2 year old poohing overnight

[Spanielcuddler]

Not sure if this is the right board - but as he is not a pup, I have put this problem here.

Dexter is over 2 now and will not have a poo at night before bedtime; therefore he chooses to do it in the kitchen in the middle of the night.  Not every night, but a lot of times during each week.  He does not do it when he take him out either, so not even a mid evening walk would help.  He is let out regularly during the day and evening, he can go out any time he asks. 

At his age now, he shouldn't be doing this ... there seems no logic to it either - same routine, no change there, same food, (Forthglade chicken and brown rice/veg wet food) some nights he is clean, we think it was just a blip then out of the blue he will start all over again.  Try as we might, we cannot make him poo last thing at night or even during the evening.  Despite having another cocker, whom he stands there and watches having a poo!

Anyone any ideas?  We think he whimpers in the night, not sure... but so softly we cannot hear him to get up and let him out. We don't want to get into that routine either though!  Had dogs all our lives but never had this problem before.  We also clean the floor thoroughly afterwards.

Even wondering whether to change to a low residue food... Burns wet food perhaps... in the hope that there would be less urge to defecate.

Or even putting him back in a crate - but then we would be woken each night presumably and that routine would still persist.

Anyone any advice to get him out of this habit and perform during the evening? He is fed at 4pm by the way.  We did try feeding him later a long time ago but he was getting us up in the night then, so the vet suggested an earlier feed time to see if it produced results by 11pm!  Trouble is, he just doesn't want to poo before he goes to bed! Grrrr!  Despite having another cocker with him showing how it should be done!

Thanks!

[bizzylizzy]

Hi and welcome! I've never had this with any of my dogs so can only make guesses at a solution, but hopefully someone else can help.
Has Dexter always done this? Does he ever poo outside? If so, I wonder if you couldn't give him a verbal signal  like "toilet" and a treat as he does it and then once he's associated the word with the deed you might be able to get him to do it on command when you take him out in the evening. We did this from day one.
How often is he fed? You could try reducing the later meal and giving more in the morning maybe or changing the food altogether but I do wonder if that really is the problem. In my experience dogs don't like to soil their own territory, - (my first dog was so upset when he'd had an accident he actually tried to eat it up before I managed to stop him), so I'm wondering if a) its a medical issue or b) a sort of protest - is he lonely, cold or could something else be upsetting him?
Hope you can sort it soon, - keep us posted and good luck!

[Jaysmumagain]

Not had this with any of my dogs other than when they were very ill and struggling with old age etc.

Have a thought or two, you mention that you think Dexter might whimper and you don't hear him, could a baby monitor work, only thing is if he starts to think you are getting up is this going to be a rod for your back!

Could you try feed him at 2pm for a few days see if this helps.

Also bizzy lizzy mentions a protest/upsetting him - my friend in the States had a small poodle who she took from UK, he went from being a fussed lap dog in a house to being kept outside in the yard - due to her father in law staying with them for several months and believing dogs remain outside, when the old man left the dog went back to the way it used to be living in the house...but he would jump on her bed and wee and poo. he was no longer the lovely clean dog as in UK.

Do hope someone comes along with a similar experience to help.

Finally

[Spanielcuddler]

Hi and welcome! I've never had this with any of my dogs so can only make guesses at a solution, but hopefully someone else can help.
Has Dexter always done this? Does he ever poo outside? If so, I wonder if you couldn't give him a verbal signal  like "toilet" and a treat as he does it and then once he's associated the word with the deed you might be able to get him to do it on command when you take him out in the evening. We did this from day one.
How often is he fed? You could try reducing the later meal and giving more in the morning maybe or changing the food altogether but I do wonder if that really is the problem. In my experience dogs don't like to soil their own territory, - (my first dog was so upset when he'd had an accident he actually tried to eat it up before I managed to stop him), so I'm wondering if a) its a medical issue or b) a sort of protest - is he lonely, cold or could something else be upsetting him?
Hope you can sort it soon, - keep us posted and good luck!

Hi, well house training went well so no he's not always done it, it's just been within the last six months or so. He's fed twice, once in the morning and once at 4pm. He's not lonely or cold; nothing to upset him -  he shares the room with another cocker aged 4 and they're very close. Can't think of anything that he could be protesting about.

He goes to toilet fine, day or evening but just refuses to poo in the evening for some reason.

[Spanielcuddler]

Hi Jaysmumagain

We thought of a baby monitor but then had the same hesitation as you mention - getting him into that routine wouldn't be good!

