<p>MY dog is 12 and is a good girl but in the last week she has pooped on the living room rug three times when we were at work! This has never been an issue before and I’m wondering:</p>
<p>A. What’s going on?
B. What do I do about it?</p>
<p>In anticipation of some of your questions: she is otherwise acting happy and healthy. She was boarded last week at her usual cageless kennel where she happily goes every time we go away. The poop seems normal (not diarrhea).</p>
<p>Could this be a symptom of a urinary tract infection? I would call your vet ASAP and have her checked out.</p>
<p>Pooping would mean a urinary tract infection?</p>
<p>Our dog lost bowel control as she aged. Depending on the type of dog, 12 is pretty old. I’d call the vet and see what they think. She may just not be able to hold it that long. Can you put down a pad?</p>
<p>What did she eat at the kennel? Enough of a change that her tummy is a bit off?</p>
<p>It’s fairly common for older dogs to develop new housebreaking issues as they age. I’d suggest that you start by taking your dog in for a full checkup to see whether there are any medical issues-- at age 12 it could be many different things. For example, the dog could be becoming incontinent (she can’t hold it in any more); as the dog ages there could be some cognitive deterioration (after the week at a kennel where she was allowed to poop indoors, she just forgot that she’s not supposed to go in the livingroom at home); arthritis could be impacting her ability to move around, so she just can’t make it to wherever she is supposed to go. I had a dog who developed a number of behavior issues and it turned out she was losing her eyesight – unfortunately, she was totally blind by the time we realized what was going on, and only in hindsight did I realize that the odd behavior was because she was having difficulty seeing. </p>
<p>For now – you can control things by simple prevention. If she is pooping in the livingroom while you are away at work, you probably need to confine her to a different area indoors (Like garage or crate), or outdoors until the matter is resolved.</p>
<p>She ate the same food at the kennel that she eats at home. It is a cageless kennel with lots of outdoor play but, yes, maybe she poops on the floor there. I don’t know. She is a cockerpoo and 12 isn’t really that old for this mix. No arthritis that I’m aware of. She’s very agile, can still jump up on the couch, run, etc.</p>
<p>I have a gut feeling that it’s related to the kennel but she is almost due for a check up so I will bring her in if it doesn’t clear up.</p>
<p>Ahhh! Good thing I love her like I do.</p>
<p>You definitely need to confine her away from the livingroom, or restrict her access, for now. The problem is that she pooped on the livingroom rug once with no immediate consequence… so she did it again, and again… and now in her doggie brain, livingroom rug = pooping place. (If you yelled at her or made a fuss after you came home, it doesn’t count as “consequence” in doggie terms – you pretty much need to catch the dog in the act or they don’t make the connection).</p>
<p>Is the rug small enough to be taken up or sent out for cleaning? </p>
<p>If she can’t be outdoors while you are at work, the suggestion in post #4 that you put down a pad might be a good idea. The pee pads that they sell for dogs actually have some sort of scent in them that lets the dog know what they are for. Right now you have to take affirmative steps to eliminate a newly developed dog habit. Best way that I can think of is to simply make it impossible for the dog to repeat the mistakes she has made this past week, and provide an opportunity for her to replace those mistakes with a new habit.</p>
<p>Thanks, Calmom,
That sounds like sound advice. I am going to gate the living room tomorrow before I leave for work. The rug could use a cleaning anyway so I’ll get that done. If it continues I’ll have to cross that bridge when I step in it :)</p>
<p>Our 13 year old dog came back from boarding with bladder issues and also had something that we think was a mini-stroke. We gated her into the kitchen for several nights after some early morning incidents until she protested sufficiently obnoxiously that we let her out. We seem to have been trained sufficiently at this point. Not sure if its reciprocal…</p>
<p>How long do you leave her home without a chance to go out? </p>
<p>What calmom says is important, and most humans don’t get it. Even taking the dog over and sticking its nose in it (or close) and saying “bad” is not effective after the fact, even if you think it is because the dog reacts to your scolding and appears to understand, they don’t really understand. They are more likely react by hiding it than stop doing it.</p>
<p>The American Cockapoo club estimates life expectancy at 14 to 18 years, but as a former owner of a cockapoo, that s rather generous. i would say more like 12-14 years.
12 is probably like 67 in a human, & while they may still be fairly active, the insides are just as old and would contribute to digestive issues.
Not being able to control elimination all day, doesnt have a lot to do with how " good" she is.
You might also consider changing her to a high quality wet food.
High quality food should be easier to completely digest & also leaves less to eliminate.</p>
<p>We didn’t scold her. I work with kids aged 5-11 and I understand the importance of timely and appropriate consequences. The dog would have no idea why we were upset two hours after she pooped on the rug.</p>
<p>She is left for about 7-8 hours after going out in the morning. This has never been an issue and, in fact, she is never terribly anxious to go out even after I get home. She’s smaller dog and can hold it for a good amount of time.</p>
<p>And again, I won’t scold her unless I catch her in the act but I do think it’s funny that we say they don’t understand the scolding but then they will do it again but hide it. Hmmm. Very clever…:)</p>
<p>
I don’t know if that will happen or not when the scolding is delayed — but that’s a reason why scolding a dog you have caught in the act or soon after may not be effective either. That is the situation which can lead a dog to decide to go and poop in the closet or behind the couch instead. (The doggie has figured out that pooping makes the human angry and unpleasant, but not the larger concept that there is a problem with pooping indoors.)</p>
<p>Their minds just aren’t equipped to draw the same cause/effect conclusions that we do. </p>
<p>That’s why the habit thing is so important. The dog isn’t really going to think about where to eliminate; she will just go where she is in the habit of going.</p>
<p>Thank you, everyone. Your dog experience is helpful as she is my first one. </p>
<p>Emerald, I realize that her pooping in the house isn’t a reflection of her “character”. She is well loved and well taken care of.</p>