One Year Old Rott Stills Goes #2 in Crate

by Kim

How can I train my one year old rottie to go to the bathroom outside??? She will go #1 outside, stay outside for 30 mins. plus some, and will come inside and go #2!!!

She also does not mind going to the bathroom in her crate and laying in it (or eating it)!!! What should we do??? Please help!





Hi Kim
I can see how this must be extremely frustrating and difficult to deal with, and it's very unusual for a dog of any breed to do this at one year old is they've been crate trained since puppyhood. If she's new to the whole 'crate' thing, that would make it easier to understand.

First of all I'd recommend that you make sure you have the right size of crate. When a pup (or dog) freely pees or poops in their crate, chances are it's too big. Crate training works so well because it works with the natural canine instinct not to mess in the den or sleeping quarters. If a crate is too big, the dog can designate a sleeping area and an elimination area and be quite happy with that.

The crate needs to be only big enough for her to stand up, sit down, turn around and lie down without touching the sides. I know this might look uncomfortable but if she can move around as above then it's fine. Once she's older and reliable about being clean in her crate then she can graduate to a bigger one.

If she is a stool-eater, then there are things you can do to help put a stop to this habit.. check out this webpage for lots of tips and advice Why Does My Dog Eat Poop.

If neither of these suggestions help, I would recommend that you talk to your veterinarian and perhaps a dog behavioral specialist to see if there's either a physical issues, or a behavioral one. At one year old she should be able to 'hold it', and obviously you need an answer and some help. The professionals are the next step. Hope this helps some, I wish you the very best of luck.