Housebreaking an adult dog! HELP?

Question

I am a desperate dog owner, and I need help!

I recently adopted a 1 year old female huskey mix. She is a wonderful, sweet, calm, well manner dog. However, there is one BIG problem. She is not housebroken, and doesn’t seem to be making any headway. Her history is a little sketchy but from I am able to gather is that she has been neglected terribly. Before me her previous owners left her kenneled 99% of the time and did not feed her properly or regularly.

I done ALOT of research over the internet about tips to housebreak your dog. And, I follow them to the letter, but I think because of her past I am still doing something wrong. I read that dogs are den animals and do not like to poop/pee in their kennels because that is “their” space, but she seems to want to hold it until she is in her kennel. She’ll pee outside without a problem and gets plenty of praise and treats for it... But she consistantly, and without fail, holds all her poop until she’s kenneled while I’m working. She just refuses to poop outside.

Maybe if I give you a run down of my day with her, it will help you see what I am doing and what I could change. I don’t want to get rid of her but 1. My house constantly stinks of dog poop. 2. When I get home from work I have to clean the walls and mop the floors around the cage, and take the kennel outside and wash it off. 3. Give her a bath everyday to get the poop off her. 4. It not getting any better. There has been no silver lining.

So, here’s my schedule. Keep in mind I work 2nd shift (4pm-12am):

8am-8:30amFirst bathroom break outside & about 30 minutes of play and sniffing time. When we come inside she is allowed food and water. Because I work second shift we usually go back to bed.
10:30am-11:00am Up for the day. Another potty break & about 30 minutes of play. This time I leave her out while is shower and get ready for the day, so she has about 1.5 hrs outside. If it’s raining she goes into her kennel.
12pmWhen she comes inside I allow her more food and water. I keep her on a leash (or closed off in the room I am in) as I go about my business cleaning, working outside, or just sitting around so I can keep an eye on her and her behavior.
2:30pmOutside again for another potty break. Try to play hard and get ALL her energy out because I’ll be leaving for work.
3:10pmBack inside. Allowed water, but no food. After she has had her fill she’s kenneled while I’m at work. I tried to allow her chew toys and a blanket but she ruins them with feces so I can’t allow her anything in her kennel.
12:20AMHome from work... And, she’s pooped in her kennel, and kicked most of it out. I put her outside, but I can’t watch her this time because I have to mop the floors, clean the kennel, wipe down the walls, and get a bath going to clean the poop on her off. This cleaning takes about 1.5 hrs, plus bath time. Then she is allowed more food & water.
When ever all the clean-up is done, it’s bed time. I keep her on a leash and next to the bed. And, she won’t have an accident throughout the night.

P.S. She’s been to the vet and has no medical problems.

Answer 1

plz ignore the puppy part training an adult works the same way
It is up to you, the new parent, to housetrain your new puppy or dog with patience, love and understanding.
CRATE TRAINING
In the wild, wolves live in a den or cave. It is important the entire wolf pack keep this area clean. The same idea works with your family pet. Your dog’s crate is his home, his bedroom. It is likely that your dog will not like to soil his bed. Therefore, he will wait until he is let out to do his business.
HOUSETRAINING WITH YOUR CRATE
On average, puppies can hold their bladders one hour for every month they have been alive, plus one hour. For example, if you have a three month old puppy, he can wait 3 + 1 = 4 hours. If you work longer than this, the best solution is to have someone (a neighbour, a relative, a dog walker) come in at an appropriate time to let your dog out.

100 PER CENT SUPERVISION
Supervision is the key to housetraining! While you are at home, your dog must be supervised. Whether you are watching television, making dinner, on the phone or on the computer, your puppy must be watched. While it sounds like an impossible task, it isn’t. Keeping the crate in a social part of the house makes it easier. Using a house lead – a small, thin lead with a little clip on it – also helps immensely. Outside, you put a lead on your dog so you can control him. If the lead is removed after returning home, control is lost. For example, when watching television, have the lead tied to a couch leg. Your dog can have his blanket and toys with him. He’ll feel safe and comfortable. The majority of accidents happen when your pup wanders off and you haven’t noticed. You don’t want him to sneak off into the kitchen and find a puddle a short time later. If your pup is kept from wandering, the possibility of an accident is diminished because he will not eliminate where he is sitting. 100 per cent supervision means ensuring your dog is playing with you, in his crate, outside or on his house lead.

SCHEDULING
In the morning, take your dog outside. He should urinate and possibly have a bowel movement. Spend about five to seven minutes with him and then bring him in. Do not play with him yet. Feed him breakfast, either in the crate or with the lead, and supervise it. If your pup did not have a bowel movement earlier, take him back outside about 15 minutes after he has eaten. Use the lead to keep your pup moving along while outside. Otherwise, he may start sniffing, stopping and playing to avoid the job at hand. You can say “hurry up” and your dog will begin to associate these words with the task at hand. Praise him excessively when he has eliminated. Bring him back in the house and place him in his crate if you are going to work. Continue to supervise him with the crate or the lead if you are home. When returning after being out, go directly to the crate, let him out, praise him and put him back in. Feed him his meal, take him outside 15 minutes after he has eaten, praise him after he eliminates, and bring him back in. Continue to follow the same steps consistently.

