The Puppy Poo Blues

[rivahmom]

I have two border collies. The male is now 9 mths and we got him when he was 12 weeks, he was potty trained in less than two weeks and had no issue with going outside when we caught him in time. We got a female border collie a month ago and she is now 12 weeks. I can take her outside and walk her for hours but she will not poo unless she is in my house. If I catch her mid squat and take her outside she will hold it until I bring her back in. I don't feel comforable keeping her in her crate all day but I can't allow her to continue to poo the floor. Any advice.

[fnfredux]

By all means, put her in a crate. You don't need to leave her in there all day. Just take her out and keep her out(outside) for 20-30 minutes and if possible get her running around. If she doesn't go, bring her back in, put her back in the crate. It may take a while but you will get her trained. NEVER let her just "pooh" where she wants and be sure you get up any scent (as in use a really good cleaner/deodorizer) on any spots. An enzyme cleaner works really well.
Feed her on an exact schedule, water along with food. Give her 10 minutes to eat/drink and the remove food. Feed her IN the crate, dogs are very reluctant to defecate where they eat. Take her out for about 20 minutes, get her to run around. She will go. Give her lots of praise. Take her back in the house and do something special...like sit with her/talk to her/play with a favorite toy with her for 10 minutes, not to much jumping around tho. Put her in the crate, let her nap. when she wakes up take her out again, run her around. Best to take her around the perimeter of your property if you have a regular size yard. Dogs like to mark their territory, yes even females. I didn't notice if you said whether your other dog is male or female, sometimes if an older/bigger/more dominant dog of the same sex is marking a territory newcomers are reluctant to do their marking over it. If your dog isn't the same sex, maybe there are roaming dogs marking.
Are you taking this girl out alone??? If not try that. Be sure you give plenty of praise when she goes. Here is another factor. Where was she raised? Where was her mother raised? If her mother was either a kennel dog or a strictly outdoor dog, this makes your house training task much more difficult. The hardest dogs (pups) to train are kennel dogs. Many of the are so used to "going" on hard surfaces that grass actually keeps them FROM going. In this case I'd try it on whatever paved surface is available, with a gradual transition off into grass.
You can bet that your pup is trying to do the best job she can to please you. Whatever she sees as the proper toilet etiquette is what she is displaying. She needs to learn.
By crating her you are HELPING her to not do the wrong thing, and aiding her in doing the right thing. Don't feel bad about keeping her crated until she is trained. What are the alternatives??? A dog pooh home??? A dog kept outside??? Giving her away??? The shelter if you can't find a home for dog that's not house trained??? Crating is much kinder to all concerned.

[rivahmom]

Thanks for the advice. We live in a community and lots of dogs pass through our area. I thought the other dog scents might be why she was reluctant to go outside. Her previous owners had her in a kennel so the ground texture may also be confusing her. We have her on a feeding schedule and I know about when she will go. I think I may tether during playtime when she is not in the crate to prevent her from wandering off somewhere in the house.