[meand]

Hi im hoping for some advice here

My partner has a 19 month old Male Shih tzu.
Originlly in the night had the kitchen to sleep in however overtime he was just weeing and pooing. With my little experience with dog training from my mum training dogs I said that we would be best giving him a confined space to sleep in thus hopefully he'll take the stance that hes not going to mess where he sleeps.
We have a large metal cage that is big enough for him to sleep in.
At first it seemed to have worked......but over time he has started to poo in the cage and he has started to bark in the middle of the night.
Last night he was barking till gone 3am in the morning. I went down to him 3 times and was very stern with him. Eventually he stopped as he must have realised that everytime he barked I went down to him and told him No. He also eat his own poo in the cage.

Will he have been barking because he poo'd? Am I right in saying that you need give him a confined space which should in theory make him not want to poo in his space?
I want him to go to his bed when we go bed and he know that its time for him to sleep on his bed, not bark or make a mess.

Any advise appreciated very much.

 

[spotted nikes]

Dogs do not have the mental capacity to rebel.
He probably had to go to the bathroom, and was barking to go out, or he has mild separation anxiety and pooped due to stress.

It doesn't sound like he is housebroken. Go back to basic housebreaking. Always supervise, tether him to you when out of crate. Take him out after eating, playing, and sleeping. Have high value treats (like tiny pieces of cut up hot dog)to reward him with when he goes. Use a cue word/phrase like "go potty" to ask him to go. Clean accidents with an enzyme cleaner like Nature's miracle.
If he has an accident, simply interrupt him, and take outside. Slap YOURSELF for not supervising him better. Do not yell at, or hit your dog. They have no idea why they are being yelled at or hit. Do NOT rub his nose in it.
Dogs will poop at regular times if you feed at a regular time daily. (Generally about 12-14 hrs after eating. The poop he does in teh am is from food eaten the day before). If he is having to poop at night, change your feeding time by about 4 hrs earlier or later, and see if that helps. Try walking him in the evening for about 45 min, an hour or so before bed. Then take him out one last time before you go to bed.

 

[HollowHeaven]

. . .but over time he has started to poo in the cage and he has started to bark in the middle of the night.

I'm going to liken this dog to my cat and my chihuahua. My Chihuahua will pace or actually come to get me if he needs to go out. He WILL make it known ANY way he can if he has to go potty, and if he gets ignored by whoever he's asking, he will use the bathroom inside, and it's completely unfair to blame him for it. He goes potty RIGHT before I lay down to sleep as AS SOON AS I wake up.
My cat will come to my door before he uses his litter box, as if to warn me, then after he's finished he comes back, and makes a fuss because he wants me to clean it. He knows that after he's finished, someone -mainly me -.-' - is supposed to go grab the scooper. He lets us know.
The dog could be doing this. Most likely he's trying to let you know he needs to potty.

He also eat his own poo in the cage . . . Am I right in saying that you need give him a confined space which should in theory make him not want to poo in his space?

Eating poo can be contributed by a lack of nutrition in a dog's diet. From what I understand -correct me if I'm wrong- but they don't smell what we smell when it comes to waste. They smell the food, not the stank. He might also actually be trying to clean his sleeping area, because nobody wants to lay in their own waste. It's generally an owner's mistake, not the dog's problem.
When you've got to go, you've to go. Just because a dog doesn't prefer to lay in his own waste doesn't mean that he's not willing to go where he sleeps if he has no other choice.


When boils down to it, you should start watching his diet -both consumption of food and water- and set up some sort of pottying schedule for him. Keep on him, and don't punish him for having an accident. A simple 'no' will do, then immediately take him out. Like Nikes said, interrupt him if you catch him the act. And clean the spot with something that will kill the scent.
Dogs also tend to potty better when on a walk, so even a short walk could help him.

 

[Purple]

Dogs do not have the mental capacity to rebel.
He probably had to go to the bathroom, and was barking to go out, or he has mild separation anxiety and pooped due to stress.

It doesn't sound like he is housebroken. Go back to basic housebreaking. Always supervise, tether him to you when out of crate. Take him out after eating, playing, and sleeping. Have high value treats (like tiny pieces of cut up hot dog)to reward him with when he goes. Use a cue word/phrase like "go potty" to ask him to go. Clean accidents with an enzyme cleaner like Nature's miracle.
If he has an accident, simply interrupt him, and take outside. Slap YOURSELF for not supervising him better. Do not yell at, or hit your dog. They have no idea why they are being yelled at or hit. Do NOT rub his nose in it.
Dogs will poop at regular times if you feed at a regular time daily. (Generally about 12-14 hrs after eating. The poop he does in teh am is from food eaten the day before). If he is having to poop at night, change your feeding time by about 4 hrs earlier or later, and see if that helps. Try walking him in the evening for about 45 min, an hour or so before bed. Then take him out one last time before you go to bed.

I think that's great advice. The next time he is barking at night, I would let him outside for 15 minutes and praise him if he goes pee or poo. After he goes potty, if he continues to bark, I would just ignore it. Going to him for whatever reason after you KNOW he doesn't have to go potty (because he just went) is only reinforcing his barking. Here is an article on coprophagia (dogs eating poop): http://www.marlischis.com/coprophagia.htm
I believe it's common for Shi Tzu's to have coporphagia, but don't quote me on that!

 

[doxiemommy]

I think that's great advice. The next time he is barking at night, I would let him outside for 15 minutes and praise him if he goes pee or poo. After he goes potty, if he continues to bark, I would just ignore it. Going to him for whatever reason after you KNOW he doesn't have to go potty (because he just went) is only reinforcing his barking. Here is an article on coprophagia (dogs eating poop): http://www.marlischis.com/coprophagia.htm
I believe it's common for Shi Tzu's to have coporphagia, but don't quote me on that!

I would say YES to letting him outside at night if he barks, but NOT for 15 minutes. Potty trips in the middle of the night should be short and to the point, so that dogs don't enjoy these trips and start wanting out at night even when they don't have to potty. So, take him out, but on a leash, and don't let him play, don't talk to him, other than to say "go potty" (of whatever your chosen phrase is), and don't cuddle.

 

[hamandeggs]

You should also make sure his crate is just big enough for him to stretch out and turn around in, but not so big he can go to the bathroom in there and then comfortably lay in another corner. You can get a divider for the crate if it's too big right now.

I fully agree with what everyone else is saying. You need to take your dog out at night if he barks, get him on a regular feeding schedule, and generally go back to housetraining basics.