Why Won’t My Dog Poop Outside? What Should You Do?

Potty training can feel like such an exhausting process if your dog keeps having accidents in your home. Dogs are so easily distracted by the surrounding environment, making them forget that they are out there to potty.

Don’t you worry! Taking advantage of natural training opportunities will be a great help, and We will help you exactly how to teach your dog to go to the Potty outside.

Why Your Puppy Won’t Poop Outside, let’s investigate!

You need to develop a few habits in your pup before they grow up, and poop training is the most important of all. 

Any puppy of 12 weeks is capable of being potty-trained. So if your dog is yet not able to Poop Outside, there’s something that went wrong in its puppyhood.

There are three significant reasons why your Puppy won’t poop outside, they are:

1. If they don’t like how the grass feels on their fur or skin.
2. It’s either cold or rainy out.
3. You have excelled so much in poop training your pup that now they can’t unlearn this habit of only pooping in the litter box.

The other reasons why your Puppy won’t poop outside:

1. Dogs in the wild have a robust relationship with the smelling sense; it is not just much more substantial than humans but helps them survive. 
2. Pups have this instinct to Poop at the same place where they have pooped before, so many times when you take them outside, the feeling of unfamiliarity kicks in, and that’s why they find it so challenging to locate a trustable spot.
3. Do you know how excited a puppy gets when it is time to walk? Yes, that can be one of the reasons; as soon as your pup is done with its business outside, the playtime is over, and it’s time to go home! If your pup hates going home, they can stop themselves from pooping.
4. This is the vise versa of point number six, and your pup might hate going out. They can exhibit this behavior in the rainy as well as winter season.
5. While potty training, you are more likely to use a pee-poo pad. This also gives them the wrong message that they are supposed to poop inside the house.                     

Is There a Psychological Reason?

Yes, psychological reasons can play a huge role in your dog’s behavior! Your pup might have outdoor anxiety—the loud noise of the traffic or kids playing nearby, etc. The outdoor anxiety can be triggered by many reasons, like if a dog living next door is quite intimidating.

What to do if Your Puppy won’t Poop Outside?

You can consider this unwanted puppy behavior if they are Potty trained but won’t poop outside. It would help if you weren’t very hard on them, but instead, consider retraining them with positive reinforcement. 

First, learn the time duration of your Puppy developing a solid urge to Poop: 

1. First thing in the morning
2. After hours of long naps
3. Within 30-40 mins of eating 
4. After enthusiastic playing sessions

Puppies have small bladders. There is an equation for the frequency they need to pee: age in months + 1 = hours.

If your Puppy is five months old, they need to go out every 6 hours. Also, note when they eat and drink, altering the equation.

So, dear pet parents, be prepared! Anticipating the poop time of your PuppyPuppy will help you a lot to catch them before it happens. Once you are well settled with the timing, the two significant signals are: 

• Your Puppy will sniff around. 
• Your Puppy will be moving in circles. 

What you need to do is pick them up and take them out. Using a command such as, “go poop” or “poop here”! It is an excellent idea to develop the relationship between Poop and outdoor places.

Note: If you find your Puppy in a position where they are about to Poop, and you have no time to pick them up, use an interrupted command / loud voice to grab their attention! This will buy you some time. 

Shouting at your Puppy during such times will lead to a lot of anxiety and stress issues in them, which will grow out as other behavior concerns.

The easiet way to motivate your dog is by having him explore the garden first. If you are about to be a pet parent or waiting to welcome a new puppy home, it’s best if you start right here! Once a pup is 12 weeks old, start taking him out in your backyard or garden. Let them explore as long as it takes.

As soon as they poop or pee, show extra love, and be vocal in expressing their happy feelings. This will give them the message, and you will experience very few to zero accidents inside your home in the future. 

It does not only help to get rid of foul smell, but it also leaves no trace for your dog: many times, dogs poop on the same spot they used before. Their extra sensitive smelling sense helps them detect the spot’s standard order.

Leaving your pup in the backyard will help them select a desirable spot to Poop and pee. So keep track of their location, take a shovel and dig out their warm place if it’s snowing.

