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How To Get Your Dog To Poop Outside Every Time

How to potty train your dog so they poop outside every time - make your dog poop faster, eliminate night accidents and get your dog fully housetrained.

Yet again, you just narrowly missed stepping in a log of dog poop inside your own home. Your dog may be great at peeing outside, but #2 is a different story.

Use these tips to break the habit and get your dog 100% potty trained.

Know Your Dog’s Poop Schedule

A dog has a short digestive tract compared to a human. They need to poop only 10-30 minutes after each meal.

If you free-feed, or leave your dog’s bowl full of food for them to graze on throughout the day, they won’t have regular, predictable poops.

Feed a puppy 3 meals each day. Adult dogs over 9 months old can eat two meals.

Your dog might hold out for more than 30 minutes after eating, especially if they’ve been punished for pooping indoors in the past. They may be confused or anxious and may wait until you are sleeping to sneak a poop.

Limit your dog’s freedom when they’re due for a poop. Take them out every 15 minutes until they’re successful.

Why Your Dog Poops Immediately After Coming Inside

You’ll spend 30 minutes outside, begging your dog to find a suitable spot to poop, and finally give up and go inside. The moment you do, your dog starts pooping on the floor.

Many dogs don’t feel the urge to poop when they’re outside. It might be too cold for them to relax their bowels. They may also be too distracted by the scents and sounds to concentrate on pooping. Your warm, soft carpet might make your dog feel the urge.

If you bring your dog inside after they fail to poop, you should not allow an accident to happen. Put your dog into their crate right away, or keep them close to you on their leash so they do not sneak off and poop.

In 10 to 15 minutes, take your dog outside again. Repeat until they poop. Only after they poop outside, should you allow them to run around and play freely.

When Your Dog Won’t Poop In The Snow Or Rain

Many dogs are great about pooping outside except during inclement weather.

Walking your dog outside more often in cold weather will help them adapt to cooler temperatures. That means you will have to brave the weather too, instead of simply letting your dog out in the backyard. Once your dog becomes more confident about pooping in the snow or rain, you won’t have to go outside with them.

Some stubborn poopers require compromise. Create a patch of grass in the snow by shoveling a “poop room,” or lay down a tarp or old shower curtain before the snowfall.

You can create a rain-free zone with a small canopy for your dog to poop under.

The Elusive Nighttime Pooper

Many dogs are great at pooping outside during the day, but regress at night.

Perhaps you are less likely to walk your dog after you’re cozy in your pajamas. Or, your dog might be holding their poop until you are asleep.

Try moving your dog’s dinner to an earlier time. That way, they’ll get a chance to poop before you shut down for the night.

You may also need to make it easier for your dog to wake you up when they have to go. You can teach your dog to bark, nose your hand or ring bells hanging from your doorknob to let you know when they need to go outside.

You can also crate your dog at night to prevent accidents. Dogs usually don’t poop where they sleep. However, crating can be stressful for your dog if they are not used to being confined.

Should You Punish A Naughty Pooper?

After hours of standing outside with no successful poops, it’s understandable when you become frustrated with your dog.

But punishing your dog only makes them nervous about pooping. They’ll learn to hold it in and wait for an opportunity to poop when you are not looking. They may also become more difficult about pooping on a leash while you are closeby.

Never punish your dog if you find poop in the house.

If you catch your dog in the act, try to get them to stop by redirecting them. Call them over to you or whistle, but do not clap, yell or otherwise scare them. Take them out immediately, even if they appear to have finished.

How To Get A Slow Pooper To Poop Faster

Teaching your dog to go #2 outside depends on you going outside with them. You need to make sure they poop. You also need to praise and reward them when they are successful. Don’t bring the treats outside. They may smell the treats and become too distracted to poop. Instead. praise your dog and go inside, then give them treats and reward them with free time to play inside.

If your dog is taking forever to poop while you’re with them, there’s a few things you can do to speed it up.

  • Go for a run. Running gets your dog’s bowels moving.
  • Create a poop nest. Some dogs like to poop on a soft area of grass, leaves, hay or dirt.
  • Get a longer leash. Your dog might feel shy about pooping six feet away. Clip several leashes together or get a long line.
  • Collect your dog’s poop from indoor accidents and put them in a corner of your yard. Your dog will be drawn to their own scent.
  • Try the matchstick trick. We’ve never tried this, and can’t personally recommend it, but it’s common for show dog handlers that need to evacuate their dog’s bowels before a dog show. Tear a match from a book of matches (it must be a paper match, not the wooden kind that comes in a box), moisten the red sulphur tip in your mouth, then insert the match halfway into your dog’s anus. The sulphur is said to irritate the dog’s anus just enough to get them to squat and push, triggering a bowel movement. Your dog may bite you if you try this, or you may accidentally reverse the steps and lick the match after it has been in your dog’s anus. You have been warned.

