[Tribas4u]

Amy has been housebroken since I adopted her and we've never had problems. Well, she did poop once while I was gone right before I left on a trip. I had taken out my suitcase and I think she was stressed that I was going to leave.

This week she's pooped in her room twice while I've been at work. I'm gone 9-10 hours every day but it's never been a problem because she can hold it a lot longer (on weekends she doesn't really wake up and want to go out for a LONG time - I usually have to convince her to go out). She doesn't pee, just poop.

Any thoughts on what's going on? I walk her twice miles each morning and she goes poop then. She stays in a separate room all day, with lots of blankets and toys. I know it stresses her out because each time she's done it she's rearranging the furniture in her room, moved her bed, piled up blankets by the door, taken the chaise lounge apart, and when I open the door she immediately rolls on her back instead of being happy to see me.

I feed her Taste of the Wild, and she's about a year and a half old and healthy.

[quack!]

I'm gone 9-10 hours every day There is your answer. It does not matter that it hasn't happened before. Your dog is not a machine and cannot "hold it" forever. If she continues to not urinate during the time you are not there then you should expect kidney problems in the future.

[h0ldem]

Have someone take her out in the middle of the day.

[R1king]

Try putting her in a crate while you are gone.

[h0ldem]

Try putting her in a crate while you are gone.

Yea, some dogs just can't be trusted out of their crates with no supervision.

[quack!]

Yeh, make sure she has kidney problems. That's the problem with crating dogs for that long, its going to lead to kidney failure.

[Tribas4u]

I can look into getting a dog walker, but again, why now? The poop is cold when I find it, so it's not like she just pooped right before I got home. And she poops again that evening. Should I stop feeing her in the mornings and only feed at night?

[h0ldem]

How much are you feeding her? How is her weight? Perhaps she needs to poop multiple times after each meal. Dogs' bodies change the same way people's do.

[Tribas4u]

I feed her 3 and a half cups of taste of the wild and her weight is perfect. We walk a LOT (6+ miles a day, often a fair bit more) so she's in good shape. She does sometimes poop twice on our walks. I have been thinking about switching her from Taste of the Wild though because her poop is very soft with it and I wonder if that's part of it.

[viepedorlella]

I would crate train and hire a pet sitter/dog walker to take her out to stretch/take care of business. Many say 10hrs is fine... but jeebus I'd piss myself if I had to hold it that long... why the hell should we expect a dog to hold it that long?

Also, make sure you get some enzymatic cleaner to put on the spots where she's gone... it could become habit to poop in those spots since she's obviously decided its okay to poop in her room. Kind of like if you have a dog kenneled int he yard... they are gonna poop in their kennel, lol. Crate training makes the "den" much smaller, so unless you've got a dog thats really been screwed up by someone irresponsible she should not soil her crate if crate trained properly.

[AnIInWon]

I feed mine TOTW Pacific Stream. Their poops were soft when we switched for the first couple weeks and then firmed up.

I feed mine once in the morning and once again in the evening. They generally have to poop about 1.5 hours after eating. Maybe try adjusting your feeding and walking schedule so you know your dog is emptied out before you leave? If you can afford a dog walker or have a friend willing to let her out, cool! Just make sure it is someone ultra responsible and insured if possible.

[grudabor]

There is your answer. It does not matter that it hasn't happened before. Your dog is not a machine and cannot "hold it" forever. If she continues to not urinate during the time you are not there then you should expect kidney problems in the future.

How is that? I had Sadie 10 years and she followed the same routine. She didn't have any problems like that at all.

[Tribas4u]

Thanks for the tips! I didn't realize they have to poop 1.5 hours after they eat. That might be part of the problem - I've been feeding her after our walk. She does sometimes have an encore poop after her first poop on our walks, after about 45 minutes. So maybe I can start waking up, feeding her immediately, doing my own workout for 30-45 minutes, and then taking her for a longer walk to get it all out before I leave. That might help.

Her poop has never firmed up on TOTW, unfortunately. I think it might be time to switch foods - possibly it's just too rich.

[viepedorlella]

Some dogs poop immediately after eating and some take a few hours. WHen I feed them on their tie-outs at my mom's Lily eats then goes to the other side and poops and then starts chirping to let me know she's done and ready to come in.... Scout waits a bit longer because she is fussy about where she goes. Same scenario at my apt, except fed in the crate and then I take them out to the yard individually on leash (no fence). Puppies are usually pretty instaneous, adult dogs it varies. I know my foster has to RUN bigtime before he goes, just the way he is. Its pretty annoying when you just want him to poop already and he wasn't housetrained when I took him in.

Also depending on what you are feeding... kibble dogs tend to poop a lot. Like three or four times a day. As compared to the once or maybe twice a day for my raw fed dogs.

[AnIInWon]

Mine poop twice a day while on high quality kibble. Of course, if I went to a grain kibble with filler I would have more poop.

But yeah, 1.5 hours works for mine. Other dogs might have to go sooner or later. I was just giving a roundabout guess. You'll probably have to do trial and error until you get the routine down and know how long your individual dog takes to potty after feeding. Feeding first and then going for a walk is probably the best way to do it for a dog crated while you are away from home.

[Tribas4u]

Today was successful. No poop. I walked her a little longer until she had her encore poop (she usually go twice if I walk her more than 45 minutes), and then I put her in her thundershirt when I left her, in case she's been anxious about something recently. Things seemed normal when i got home - we played for a bit and then walked, and she wasn't rushing to either pee or poop.

[AnIInWon]

Good! Hope it keeps going well and there is no more poo in the house

[insoneeri]

Could she have just not been feeling well? Freida pooped twice in the house and I've had her for almost three years. The one time she was sick and the other I think our "walk" was too short after she had her acl surgery.