While you are home, you should take your pup outside on a regular basis. Even if your pup is in a crate or on a house lead, he still needs the opportunity to eliminate. Also, be careful what you wish for! A pup who barks to go outside may be cute and clever now. However, you must try not to fall into the habit of leaping up every time your dog wants in or out. It is a very submissive gesture on your part. Have your pup wait a moment or two.

Setting up a schedule is also a good idea. If your pup is under four months of age, take him out for five minutes every hour on the hour. If your pup is over four months old, take him out every second hour on the hour. The schedule will help you remember when to take him out. Go out for five minutes only. It provides the opportunity to eliminate even if your pup may not need to go. Take your dog out after active play and also after napping. If an accident occurs, you may have forgotten to take him out .

FEEDING TIME
Having a puppy drink a lot of water and then placing him in his crate is much more unkind than letting him be a bit thirsty for an hour or two. Adult dogs should have access to drinking water at all times. However, this is not the case for untrained pups. Most parents will not allow their children to drink a big glass of water before going to bed. Avoid setting your pup up for failure. Restrict his water intake to three or four drinks daily and make sure you remove the water dish about three hours before bedtime. This will help your dog sleep more comfortably.

If it is a hot evening, supply your pup with a few ice cubes. They will enter your dog’s system at a slower pace. When feeding your pup, provide a high-quality food that is a good source of protein. The food must be concentrated so your puppy’s body doesn’t require much of it. If you feed less, your puppy eliminates less. Food is directly related to how well puppies do in their housetraining.

EXERCISE
It is important that your pup gets a lot of exercise, especially while crate training. You can play fetch, chase or hide and seek in your home. You can call ‘come’ at the same time to provide further training. Anyway you do it, your pup needs to be able to run and play.

Answer 2

Try feeding her 15 mins BEFORE you take her out to poop, instead of after. Obviously, the food isn't going to go through her that fast but a dog's brain works like this "Something came into the body...we're going to need to make room for that...let's poo"

Also, how big is her kennel? They will usually not poo where they sleep...but many people mistakenly make the kennel too big. It sounds mean (especially considering her history), but make the kennel just big enough to stand and lay down. Anything bigger than that and she'll just poo on one side, and sleep on the other.

If that still doesn't work, it may be a mental/emotional problem that she's upset about being alone while you're at work. Dogs (unlike humans) only have to eat once a day. Since she can obviously hold it through the night, measure her food and let her eat when you get home from work - wait 15-20 mins and let her poo, then go to bed.

Answer 3

Ouch. It is good that you are using a kennel though...most people are really opposed to it. I have had numerous dogs and this is the best way...really.

You may be feeding her too often though. I would only give her food once and only like the first time you get up and let her out at 8:00 a.m. or so. After only feeding her once per day for about 15 minutes or so, let her outside to do her business. It may take a couple of days for her to understand that she needs to eat NOW because the food isn't coming back...but she won't starve, I promise. You just need to get a really firm grip on what is going in and out of your dog.

Also, WHAT are you feeding her? Is her poop usually really soft? If you are feeding her grocery store dog food she is going to poop much more than if you are feeding her premium food...and all the fillers could be upsetting her belly a little as well. Premium food is more expensive but since you have to feed them less of it, it evens out in the end...especially if she has to poop much less. Also, make sure she isn't getting any people food...every dog is different...I have one who can eat anything with no ill effects and one who is allergic to everything and gets the runs if he eats a piece of bread.

Make sure that she has a lot of time outside and out of her kennel while you are home. If you are only feeding her early and she has ample time to go potty before you have to leave for work this should cut down on the instances of pooping in her kennel.

She also should not have so much room in her kennel that she can get away from her poop...I doubt that her kennel is big enough for this...she is a larger breed and I haven't seen kennels that big...but it is something to take into consideration.

Give her some time...I adopted a dog who was about a year old once and it took me quite a while to figure out all of her quirks. My experiences have led me to the realization that dog training is less about training the dog and more about training the people who take care of the dog. It is all about consistency...if there is a definite pattern of events and the whole wake up/go out/get food/go out pattern is always the same she will figure it out. When you change up the pattern on her she won't understand what is expected of her or that she will definitely get to go outside. If she was mistreated by her previous owners she doesn't know anything else...you just set your pattern in stone as much as you can and she will learn it, especially in the beginning. After she understands how normal life is supposed to be you will have a bit more freedom.

Good luck.

Answer 4

Start taking all of them outside on a schedule, instead of waiting for them to let you know when they need to go......every couple of hours, right after eating, just before bed, and first thing in the morning, before they are allowed anywhere else in the house. Stay outside with them until they go. Confine them to an area that does not have carpet (most dogs do not like to go on a hard surface) or crate them when you cannot watch them. If the trainer is consistent, adult dogs figure things out pretty fast.....I think the longest it has taken me to housetrain a dog is a week and a half.

Answer 5

She should have no problem with what you are doing. I'm in rescue and we housetrain adult dogs all the time. My only question would be on the size of her kennel. It should only be enough room to lay, stand, and turn around in comfortably. If it is bigger than that, they will poop and pee in it.

Answer 6

Does she ever poop outside? I found when I wanted to get my dog to go use the bathroom outside I used a "code word" with her to let her know the difference between outside play time and outside bathroom time. Try that. My word, as silly as it sounds, is "outies" Like "time to go outies". She knows the difference now and will promptly go to the bathroom when I use that with her. Best of luck!