How do I get my dog to poop faster?

Has it occured to you that needing to go and being ready to go are not the same thing?  Your dog may be feeling the urge but not quite be ready to expell.

I find with mine that exercise frequently stimulates the need to eliminate.  It's pretty common for exercise to help get things moving.  Dogs, just like children and humans have a bit of trouble going on command. You'll just need to be patient.

I understand there's a difference between feeling the urge and being ready to actually poop. Sooner or later, we all feel the urge to go. But we also know how to hold it. However, there comes a point where you know you can't hold it any longer and it just wants out. When my dog scratches at the door to go out, he isn't just telling me. He's BEGGING me. Normally, when he's just ready to go out, he'll sit by the door quietly and just look at me. He waits for me to come over, put my coat on and his lead on, and then take him outside. But when he can't hold it, he'll scratch at the door the way you or I would if we were trapped in a room without any air. It isn't just a gentle scratching. It's a panicky scratching. It seems so urgent that I can't understand why he doesn't poop the moment we get outside. Imagine if you drank lots of coffee and had to go pee so badly, you thought you were going to pee in your pants. When you finally get to the bathroom, do you need more time to get ready?

I do exercise my dog to try and get things moving and eventually it does work. I'm not looking for a poop command. I guess I'm just looking for some way to tell my dog that if he wants to go outside to pee or poop, he only gets a certain amount of time or else we go back in and he's going to have to hold it. My roommate has a 5-year old dog who understands this. He goes out and if doesn't poop then, he knows that he just has to hold it until the next time I let him out. In fact, I think he's learned this so well that whenever he does get the opportunity to go out, not only will he poop, he'll do so immediately even though he doesn't have the urgent need to. It's like he's saying to himself, "Hey, who knows when I'll get to go outside again. I'd better poop now while I have a chance."

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Just wondering.  Do you immediately come inside right after he's done?  Is it possible that he has learned this and is trying to prolong coming in?   Maybe he wants to play out there?  I know if my dogs think I'm just gonna turn around and whisk them back inside, they will take FOREVER to find the RIGHT spot.  So even if I am planning to just bring them in right away, I still put on my jacket, mitts, boots whatever, and act like I'm all about playtime.  Usually they get soo excited by this, that they're like...Just hold on Mom, gotta poop quick then i'll be ready to romp!  FTR, I do play outside with them quite a big so it only works if the quick outing isn't the norm.  Dogs are smart.

Maybe you can put him on a chain in the yard, if he can't be left alone outside, while he works out the poo.  Misty pees right away, I'll give her a few moments, she walks around the yard, sniffing, until she finds the right spot.  If I don't have time to stand there, or need to do my own business, I put her on a chain (especially if she's in the front) and let her take her time.  If she's in the back, I usually don't have a problem with her (off the chain) to walk around and do her business.  She's really good at staying in the yard (well, recently, she's been slipping), but at least you don't have to stand outside the entire time.  Although, it's better to, so you know he/she actually went.  But you don't want your dog to hold it to the point where it's pokin' out...that's how accidents happen, then you'll be spending the time cleaning it up.  Good Luck!

Lostcoyote, this isn't just something that happens first thing in the morning. No matter what time of day I take him out, he takes way too long to do his business. This is my first dog, but I've been around other dogs and while some are quicker to pee or poop than others, none have ever taken this long. And as convenient as a poop command would be, I don't want to train my dog to poop when I tell him to. I just want him to poop in a reasonable amount of time.

Huskymom, I do take my dog back in after he's done his thing. And you're right. Dogs are smart and mine is no exception. He loves being outside and chasing after leaves, people, and other dogs. It did occur to me that maybe he's prolonging things so he can spend more time outside. But I'd prefer to break him of that habit. For one thing, it's way too cold this time of year for either of us to be spending that much time outdoors. He's already gotten a slight cold. Playtime is fine, and if the weather were better, I'd have no problem taking out for that.

 Janet, I like your idea and was already contemplating that. I have a yard, but no fence and my dog loves to run after things. I will probably chain him in the yard and then watch from inside.
 

