Help! Toddler Pooping in the Tub!

Yes she is young but this really is the perfect time to introduce the potty chair. You are right...the warm water is way relaxing and normal. If you can read her signs before the bm happens then keep teh potty chair right by the tub. If not, use teh potty chair as more of a chair... Actually set it in the bath tub and have her sit on it as teh warm water runs over feet. If she goes poopy then you can get real excited and she will really become interested in the potty chair. Talk to her simply...they understand so much more than we know. Good luck!

Yes you are right it is in part from the relaxation but in big part the warm water. This may seem to be a strange comparison but I used to raise snakes and when the would get constipated I would put them in a warm tub. Try before her bath putting her on a potty chair filled with warm water and a good book or favorite toy. sit in front of her to keep her relaxed even cover her legs and chair with a blanket so she does not concentrate on where she is. If you can get her to go before the bath it will help a great deal. If you can not get her to go this way put on a little swimmers then after she goes take her out and clean her then put her back in. Once she learns to control her bowels better this will stop.

Good Luck L.

Taking a warm bath is one method of relieving constipation, so it stands to reason that a toddler who doesn't have control over their bowel movements may have this issue when they're in the tub. It only happened to us once with our son. He was in the tub, and we were in the next room (he must have been a little bit older, if we'd left him alone), and all of a sudden we hear "oh! poopy! oh no! POOPY!!!" He was a little distraught about it. ;)

My 6 and 4 year olds STILL poop evertime they have a bath - but luckily thewy get out now! They each pooped in the water when they were toddlers - I think they just get really relaxed. Now we fill the tub, wash them quick, and let them play until they have to poop. Usually the older one is first, he dries off while on the pot and decides he's done, then the younger gets his turn. We barely use towels now because they always dry off on the pot! This too shall pass, though it may be slow and frustrating. But at least you know it is normal and you're not the only one suffering through it!

My daughter started that when she was about that age...she is now 26 months old and it still happens. I would just suggest watching her and paying attention to the signs that she is going potty ~ straining, squatting...etc. I think you can put her on the potty if you see the signs, but I am not sure the mental capacity to control her bowels are there yet...but catching it in the potty, heck, even on the floor is far better than the tub! I have had to give my daughter 3 baths in one night, washing out one of our tubs twice! We just saying "icky!!", clean it up and move on! We talked to our doctor ~ he said that is it because the water relaxes her...I truly can relate. Just watch for the signs, and try to pull her out before she goes in the tub!
Best of Luck!

I just have a suggestion. Put her in the disposable swim diapers and when she does her business, throw em out and put her back in the tub. If it works for pools, it should work for a tub.
Good luck

Put her on the potty chair before she goes into the tub to do her business. She may be young to potty train, but it doesn't hurt to give her the idea, especially if you are an "open door" family as we were. As adults, our first top before getting in the bath or shower is the potty.

I second the idea of using Little Swimmers in the bathtub until her behavior changes.

As I read your cry for help, I can only laugh. :) Sorry. My now 7yr old did the same thing around the same age(it's time to get her a toilet) and I was totally grossed out. I couldn't bathe her without it happening. I also laugh because I have an almost 1yr old and I know I have to go thru it again!
There is nothing you can do about it. It is because of how relaxed she is. Remember when you were a kid and the fave prank was putting someone's hand in warm water while they were sleeping?...it's the same thing.
It will pass. I promise. Once she is in her potty training mode, she will start to tell you she has to poo and then you will rush her drippy self to the toilet.
The only advice I can give you is to try to get her to go before bath time (not that it will help) and keep her potty seat close!

LOL!!! We deal with the same thing! I bet you are giving your DD a bath right after she finishes dinner? Sitting in the bathtub will relax them and since she just ate will need to go Poo. This is our case...i just keep an eye on her and the signals and try to quickly move her to the potty seat in the bathroom. But we go through the same thing at least once a month!

Sorry no advice to give here. Our DD started this just about the same age and is now 25 months and still does it. We hope once she starts Potty Training that this will sease.

