Are you scratching your head, wondering why your furry friend pees outside but poops inside? Fear not, dear friends, we’re here to shed some light on this common issue! We’ve identified 11 common causes and 11 approaches to help solve this pesky problem.
Your dog may be peeing outside but pooping inside due to spending less time outdoors, changes in daily routine, poor house training, aging effects, inappropriate diet, previous accidents, separation anxiety, stress, fear of loud noises, and health issues such as viral infections and parasites.
Because these behaviors can stem from both natural and unusual reasons, it’s essential to observe your dog’s behavior and identify the exact cause to address the issue promptly. With the right approach, we’re confident that you and your furry friend will be back to your happy and healthy selves in no time!
Why do some dogs pee outside and poop inside?
It feels so weird when a dog does this. Even well-housebroken dogs sometimes tend to do this.
However, what is the strange thing behind this problem?
1. Spending less time outdoors.
Most dog parents make this mistake without realizing it.
They take their dogs out for toileting the first thing in the morning, wait some time to ensure the dog needs poop, return to the home when the dog doesn’t even bother to poop.
Never do this.
Because being outdoors some time wandering around among rocks, grasses, enjoying the breeze, and sniffing around make them perfectly stimulated for defecating.
Why? Dogs are also part of nature!
They don’t need much stimulation to urinate. That’s why they actually urinate in less time.
However, when the owner returns home with the perfectly stimulated dog to poop, it will make the dog feel the urgency of defecating within a short time, resulting in pooping inside even without the owner realizing it.
2. Changes in daily routine.
Dogs are known to have a precise internal clock, making them fond of sticking to a daily routine.
If you suddenly changed the daily routine for some reason, the dog will start to poop inside even if it urinates outside.
Just be aware that a normal dog needs to go outside for potty work in the morning, noonday, early evening, and right before bedtime, while a puppy needs to go outdoors even several minutes after drinking, eating, playing, napping.
Do your best to adhere to a consistent daily routine.
3. Lack of house training.
Even though this seems obvious, poor house training is another significant reason a dog used to pee outside and poop inside.
Therefore, it appears to be providing proper house training is the best thing you can do at the movement.
This can often be seen in rescue dogs who haven’t received proper house training in the early stages of life. Of course, training an adult dog is way more complicated than a puppy.
4. Aging effects.
Many canines tend to exhibit this behavior more and more as they get old. Because most of them often suffer from a lack of bowel control and fecal incontinence.
Here is why this can be a problem.
- Some old dogs are known to have canine cognitive dysfunction, making them forget to go outdoors for defecating when needed.
- Generally, old dogs gradually lose control of the anal sphincter muscle, which helps a dog hold the poop in the body.
- Since most older dogs are prone to many different health issues, accidents can happen, especially dogs with arthritis issues are usually reluctant to go out. This is why some dogs stand on hind legs to peep.
5. Inappropriate diet.
Giving your dog unhealthy or inappropriate diet food is another responsible offense, especially when some dog parents buy cheap and low-value dog food from the supermarket.
I agree; buying dog food regularly is also another significant expense. However, keeping your dog healthy is what’s more important. Frankly, the cost of veterinary bills and medications is much higher than buying dog food.
So, the inappropriate diet or sudden changes in diet can cause a dog to poop in the house even when he pees outside.
6. Separation anxiety and stress.
Although some owners refuse to believe this, psychological issues like separation anxiety and stress significantly impact your dog’s lifestyle even without underlying medical conditions.
In general, dogs that are prone to separation anxiety and stress tend to howl, whine, chew destructively, scratch doors and windows, and obviously defecating inside the house apart from pooping inside.
7. There have been previous accidents.
Do you know that canines prefer to urinate and defecate over and over again on the same spot?
If a dog had previous accidents inside, it would be more likely to poop on the same spot in a case where it can still feel the odor.
The only way to prevent this is to clean that area thoroughly. How can you do that? Don’t worry, we gonna discuss it under solutions.
8. Fear of loud noises.
It’s a true fact that dogs tend to poop and pee even inside the house in a case where they get frightened.
When a dog parent finds the stools inside the house, he misunderstands his dog pees outside and poops only inside. Because most dog owners cannot understand what their dogs are terrified of.
Here are some things that dogs are afraid of.
- Some dogs are afraid of musical instruments.
- Some dogs have a fear of shadows or light reflections.
- Fear of vehicles.
- Often puppies are afraid of other dogs barking.
- Some canines have stair phobia.
- Fear of people after surgery is another example.
- And many more other phobias.
Reading your loving pooch’s body language and understanding what your dog prefers and dislikes may help prevent such circumstances.
9. Health problems.
Certain health issues may influence this behavior, including the following.
- Viral infections
- Parasites
- Inflammatory bowel disease
- Muscle atrophyBacteria
- Allergy
- Bowel cancer
What to do if a dog pees outside and poops inside all the time?
Well, we’ve discussed the reasons.But, what’s more, important is the solutions.
Giving enough time outdoors, sticking to a daily routine, positive reinforcement techniques, cleaning previously defecated spots with an enzymatic cleaner, providing exercises, crate training, making a proper diet plan, & meeting a veterinarian are solutions if a dog pees outside but poop inside.
