9 month old beagle house training issues

[abyssus04]

Hi there, we have a 9 month old female beagle pup. We have crate trained her from the start, and does great going straight to the door when she's let out of the crate. We stay and watch her to make sure she does her business before she comes back in, and she does great with that. Problem is, 5 minutes after she goes outside, she will poop in the house, even after she JUST pooped outside. I had her in our room the other day with me and our 4 year old, to play for a little while, and she pooped ON our bed. This morning, 5 minutes after she went poop outside, she pooped up in my 4 yr olds room.I understand that watching her closely is a must, and we do our best. She generally only stays out for 10-15 minutes after she comes back in from doing her business.

It has become more problematic since the weather has turned cold, but she's never outside very long, just long enough to do her business. She is also on a scheduled feeding instead of being free fed. I have had several dogs in my life time, have never had such a problem house breaking before. She's also praised for going potty outside every time. Any suggestions on what could be done would be great.

[Bailey_]

First question - What kind of food are you feeding her? Sometimes if we're feeding our dogs a food that is either too high in protien for them, or full of filler, they will poop a LOT more than neccessary.

With that said, watching her closely - as you mentioned - is going to give you a step up. I have a 2 year old, so I know what it is like to be a parent and try to keep my attention on our animals. When I'm going to be distracted, I will always put one or two dogs at a time on their leashes and attach them to my waist. This way I'm literally forced to pay much closer attention to what they're doing. If I'm folding laundry and I'm not sure if I can watch our puppy or another foster dog, they go on the leash.

It's just simply not realistic to keep your eye on your dogs all the time when you have a house to look after AND children.

Don't feel bad if you need to put your puppy in her kennel after she comes in the house and you can't physically watch her to ensure she doesn't go to the bathroom; or as I mentioned, put her on leash.

Another thing to remember is that if she's going to the bathroom twice - she could just be coming to the door because she's cold, and not neccessarily because she is 'done'. If you notice that she's routinely staying outside for only 10-15 minutes at a time, she could need another 10-15 minutes to finish the job entirely. Let her in, but keep her at the door. Allow her to warm up for a minute and then throw her back outside.

We have an older labX that needs to have a long walk in the morning before she will go to the bathroom. And if she gets anything less than at least a mile - she will go in our home.

It's all about figuring out what works for you and your dogs potty schedule.

[abyssus04]

We feed our dogs the blue buffalo brand of dog food.

Thanks for the suggestions Bailey. We will definitely give anything a try. The rule at our house is once they are here, they don't leave. She is great as far as everything else goes. Just seems the house breaking is hard for her to get down.

[cassiek]

Hi abysuss04,

I don't really have alot to add, just wanted to wish you good luck! I think Bailey_ has given some great advice, so hopefully all gets better for you!

I do know that every dog is different when it comes to potty training and schedules, and it seems as if you just need to find what your pups schedule is! I think that's a great idea too... bringing her back in for a minute or so to warm up then put her back outside.

Good luck!!

[Kay9]

I had a female beagle as well, and I can imagine how cute yours is!

Just to add a couple of additional thoughts: does your pup see you watching her go outside to poop? --because if she does, she may finish her one little poop performance and run in for her praise right away, without doing more sniffing and pooping. Beagles REALLY get revved up by praise! Also, beagles can be a bit stubborn, and housebreaking can sometimes take a little longer.

[Marty11]

Oh my, I have the same issues with my 2 year old Boston Terrier. When it gets cold out she bolts really fast for the door right after a pee. I have to then watch her and catch her signs and get her out again 5 min later. If I miss it then she poops the same place the same time. It's worse for me though, she eats it too..........This does not happen in good weather, cause she takes the time outside to finish.