I would say wait longer between dinner time and bath time so she can have a BM before bathtime.

Good luck!

Thatt brings back memories. My daughter did that a few times too. I do not think there is anything you can do but maybe out her on the potty ahead of time. G. w

My dd had trouble with constipation, and the ONLY time she would go was in water (tub, beach) - we would plan that and not put the toys etc. in - she would go, we would run new water etc. She did outgrow it - when she was potty training we would use a bottle of water and spray her bottom with her to help her relax her sphincter.

Your little one is too young to know what she is doing, like the other mom said, it will pass.

You beat me to it- this is EXACTLY the post I was about to send out this week myself- our daughters are even the same age and my husband and I handle it the same way you do. Boy I am sick of that bathroom smelling of bleach(however that is so much better then the stench of poo). In my experience the little swimmers diapers aren't great (she poops straight out of the top of them). I did get her a potty chair and it worked once so far but I have to catch her facial expressions and move VERY quickly. My little girl goes many times in a day so I can't just think- well she gone already so we are safe.

I don't want to change bathtime either because it is part of the bedtime routine and (obviously) is relaxing to her (a bit too much I guess).

All of that to say- you aren't alone, it's gross, and if you find a solution PLEASE email me :-)

Your fellow pooper scooper,
A.

Oh my goodness did this bring back a memory for me, and it made me smiling becuase it is suc a funny memory now. My son is going to be 10 next month but when he was about 15 months old he would poop in the bath tub everytime I put him in for a bath. One minute he was splashing and one minute there was little poop floating around...lol..I know it is gross and I couldn;t understand why he was doing it but eventually he did out grow it. I know she is only 14 months and young but you could start a sloooowww process of potty training and a few minutes afte rshe sits in the tub put her on the potty or potty chair and maybe she will go, continue the process thourghout bathtime and sooner or later she will stop and maybe even be closer to being potty trained...good luck..

First, have you tried waiting an hour after eating before putting her in the tub? Also give her a quick bath and get her out. My son only stays in the water for ten minutes. I don't let him just sit there and play in tub. We take a bath and get out. Of course if little kids are just sitting in there playing, they relax and anything can happen. So far (knock on wood) my boy hasn't pooped in the tub, and I think doing the job quickly and getting him out when we're done is the answer to this problem.

We went thru the same thing - it is quite unpleasant but it also was yet another reminder of how much I clearly love this boy of mine! Who else's poo would I scrub off the tub while simultaneously thinking "well good, he has a good, healthy digestive system." :)

We did a few things. I did not want to change our "bedtime routine" so we moved dinner a bit earlier to give him a little more play time after dinner and before the bath. And for a while, we just had to keep the baths shorter than usual. We watched his little face for any signs of "activity" about to happen and would scoop him out if we saw any such signs. We also kept the water even more shallow than usual and less warm than usual...it's not cold but not overly warm either.

Ultimately what changed was his appetite, I think. They say that they eat less after the first year...we saw his appetite decrease around 14-15 months. He is a good eater, but he just doesn't eat as much at every meal as he used to. According to research, this is normal and is because they are not going to triple or quadruple in size any more, like they did the first year, so they don't need as much food. I think his lower intake of food has made the most difference.

So, there are things you can do, but this phase will pass (no pun intended).

Good luck & God bless-
B.

don't give her her bath until after she poops.

If you give her a bath at the same time every day, try changing her bath time. Also if you are bathing her right after eating, wait until she has time to do her job. It is a good thing that her BM is regular. So rearrange the schedule a little to accommodate it. She is way too young to be doing this on purpose. She is still a baby.

I have six little kids, and truthfully they have all done it. My second child, our oldest girl, would do it EVERYTIME she was put in the tub. It just is relaxing and they let it go. Your daughter probably isn't any different, and truthfully doesn't fully understand why it's happening herself. And she young enough that even telling her that isn't a good, doesn't truely sink in.

But with everything else in the little toddler world, this too will pass and she will grow out of it.

Best of luck!