Wit's end

[mrsldavis]

I am in desperate need of some advice. My husband and I have a 3 year old male newf named Crombie and a 2.5 year old Golden named Ella. Life in my house has been great. The dogs get along great - they are inseparable. But in the last few weeks, my newf has gotten out of control. He has decided that he needs to show his dominance to Ella and is CONSTANTLY humping her. We have had up to this point a "no-humping" rule. Crombie ignores this rule now.

He has also started pooping in the house upstairs in our bedroom and the spare bedroom if we are not in his sight. He is crated during the day so it's not an issue then, but if I am home alone and get in the shower, he not only will poop in the house, he gets into everything during that short time. He will knock over garbage or chew up things while I'm showering. He did the same thing to my husband this week while I was out of town.

I am at wit's end. It's like he's forgotten all of his training and he misbehaves all the time. I don't know how to best handle it or if it may be some sort of separation anxiety.

If anyone has any advice for me, I owuld be forever grateful!!! Thanks.

 

[Lynne]

Hi,
I think there are some questions, first. Is your boy neutered? Is the Golden spayed? Might she be coming in heat, or might there be another dog in the neighborhood in heat?
Have there been any changes in your life- new job, new people, etc?
Is the Golden telling him off when he mounts her? That's usually the best thing, as a male in lust will usually only listen to the bitch. What makes you feel this is dominance?
Think about these and give us some more info, please.

 

[mrsldavis]

Thanks for responding. Let's see... yes, he is neutered and she is spayed. The golden does not tell him off when he mounts her - she just kind of stands there - he's twice her size but she's also very submissive. The reason I think it's dominance is because he is neutered and things I've read have indicated that the mounting is usually not sexual, but showing "who's the boss"...

There haven't been any changes in our lives recently - at least nothing major enough for me to attribute his behavior to that.

Please let me know if you have more questions I can answer.. Thanks again!

 

[Lynne]

Hi,
You may have to almost start from puppy training again- crate when he's not supervised, back to obedience class, etc. Remind him that YOU are the alpha and certain behavior is not permitted, such as mounting. Behavior problems are hard to diagnose long-distance. Might be good to speak to a trainer or behaviorist, but be sure to get a good one. Ask your vet for a recommendation. Have you spoken to his breeder or the Rescue person you got him from? They might have some insight, knowing the dog. And those changes might not be so minor in his mind. I wish we could get into their heads and find out what they're thinking!
Good luck, and let us know how you're doing.
Lynne

 

[Vicki]

Could it be that your bitch has a bladder or vaginal infection? Even boys who have been nuetered have displayed sexual reaction. Remember, there are hormones being secreted from more organs than those that were removed. Have both dogs vet checked just to be safe.
Vicki

 

[jillburd]

Hi! I can't speak to the issue of humping, but I can tell you that the pooping in your bedroom is a sign of his challenging your dominance (your alpha position), like a dog would challenge the pack leader in the wild by pooping where the alpha dog's scent is the strongest -his lair. I think you're lucky he didn't poop in your bed! heh-heh!!!
But seriously, going back to the crating and training, and asserting your "alpha-ness" might help. Good Luck and keep us posted.

 

[Annie Milliron]

I have noticed that our Cora, who is usually very well behave has been acting out as well. I think that this is because we have been busier than usual and she is feeling neglected. She, I'm certain, is doing her best to get our attention. Luckily for us, it's nothing very serious... she'll drag socks out into the livingroom, grab a toilet paper roll out of the trash, and gnaw on it a bit.

For a while, she seemed not to want to go into her crate. So we had one in the house for Sadie, and the other in the car. This was awfully nice, because we didn't have to move the crates around so much. Suddenly, Cora would try and get into Sadie's crate, and so we brought her's back inside, and that's where she is when we're at work.

It's impossible to get ticked off at her, when she does these things. It just makes me feel guilty (AS IT SHOULD

), and I take her for a walk.

Annie

 

[mrsldavis]

Thanks for all of the advice. My husband and I have been a little busier lately than usual. I'm sure he's just testing my limits... he's done that before.

Both of our dogs are crate trained. I just need to figure out how to convince him that I'm the boss..... not him!

Thanks again for the information.