Since our Bichon Frise had her first litter this past July, there are times she will not potty outside. Thank you for any help you can give me.

Dear Cindy,

I have a house training problem with our Bichon Frise who is 2 years old. Since she had her first litter this past July, there are times she will not potty outside. We have a huge backyard, so we let her out when we see her signs of needing to potty. We leave her outside plenty long enough and wait for her to paw at the door before letting her back in. But since the litter, she will come in after being outside, sometimes even an hour or more, depending on the weather and her signals at the door, and she will poop right on the carpet! I just don't get it! She knows she's done naughty because when we catch her or see it and clean it up, she hangs her head and runs under our bed! When we see her potty outside, pee or poop, we give her a little treat. It's hard to 'punish' her now because she has a new 3 week old litter to take care of. Before this litter, I had begun to put her in her kennel if I found her pooping in the house. That didn't work, so now we are at a loss of what to do. But with 3 children at home, we can't have a dog pooping everywhere! But get this, we have hardwood floor in the kitchen and foyer, and she has yet to potty on it. It's ALWAYS on the carpet! I don't understand!! Thank you for any help you can give me.

Deborah