A "typical" poop sequence ?

I would put some of his poop outside where you would like him to poop.  Maybe by having his own poop outside in your designated area he will decide that it is a good place to go poop.

Ditto to what fire says, and to add to that--

You're dog is not ready for the freedom you are giving it at this point, it's as easy as that.  Dogs need to "earn" the right to have access to the entire house, and your dog is just not there yet.  Keep him in his confined kitchen in the area, take him out OFTEN, like a ridiculous amount of times when you are around.  When he does his busines outside, give him a special treat (always ready in your pocket) and tons of praise.  Do not scold him when he goes in the house, that can have a poor effect on housetraining.  The trick is to set him up for success by limiting his roaming area, watching him closely for signs he's got to go, and taking him out very often. 

Poms are toy sized dogs and they can be a bit more difficult to train than larger dogs, in my opinion.  I have two toy poodles.  My baby, who's now 1.5 years, was not 100% reliable until she was nearly a year old.  And, we had the problem that we live in a multi level house, and all her housetraining work took place on the main floor.  Then, when she'd be brought upstairs, she iddn't understand that the same rules applied up there also.  They are little dogs, we live in big houses.  I ended up tinkle pad training her on the second floor, as she's unable to go up and down stairs.  On the first floor, she barks at the door. 

Hope this helps. 

Thank you for replies. Yes, I have left a deposit in the outdoor pen area hoping to encourage him again; this has not worked (except rarely).

As for his not ready for complete freedom: thank you for the comment. I have felt quite guilty for the prolonged confinements, although the areas are "large" compared to his size (except the crate for overnight of course). He doesn't seem to mind the confinement and quite happy (although he does "rearrange the furniture" in the kitchen area at times to express his displeasure). He plays with his toys and with me, doesn't bark or whine when confined, often relaxes and rests but it is very attentive/watchful to where I am in the house.

I have also tried giving him a small "snack" about noon outside hoping to induce a gastro-colonic reflex, but like everything else this, too, has only been rarely or very infrequently successful.

He certainly is "anal-retentive," except when free in house.

Hi and glad we could help. 

One thing I forgot to address is your pom's diet.  What are you feeding, and how much (you said a handful).  Overfeeding can lead to over pooping.  And, if you are feeding a high quality food like Innova, it is very efficient and the dog does not need alot of it to be fully fed.  My 5 pound poodle eats 1/2 of one of the small cans of Innova each day, that's all she needs, and she snacks on some Innova kibble in the evening.  To compare---my older dog, who I adopted has always been on Nutro Natural Choice Lamb and Rice Kibble and some canned with it.  He's always been on this and has a touchy stomach so I'm leaving him on it.  The instructions on the canned food for that brand says that my five pounder would need 3/4 of one of the large cans per day to meet her needs.  That's alot of food for a 5 pound dog to put down in a day, and would probably lead to alot more poop. 

So, read your labels very closely and make sure you are feeding the proper amount.

As for a "normal" poop schedule, I noticed you mentioned that he did a good poo outside in the morning and so then you let him have free run.  My dogs nearly every day--get up, go out to the yard and pee and poo, and about an hour later, even though they haven't eaten anything, I take them out again and they may have another poo.  Often dogs require two visits to the yard in the morning, they don't get it all done at once.  Also, after he does his poop in the yard in the morning, don't immediately take him back in the house, let him wander a bit and see if he has a second event.  In the good weather I often take my tea and my dogs out to the yard where we spend about 10 minutes, sometimes that will encourage the second event to happen then instead of an hour later. 

Good luck!!

Thank you for reply, especialy about your dog's defecation habit.

I used a bag of Innova because I saw it recommended here on this forum. It clearly didn't reduce volume of BM (in fact, subjective impression that it increased them). So I have switched back to a kibble which I used regularly for my 3 previous poms over 30+ years. Too soon to know if it is making a difference.

I feed him a handful twice a day - clearly not overfeeding because there is always some leftover in his dish, which I then pickup until his next meal.

This morning he had a good solid BM when taken out of crate, then breakfast, and then second one in outdoor pen. Again, this was 24 hours between defecations.

What you are seeing may be "normal" for this dog.  My little one poos 3 times a day, every day.  The older one poos 2-3 times in the morning and then sometimes not again until the next morning, and that includes not pooing after his evening meal.  That really threw me for a loop when I first got him, I figured he had to be pooing somewhere in the house, I couldn't imagine a dog not pooing after a meal and not for 24 hours.  But, now I see it is "normal" for him. 

It may be the Innova didn't agree with your little one, hope things improve with the food switch. 

Thank you, that more and more appears to be the case. And, yes, stopping the Innova has definitely made an improvement in volume (reduced) and consistency of stools (more solid/formed). Yesterday 2 large stools in the early morning after breakfast, then a quite small formed one in late afternoon - and that's it.