Adolecent Dog Behaving Badly

[Maddie]

I'm not an expert on dominant behaviour but it sounds like you've combined issues or raging teenage male hormones and dominance.  (one of the reasons I've always stuck to bitches - all that coccing of legs, humping and dangly bits never did it for me!!!!!)  One of the first thing I would try if it were me would be to reinforce and resetablish the pack hierarchy within the household.  There are lots of useful site on the internet. You need to let the dog know that you, your partner and children are the most important members of your pack asap!  I found this useful site which gives lots of tips.  http://www.furlongspetsupply.com/establishing_leadership_with_dogs.htm  I rarely feed my dogs before I have eaten, I make them wait for their food with their full bowls on the floor , they don't get onto furniture/bed until invited (some will be horrified that I allow them on the furniture anyway!!), I go through the door first - in fact they stop and allow me through first if they are ahead of me, I say when it's time to play or go out for exercise.  I have always ignored bad behviour and rewarded good behaviour (but then I have been lucky and not had any really antisocial beahciour to deal with).  Peeing is definitely bad behaviour and though not something you can ignore, obviously, but if everyone makes a fuss and reacts he's getting a response.  You could try noise aversion as someone previously suggested or perhaps if he does it take him straight out, away from the attention he craves, and shut him somewhere alone where he's not getting any attention or response to his behaviour.

The key thing it to knock it on the head asap but it's NOT going to improve overnight.  Good luck.  If it continues take advice from a dog trainer or maybe your vet.

[Just Katie]

Thanks Nicola

 

Thankfully I have a friend who is a very good dog trainer.  I took the dog to see him at about 4 months.  My friend assessed him and concluded that he is of sound temperament and not a nasty bone in his body.  As I have said I have always owned large dominant breeds and have always enforced the pack hierachy thing and this young chap has always known his place.  But this behaviour has come out of the blue.  Thinking about it he has always knocked about with my neighbours GSD who has kept him in his place but recently my dog is overpowering the GSD in their sparrings.  Perhaps this may have something to do with it?  Maybe my husband is the next challenge for him?  Any views?

[Just Katie]

Mod

Post deleted. I am not removing this post as other posts in this thread would disappear also, however there were irregularities so the content is deleted.

 

[Just Katie]

Please ignore the above post I did not write it and admin are onto it.

[Chesnelay]

To put a different point of view across, all this advice about 'dominance' is now considered 'old hat' in training and behavioural circles in the UK.  It all stemmed from the seemingly logic approach that domestic dogs are descended from the wolves and therefore the pack family has to have alpha males etc.  There has been a great deal of research done more recently about Wolf behaviour and the conclusion is that domesticated dogs have changed sufficiently over the years because of their human companions feeding them etc.  Therefore, so these 'experts' say, trying to train a dog by pinning it to the floor, to prove whose boss is pointless and just leads to fear and confusion for the dog.  The new words are 'resource guarding' - so the dog has objects that are precious to it, bones, beds, sofas etc and will attempt to keep them etc.  So good luck with your trainer KCC, take everything with a pinch of salt as next year there will be another new fad - I personally would follow others advice and get him neutered.

[Maddie]

I was not advocating enforcing the pack hierarchy as in wolf.alpha male thing. It is wise that dogs know their place - there are far more effective ways of doing this.  There does have to be a hierarchy though.  I have two bitches and if there was no hierarchy, enforced or otherwise, there would be bloodshed, without a doubt.  I come first and they both know it, followed by my youngest b itch, then my older b itch, then MOH .  MOH doesn't realise he's bottom of the pack though!!!  The girls rule in my household.

Sounds more like raging teenage male hormones!!

[The Real Katie]

Teenage hormones?  Yes maybe again similar to my son aged 16 who is now taller than his father and likes to remind us by standing close to him and looking down his nose.  Just trying his luck a little.