Expert: Susan Downes - 1/25/2008

Question
Hi: Our 7 year old Chihuahua has been having issues now for about 4 months.  
Since she was a puppy she has urinated when excited or nervous.  However
over the last 4 months she has progressed to now defecating under the
following situations, when people come to the house, after being outside in
the yard for a decent amount of time (10 mins) sometimes we find something
right outside the door or she will come inside with hackles up and poop
within minutes.  There is usually the sign of her hiding under a chair or
something along with the hackles which gives us an idea something is
brewing.  

The dog is a little neurotic not just the chihuahua kind but in general.  She
has had past issues with steps not being able to get up them.  She would take
about 10 minutes to get past the first step and then trip up the rest.

She is neutered.  She is not walked. She does have the freedom of the
backyard which I know is not a substitute.  There are 2 cats in the house -
one was here prior to her, the other came along a couple of years ago.

She seems to feel bad when this happens - but it's not getting any better.  We
have started to feed her twice a day as opposed to letting her graze.  She has
always eaten solid food.

She was at the vet about a month ago.  Her anal glands were cleared out and
there were no accidents for about a week.  She was checked over and seemed
to be fine.  

Not sure where to go from here.  I had thought about going back to basics.  
Crating her.  Trying to walk her at least once a day.  I'm not sure what this
would do for her already submissive spirit.

Thoughts?

Answer
Hi Dawn, You are right to be sure you walk her frequently every day to exercise her mind and body. This will also help her to build up some confidence, which she really needs. Keeping her on a good feeding schedule should also help. Do not use a crate as punishment, but only a place of safety, like a den. Get a good deodorant and get the smell out of the home. If you must, use piddle pads and then teach her like you would a pup to go outside. Try to spend time building up her confidence. I assume that you had her checked for any infections when at the vet. Our little ones need walks just as much as our large breeds. But they also need to have their confidence built up if they are fearful, so the fear does not turn into negative behavior. Leave me some feedback and follow-up if you have time to let me know how it goes for both of you. Thank you for writing. Regards, Susan