# My dog only poops whilst on walks...



## Lizz1155

Sorry, this might be an icky thread.

Basically, my dog will only poop in the evening if he's on a walk - he won't poop in the garden. Down the road from our house is a grass verge next to a dog-poop bin, and it's an area which all the local dogs seem to poop on (not sure if it's a territory marking thing?). If I walk my dog down to this grass verge in the evening, he's pretty much guaranteed to poop. If I don't walk him down to this grass verge in the evening he just doesn't go, then he sometimes decides that he needs to poop in the middle of the night (if he's desperate he will poop in the garden).

Since the nights are getting dark earlier, I'm trying to switch his evening walk into a late-afternoon walk - but he ends up not pooping in the evenings (even when I play with him in the garden in the evening, for a long time). I just want him to get used to having an evening poop in the garden rather than on the grass verge.

In the morning's he's not much better - again if he's desperate he'll go in the garden, but will always go _again _when I walk him, even if I'm just walking him 30 minutes since he last went (same grass verge).

Ideas please? I'm not sure if the issue is that he's just not comfortable toileting in the garden, or whether there's something about walking down the road which makes him want to poop (which doesn't happen with just playing in the garden). It's only a 150-200m walk which makes him decide that he wants to poop...however the area is a tad secluded so I try to avoid it when it's dark. It will also be very slippery around there when the ground freezes.

(P.s I have never told my dog off or discouraged him from toileting in the garden. It's always been praise and a treat afterwards. Although he doesn't like toileting whilst on a lead in the garden - tends to panic a little when he doesn't have the freedom to jump to the back of a flowerbed and poop there. That probably doesn't help  In the morning he has the freedom of being off-lead in the garden so he can poop where he wants, but if it's dark he needs to be on a lead.)


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## BoredomBusters

Some dogs include their own garden as part of not wanting to soil the den. I know a Labrador who won't even pee in his own garden.

Can you use a longer lead for evening toilets in the garden? He might also want to have some privacy from you when in the garden. I assume he has to stay on lead as your garden is not secure, could you put some temporary mesh fencing up in a small area so he can be released into there?


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## Lizz1155

BoredomBusters said:


> Some dogs include their own garden as part of not wanting to soil the den. I know a Labrador who won't even pee in his own garden.
> 
> Can you use a longer lead for evening toilets in the garden? He might also want to have some privacy from you when in the garden. I assume he has to stay on lead as your garden is not secure, could you put some temporary mesh fencing up in a small area so he can be released into there?


I'll pick up a long lead for him - the garden is secure, I just don't like not being able to easily find him in the dark.

If he does consider the garden to be part of his den and doesn't want to soil it, is it going to be upsetting/distressing for him if I do try and train him to poop there?


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## ellenlouisepascoe

I have the opposite problem :lol:

My husky WILL NOT poop or pee on a walk when I bring him in I have to let him straight out. 

Our Cavalier King Charles won't poop in the garden but will pee. 

Strange animals


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## BoredomBusters

Lizz1155 said:


> I'll pick up a long lead for him - the garden is secure, I just don't like not being able to easily find him in the dark.
> 
> If he does consider the garden to be part of his den and doesn't want to soil it, is it going to be upsetting/distressing for him if I do try and train him to poop there?


It shouldn't be if you reward him for going there and don't make it stressful. You can get light up collars. Or lights that attach to the collars - although I've found these get turned on accidentally and the batteries run out.


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## orkney

Chesters the same....wont poop in the back yard and will only pee a "token" dribble when told (I think he thinks its a waste to do it where no other dog will be able to smell it lol)

He wont poop on concrete either..can be very frustrating! 
Luckily hes raw fed so he poops very little and only once a day!

just remembered he has a liking to pooping in the sea though...


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## tanglewood3

I wouldn't worry about it. Just accept it and buy a torch for the dark evenings! 
If we started a thread about toilet foibles, it would go on forever.

You can't force him to do it in the garden, so just accept it. He'll probably change as time goes by.

Often it's the other way round; they'll only toilet at home until they grow up a bit. (If you think about it, we take them on walks where there are other dogs and they're quite vulnerable when going to the toilet)


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## Burrowzig

Ziggy wouldn't poo in the garden of our old house. Once we moved, she pood away happily for a while then the old thing started to kick in again. Now will if desperate but prefers to hang on and drop her pile elsewhere. I use praise and treats when she does, but it's been going on so long now I don't see her changing. She also automatically doesn't like to poo in the garden I have around the caravan at agility shows.

Kite's the opposite; prefers to poo at home.

Both will pee anywhere outdoors.

Wierdos.


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## sazzle

My dog wont go in the garden either, although he will go in the garden in the night if he has upset tum. 

He has a selection of particular places that he likes to go when we are out too. I think he has OCD...


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## yamazumi

My aunts lab won't go in the garden, I had him at uni with me for a week a couple of months back and he wouldn't even go in my garden.

I was picking up his poo one day and a man was going on about how it's worse to pick it up as the bags are pollution and he should go at home.

I mentioned to him he just doesn't go in the garden and he said if you leave it long enough they will.

I find that hard to believe when he only had one meal a day and would poo about four times. Unless I was keeping him confined in the house and garden for over 24 hours I doubt he'd go. He had diarrhoea one day and didn't even go in the garden then.

My pup is a bit of a hit and miss at the moment, she clearly prefers the garden but has gone a few times whilst on a walk, but usually she'll try and rush to get out in the garden when we come back and will go pee straight away.


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