Shar Pei A Princess About When/Where she Goes...

[KatharinetheGr8]

I have two wonderful dogs. Our oldest is a Chinese Shar Pei named Lola who is my shadow. She was the easiest puppy to house train and she loved learning tricks. Like many of her breed, she has some allergy-related skin issues. We have found that regularly changing her food from one grain-free to another seems to help. Plus, they look forward to the new food! Our youngest dog is a 4 year old Great Pyrenees who was much more difficult to train, but who is keenly in tune with my emotions and has the most expressive eyes I've ever seen on a dog. Here are photos of my girls:

Coco our Great Pyrenees (with Lola in the background)

Lola the Chinese Shar Pei

The question I have regards the potty practices of my Chinese Shar Pei. DH regularly says she needs an "act of Congress" to get her to pee, and getting her to poo is like coaxing water from a stone. Even when she clearly has to go, she is hesitant. Like today, she clearly has to poo, but despite several walks has yet to do so. We have a fenced in area and sometimes she will go in there, but usually we have to walk her to a separate area of the yard for her to do her business. I know this breed is fastidiously clean, and I thought maybe she considered her fenced in area an extension of her home. But that wouldn't explain why she will sometimes go in there and other times refuse. When she refuses, she won't go into the fence any further than the gate and she will stand there until I come back to get her. I walk them every morning. She often holds her urine for these walks so she can "mark" our trail. She regularly does not empty her bladder during these walks and will either finish going when we get home or want out soon after we return home.

This isn't usually a problem as I'm finishing up a master's thesis and am home a good deal of the time. What concerns me is when I begin working again and we can't get her to go before work. And that means if she refuses to go in the morning before work after being in the house all night she will have to hold it for an additional 8+ hours, making a total of about 16-18 hours she will have held it. Why is my dog refusing to go to the bathroom and is there anything I can do to make it easier for her (and for us!)

Sorry for the strange potty thread. Just looking for some answers and to find out if there is anything I can/should be doing differently.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I have a 10 year old Australian shepherd who doesn't like to go outside just to do her business, she does this slow walk to the door and acts as if she's about to be executed, if I just want them to go out she's goes outside fine, I have to tell her to go off the porch, I have to walk away from the house, I have to turn my back and act like I'm not looking, it does get ridiculous, but this dogs whose fully housetrained, will do her business inside if she really has to go, so I have to make her go at night, so I get what you are dealing with, the big thing with mine is to not look at her, she won't go.

Some dogs just have really good bladders and can hold it for half the day. You could go back to the basics of word association, and treating, when she goes say whatever phrase or word you want, when she's done give her the treat, I've had some pretty smart pups who would fake it for that bit of hotdog afterwards.

 

[Chickerdoodle13]

My dog can be really difficult to get to do poop. If someone else is watching her, she can be difficult about peeing also. What seems to work ok for me is bringing her back to spots I know she poops in and also saying "go potty" or "poop" and giving her treats when she follows that command. It seems to work and she has gotten faster about it but otherwise she just has to hold it in until I get home if she doesn't go without the 15 or so minutes I give her on our morning walk before class.

 

[KatharinetheGr8]

@oldhenlikesdogs and @Chickerdoodle13 thank you for the responses. I've never tried rewarding for going potty, but that may be my next option. She is crying to go out about every 30 minutes but has yet to do her #2 business today. She's obviously uncomfortable but just doesn't want to go. I don't get it. I never want to feel like that!

I've told them "go potty" since they were puppies so they know what they're supposed to do when we take them out. And I take them out at least every 2 hours when I'm home if the weather is bad. If it is nice out they often stay out in their fenced area for hours on end. The Great Pyr is no trouble. She goes whether she needs to or not. And she goes within the first minute, which makes dealing with the Shar Pei especially frustrating. If you know anything about the Great Pyrenees, they bark at everything. So when she's waiting for her sister to do her business she has the opportunity to listen for falling leaves, passing cars, distant chickens, or any other real or perceived threat! This is the worst in the middle of the night!

We've had rain off and on today and the Shar Pei doesn't care to get her paws wet. So that could be part of the extreme problem today. (The big white fluffy one would live in a mud puddle if we would let her!) I'll try a treat the next time I take my problem child out!

Thank you again!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I'm not wanting to scare you but when I had cancer last year the growth was messing me up as far as digestion, have you had her checked by a vet, sometimes things sneak up on our older dogs and we don't notice how things are changing. There could be a medical reason why she can't go.

 

[KatharinetheGr8]

Oh goodness @oldhenlikesdogs thanks for the heads up! I sure hope your cancer is in remission. I recently watched my mother endure a cancer diagnosis, treatment and have never been happier than when I found out she was in remission. While I haven't gone through what you have, I'm always available to talk (via PM, of course) if you are in need of an ear. Sending good thoughts your way.

Luckily, or maybe unluckily, this shar pei has been a princess about going her whole life so I think it is psychological rather than physiological with her. She's just particular about when she goes and who witnesses the "blessed event." I'll mention it to the vet on our next visit just to be sure.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Thank you, we are hoping all was removed during the surgeries and the chemo caught anything else, so one year out still here, glad to hear your mom is hanging in there too, it really is a horrible world to be in.

I've noticed most dogs don't like being watched doing, as you said the blessed event, good name for it. Some dogs like to make us owners prove our devotion.