Lab goes to the bathroom every 5 seconds...

Not litterally, but he goes alot. Doesnt usually urinate, he just poops.

Hes a 4-5 month Old Black Lab


It is very solid like it should be and he was at the vet recently with zero problem so I don't think hes sick. This has been going on for prolly 1 1/2 months.

Tonight for example I took him outside. He went to the bathroom where he usually does. Comes in side, eats dinner, and poops. I mean I didnt even have time to grab him to go outside. In a 10 minute time span, he came in, ate and walked right over to the living room and dropped a nice large pile.

We take him out, wont go. Which is understandable as he went inside...

So i clean it up, not even 10 minutes late, he goes again.

Its like this every night.

1. we are having so much trouble getting him training. He knows hes wrong, i mean as soon as he does it, he will run and hide cause he knows im going to scold him when I find it. We did however get a pen from a friend who bought it and never used it. Its huge and will keep him contained so Hopefully that will help me train him as I can watch him while hes out.

2. Why the hell is he pooping so much. I mean its non stop. Any ideas?

He doesn't know it's wrong or else he wouldn't do it. The reason he runs and hides is because he knows you scold him after he goes. If you keep it up, you're going to create a dog that sneaks off to poop in a corner where you can't see, and who will refuse to go potty outside when you are present.

What do you do when he goes potty/poop outside? Are you out there with him every time, prepared to give lots of praise?

I'd tether this pup to you when he's in the house so he can't run off and have accidents, and that way, when he does have one, you can keep him from running away because he's leashed, so you can easily scoop him up and run him outside.

First, you're making a big mistake to scold him. He does NOT know he did wrong. He's not a human and doesn't come knowing our ways. It takes time, maturity and proper training. Be careful not to project your human thought processes, morals and value system onto your puppy, who is not only a baby, but an animal. He doesn't understand and won't understand in a logical way. He will learn from having many repititions of being reinforced for going outside. The more accidents he has inside, the harder it will be for him to learn.

Punishment can cause him to fear you, to avoid going in front of you, to hide it, to try another place in the house, maybe a back bedroom since it proved to be unsafe (getting scolded) to go in that spot. He is guessing at this point where to go. Just because he gives you a few correct responses outside, does not mean he's had a sufficient history of reinforcement. (high value reward the second he finishes outside, not after he comes in.) He needs many repititions and reinforcement in the designated spot in order to increase the probability that he'll repeat that behavior. That is what causes behavior to be repeated, not a logical, thought out "ah-ha" moment. And not a sense of right and wrong the way humans understand right and wrong. Punishment can also make the dog stop going to the bathroom until he can't hold it any longer. He can perceive it to mean that it's unsafe to go to the bathroom. Period. Not, that it's unsafe to go in the house. So he holds it. You take him out and he continues to hold it. (if he can) Then you bring him in and he just can't hold it any longer and he goes on your rug.

You must take him out every hour (at least) and give a cue word quietly while he's going so not to get him excited...."go potty." The second he is finished, you throw him a party with extra tasty treats, loads of praise....make a fuss over him. You must go with him and not just let him out the door on his own. Inside, constant supervision....literally. Use a crate when you can't watch him.

As he builds up a big "bank account" of reinforcement for going outside, he'll begin to choose that place to go because it's the only place where he gets all these wonderful things. Dogs do what works. And it works to go outside. I mean, it really works. Who would turn down a chance for a piece of cheese, chicken or liver and a wee of a good time? He's going to choose that way after it makes the connection, which can take varying amounts of time. If he has to keep guessing where inside he should go since the one place was not safe to go (scolding), he has many choices. It could be the guest room. It could be your room or the bathroom....hmmmm, maybe even the dining room. He doesn't know. BUT....if he only goes outside in his designated spot, that's only one place. There's not much to guess about. So the choices of where not to go are much more vast than where to go. You have to watch him closely and prevent more accidents. I understand if he has a medical situation going on.

I recommend you read the stickie on the top of this page on housebreaking.

He can't help this. It is not his fault. He's a baby. Housebreaking takes time and punishing him can cause a lot of detrimental side effects. I hope you'll read those tips in the top thread which has a little thumbtack next to it.

Also, what are you feeding? He may need more fiber. It sounds like the whole bowel contents isn't able to come out at one time. It should be fluffy and good size in diameter. Is he drinking plenty of water?

If you have more questions, don't hesitate to ask.

