plus a short walk around the block at 11pm. The major issue was when he was ill and he refused to have diarrhea in the garden and we had to take him out the front every 2 hours during the night! Funnily enough he is ok to vomit on the patio!! I now dread him eating something he shouldn't in case it gives him a gippy tummy!
It is very normal that adult male dogs don't want to go to the toilet in the garden, but you can have them get used to it if you want to do it but there is no point in trying for a bit and then giving up....that just makes it worse. Like I say, when my boy was injured he had to toilet in the garden and that was that. I had no choice but to just keep giving him the opportunity and then gave him loads of treats when he went - just like as for a puppy! I went out with him though (well, I had no choice, he was on a lead). Otherwise he'd just sit at the back door anyway. Well, he's got that worked out then. I'd say just work out what you want your routine to be - make sure there is enough stuff for your dog to do in the day though - and stick to it. So perhaps start by swapping one walk for a garden trip (go out with him though so you can give him stacks of treats if he has a pee), then some training or a game, then back out in the garden. Then get on with your day.....
Yeah I go out with him all the time, I did try just leaving him to it at one point, thinking if I wasn't there then maybe he'd go...wrong he just cried to get back in. We do have games of chasing the ball and he also has some bones and sticks that he likes to chew but I'm always there watching him. I tried with the treats when he went for a pee, I think he's guessed that if he whinges enough he'll get out for a walk. Looks like I am doing everything right he's just sussed me out!
Thanks for your advice everyone. We think we are the boss in our homes when really it's our furry friends Animal psychology isn't my top subject, but I think I'm starting to get there!