How to Train Your Dog to Poop Outside

It’s easier to train a pup than to teach a grown-up dog, but what if you have recently adopted a dog or rescued one? They need to learn the proper ways. Here are a few yet effective ways: 

Tether Training Method

This is also known as the umbilical cord method; in this, your dog is attached to you with a leash for better supervision.

What you need: a leash, not less than 6 foot

This allows you to take your dog to the spots you want them to explore. This removes the dogs’ ability to explore on their terms; you get control over their activity and redirect and correct them.

Get your dog used to the feeling of wearing a collar or leash. 

The characteristics of an ideal leash: 

1. A small and lightweight collar.
2. It should be comprehensive and flat.
3. Quick and easy-to-use clips.

Note: try not to make it a massive deal because dogs quickly pick up energies, and you don’t want them to develop anxiety or stress.

Once your dog is comfortable on the leash, it’s time to start the training, move around the house with your dog.

When you see your dog moving in circles and sniffing on the ground, take them outside because you know it’s poop time.

Crate Training Method

We know that some pet parents might not like the idea of putting their dogs in crates, but hey, dogs are den animals, and they love to have their own space. The crate training method is one of the best ways to potty-train your dogs.

The main motive is, dogs are very clean creatures, and they don’t like to pee or poop where they live. So as soon as your dog gets the urge to go, it will get uncomfortable, whine or scratch, and you will know that it is time to take them out.

The ideal crate should have the following characteristics: 

1. Suitable size – your dog can stand, sit, sleep and turn around properly.
2. It should not be too large that the dog will feel it’s ok to pee and poo on the rest of the area.

Take a Poop-and-Pee Walk

When outside, place your dog on a leash. If you have a specific place along the route (such as a designated waste area), walk him there “purposefully” and let him loose on the leash. Give him your potty command… be it, “Go! “.

Your dog might take 15-20 minutes to pee and poo. Stand still and let him circle and sniff; don’t hurry him. If he takes too much time, you can give him a light tug on the leash to signal that he needs to hurry.

When it’s done, all you need to do is, tap him, say, “that’s my good boy,” give the treat to encourage this behavior.

Create a Potty-Going Backyard

To make your backyard dog-friendly, it is not necessary to have ample space, but it should be enough for your dog to sniff around, circle, and poop comfortably.

You need to clear the area with any grass plant and replace it with Cedar chips; they are frequently used as filling for dog beds and bedding for outdoor dog houses. If it’s the cold season and your dog’s poop spot is covered with snow, take a shovel and dig up the area because dogs are more likely to use the exact location.

Make an Indoor Bathroom Whenever It Rains or Is Cold

Yes, you can easily create an indoor potty area for your dog, and everyone should have one because it is essential for occasions on rainy and windy days.

Here is the most manageable DIY indoor potty area for your dog:

Select a spot in your house that is quiet and less-visited by others.

1. To avoid leakage, take a thick plastic trap without any holes or rips.
2. The entire potty area should be lined with puppy training pads, as these thick, absorbent pads prevent wetness from spilling on the floor. Mats also make it easy to clean up messes. Pick up the filthy place and replace it with a clean one.
3. Place an artificial turf mat. Dogs mostly prefer the grass-like appearance. Make sure that the blades are soft and thick.
4. It would be best if you had a Pheromone-based housebreaking spray that mimics natural potty smells. When you spray this on the spot, your dog will be able to relate to it.
5. After mealtimes, you need to take your dog to this spot, let him explore, and use your command word for Poop.
6. Ensure to wash the turf mat regularly, and you can use a garden hose and urine residue remover. For the best result, let the remover sit in for a few minutes before thoroughly rinsing it off.

Final word

Follow the steps that we talked about in this article and do it repeatedly until your dog realizes that the only place appropriate to go Potty is outside. Remember, dogs will do whatever it is that they find rewarding.

So if they are continuously making mistakes in your home, that’s not their mistake, but it’s yours.

Good supervision is the key, and every dog will give some subtle signs which need to be understood. 

Last but not least, make sure to show them a positive environment outside; if they continue to poop inside, maybe it’s time to take them to the vet.

Did you find this information helpful? Let us know in the comments section below.