Cheeta
Yes I am with him every time, As I walk him every time he goes to the bathroom.


What Can I do to increase fiber?

You might need a better brand of dog food. Use something without byproducts, at the very least. Puppies can also have some frozen mixed veggies (meat-only people please don't hurt me) which help them feel better while teething and also add fiber.

Remember, if a puppy has an accident, only the human is to blame- a puppy is always blameless. Puppies are blank slates, and anything they do 'wrong' is either because you wrote it on the slate, or you forgot to write something good on the slate. He needs to go out right after he eats.

Oh, and invest in an excellent enzyme cleaner to stop him from using the same spot over and over in the house.

I would suggest changing to a better dog food. Some of the foods produce more poop than others. Plus a puppy does potty a lot. Sometimes I joke that they are pee and poop factories. Housebreaking is not fun with some pups but you need to give them positive reinforcement not negative. They respond best to praise and love. I even praise my older dogs when they potty outside. You can see them walk a little prouder and they know they have done good. Good luck!

I don't know for a fact that your dog needs more fiber. It was just a suggestion. I don't know that you need to feed a better brand because I don't even know what you're feeding right now. I can't see your dog's BMs so I don't know anything there either. It was just a guess.

I'd describe the poops to your vet and ask if it's a possibility that he needs some added fiber and what to give for that. Or, wait till Mordy comes back and p.m. her. She's our nutritian guru here on Chazz. If his poop is too hard, that is why I wondered if he needed a little help.

Sometimes adding things can throw off the balance of nutrients so that's why I hesitate to advise you in any definite way.

I believe that canned pumpkin is a normalizer. Green beans would add a little fiber. There may be no need to add fiber so you can see why you should check with your vet and describe how he's going this often, what you're feeding, the consistancy of his poops and get advised that way or by Mordy.

Just don't let your vet suck you into feeding Science Diet. That stuff is garbage and vets really don't generally know that much about nutritian apparently. But he'd know how the intestines work and about fiber etc.

Thanks for the info guys. I was mainly concerned about how much he goes to the bathroom. I just mentioned that he goes inside to show how much of a problem it is...

I attribute some of it to the previous owners. He was a stray and we picked him up in a semi bad condition.

When my dog was a pup,I used his crate as his (safe zone)meaning that was his own little den ,he would not relieve himself in his crate,so what i would do is let him out every hour or so(from his crate)taking him outside to relieved himself in an are i wanted.(saying go potty to him as he sniffed around) When he would relieve himself i would praise him give treats,and then he had run of the house awhile.then he goes back in his crate and the cycle starts over,they catch on quick.

Just wanted to let you all know that we brought the pen home today and blocked him into the living room..We haven't had one accident tonight, at all.

Its a good start as far as im concerned.

That's a good start.

I'd look into the food too. I don't know what you are feeding but when my dogs went from a low quality kibble to a higher one and then to raw there was a drastic change in how often they pooped. It was really nice!

We usually give both of them Purina One but just recently switched to Wegmans brand. We won 2 50 pound bags so i figured we might as well use them. I will be switching back over to there normal food within the next two-three weeks.

Also our older dog has shown zero changes with the different food.

That might be due to the lack of quality in both foods.. Some purina is less sketch than others, but None of it I'd ever choose to feed. Might want to check out the nutrition forum on here and find why it's bad and what makes other foods better.

You know I have considered that, and when Petco moves in i might start buying a better food, however, I don't like having to order food(which I have to do right now if I want a better food) and honestly, millions of people feed there dogs Purina One, they are healthy, and Well every vet i have ever been to has recommended it. I know its not the best, but i cant see it doing that much harm.

Unfortunately it does in the long run and your dog is obviously not reacting well to all the fillers. There may be more options close to home than you are aware of. Sometimes you can get better brands of dog food at feed stores or Costco's kirkland brand is decent.

It isn't that it "isn't the best", some of Purina's crap is the worst. Purina ONE is OK, but not really anything I would ever feed my dog.

Where do you live? Have you tried the store locator tools at the following websites:

http://www.canidae.com (Search by area code)

http://www.naturapet.com

http://www.eaglepack.com

http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com

All of those companies offer foods that are "all life stages" so you won't have to switch when your dog goes from puppy to adult.

I'm originally from the Northeast and I have a feeling that if you're near a Wegman's, you have some stores that will carry higher quality foods.