At my wits end with this dog!

[Barbara!]

As some of you may know, I have a 5 month old Lab mix puppy named Baloo. He is a great dog. Spunky, smart, easy to train...

But he can't seem to stop using the bathroom in his kennel. He's done it since we got him at 11 weeks old and hasn't stopped. I figured it might just be a stage, but he is about to become an outside dog... He pees and poops in his kennel every single night, and almost anytime he is in there. (I clean up poop and pee 4-7 times out of his kennel daily.) He gets let outside a lot...so it's not like he doesn't have the chance to go. And we have a steady routine for potty breaks. We've tried making the kennel smaller, not feeding for at least 4 hours before bedtime, but he defies it all and keeps doing it. He's been to the vet and he has no medical problems, so I just don't get it. And, to add salt to the wound, he doesn't poop solidly in his kennel. His poop is solid when he is outside, but his poop is either very soft or straight liquid when he does it in his kennel. He also lays directly in it, so I always have to wipe him down.

It's just getting frustrating and I don't know what to do. Cleaning up pee/diarrhea 4-7 times a day (and I've been doing it for months now) is just becoming unacceptable. I need help to figure this out, because my knowledge reaches its limit on this one.

Thanks for any and all input, guys.

[Lyzelle]

Sounds like stress.

Did you actually crate train him, or just stick him in to deal with it?

[Barbara!]

Originally Posted by Lyzelle

Sounds like stress.

Did you actually crate train him, or just stick him in to deal with it?

He was crate trained when we got him. He doesn't wine or anything, and gets in on his own.

[Lyzelle]

So you never actually crate trained him? You should try that. Never take anyone's word on anything when it comes to training. Just because the dog goes in, it doesn't mean they were trained properly or enjoy it.

Crate Games is a DVD that is often suggested.

[Barbara!]

He is/was crate trained... We did all the positive association and treating and feeding him in the crate long before we locked him in it. He slept at night in bed with us when we first got him before we ever locked him in it while we were gone. It's not stress or lack of training, he loves his crate and is comfortable in his crate. He just doesn't seem to mind laying in his own pee/poop..... .____.

[Panzerotti]

Have you tried changing his food? My Mal pooped in her crate a lot until I switched her over to raw.

Try not to get frustrated with him, he's not doing it on purpose.

[Barbara!]

Originally Posted by Panzerotti

Have you tried changing his food? My Mal pooped in her crate a lot until I switched her over to raw.

Try not to get frustrated with him, he's not doing it on purpose.

Oh, I know. I don't yell at him or anything, but you can't help but be a little irked when you're wiping up poop for the 3rd time in a day...lol.

And that's what I am trying next. I wonder how that effects it? Do you know? I can't do raw just yet (definitely plan to), but I have never felt that he has done as well on TOTW as he could anyways...so a food switch will come sometime within the week.

[Panzerotti]

When Pan was a pup I slept on the living room couch literally for months so that I could hear her whine or pace and wake up to take her outside or else she'd have diarrhea in her crate. Plus she was a winter pup, so it would be -20 outside for my numerous trips outside. I so understand your frustration.

It will get better though. 5 months is still young. I would thoroughly research a raw diet and give it a try. But a year from now you'll look back on these days and smile.

http://leerburg.com/feedingarawdiet.htm

[Barbara!]

Yep, thanks for the encouragement, lol.

I need to get a freezer and a supplier, and I for sure plan to do raw. It's supposed to be cheaper, too...and since I feed 4 dogs, cheaper is great.

[Kat09Tails]

As much as I hate to say it some dogs are just piglets about keeping clean. But this doesn't sound like the case - if a dog was a completely normal piglet pup he would have solid poos outside or inside and just not give a **** about it. It doesn't sound like that is the case.

My initial thought is you need to have a fecal run - specifically one looking for giardia. Giardia can be a devious little but and cause stool to fluctuate wildly meaning he just can't hold it. Part 2 of my thought is that this dog is eating - way too much which also can cause loose /prolific / inconsistent stools. Cut his food in half for a day and see what happens.