Do you have any dog poop stories, or tips for troubled puppy parents? Share in the comments!

13 thoughts on “How To Get Your Dog To Poop Outside Every Time

  1. How to get my 6 month old puppy to poop outside he will pee most of the time but not poop

  2. I had two border collie puppies from different litters but born on the same day; and a third who I raised from birth – he had zero issues with house training! The other two until I read this article I hadn’t managed to get them out to go. It was a combination of this and doggie diapers which did the trick. Now they both go outside regularly…and of course we freak out every time!

  3. I have a 7 year old dog. She great. However, over the past year we have had a lot of changes. In the past few months she had pooped near the front door, about 5 times. I ALWAYS let her out JUST before bed. She does try to wake me up and its not everyday. I think I need a dog whisperer!

  4. Just got a 9 week old Beagle pup. She does not like to poop outside and “hates” the leash. I will try the crate and switch from leaving food out to feeding her 3 times a day. Thanks

  5. I ended up with a 7 month old chiweenie that a friend could not keep because of housing needs, i love her and would never rehome her but i cannot get her to poop outside! i have had dogs all my life and have never had any trouble house training any of them. I was led to believe that she was pad trained but thats not evident. I dont want to keep her in a crate all the time. I recently moved into a house with my older brother and he also has a dog who is house trained and we were hoping that she would follow his lead and she goes out with him runs around but then she will come in and will sneak off and poop inside. you can tell she knows its wrong because she looks guilty (holding her tail between her back legs and crouching) so i dont understand why she does this? if anyone has a solution other than keeping her crated for the rest of her life please let me in on it… Thanks

    1. Good luck! I have the same dog, same problem. Except mine will hurry up and eat hers

  6. I cant stop my dog from pooping at night. He was in a crate and still poops in there. Its like he purposefully holds it. If he poops at night he will sometimes eat it. There is no way to stop him. Its a very bad cycle and I feel like I’m being tortured waking up to a poop covered dog every morning. Weve made sure hes in a smaller crate to fit him too. Lately I’ve been putting him into a clothes basket and putting his cubby bed in there. It worked for about a week then he started it again. If I leave him free to run he also poops. Nothing is helping, no food after 5 and then 3. Hes 9 months old and a chihuahua, I dont want to starve him. Ive trained 3 chihuahuas and they take longer but never this bad. Please help.

  7. My girl Jazz is a Yorkie Terror. She is 8 months old. When I find that she has pooped in the house I tell her no pooping in the house and take it the poop outside. All the while I tell her you poop outside and put it on the grass. She has quite a sense of humor.and starts running around the yard, spinning in circle and barking at me to chase her. She doesn’t get it. I think she thinks I am playing a game with her. I use my serious voice but it doesn’t do any good, when she is outside, it works inside. What can I do? Should I put her on her leash before we go out, so she know I am not playing around about pooping inside?

  8. I was gifted a 8 week old pit bull puppy. We already have a 15 year old shepherd/chow mix and a 11 year old dauchson/chow mix that were previously own by relatives that I took in so they didn’t get sent to the shelter. The 15 year old has gotten to the point that she goes in the morning and evening before bed. The eleven year old goes in the morning and then in her crate until I come home and immediately after I put my bag down and then before bed. The eight week old doesn’t like to go outside and will refuse to use the bathroom but will immediately use the bathroom in the house, we will clean up and direct her to the crate like the other dog (a habit she got from her old owner that I hate but can’t break her from and something I’m only begrudily willing to allow the puppy to do because I would rather her do that than use the restroom all over the house. Is there a better way.

  9. I agree, how do I do this when I have to be at work? And is it “punishing” to put him in a crate after a poop-tastrophe in the middle of the night, that he’s held in for HOURS

  10. All good on how you say things. But lets come to reality: jobs
    If i wake up at 06:30 to feed the dogs but at 08:00 i have to be to the office which is 30′ driving and i come back home at 19:00 in the evening, at which point in the morning i shall take them out and if they do not poop, put them in the crate and take them out every 15 minutes?
    I find it useful your post, don’t get me wrong; i read things i didn’t know about. But any suggestion on how to apply these to a normal, working day?

    1. Hi George, what has been going on with your dogs- are they having accidents? Also, how old are they? I’ve been finding that mine only go once per day now that they’re almost five, so there are lots of times in which they just don’t have to go.
      Lindsay Pevny recently posted…The Ultimate Guide To Betta FishMy Profile

  11. Hey Lindsay Pevny. Very well said, we should never punish our dog if we find him pooping inside the house. I also read your other blogs regarding this. Again, you wrote a nice article and keep sharing more articles 

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