Help! My Puppy Poops In The House After Being Outside

If your puppy poops in the house after being outside, you’ve got my sympathy…

…Actually, you’ve got everyone’s sympathy.

Because let’s face it, life is hard enough as it is. Having to deal with piles of poop scattered around your house doesn’t exactly help matters.

Sure, raising a pup is amazing. Getting up in the morning to be greeted by a little ball of fun? …Unbeatable.

Coming home from work and being welcomed like you’re the president of the world? …Awesome.

But walking into the living room and finding your pup getting down to business behind the sofa? Not so much.

Why do they do it? Take your pick.

It could be they’re getting too distracted by the fun of being outdoors to remember why they’re out there.

It might be that they’ve found a particularly nice spot indoors that makes them feel all warm and fuzzy when they poop in it.

Maybe they’ve just never completely got the hang of potty training.

Whatever it is, there’s one thing it’s not: spite. Even if it sometimes feels like your pup is deliberately trying to annoy you, they’re not. Neither are they doing something you’re just going to have to learn to put up with.

Figuring out exactly why your pup prefers pooping inside to outside is going to take a bit of detective work. If you’ve ever secretly thought you could give Sherlock Holmes a run for his money, this is where you get to test the theory.

Once you figure out what’s behind their pooping problem, you can get down to fixing it. But before you run off screaming at the thought of having to go through the entire potty training malarky again, hold fire.

This time, I guarantee it’s going to be much easier.

Why?

Because this time, you’re going to have experience on your side.

Not your own experience (although that’s going to help), but the experience of Dan Abeldnoor. A dog trainer who’s successfully potty trained hundreds of dogs and who’s put together a master class on that exact thing.

So before you do anything else, make sure you’ll check out Dan’s Potty Training Made Easy Course… (see video below).

Because if you want to potty train like a pro, this is where you’ll learn how to do it.

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Why Does My Puppy Poop in the House After Being Outside?

The first step in tackling your puppy’s ‘challenging’ bathroom habits? …Work out what’s behind them.

If they’re pooping inside despite having plenty of opportunities to go outside, then something somewhere is going wrong. The sooner you find out what that is, the sooner you’ll start seeing positive changes.

Start by taking a look at some of the following common explanations. Do any strike a chord?

They Feel Rushed

Puppies tend to do most things at break-neck speed. The one exception? Going to the bathroom.

Most pups love going outside. They get to discover new sights, new sounds, and new things to get excited about.

And all that discovery takes time. It’s also way, way more fun to chase around after a leaf than it is to get straight down to business.

If you thought you could simply take your pup out to the yard, hang around for a few minutes, and then head back indoors, you’re barking up the wrong tree.

Because those first few minutes in the yard? …your pup’s trying to figure out which way the wind is blowing.

The next few minutes after that? …they’re discovering exactly how much fun grass can be.

By the time you’re ready to head back indoors, your pup’s just getting round to the idea of finding a spot to poop in. Take them inside before they’ve had a chance to do that, and they’ll soon find an alternative spot in your kitchen.

They’re Scared

Hard though it is to think of your little buddy being scared of anything, it might explain their behavior.

Pups can develop fears and phobias about all kinds of things and for all kinds of reasons.

A car backfiring, another dog, a thunderstorm… there’s no end of things that could make your pup feel anxious about going outside.

If they’ve only recently started pooping indoors, it could be that something on a walk or in the yard has given them enough of a scare to make them never want to go there again.

They’ve Got a Favorite Spot

By the time a pup is a little over 8 weeks old, they’ll already have developed a preference for the type of surface they use as a bathroom.

If they’ve previously been trained to go to the potty on paper or pee pads, they’ll have a hard time going on grass or any other kind of outdoor surface.

They Haven’t Finished Housetraining

Housetraining isn’t easy. It’s hard, it’s messy, and it can sometimes seem like you’re taking two steps back for every step forward.

The problem is, if you decide that you’re done with the process before your pup thinks the same, then it won’t take long for them to go back to their old habits.

If housetraining is cut short, or if it’s not done in the right way, then no amount of praying and coaxing is going to stop your pup from seeing your living room as their bathroom.

Blame it on the Weather

Some dogs don’t seem to notice the weather. There could be ten inches of snow, and they’d still spend all their time outside if they could.

Others really hate to get their feet wet.

For young pups and small breeds, the problem is made doubly worse by the fact their bodies are that much closer to the wet, cold ground.

If it’s winter or if you live in a part of the world where rain and snow are an all-year-round affair. Your pup may prefer to risk your disapproval and poop where it’s warm and dry rather than please you by going where it’s cold, wet, and miserable.

They’re Attracted to Old Smells

A puppy might be small and cute, but that doesn’t mean their bathroom deposits are the same. Let’s be honest; they can stink. Worse than that, they can linger.

