Help! I don't get this puppy thing!

[Rayna6]

My boyfriend and I got a puppy about a month and a half ago. She is a pure bred german short haired pointer. She is now approximately 12 weeks old. The major issue we are having right now is that she poops in her crate. Now she is in her crate for 4 hours during the day but after I have walked her in the morning and she has done her business outside. She has plenty of toys to chew on. I feel she is pooping in the crate because she knows she will get a bath when we get home (as we have no choice but to bathe her) I don't get this because I thought puppies instinctively won't soil their dens. We did have her in a larger crate and when this started to happen we switched to a smaller plastic crate but its still happening....not only poopinig but peeing in her crate too. I feel she is doing this because she is mad at us for leaving her. We do spend all kinds of time with her and I have changed part of my life around to accommodate her, I go into work later in the day and stay later and my boyfriend comes home before me to be with her. I am sacrificing both pay and time with my boyfriend to try and do things right and I feel like I am getting no where!

Does anyone know what I can do? Should I feed her less in the morning? As it stands now we feed her one and a half cups of food at 730, she goes and does her business, we play in the park and then we feed her at 530 at night. During the day she drinks water and I let her out when she gives me 'the look'. I am quickly running out of ideas...and am having anxiety over these issues.

Thanks

[Zoom]

How small is the crate? She should honestly only have enough room to comfortably stand up and turn around and that's it. 4 hours might be pushing her ability to hold it right now, some puppy's systems mature a little slower...is there anyway you could set up a puppy playpen in your kitchen? Either use babygates to block the area off or get an X-Pen to create a playpen and then put her crate in it with some puppy pads or newspapers down for her to go on, along with some toys. Have water out, but limit the amount. She might still go during the day, but then she won't be messy or getting the idea that going in her crate is OK.

I do know of many pets that soil out of seperation anxiety. You can also try to wear out her mind and body at the same time in morning, playing quick games of "find it" or working on some obedience on your walks. Then she's more likely to sleep instead of concentrate on the fact that you're gone. Make doubly sure she has done both parts of her business before crating her....how much is she eating in the mornings?

[skittledoo]

You say she's 12 weeks old but you got her about a month and a half ago? That would mean she was only 6 weeks old when you got her. Where did you get her from? It's my understanding that most breeders will not allow pups to leave to their new homes that young.

It sounds like seperation anxiety to me. I don't think she's doing it just because "she knows she will get a bath." Are you only feeding her twice a day? I reccomend feeding approx 3 times a day at this age. Also... how much in an entire day is she getting? How much per feeding?

[adojrts]

Ok, first things first..........puppies and dogs don't do things to **** us off, they also live in the moment. The pup is certainly not doing this so she gets a bath, annoy you etc.
What kind of puppy food is she getting? Chances are if it is a brand that can be purchased at Walmart or the grocery store, it is high in grains and fillers, which makes a dog/pup have more BM each day. If that is the case, purchase a higher quality dog food.
Do you take the pup out just before you leave? Puppies HAVE to be taken out SEVERAL times a day, after they eat, drink, play, and play.
I don't recommend that she be given extra room, or papers down etc, that only teaches the pup that it is allowed to 'go' inside and you will continue to have problems and it will take longer to housetrain. The person who invented 'papertraining' should have been shot, it causes more problems than it solves in most cases.
Where did she come from? Puppies often learn to 'go', in crates/inside if they were raised with the litter in dirty situations.
Here is the name of a couple of excellent sites with articles on housetraining and problem house training.
The American Dog Trainers Network
and
www.canismajor.com

Raising a puppy takes a tremenous amount of work, education and dedication.
None of this is the pups fault on any level.
Btw, your are only about 15 mins away from me, PM and I will provide my number if you want some help by phone.

Good luck
Lynn

[Rayna6]

we feed her a total of 3 cups a day (which we think is a lot but we go by the back of the bag for her weight and age etc) my mistake...she is 15 weeks old...in the morning she gets a cup and a half of food and then in the evening the same amount.

the crate is only small enough for her to turn around in and lay down.

i take her out in the morning after eating and then again at around 11 for walks, but i let her out constantly if she needs to pee and then she comes back in, sometimes i let her out thinking she does and she doesn't go, but i want to make sure.

before i put her in the crate i do take her out to do her business. for instance here is how today went:

fed her 730 took her for a walk at 8 (where she did both her duties), played with her to wear her out...she slept then i took her out at 1130 and she did both her duties again. i got ready for work and before putting her in the crate at 1230 i took her out for a pee because i thought she was done with her BM until she was fed later. when my boyfriend got home at 430 so only 4 hours alone in the crate, she was filthy.

i don't believe in paper training, and don't want to give her more room in the house to poop in and neither does my boyfriend because i agree with adojrts on that fact that it does more harm than good.

oh, we got her in mississauga from a breeder, she wasn't full price because when they docked her tail it was too long so they couldn't sell her as a show dog. my boyfriend says that she was outside and that the breeder brought her inside for him to see but he didn't get to see where she had been born and what conditions (i know we should have been more thorough with this fact, but the fact is it didn't play out that way)

thanks for the suggestions, i didn't realize it would be so quick.

and thank you adojrts for your suggestions and for your kindness and willingness to help me out....i might take you up on that offer if things don't improve!

[~Tucker&Me~]

What brand of food are you feeding her?

~Tucker

[Rayna6]

Iams Puppy food

[smkie]

4 hours is a long time for a pup that young. AT that age i take them at the very longest 2 hours and that is if they have been sleeping most of that.
At that age i keep them with me almost 24/7 where i don't take an eye off of them so i can catch the deed before it is done. I am afraid i am not a crate advocate although many members here believe in them.

[girlbuffalo1]

Do you have any bedding or anything in the crate at all? If so take it out--take out anything except maybe a toy or two to keep her busy.

Wrigley went through a period where he would pee on his blanket and then push it over the side to try to escape it--no more bedding--no more problems.

I, for one think she should be able to hold it as long as you are doing what you described. Wrigley could easily hold it for 4 hours at younger than 15 wk and he is a small dog.

I would look into a higher quality food perhaps with less fillers. Fillers make for more poop.

Perhaps you can post a pic of your pup and the crate?

How big is he?

[Rayna6]

there is bedding in the crate...we'll take that out during the day when she's in there for a few hours...never thought of that because we read everywhere that you want to make it comfy for them.

my pup is now 25 pounds. this weekend i will take a picture of her to post with her crate...or in her crate.

i have another question...do a lot of dog owners go through such frustrating times that sometimes they think it might be better to give her up to someone else? i feel horrible for asking but i just feel that way sometimes? this is my first dog and my boyfriends' second. he had to give one up before because he was a single guy and worked long hours and didnt' think it was fair to the pup. during this puppy phase, little Rayna has taken a lot out of us both physically and emotionally and i just want to know that i'm not alone.