We're that fed up of getting up in the middle of the night that it seems easier just to clear up in the morning LOL!  We wondered about crating him again but that may produce the same routine of having to get up each night and him thinking that's normal.

I'm wondering if a low residue food may be the answer- like Burns wet food.

[ejp]

Just a thought, but could you maybe start to make his evening meal a bit later on in the day.  That way it will not 'reappear' quite so soon? 

[bizzylizzy]

Just a thought, but could you maybe start to make his evening meal a bit later on in the day.  That way it will not 'reappear' quite so soon? 

Just googled the time it takes to digest food and it seems to be between 7 and 10 hours typically, so you're right, feeding him later rather than earlier might be better. Hope you can sort it, must be so frustrating!
Have you ever considered raw feeding? Not everyone's choice I know, but it definately produces less pooh! 

[Spanielcuddler]

Thanks! However we were feeding them at 5 but brought it forward to four after he started poohing in the night... hoping it would reappear before bed time at 11. Alas that didn't work. Don't know what time he poohs but it's before 5am.

Thanks for all your suggestions.

[Ambler54]

Hi, Rosie is only 1 but after months of clean nights She started to poo at night.Started after a late puppy class that threw Her feed/ poo routine completely.She would poo for several nights then We would have a run of clean nights then She would start all over again.I eventually moved Her tea time to 7.30 ,and set my alarm for 5.30 am   DIdnt  put Her out then( didnt want Her to get into a routine of 5 am waking) just curled up on the settee(she sleeps downstairs and just taps the door when She wants to go out, impossible to hear upstairs) and waited for Her to tap. After a few days the shouts to go out moved to after 7 and We have been fine since.She now has Her tea a bit earlier and, touch wood, has been fine since.

[Spanielcuddler]

Thanks Ambler54.
Glad things settled with Rosie, obviously due to a change in routine because of the class.

We were up at three am again last night, he'd already poohed but then whimpered and we heard him,  he still wanted to go out and do more though! 8am he was in the garden again doing yet more then scooting when he came in. We now think it may be anal gland related but not sure so he's off to the vet today. If the glands are full, would this make him poo more? I'll update you all after the vet has seen him.

[Londongirl]

Vet check sounds like a good idea.

They are all different, but in case it helps, we feed Henry a mix of Burns kibble and Millie's Wolfheart wet food. Fed at 1pm and 7pm (he doesn't care for breakfast but gets treats on his walk so a sort of mini breakfast at about 9:30am). He poops once a day, always in the morning.

[Spanielcuddler]

Thanks Londongirl.

Our two are mithering for their tea from about 2pm onwards so it would be murder if we told them they couldn't have it till 7pm LOL!  Sounds a good idea though!

[Archie bean]

Hi. From time to time my Archie has done this. He sleeps with me so gets me up and I let him out. It's often around 3am. He could go for months pooing normally (which for him is actually just once a day in the morning even though he is on three meals!) and then suddenly he would have a week or two of getting me up in the night. I also noticed that he had a gurgly tummy and occasional bouts of seeming to feel uncomfortable through the night. Every so often he had a full on bout of colitis (very poorly, sick and bloody poos.) After a barrage of tests - all negative - he was put on a strict salmon and potato diet. He has been on it for nearly a year and has not had me up in the night at all. He is also wet fed.
Perhaps your Dexter is similar and just has a bit of a sensitive tum. Chicken is an absolute no-no for Archie. You could try the salmon variety of his food (or similar like naturediet/wainwright/fishmongers) and see if it makes any difference.

[Spanielcuddler]

Thanks Archie Bean - I had heard that fish was very good for dogs.  He has been fine on the Chicken and Brown Rice and Veg, from Forthglade, but it's worth bearing in mind certainly.  Hope Archie is still doing well.

[Jaysmumagain]

Archiebean mentioned the fish route, well Ollie has had anal gland problems and was a constant bum sniffer

First I went for Natura which was chicken and pot-veg went food-wow it was like Mount Vesuvius, with him so back to the shovel and drawing board

Then went with the fish route by giving him Naturediet sensitive which is  salmon with veg and rice, then there is a fish one too and chicken etc.  It is mixed into his dry food.  But while he loves this food its the salmon one that has him licking his bowl all around the floor.

He is so different on this food, if you told me food would make a difference I would not believe you - he has almost forgotten his rear end needs checking .  He is nine now and no signs of acting his age, I have fed him twice for years late morning and 6 ish and his clock tells me food.

While not like Dexter with the night issues, I just wanted to add that sometimes the food can make such a difference.