# When can a child wipe themselves after using the bathroom?



## birthjunkie27 (Jul 6, 2005)

Dd will be 5 next month and she still needs to be wiped after she poops.

I'll admit, I haven't given her a lot of opportunities to practice, because I'd rather her not end up with poop on her hand.

In your experiences at what age could your child successfully wipe themselves? Meaning NO poo left behind...no skids in the underwear?


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## kazmir (Nov 21, 2001)

Well, what we did with my DD is to let her try to wipe first and then she called us in to "check" with another wipe on how whe did. It took several months and we were looking to get her ready by kinder which we were pretty close. She is now 5.5 and does a pretty good job most times. I don't notice much in her panties so that is my gauge. When she isn't feeling good or has diarreha (sp?) I do it for her still. One less thing to worry about









Good luck and it sounds like she is right on tract!


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## Fiercemama (May 30, 2003)

I think it really depends on your child's bm's! Mine makes little rabbity poops, she barely swipes with the tissue, but her panties (and bum) are clean. She's not yet 4.


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## **guest** (Jun 25, 2004)

i agree that it depends on the bms. dd has very soft ones, and there is no way she would be able to wipe them by herself, without being covered in poop.

anna


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## birthjunkie27 (Jul 6, 2005)

Yeah, her poops are very soft and messy, which is why I'm hesitant to let her wipe herself. But she starts Kindergarten this fall, so I want her to be ready by then.

Ds has rabbit turd poops.







He's a much easier wipee.


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## mamalisa (Sep 24, 2002)

I started really encouraging ds when he turned 4, right after I found out I was pg. I wasn't wiping 2 butts







He wiped first then I would come do a check wipe. Once he was consistantly doing a good job he was on his own. Occasionally he will still ask me to do it if it's messy or if he's feeling like being big is too hard (baby sister issues







) but for the most part it took him 4 months to be able to handle it all on his own.


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## MomBirthmomStepmom (May 14, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *birthjunkie27*
Yeah, her poops are very soft and messy, which is why I'm hesitant to let her wipe herself. But she starts Kindergarten this fall, so I want her to be ready by then.

We're in the same boat here.

No advice, but I'm with you on this one. Reading and sub'ing!


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## Junitune (Mar 11, 2002)

Glad to know I'm not the only one! Been wiping poop for a year and a half now! She must do it at school. She says she does it at her dad's house. But she always asks me to do it and I don't like the messy undies so I always do it! I'm going to start encouraging her to do it and I'll check. Good idea!


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## birthjunkie27 (Jul 6, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *mamalisa*
I started really encouraging ds when he turned 4, right after I found out I was pg. I wasn't wiping 2 butts







He wiped first then I would come do a check wipe. Once he was consistantly doing a good job he was on his own. Occasionally he will still ask me to do it if it's messy or if he's feeling like being big is too hard (baby sister issues







) but for the most part it took him 4 months to be able to handle it all on his own.

LOL! I'm currently wiping 3 butts! Not including my own.







It's definately time to let her take charge of her own wiping.


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## eilonwy (Apr 3, 2003)

BeanBean's poops are not only soft but *extremely* sticky; they're the sort that, if I had them, would make me feel like taking a shower after the fact.







As a result, I bought him some flushable wipes for the bathroom to use after bm's. He's three years old, can use them on his own and he gets clean (no poop left behind, no skids) every time with no help at all.







This is a wonderful thing, because I'm too pregnant to bend over and wipe him these days.


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## shelbean91 (May 11, 2002)

My dd won't wipe her own butt for poop unless we have her 'special wipes' which are the adult baby wipes. I have no idea why she doesn't like regular tp for poop, but she doesn't. I indulge her b/c I don't want to change 2 in dipes and wipe a 5 yo poopy butt. We started these 'special wipes' about a year ago.


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## IamCoupongirl (Jan 3, 2003)

Both my girls wiped themselves starting at potty-learning. I checked them for a few weeks, but that was it.


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## mahogny (Oct 16, 2003)

DS is 4 yrs 3 mos. I used to do all the wiping, but right around his 4th bday, I instituted the "wipe first" rule. He has to wipe himself X number of times before I'll come in. (he loves counting and numbers, so this was right up his alley.) When we first started, he had to wipe once, and then I'll come in. Then it was twice. Now it's three times, and when I come in, he's 99% clean.

DS is another one who won't use TP - we keep a large supply of the cottonelle wipes on hand just for him.


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## Threefold (Nov 27, 2001)

my ds is just starting to, and he has just turned 5.
He MUST wear undies afterwards







and he uses a wet wipe.
IME as a K teacher, most kids do wipe by 5, but most don't wipe *well* yet.

nak


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## brookelynnp (Jan 1, 2002)

my ds is almost 5 1/2 and hejust started to wipe. Let the world rejoice! Basically I had been suggesting it for a while but he was not ready and when he was he just went for it.


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## heatherzenzen (Aug 21, 2004)

I tried making my 4 1/2 yo do it herself for a while, and we even have "special wipes" (those micky mouse huggies flushable wipes), but she was still messy. I don't care so much about skids, but if there's a flake of poop left on her butt, she gets an "itchy butt" and then she's digging down there forever! So, I'm back to wiping if there's poop (which, unfortunately, there usually is - this kid poops 4 times a day!).


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## angela&avery (May 30, 2002)

my four year old refuses to wipe his own bum!! when he did 6 months or so ago, he would get poop on his hands (yuck). I dunno, he will be 5 in June, and is a stinky pooper and I would love for him to wipe, as now that dd is trained I have to bums to wipe......not including mine. He just wont even try.... i dunno..... My brother stayed with my kids a couple weeks ago, and he pooped and wouldnt wipe.....







, my brother was like, dont you wipe your own bum? then he called my cell phone ot ask me if ds wipes his own bum







, im like ...no....







, i still do it bc he doesnt like to....but ive been trying to get him to... lol my brother and his wife are still childless (though pregnant)........ i think he was grossed out, but we were on our way home anyhow, thank goodness....lol...

my goal is to have him wiping by kindergarten next year, right now he is in preschool, but doesnt poop at school, he is not comfortable pooping every where yet.


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## sarahmae1 (Nov 11, 2002)

My just turned 5yr. old won't wipe his own butt either! He kept saying that he would do it when he turned five, but his b-day has come and gone over a month ago and who's still wiping his dang butt? Me! He even got some of those kid wet wipes in his stocking for Christmas, but nope! Sometimes I try and have him do it, and then I'll check but he really just doesn't want to. I also worry about what will happen if he goes poo at Kindergarten next year, but he just tells me he won't.







He says he'll just go at home. So, we'll see but we'd like him to do it himself now. We've been encouraging it for a while now.


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