Why Is My Dog Pooping In The House?

Good morning! It’s the start of a new day, and you head downstairs to put some coffee on and check on the dog. You open the door to the room where your pup sleeps, and… there’s poop on the floor. No! Not again, you think. Why is this happening? Why is my dog pooping in the house?

For a pet parent, it’s a frustrating — not to mention smelly — situation. Whether your dog keeps pooping in the house during the day, or your dog is suddenly pooping in the house at night, one thing is for sure; it has to stop!

There are a variety of different reasons why a dog might start pooping in the house — even a dog that hasn’t behaved like this before. Read on, and we’ll do our best to explain why your dog is pooping in the house, and what you can do about it.

Despite what seems obvious to you, dogs don’t make a distinction between inside and outside when choosing a spot to eliminate waste.  The only place a dog will not poop or pee is where he sleeps – so if your dog is pooping in his bed you should contact your veterinarian immediately. 

We call it ‘pooping in the house’ but the official term for your dog toileting where it shouldn’t is ‘inappropriate elimination’. That’s what your vet might say. It’s a common problem for dogs for a number of potential reasons that typically indicate either a behavioral issue or a medical condition.

Understanding your dog’s behaviors is the first step in preventing your dog from pooping in the house. There’s a difference between a new dog or a puppy that hasn’t yet been house-trained — and therefore doesn’t know that toileting inside is a no-no — and an adult dog that suddenly starts pooping in the house, having not done so for years.

A lack of house training is an issue that can be remedied, easily enough. Puppies need to be taught not to pop or pee in the house, part of the basic training requirements. You can read more about simple tricks for training a puppy here and more about creating a daily routine for a new puppy — which includes scheduling potty breaks — here.

Needless to say, if you don’t take the time to train your puppy to toilet outside, he or she won’t understand that pooping and peeing outdoors is the correct behavior and that doing so indoors is not. Yes, pet parent – it’s your responsibility to carry out this training. Dogs don’t teach themselves.

Why would a housebroken dog start pooping in the house?

• Separation anxiety
• Inflammatory bowel disease 
• Parasites or viral infections
• Degenerative Myelopathy
• A change of diet
• Old age

Pooping in the house can be frustrating, messy to clean up and upsetting — especially if your dog doesn’t usually do it. But, it’s important to get to the root cause of the issue, especially with a fully house-trained companion. As a pet parent, you should consider any new potential stressors and be aware of all changes in your dog’s behaviors and health.

Let’s look at some of these potential causes in more detail.

Possible causes of a dog pooping in the house

Separation Anxiety

Separation anxiety is a common behavioral problem, as explained in more detail in our guide right here.

Separation anxiety is more serious than your dog just ‘missing you’ when you’re not at home; it affects dogs who are keenly attached to their owners.  When you leave home, your dog may find it acutely distressing. Pooping (or peeing) in the house is one symptom of separation anxiety. Others include whining, scratching, digging and showing destructive behavior. If you’ve returned home to find your sneakers shredded, your pet could be experiencing separation anxiety.

Parasites and Viral Infections

If your dog is having soiling issues in the house, he may have an underlying medical condition brought on by a parasitic, viral, or bacterial infection — we’re talking stuff like worms. Infections like these cause the digestive tract to become inflamed will cause your dog to have diarrhea, and he may feel a sense of urgency to poop that can’t be controlled.

Younger dogs and dogs who have compromised immune systems are more vulnerable to infections.

Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Similar to parasites and other infections, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a medical condition that may be affecting your dog, especially if he has loose stools or diarrhea. 

IBD is a condition where your dog’s intestinal lining becomes inflamed and may prevent your dog from absorbing nutrients as well as digesting food. Unlike temporary symptoms, IBD is a chronic condition and can be severe. It’s unclear what causes IBD.

Degenerative Myelopathy

Degenerative Myelopathy affects the spinal cord, and can eventually lead to paralysis of the hind legs. You’ll notice symptoms earlier than the paralysis stage; Degenerative Myelopathy makes the dog’s back legs weaker — the condition can look similar to arthritis – so that movement is restricted. Incontinence is one of the consequences of this disease, although by the time it gets to the stage of your dog pooping in the house, you will probably be aware of the wider issues.

A change of diet

Old age

Unless you’re happy to keep cleaning up dog mess every day — maybe several times a day – you need to do something about a dog that keeps pooping in the house. Especially if it’s ongoing for some time and not just a result of a short term digestive problem.

How to deal with the issue depends on what’s causing the issue; how you manage a dog with separation anxiety will be very different to what you need to do about a canine infested with tapeworms, for example.

But the golden rule: if you’re asking for advice on how to punish dogs for pooping in the house, you don’t. A dog isn’t pooping in the house to be naughty or upset you. Something is causing it, so understanding why, and then working to resolve this, is the next step.

If you’ve just adopted a new puppy or older dog, you need to be patient with his house training. It takes time for your new family member to adjust to your schedule and establish his own schedule.

We’ve already established that if your previously house-trained dog is suddenly pooping inside you should schedule an appointment with your veterinarian to rule out any possible medical conditions.

Behavioral issues related to house soiling in house-trained dogs requires evaluating your dog’s potential stress. Have you, or a family member, made any recent changes to schedules, feeding and walking times?

Your dog’s stressor might be obvious, such as a new home for the family or something more subtle, like you working a little later than normal. Being patient is crucial for re-training inappropriate soiling behavior, and you should never scold your dog or rub his nose in the poop.    

As a dog owner, be on the lookout for medically related house soiling. Diarrhea, temporary or chronic, is a sign that your dog is unwell and not getting their proper nutrients. You should seek a veterinarian’s help to determine the cause of your dog’s health-related problem.

Your vet will take stool samples, possibly even X-rays, or perform an endoscopy to explore your dog’s GI tract to look for inflammation. Tissue samples and blood work will help identify potential infections or parasites as the cause.

Antibiotics will be prescribed if a bacterial infection is suspected. Anti-inflammatory medication may also be prescribed to help control the inflammation and get your dog back to health.

If your dog is pooping in the house because of a behavioral issue, there are approaches you can take to reduce the chances of it happening. If it’s a medical problem or a health condition, this can’t really be prevented — the issue needs treatment to resolve.

You can help reduce house soiling during training or re-training by creating and sticking to a scheduled routine of feeding and walking your dog.

You should also reward your dog when he toilets in the right place, and at the correct time; you can train your dog to poop when you let him or her out into the yard or garden first thing in the morning, last thing at night, and so on. 

If your dog does have an indoor accident, don’t scold him; this isn’t about how to punish dogs for pooping in the house. Instead, relocate the poop to the preferred spot and have him inspect it. Throwing out toilet waste may seem like the logical thing to do but creating a chemical and scent association will help him remember where the proper place to poop is. 

Additionally, always clean the area where your dog inappropriately soiled well, because your dog will want to return to this same area in the future due to chemical association.  An enzymatic cleaner works well for this.

If your dog’s pooping issues are due to a medical condition you can feed your dog less food at more intervals to help keep the volume of waste down.

Feed an easily digestible diet and steer clear of treats and table scraps. Getting to the root of the medical condition will also determine future efforts for keeping your dog healthy.  You can also hire a pet sitter who can assist with regular walks and feeding if you are not available to take your dog on more routine walks.

The cost of treating a dog with inappropriate elimination — pooping in the house — depends on the underlying cause, and though training can vary in cost, medical conditions can range in expense.

For example, the average cost to treat a lack of bowel control is around $1,800, whereas the inflammatory bowel disease-specific cost is around $2,800.