I got a really young puppy (4 weeks). There were issues: the mother was not well and my friend wanted to find homes for the puppies real fast. To my surprise she seemed to learn to pee and poop outside and then it drizzled. She does not like the feel of wet earth or damp paving. She's stopped pooping outside. She drags her butt on the ground and begs to go home. She's not interested in exploring the garden. She doesn't poop right away: it's done secretively, maybe an hour after the feed or when I'm getting ready to feed all my pets. In other words I haven't spotted her "searching". She also poops a lot less than my older dog did as a puppy. I feed her weaning food (mushed up with lots of water)5 times a day and she poops only 2-3 times. I've tried leaving her poop outside to inspire her, wiping her butt with a warm towel, rubbing her tummy but nothing works. She's going on 6 weeks. Will she regress? I haven't been giving her treats because she's too small to eat them!It's going to be semi damp for some time so how do I work around the puppy's inhibitions?
Mell

She's such a baby - four weeks?

Maybe she's cold. Maybe she's scared. Maybe you're expecting too much. Maybe you're too "hands on" for a baby.

I'd paper train her inside and then move her outside when she's older.

You say she drags her butt - has she been wormed?

Hi
Thanks. I'm encouraged to hear that I may succeed in housebreaking her after all. My 14 year old lhasa-pom mix who passed recently never grasped the rudiments of house training and I got her at 3 months while my male cocker spaniel who we adopted at 6 weeks grasped the basics almost immediately so you can say I'm eager to train the new puppy early on. And yes, she really is very young. She sleeps most of the time on a friendly lap, misses her mother and siblings. The vet says to bring her in for deworming at 45 days.
Mell

I've never had a dog that didn't "housebreak." Some just take longer than others. At her age I'm sure the concept is beyond her grasp. Yes, she's such a baby - she just needs some time.