Dirty dog!

Have there been any changes in the family, or at home? I'm wondering if he is upset about something.

As the vet says he's fine, there obviously isn't any physical problem so I think something is worrying the dog.

If he's fed once a day, change it to mornings instead of dinner time.
Also stop any treats unless teeth cleaning stick, (given before 12 noon) and stop the scraps from your left overs.
If you normally feed him twice, drastically reduce the evening feed to a tiny amount.
It seems to me that he's being fed a lot, late in the day and can't hold it all night now he's a bit older.
I would say the problem is around food anyway, either too much or given too late.
Hope this works for you.

He's fed twice a day,two thirds morning then rest teatime. I will try giving him his second feed earlier. I can't think of anything that's upsetting him,he's his usual self apart from this. Thank you for your replies,I thought I may be missing something obvious. Let's hope it's a phase!

Would it be possible to leave a door open for him at night, so that he can go out to poo? Or put him to sleep in an outside shed etc?
It's not cruel, our collie used to sleep outside in her last years.

I would give him a smaller amount for his last meal and move it forward.
See how that goes.
Poor boy! It must be upsetting for him.

Sometimes there is no explanation, one of our dogs behaved very strangely for a couple of weeks then went back to normal for no reason we could find.
Just carry on as you are doing, praise him when he is clean and hopefully it will just be an odd phase.

So sorry to hear of your problem. I wish I could offer different advice but think the previous posters have it covered (although I do disagree with suddenly sleeping a 6 year old house Labrador outdoors!). If it’s any comfort, we’ve had Labs for years and, in my experience, they can suddenly change nighttime habits as they age (don’t we all!). Our current pair (approaching 9) have started to bark sporadically overnight. It doesn’t appear to be in response to anything in particular (eg foxes - we’re rural) and they aren’t upset, so there’s nothing to be done. I think if you monitor his eating habits, then just leave him be, he may stop of his own volition. You could, of course, install a dog flap (we did in previous homes) but, given the Lab’s size, it can become a ‘burglar flap’, as we discovered to our cost ... good luck!

Can I ask for a bit more info Bellab

Did your vet have an opinion on why this is happening?

What do you feed him on?

What time is his last feed?

Has he always had bowel movements late in the day?

Has he been wormed?

Has there been an incident in recent times which may have frightened him during the night?

When you say he has had an upset stomach, what happened and how long ago?

We had a Westie who used to do that from time to time for no apparent reason. The vet said he was ok and there didn’t seem any reason why he was upset. He did it for many years- he actually got better as he got older. I tried giving him more food in the morning and less at night but he did it spasmodically so it was hard to tell if it helped or not.
Wouldn’t it be nice to understand what goes through a dog’s mind?

Oh and one more thing, is he overweight?

Our always clean Sprocker now pees in the house ?but this is due to dementia sadly .
Might be worth having a word with your vet in case this is why your dogs behaviour has changed .

I agree with the others who have suggested less food in the evening and try giving it earlier. And yes, if only they could talk our language! Our tibetan terrier sometimes eats his breakfast eagerly and other days won't touch it until I put a little of my tea over it - he has dry food. And we never know what it's going to be in advance! Come evening and he eats it dry no problem! Hope you can sort your canine friend.

I have a 3 year old toy poodle cross, chiwawa. He is still not house trained. He uses newspaper by the back door almost every night, even though I put him out at bed time to do his business. Sometimes he will be clean for 6 nights or so, then for no apparent reason it starts again on a regular basis. He will only eat food now and again, when it suits him, although I never leave food down or my other dog will eat it. Some days he eats nothing at all. Very strange. I've tried everything I can think of. Having had dogs all my life of different breeds I've never had this problem before and can't find a solution.

Is it normal to feed an adult dog twice a day now? When I had dogs , as adults they were only ever fed once a day, in fact my first dog ( in the 1960s) was fed once a day 6 times a week having one meal-free day, this was on the recommendation of my vet at the PDSA at the time. He was a medium sized mongrel and lived till he was 17.

I think like most things missdeke situations move on. It's now recommended to give two smaller meals. This may be due to torsion. One large heavy meal can cause this dangerous condition, especially in deep chested dogs. I used to feed once a day (at night) but now feed twice.

Ewww! How horrible... and in the KITCHEN where you eat and prepare food??
Poo left to stink overnight?
Yuk x 1m.

Not helpful GabriellaG54

I had a mother dog, Border collie, and her puppy Border X labrador. They slept in the kitchen and were fed twice a day.
All was fine until one of the dogs started pooing in the night, but not every night. When I got down to the kitchen the puppy, no longer so young, about 7, used to thump her tail madly. I always told the mother dog off as she was older, so I assumed she had done it. The younger dog unfortunately got cancer and had to be put to sleep about a year later. There was no more pooing in the night. So I felt guilty at all the times I had told off the mother dog and it was not her at all.

breeze
Do you honestly think that I'm unaware of what I type?
I think it's disgusting and said so.

Has you vet carried out a full set of tests. I ask as my last dog developed similar habits. Eventually found she had inflamed intestines, needed intensive care at a University Vet Hospital. After 3 weeks of treatment she suddenly "crashed" on a home visit so we had to acknowledge the end had come. Do not ignore changes in habits.

GabriellaG54 if you are aware of what you type you should be ashamed of yourself. The OP is worried because her dog has developed a problem and is only 6 years old and you think making her feel disgusting is going to help? The dog's not pooping on the work surfaces. If you can't contribute, go and annoy someone on another thread.

PS I forgot to add that - unless he has some kind of early onset dementia - this behaviour will also be distressing for him too, given that he is house trained. Could it be territorial? Does it correspond to days when other animals are on his ‘patch’? If not, maybe a modest ‘burglar’ flap might be the answer.

At 6 he is still a very young dog so there must be some good reason why he is doing this as it’s clear it upsets him. I feed my dog twice a day, 7.30 and again at 2.30/3pm.
Try cutting down his meals a bit and give him a probiotic which I have found to really help with my dogs digestion.

Ignore what GabrielleG54 has said as she is clearly someone who has never owned a dog in her life or any other pet with the exception of a budgie maybe!.

It could be that whatever you’re feeding him is not agreeing with him and maybe it’s time for a change.

Ours are fed x2 daily, last about 18.00. Out to toilet before bed and are fine overnight (unless ill). If he’s physically fit there is likely something psychological- speak to a canine psychologist. This must be distressing for you all, especially him