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Solaise -> RE: animal behavior issue? (8/8/2007 3:05:36 PM)
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Humping is a dog's way of demonstrating dominance.
Un-neutered male dogs (and some spayed females) scent mark and can urinate several times in a single walk. A dog has a smelling capacity over 1,000 times greater than humans. He is merely 'signing' the doggy daily when he does this - telling all dogs coming up after him that "he" owns the block.
The dog was looking at you while he was defecating because you were probably visibly upset, and he was anxious. You can't cut corners like this with a dog. It isn't sufficient to park a dog on a deck or patio and expect the dog to come up with the goods. Chances are, the patio is layed with cement, and there are probably few markers there indicating to him that this is an acceptable place to go. He went as close to his 'acceptable' place as he could get ie., in front of the door.
You are projecting human attributes onto the dog. Dogs are not CAPABLE of doing things 'on purpose' or to 'get even'. You have to understand dog behavior to understand what is going on here.
#1 The dog has been raised to be the alpha male of the house. Think your Master is? think again. Dogs are heirarchical animals and the number one cause of aggression in dogs is called dominance aggression. When you look an alpha dog in the eye, you are challenging that dog's status. This is why children are so often bitten. They are on a face to face level with dogs, and they do not understand what constitutes 'rude' behavior to a dog.
By the way. The bite force a dog uses that is so catastrophic to human skin, is very often no more than a dog version of a spanking to another dog. Our faces are just built wrong for this kind of canine "correction".
#2 Projecting human attributes to a dog confuses things. You get angrier and angrier, and the dog's instincts are triggered, and you end up with more 'bad' behavior. This is a lose-lose cycle. It is important to remember that YOU are the human and the care-taker and it incumbent upon you to approach this with compassion.
#3 Failure to neuter the dog CERTAINLY contribute to that alpha male behavior. Un-neutered male dogs have more issues with aggression because they are producing testosterone. They are more likely to wander, more likely to develop certain forms of cancer and they don't live as long as their neutered counterparts.
#4 The dog is in a tug of war between you and your Master. Instead of blaming the dog, recognise that the dog has NO CHOICE in what is happening to him.
There are techniques in behavior modifaction that are very beneficial. One of these techniques (particularly useful for alpha dogs) is to require the dog to do something before you reward him. Some rules. The dog should sit at the door every time you leash him up to take him out. The dog should always follow you out the door. The dog should be required to sit and wait before he gets his dinner, he should be placed into a sit when he wants attention. Every time the dog 'gets' something, he has to 'give' something. (Sounds familiar, subs?) This tells the dog what HIS status IS. And in order for a dog to really be happy, he needs to be at the bottom of the totem pole - not at the top.
Be consistent, be firm, be fair. If the dog has an accident - take him outside. Yelling solves nothing, and hitting him solves even less. Praise him when he does what you want him to do. Even older dogs can learn new behavior.
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