If there’s still a trace of poop or pee odor remaining on any spot of carpet, your dog will figure it’s ok to use it again. After all, if it smells like a bathroom…

They’ve Got Stage-Fright

Dogs are at their most vulnerable when they’re going to the bathroom. Actually, we all are.

Would you want to do your business in front of an audience?

No?

Then just imagine how your dog feels.

Unlike us, they don’t have a door to lock behind them when it’s time to go. Heck, they don’t even have a room.

They’re just expected to go, right there in public.

Embarrassing? …You don’t know the half of it.

If your pup is a little shy about going to the potty with an audience, they’ll simply wait it out until they can get back inside and do it in privacy.

They’ve Been Scolded Once Too Often

Scolding a pup for pooping indoors doesn’t achieve a single thing. Or at least, not a single good thing.

If a pup has been scolded for going inside, they’ll be reluctant to poop in front of you at all. Whether it’s indoors, outdoors, or anywhere in between.

If your dog is getting sneaky about their bathroom habits, it could simply be that they’ve wary of triggering the wrong kind of reaction.

You’re Starting the Praise Party Too Early

We all know positive reinforcement works. The more consistent you are with praising your pup for good behavior, the more likely they’ll be to repeat it.

But while there’s no such thing as too much positive reinforcement. There is such a thing as premature positive reinforcement.

If you jump in with the praise party the moment your pup starts to ‘offload,’ you might end up distracting them so much, they forget to finish… Only to remember again the moment they get back indoors.

How to Get Your Puppy to Stop Pooping in the House

If you want to solve a problem, you’ve first got to figure out what’s causing it.

Spend some time working out why your pup feels your carpet is such a great place to download on. If it’s a lack of housetraining, then I’d recommend checking out the Potty Training Made Easy Course before anything else.

Potty training can be challenging, but this course makes light work of the whole thing.

Watch it, learn from it, then implement it… if you want to see positive changes in the shortest possible time, it’s a no-brainer.

Once you’ve finished watching the course, cast your eye over some of these tried and tested strategies.

Watch Out For Warning Signs

Sometimes, the explanation for a problem is simpler than we think. If your pup seems happy enough to poop outside but still treats your carpet to a fresh load from time to time, it might just be that you’re missing the signs that they need to go.

Until your pup is 100% housetrained, don’t allow them full freedom of the house. They need to be somewhere where you can keep an eye on them and jump in whenever they start to display signs of needing a potty break.

In terms of the ‘warning signs,’ watch out if your pup starts circling, pacing, acting restlessly, or sniffing around the floor.

As dogs love to dump a fresh load in the same place they’ve used before, jump in if they suddenly start heading for a spot you know they’ve had an accident in previously.

Scrub, Scrub, then Scrub Some More

If there’s still any hint of poop or pee odors lingering on your carpet, you’ll struggle to get your pup to change their habits.

Not all household cleaners are created equal when it comes to dealing with pet odors.

To avoid simply masking the scent on a temporary basis, you might need to switch up your cleaning routine and introduce some hardcore, heavy-duty carpet cleaning products designed specifically with pets in mind.

Once you get rid of every last trace of pee or poop odor from your carpet, you’ll find it easier to get your pup to start going outside.

Wait it Out

2 minutes isn’t enough time for a pup to admire all the new blades of grass, flirt with the poodle next door, sniff the roses, chase a leaf, and poop. It just ain’t gonna happen.

If you’ve created a designated spot in the yard for them to use as a bathroom (and if you haven’t, it’s a good idea to choose one now), lead your pup to it on the leash. And then wait. And wait some more.

If, after 15 minutes, they’re still showing absolutely no interest in going to the bathroom, head back indoors and keep a close eye on them in case they suddenly discover the need.

Praise, Don’t Scold

Scolding a pup for going indoors can easily and quickly lead to elimination anxiety. Instead of scolding them for what they do wrong, praise them for what they do right.

Each time they go outside, reward them with gentle praise and a high-value treat.

Just remember to hold back on the praise until they’ve completely finished doing what they’re doing – jumping in too early runs the risk of distracting them from the job at hand.

Get Back to Basics

Sometimes, there’s nothing else for it. You just have to go back to the beginning and start again. If your first attempt at potty training didn’t work, there’s no shame in backtracking a little.

The good news is that this time you’re going to know exactly how to do it because of the Potty Training Made Easy Course.

In short, this course will guide you through the entire potty training journey from A to Z, showing you exactly how to put your pup on the path to bathroom success.

If you want to make your second attempt at training the final one, watch the course – it really will make an immense difference.

Wrapping Things Up

Potty training isn’t always easy. Sometimes, it’s a headache. Actually, make that a migraine.

But stick with it.

With the right approach (which, thanks to the Potty Training Made Easy Course, you should by now be up to speed with), plenty of patience, and just a little bit of time, your pup will soon be potty trained to perfection.

There might be some accidents along the way (they’re young – it happens), but stay positive, stay consistent, and pretty soon, you (and your carpet) can finally breathe a big sigh of relief.