I have had my puppy about a month now and generally training is going fairly well. He does still not like being left alone but I am working on that. However, at night I take him near the bedroom in his crate (which he loves) but more often than not he poos in it and then makes noise afterwards so I wake up and have to clean up and usually wash his feet too! He has had nights without going so I know he can hold it but the problem is I can't get him to go before bed. He will pee and very rarely needs to pee again until I get up, so that is not a problem. I just wondered whether anyone has any ideas how I can get him to poo before bed instead of after 2-3 hrs in his crate at 2am!

He generally poos at quite random times, not necessarily after eating and not at the same time each day although he does get fed at fixed times, 8am and 4pm.

Any ideas welcome....

I think it sounds as if he is doing very well for a very young puppy, he obviously realises that it's not ideal, so you have got the basic message through.
He is still so young and I'm sure it will come very soon, he just can't quite manage it at the moment.
How long is he left overnight?
Does he have a play just before bed?

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I work my life around my dog, not my dog around my life

Do you let him out before you go to bed? Does he actually do anything then? Make sure he actually goes outside before you bring him in.

Also does he go out regularly throughout the day? its very important to make sure the puppy goes out every 15-20 minutes, and after they've eaten and also after they've woken up from a nap.

Please be aware that your pup is still a baby and cannot hold his' bladder for too long and probably wont get the gist of toilet training properly till he's 6 months of age or probably a little earlier if he is shown consistently where he needs to go. Praise him a lot when does his business outside

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My darling Woody. Gone but not forgotten. Love you darling!

I just have to say, that that is a super cute pup.
Where are the rest of the pictures?

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I work my life around my dog, not my dog around my life

Thanks! Not sure I know how to add more pics... Will have a look.

I take him out regularly during the day and just before bed, he does pee before bed just not poo. His accidents in the house are decreasing so things are going well I guess it's just annoying that I know he will need to go in the early hours if he doesn't do it before bed but I can't make him go at that time - usually 10.30 ish.

When I get up at 7am and take him out he usually goes. He is just coming up to 4 months old so maybe I am hoping for a bit too much

I wasn't going to say anything but yes you are! LOL!

Give him time. He'll get the hang of it around 5-6 months of age. Trust me, been there. Although my 7 month pup has suddenly decided pooping on the sofa and coffee table is a better place to poop than the garden! Grr! He only did it yesterday and i certainly hope he doesn't do it again!

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My darling Woody. Gone but not forgotten. Love you darling!

It sounds as if he is doing really well.
It's not realist to expect a pup of that age to hold it overnight, but you could try taking him for a little walk before bed to see if you can get any bowel action

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I work my life around my dog, not my dog around my life

Thats an awfully long time to go between toileting sessions.

Personally id set my alarm for about 2-3am every night, and take him outside to the toilet.

Its distressing for a puppy to mess its bed, and his cries are indictative of this.

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November 2nd

you mean his last meal is at 4pm but he often poos at 2am...?
this is quite unusual to me. I've taken care of over 10 puppies last year, and none of them can hold it so long when they have enough time to go to toilet.

Does he have snacks at nights?

He is near the bedroom so I do get up if I hear him, I wouldn't just leave him to sit in mess. But yes, he does seem to poo at odd times, sometimes after a meal and sometimes not for several hours after. His last food is at 4pm and then he usually goes at some point between then and bedtime at 10.30pm. He usually does then want to go in the night as well. He doesn't get snacks in the night.

I have changed his food from royal canin to burns in the last week so perhaps over another week or so it will sort itself out. He had quite soft poo on the royal canin and was going 2 or sometimes 3 times all at once. Now that side of it is much better at least - nice and firm.