Well, it couldn't have been more on schedule had I planned it out. I decided to move up his feeding time in the evening a bit (to 3pm from 5pm) to see if maybe that would at least give me some short-term relief with the elimination in the crate. I fed my guy at 3pm at which point he played/slept/played/slept until 10:30pm. Not once during that time did he signal that he needed to go out. 7 hours and 30 minutes and nothing...at 10:30pm he made his way to the sliding glass door to sit (his signal that it is time to go). We get outside and he has 5-6 nice firm large pieces of stool and I reacted as if I had just won PowerBall. We walked around the neighborhood a bit and then he has a pile which is less solid (but not liquid) and pretty large. 30 minutes later on our way back in from the golf course he has about a tablespoon of pure liquid. I went from "yes, he is back on track!" to "hmmmm..." But it gets better. So we come inside at which point he lays down and starts to sleep. I figure, okay, time to crate up and let's sleep. He goes down immediately and I am laying right there (10ft away). I awoke on 3 occassions throughout the night to see him just curled into a ball doing nothing throughout the night. Not once did I awake because he was making noise or stirring...that was, until 4:30am when that o-so-familiar smell awoke me like a fire alarm. I opened my eyes, and he was all curled up in a ball sleeping not moving at all...with two HUGE piles (pretty solid) right next to him. They had to be at least 45 minutes old as they were both dried to the crate's raised grill. How is it possible that for 7 1/2 hours he can run around, play, sleep and have no issues, but 3 hours in the crate and it is game on??? I find it statistically impossible that he eats (2 cups Nutro) at 3pm and then 12/13 hours later can leave two piles that large in his crate...especially after the 11pm walk results. What is even scarrier is that I was laying right there...woke up 3 different times and he was just in a ball sleeping...and made no noise/signal that he had to go...well, I just finished cleaning out the crate and washing/drying him...back to bed
New vet today at 2pm...
Cheers,
Travis