a poop question (of course !)

[Mel]

i know i am getting ahead of myself because Spike is only 12 weeks and not even remotely house trained so we are just happy if he poops outside BUT i have been wondering what everyone does to limit the 'land mines' of poop in their yards....particularly those with children who run around out there.

I plan on picking up obviously but i really wanted to encourage him to use one area of the yard eventually to make it easier on me .

We also plan on giving him at least 2 walks to the park or around the neighbourhood every day once he is leash trained etc.

thanks for any ideas !

[deepnite10]

my dogs have the run of our backyard..

however, this did work with my daughters dog..they live in a townhouse with very limited room as a backyard..a concrete pad with a small area
12 ft. by 3 ft. covered with dirt along the fence..

we used chicken wire to fence off the dirt area..then filled in the dirt with some redwood chips..each morning they would let their dog drink..then take him out to the fenced area and kept him their till he pottied..after he caught on, the chicken wire came down..

[Daisy'sMom]

My next door neighbor built a small dog run with a nice fence around it and some special rock type stuff that's supposed to limit odor (Thank goodness cuz it's right up against our property line/house/patio/sidewalk, eeewww!) Anyway, at first I thought it was a little over the top but I now I have to say it's pretty darn great! It's all contained in one spot. I on the other hand have a hot pink rake and scoop set With two young kids always running around in the yard I basically pick it up every single day when the weather is nice enough that we're outside all the time. If you stay on top of it, it's very minor work. We ignored it all winter and oh my goodness did I spend forever and a day outside last weekend picking up landmines, wow!!!

I also know people who just simply train their dogs to go in the same spot by walking them there over and over until the dog catches on. We just let Daisy have free run of the yard and I just clean up all the time. There's nothing worse than dog poop on shoes!!

[Mel]

i also have a very nifty rake and scoop set in green however i have been using bags for now as i am out there for every poop. I would love to train Spike to go it one area later on ....we have a big yard and to 'police it' would be a pain for me to do every day. I like the fenced in bark area idea....we'll see....just curious what i can do to minimize the risk of the kids running through it. Spike decided to poop right at the foot of the stairs to the slide today

[lindamarie]

Hmmm.........I know people have trained their dogs to do this but not exactly sure how.
Maybe if you have Spike on leash and walk around with him in one area each day until he goes....he'll get the point.
Bogart and all my other dogs eventually sought out the back end of the yard on their own. Periodically, Bogart might dump somewhere else, but not often. Now, he usually goes within a 12X12 area by the back fence.

[Mel]

i am looking forward to Spike being leash trained, i will try to direct him to one general area....he starts puppy classes in a couple of weeks

[deepnite10]

befor the puppy class..has he had all his shots?..

without all the shots..doggie public can be dangerous..

[Mel]

Originally Posted by deepnite10

befor the puppy class..has he had all his shots?..

without all the shots..doggie public can be dangerous..

yes we made sure he will have completed his shots by then.

[M&Tdoodles]

You have to be very consistent and bring him outside on a lesh to the are you desire to have him go to all the time , and praise with rewards, whether a ball with some ply ctivity or a cookie treat or a piece of chicken, whatever will motivate him, but every time you bring him out do this and after a few weeks he may do this on his own.