Comeflyaway Posted January 8, 2016 Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 I have two huskies, Max (male, 7) and Kaya (female, 5). They've been together since Kaya was a puppy. We moved into our house about a year and a half ago. Two years ago, we had a baby. A few months ago, one of them randomly started having big accidents in the house - big piles of poop, big puddles of pee. It always happened during the night. We're pretty sure it was Kaya - Max is the "good" one and she's always been the naughty one. She also acted guilty when we asked them, though we didn't punish her. The baby was probably about 15 months old at that point, and we'd been in our new house for a while, so neither of those things really seemed to be precipitating factors (we'd also moved several times in the past and never had any issues from the dogs). We got the backyard fenced in back in April and this was a few months after that, so even that change wasn't super new. I did what I could to give Kaya a little extra attention, and the problem didn't last. It's just suddenly started up again. Lots of pee and poop, appearing overnight. I recently started a new job and a totally new schedule - I work overnights now. But I've been doing this for 5-6 weeks at this point. My husband is still home overnight, and I'm now home during the day, though when we sleep, we go upstairs where the dogs are not allowed. We spend afternoons/ evenings downstairs with the dogs, plus they see us in the mornings (hubby as he leaves, me as I come home). Since being on the night shift, I've relied much heavier on the fenced-in yard to give the dogs outside time. But like I've said, I've been on this shift for 5-6 weeks now. My daughter just turned 2 and is a whirlwind of play, running, talking, and potty training. I'm ashamed to admit that she gets most of our attention lately. Please don't shame me for giving the dogs less attention. I'm just looking for insight into this recent outbreak of peeing/ pooping in the house. Do you think it's related? I would say yes, but it just seems so sudden for a reaction to something that's not too new. Plus, I made sure to give Kaya extra love and attention yesterday, plus extra outside time, and my husband still woke up to find a mess this morning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emma Posted January 8, 2016 Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 It could be as a result of the new work schedule. Maybe she's feeling unsure about the change or maybe due to the change, she's simply not going out to toilet at the right time and getting caught short? Or possibly she's waking up more at night now instead of sleeping through and that's triggering her to need the toilet at times she wouldn't normally need it. Its good you're not punishing her, as that will make things worse. She won't understand why she's being punished and that will make her more upset, exacerbating the problem. If I say to Bear "did you do that?" In a questioning tone, and point to something in the house. Immediately she looks sad and puts her ears down looking 'guilty'. It doesn't matter if I point to a random object, she'll still do it because she simply doesn't know. Dogs generally live in the here and now, so what happened hours ago is unlikely to stick in their short term memory unless it was something pretty traumatic or important to them. Ive got 2 son's so I know how much time they take up when young. We found it useful to us to get into a routine of sorts with our staffy Brooke to help make sure she still had a section of time that was for her. It may have been a smaller than desired portion of time but it seemed to help her and made things run a little smoother for us. As our children grew up it became much easier to slot everything in and now they are old enough to responsibly play with the dogs themselves. Playing fetch, training tricks etc...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loudlucky Posted January 8, 2016 Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 I only have this potty problem with Smokey when she's in season. You did not mention if your girl is spayed. But I guess then she would have always done it... Maybe the house you moved into had dogs previously who went potty in the house and she could still smell it somehow? Or it could be like Emma saidsomething (your daughter maybe or a neighbour) causes Kaya to wake up in the night and then she has to go...I know when my friend's little one talks in her sleep, their dog wakes up and don't know whats going on... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mazz Posted January 8, 2016 Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 If a dog poops, it is often times that they will pee just before. I had a conversation with our vet about a year ago. This is pure conjecture, so take it for what it's worth. But when a dog urinates, especially a female, it will often times stimulate the intestines, resulting in the need to poop. Point being, there may be a medical reason for the pee, like a UTI or some other condition. When she squats to urinate, she then needs to poop as well. Vet also said that most dogs, if they have a need to poop, will often times pee first, or in the case of a female, may squat to pee and immediately go into position to poop. Too much info perhaps. So it could also be there may be a medical reason for the poo, like a dietary condition, Krones disease, hard to say. Might be a good idea to discuss with your vet and see what he/she thinks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay Posted January 8, 2016 Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 I would also talk to your vet about it. It is possible that due to the new work schedule she is rebelling. I would maybe try going back to potty training 101, making sure she goes just before bed. If I don't allow Yukon to do this, he will find a spot and poop inside if I don't wake up . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Comeflyaway Posted January 12, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2016 It just occurred to me that I never followed up with you guys. I appreciated all the input greatly, but I've been waylaid with a sinus infection that's made working the night shift even harder... Anyway, I have an update! I was upstairs in my bedroom, sleeping during the day, when a dog whimper woke me up. Given recent events, I woke up immediately and went to check it out. My well-behaved male was standing directly outside my bedroom door, which is very unusual because both dogs know they aren't allowed upstairs. He acted thrilled and excited, then immediately made for the door downstairs. I followed and let him out, and he immediately went outside and both peed and pooped. So Kaya was wrongly accused! Knowing it was Max, and given that he woke me up, I was sure at this point that it was a physical problem, not behavioral. My husband took him to the vet, where nothing came back in his fecal sample but they gave us some meds anyway. He's been on anti-diarrheal meds and probiotics for several days now, and there hasn't been a single accident. He's always had digestive issues here and there, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised. In fact I'm glad - I know how to handle this. I was so shocked by the sudden behavioral issue out of nowhere! Thanks again, everyone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robke Posted January 12, 2016 Report Share Posted January 12, 2016 Thanks for the update, hope all will get sorted soon for you and your furkids... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emma Posted January 12, 2016 Report Share Posted January 12, 2016 Glad to hear you got to the bottom of it! (Pun not intentional, lol). Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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