Sometimes when I try to let my dog outside to go to the bathroom he won’t go outside. He’ll just sit there staring at me. But If I go outside with him he will go outside and go to the bathroom with no issue. Sometimes I’ll just pick him up and set him outside when I know he needs to go but he’ll just just at the door barking to be let back in. I don’t want to have to go outside with him everytime. He’s an 8 month old puppy. Anyone have any tricks for this?
This might not be you exactly, but I see this a lot: Walk him more, socialize him with other dogs and people more.
Dogs are social creatures and need stimulation. If you opening the door for a pee break is giving him excitement to bond with you and anxiety that you’ll abandon him, then he’s not getting enough socialization.
Keep a bullet journal. Mark time and places you spend with him and times he interacts with different people and other dogs. Sometimes, busy people might be really surprised by how neglected their dog’s social development is. They need variety.
Only being inside and then in the backyard, alone, barking at any sound or passerby is a miserable existance. Dogs aren’t cats.