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]It did occur to me that maybe he's prolonging things so he can spend more time outside. But I'd prefer to break him of that habit. For one thing, it's way too cold this time of year for either of us to be spending that much time outdoors. He's already gotten a slight cold. Playtime is fine, and if the weather were better, I'd have no problem taking out for that.

You just answered your own question. The dog is not getting enough time outside and he's hanging on to whatever scraps of outside time that he can by prolonging his potty trips. The weather is fine for him and sometimes it's not all about you and your comfort. Get a heavier coat and a nice woolly hat. Catching a cold from being out in cold weather for both dogs and humans are not really all that correlated (as much as your mom tried to convince you otherwise). Colds are caused by viruses, not by the weather. I have a dog who loves to be outside and active but also has a coat that's a bit too light for the serious winter weather we have here, so he has a sweater. Just because it's cold out doesn't mean he doesn't want to be active. His energy needs don't disappear because of the weather. But for his own comfort he's got a little turtleneck so he can be just as active as he wants to be and remain comfy. He's also black, so we have a lighted collar so he can be seen in the dark now that it's getting dark at 5 o'clock. We make it work because it doesn't matter what the weather is like, both dogs start to drive me and each other crazy in various ways if they do not get their energy needs met.

AcuraGuy

But when it comes to pooping, he seems awfully picky about where he'll poop. I'm sure that he has to poop because he'll sniff all over like he's getting ready to poop.

How long is the lead? Get a 15 foot lead and see if it makes a difference. Believe it or not, I know of dogs who are "uncomfortable" pooping within 6 feet of other beings. Get a long lead and try that.

Welcome to the board!  

 Not sure if this of any help but my puppy started doing this during her housebreaking training. I eventually realized that I was rushing her back inside after she had done her business, regardless if she was quick about it or not. At first she would do her thing immediately, and now -- not so much. So now I throw a tennis ball around with her and play fetch and that definetly speeds things up with minimal work from me. I've now gotten used to letting her be outside AFTER she goes potty as kind of a treat to her.

 If I absolutely positively don't have a whole lot of time to spend with her after she goes (getting ready for work or what not) I offer a treat as a consolation prize instead, makes me feel better about it at least.
 

What if you put together the exercise time and bathroom time? it seems that you have a specific time for one and another different for the other, put them together and you will kill two birds with one stone, and save time

How long do you walk your dog? how often? 

Willow takes awhile too and we have pretty much the same issues that you describe ie she's very particular about where she goes and she is pretty private about it compared to other dogs.  But, if we've walked ample time and she's still not going but clearly has to I started saying "Willow, find your spot" and she caught onto this pretty quickly.  It's not fool proof but it does seem to get her to understand that I want her to go. 

I didn't see anything anywhere said about if you even walk your dog or not? 

If the only time I got to be outside was a few minutes to poop, you had better belive I would try to put it off as long as possible. The reason he is using the "frantic-i-gotta-go" pawing is not necessarily because he has to go. It is because he has learned that the frantic pawing is the only thing that will get you to take him out.

What is the temperature where you are? Unless it is below 10, throw a good sweater on the dog and heavy jackets on you and go walk. Even small breeds *need* exercise - in fact, they especially do. Unless 1) you or the dog is truly sick  or 2)  the temp is below 10 or with severe windchill, or 3) you can't afford a good jacket for yourself and one for the dog,.....then you *can and should* walk. Sorry if I sound a bit mean but....if you aren't up to walking a dog in the cold, you should have thought of that before you got one. I apologize if you're in Alaska or something and you have a negative wind chill right now, but if you're in the continental US...trust me, 20-25 degrees at night isn't gonna kill ya

 It definitely sounds like a learned behavior. I would walk him more, at *least* 30 minutes a day, 2x day.

I also wanted to add -- if you do walk him, it would be good to help him differentiate "walk time" from "just bathroom time"

I walk my dog on a halter. When I put the halter on, she knows we're going for a walk, so she takes her time. When I just take her out in her collar, she knows it is just a bathroom trip and does her business promptly. Maybe something like this would help?