Dog Breeds Experts.
Here are 9 possible approaches to address this issue.
1. Give enough time outdoors.
As I mentioned earlier, a dog may pee outdoors and poop inside the house because of the lack of time being spent outdoors. Since they require some adjusting time, ensure to provide enough time to stay outdoors.
Don’t try to rush. If you do, You’re the one who has to face the trouble of cleaning!
2. Stick to a routine.
Canines love routines! So, ensure to stick with one solid and consistent daily schedule with your loving pooch if you really wanna keep her providing any more troubles.
Also, understand when your dog needs to defecate and take notes in your mind. As I mentioned earlier, puppies and adult canines mostly fall into two specific baskets in terms of the times they are ready to poop.
However, It really depends on many different things, including health issues, age, personality, psychological health, amount of eating, and many other vital causes.
So, the best thing to do is understand the specific time schedule that you have to take your loving pooch outdoors rather than asking others or digging on the internet.
After observing her during 3-4 days, take her out immediately at that specific time. Of course, Deviations might be there. But for the most part, you gonna be okay, and more significantly, things will get better and better as time goes.
All you have to be consistent if you really wanna keep the dog from pooping inside and only peeing outdoors.
Suggested Reading: How to change your dog’s pooping schedule?
3. Positive reinforcement.
Positive reinforcement is another powerful tool when it comes to training a new thing to canines.
So, ensure to praise her with loads of yummy treats, cuddles, along with verbal encouragement whenever she poops outside, is a great way to address this issue.
4. Use an enzymatic cleaner.
If your dog previously had accidents inside the house, cleaning those spots is vital to keep her pooping in that specific area even though she is well trained to pee and poop outdoors.
Go through this link and understand how to clean your couch throughout if your dog poops on the couch. What’s more important is, this method is applicable for cleaning pretty much any spot inside the house. Not only for the couch! It’s worth reading.
5. Provide exercises.
Providing sufficient exercises is another important thing you should definitely do if your dog pees outside and poop inside.
Consider taking her on a short walk or having several minutes of playing session in your backyard to stimulate her to defecate.
6. Crate train.
Crate training is another excellent method to keep a dog from pooping inside the house. Because dogs don’t like to defecate inside their crates.
If your dog hasn’t been properly crate trained, why are you waiting?
7. Take to the same spot.
Make sure to take her to the same spot whenever she started to show some progress with these approaches.
As I mentioned earlier, dogs prefer to defecate and urinate in the same spots they’ve done before, and they should also feel the odor. So, taking her to the same spot will definitely help.
8. In and out!
Trying In and out is another excellent method if your dog used to pee outside but poop inside.
Basically, what this means is taking her outside at specific times and waiting she starts to poop. If she isn’t doing it, consider taking her inside and wait for about 5 minutes.
Retake her outsider after waiting about 5 minutes. Rinse and repeat until she defecated outside.
Don’t let her freely roam throughout the house during that 5 minutes. Because it increases the chance of eliminating inside. You can free her after the job is done.
Other helpful tips.
9. Create a proper diet plan: As discussed earlier, eating less poor quality food and inappropriate diet plans always give trouble. If you feel the problem with her diet, consider repeating it after chatting with your veterinarian. More importantly, never ever attempt to do it by yourself. It requires professionals knowledge, ears of experience, and observation of the dog completely.
10. Deal with psychological issues: Now you know certYou know specific psychological problems can significantly impact this strange behavior. So, trying your best to keep the dog mentally stimulated will stop such behaviors from happening any further.
11. Meet your vet: If your dog exhibits the symptoms of the above-mentioned health issues and if you feel this is something beyond your control, take her to a vet as soon as possible.
Things to be aware of.
It’s good to see how you know the possible reasons for this behavior and a handful of solutions to prevent it from happening. However, there are certain vital things you need to be aware of.
Here thy are.
Weather: If your dog pees outside and poop inside, note that the weather condition is another minor reason. For instance, your dog may pee outside. But she doesn’t have any urgency to poop whatsoever. However, suddenly started to rain. So, if she feels the urgency of defecating on such an occasion, she will end up pooping inside.
Coincidence: If your dog is complIf your dog is completely housetrained, and she did this only once, it could be just a coincidence. You should worry if it keeps happening. However, don’t forget to clean up that spot.
Injuries: Dogs are playful, especially high energetics breeds that are incredibly active. The higher the activeness is, the higher the chance of getting injured. So, your dog may do that due to a leg injury. Consider checking her body for a wound or any other painful areas. If you found it, take her to a vet as soon as possible.
Vet checkups: Be sure to meet your veterinarian regularly without skipping a single one.
Be patient: Understand that training a dog is a time-consuming process that requires a tremendous amount of patience. Never, ever attempt to punish or yell at the dog. If you do that, you are only making the problem worse.
Conclusion.
Are you worried because your dog has a habit of peeing outside and pooping inside? We’ve discussed 11 main reasons for this and 11 possible approaches to solving the issue. Hope you found this helpful.
Cheers.
