Getting On A #2 Schedule? Afternoon Poops In House

[PNWGrey]

Hi GT'ers,

 

Since my last post and all your reassurance, I've stopped worrying so much about my boy when I'm at work. On the camera, I see he sleeps in a few different places and occasionally runs a few zoomies. He's doing greyt!

 

But -- we do have one issue that has cropped up -- he sometimes poops by the door to the yard (not the one I leave from) when I'm at work. I can't see that door on the camera so I don't know the timing but I suspect it's an afternoon thing. I hired a dog walker for my first week back at work (I'm a college prof) and he was super, no potty issues. I'm trying to get him to adjust to all day alone if possible and so went to every other day with walker last week. He was fine on days she came and pooped on the two days she didn't. No pee accidents inside ever.

 

Some notes about his #2s: he's gotten nice and firm now on Kirkland salmon with a little beet pulp added (I'm a horse person so I've got it around). Is the BP making him go more? His by-the-door poops are also firm and one neat pile, so it doesn't seem to me like SA. My last dog with entrenched SA had runs all over the house and/or crate if alone... We're still fighting the hookworm battle though -- can that be messing up his frequency?

 

Here's his normal schedule:

6 - up, PP in yard, then breakfast (2c kibble + scant 1/4c BP; he's 72lbs)

7 - walk, PP

745 - I leave for work

430-445 - home, out to yard for PP

6 - dinner (same as breakfast)

630 - walk or yard to PP

8 - yard or walk to PP (either 630 or 8 is a walk depending on weather, but not both, though he PPs both times regardless)

830 - brush teeth, milk bone, bed

 

So he's normally going 4x with me and the occasional 5th poo in the house when I'm gone... Lots of poo but pretty firm, big improvement from when I first got him last month. He's gated into the first floor of the house and wears a muzzle when I'm out. On weekends he often gets a midday poo because we're on some outdoor adventure or other, so no weekend problems but I realize I'm also messing with his schedule in a potentially-unhelpful way.

 

I know the obvious solution is to hire the dog walker for every day but that's really prohibitively expensive for me as a very long-term solution. I'll figure that out one way or another if there's no other solution but I'm hoping your experience and creativity will spawn a few ideas :-)

[Busderpuddle]

That seems like a lot of POOP !!! Mine poops twice a day, each time after eating. Maybe cut back on the BP and see if it helps.

[Neighsayer]

I agree! That's a lot of poop! Mine poop two, maybe three times a day! Could be the beet pulp, but could also be the food! Did the frequency of poops increase soon after you switched food? Try cutting out the beet pulp, and see if it improves. If not, try changing the good. My dogs all did well on Kirkland, but some dogs do not. Good luck!

[PNWGrey]

I think it's a lot of poop too! But I wasn't sure, since it's firm and all that. He was on Purina Pro Plan before and had pudding and crazy itchy skin, so this is an improvement compared to that. Fish oil capsules (per vet rec) and switching to Kirkland seem to have helped poo consistency and skin itchies. I also tried Olweo carrots and pumpkin but neither helped with consistency, so I tried the BP and it was magical. BUT I also based serving size on some older GT posts and wasn't sure if it was too much BP either.

 

ETA: poop only got worse as he settled in, hence my search for fiber and the new food. Vet called it "liquid butt" and that was pretty descriptive! He had pudding on the pro plan on a good day.

Edited September 5, 2016 by PNWGrey

[4My2Greys]

I think he poops a lot because you feed him too much. My boy's weight fluctuated between 75 and 80 lbs and I fed him about 1-1/2 cups kibble. The increased amount of food will also cause loose stools. I would suggest two things, cut back on the amount of food and take him for longer walks. Don't be fooled into thinking he's empty whenever he poops the first time on his walk.

[PNWGrey]

@4My2Greys I was wondering about that too -- but I've been feeding the low end for his weight according to the bag instructions and his weight has been stable. I agree that it feels like a lot though. Does anyone have experience with how accurate/useful bag instructions tend to be?

 

He goes on two 1-2 mile walks daily on weekdays. Regardless of how long we walk, he poops first thing out the door and then not again until later in the day. Every time he does his business it is a LOT, we're not talking small volumes here. It's possible he isn't empty but...wow. That's a lot of poop.

 

I spoke to the vet today to follow-up about his hookworm treatment plan and mentioned the frequency/volume. She suggested fortiflora. Has anyone experienced that helping with general frequency/volume of otherwise firm poos?

[4My2Greys]

I would try cutting back by a 1/4 cup in the morning and see if that has any effect on his weight or the amount he poops. If he maintains his weight, but poops less you're on the right track. As far as going by what is recommended on the bag remember dog food companies are trying to sell as much dog food as they can.

[Feisty49]

My Annie poos often... 4 times a day. She poos when she deigns to go outside in the morning (7 to 8 AM, though I'm up at 6). She poos on our morning walk, usually twice. She poos again about 6 PM, when we take our evening walk. She's been this way forever. The more distance we cover on our walks, the more output she puts out. She weighs 65-66 pounds, gets 1.5 cups of kibble twice a day, and a few treats.

[PNWGrey]

@4My2Greys will do! Thanks for the advice.

 

@Feisty49 that's also good to hear that some frequency is normal. I just want to find some balance that prevents the poo-splosion before I'm home from work :-)

[GeorgeofNE]

Don't go by the amount on the bag; their job is to sell dog food.

 

That's twice as much as I feed my dog who weighs 70 pounds. And the beet pulp is adding bulk too. Maybe ease way back on that, and cut back on the kibble a bit? You have to count treats when you consider how much your dog is eating in a day! A lot of folks forget about those.

[dmdsmoxie]

As far as the Milk-Bones go, like Susan said, the companies are in the business of trying to sell food. No matter what kind of dog I had and no matter what size I always bought the box for small dogs. Who, besides the Milk-Bone company, said a large dog has to have a large bone and a medium size dog has to have a medium size bone? LOL

 

Not one of my dogs ever said, this Milk-Bone is for small dogs. They just ate the Milk-Bone.