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Bad habits starting already

gamefanz

Well-known member
UGH! Toby is only 8 weeks and has started humping his stuffed sheep:swear: He will bite it, shake the sheep then get so riled up he starts the humping thing. I hope this does not mean the end of the sheep! Has anyone had this problem so early in age?
Becky
 
In puppies humping is dominance play, not sexual behavior. Oliver tries to shag Clancy.

Of course, both adult boys have their shag items- Clancy a stuffed pig, and Zeke a bolstered dog bed. icon_blshing And Dillon used to shag our cat! :rotfl:
 
UGH! Toby is only 8 weeks and has started humping his stuffed sheep:swear: He will bite it, shake the sheep then get so riled up he starts the humping thing. I hope this does not mean the end of the sheep! Has anyone had this problem so early in age?
Becky

Yep, Alfie does it.... a blue soft 'Eeyore' toy :eek:
 
Phew! Glad its not a sexual thing. I was freaking out that that he is turning into a pervert already:lol:
Becky




In puppies humping is dominance play, not sexual behavior. Oliver tries to shag Clancy.

Of course, both adult boys have their shag items- Clancy a stuffed pig, and Zeke a bolstered dog bed. icon_blshing And Dillon used to shag our cat! :rotfl:
 
Lady humped my tummy when I was lying down once when she was about 3 months... :confused:

It was weird. She hasn't humped anything since... Thank goodness!
 
Welcome to owning a dog. :lol:

We all as owners need to remember that these aren't bad habits, but normal dog habits (he is just playing normally with all that puppy energy, not getting riled up -- my dogs play with toys like this all the time even at age 12), and we have chosen and taken the responsibility to bring a dog into our homes and lives :), so some compromise and understanding as well as training work on our part, is needed. Puppies need to work through many of these behaviours they will need as adults (so in that sense -- of course humping is sexual behaviour -- small children also do sexual things). A small puppy will not be trying to dominate anything. :) (see the posts in the training section on so-called 'dominance' as most modern trainers consider this a very dangerous and badly understood term that can lead to catastrophic training approaches).

We can *ourselves* work to shape behaviour or give it an appropriate outlet, but it is really important to remember this is not an issue of a bad or misbehaving dog when they chew, have indoor 'accidents', hump things, bark etc -- they are normal behaviours for them and anything we want to change needs our consistent, positive involvement (eg rewards-based training, no punishment which tends to be counterproductive at best and can actually cause worse problems) as well as good management (eg set them up in their environment so they don't have the chance to make the mistakes we don't want, in the first place (y)). A dog that continues to do things we don't want is not being bad, it is a sign that we haven't gotten training right yet or expected too much too early without putting the training and reinforcement and practice time every day, that a dog needs to learn (and many people actually reinforce unwanted behaviour so a good training class, rewards based, should be anyone's excellent starting point :D). Just some general points that are good to understand at the start with a young puppy as many more issues will follow! Puppies are cute and fun, but are not easy and need a lot of productive owner time and commitment to get the adult dog you want. The coming months are critical for shaping that adult dog. :)

I'd recommend (if you haven't) downloading the free copy of Dr Ian Dunbar's Book After You Get Your Puppy from www.dogstardaily.com which will give you tons of guidance in management, training and normal behaviour with a puppy. :D Another great site is http://www.wagntrain.com/TrainingTips.htm, where I would especially suggest the bits I have highlighted here:

http://www.cavaliertalk.com/forums/...-only-read-*one*-thing-about-dogs-*read-this*!

Have fun training! :D
 
Thank you Karlin. Our Peke didn't do this till a MUCH later age, he did that on our table leg so the next day he was in the vet. Didn't have any issues after that. I'm happy to say that since his only accident in the house due to us being dumb, he has not had an accident since. He heads straight to the dog door when he needs to of course with us in tow to watch. I hope it continues. We bought bitter apple for the stuff he should not be chewing on, it works on most things. I am always shoving toys in his face when he wants to bite me LOL Good thing I bought a lot of them LOL.
Becky
 
I am always shoving toys in his face when he wants to bite
:-D

I am typing this with one hand while holding a chew toy in the other. Ollie is laying flat out on that arm and chewing like a mad thing. I'm trying to keep him off his sleeping brothers ears.
 
See on humping behaviour:

http://www.cavaliertalk.com/forums/showthread.php?11986-Mounting-Humping-behaviour...-ugh!

And also from Ian Dunbar (though note, by another furry companion for humping, he is suggesting in play, not for breeding!):

Unfortunately, the real danger of the alpha-concept of physical dominance lies in its questionable extrapolation to dog training and husbandry. Instead of being educational, many so-called 'training' methods are just downright adversarial if not abusive; the dog is often viewed as our enemy, rather than as our best friend. Many playful, greeting and fearful gestures are misinterpreted as being aggressive, providing the unthinking owner with a convenient excuse to abuse the dog under the guise of 'training'.

For example, snapping, pilo-erection, growling and lip-curling are often misconstrued as signs of dominance, whereas they are, in fact, more usually signs of fear - most probably the direct product of a person pounding on the poor dog. Similarly, owners are advised that urine marking, mounting people, stealing food, jumping-up and prolonged eye contact are all signs of dominance, for which the dog should be punished. Some ill-advised, big blue meanies are confusing issues and trying to take the fun out of dog ownership. In my book:

A dog which marks indoors, needs to be housetrained.
A dog which mounts people, a) needs to be instructed to desist and b) requires social introduction to another suitably inclined furry quadruped.
A dog which steals food, a) is in desperate need of an owner who remembers to put food away and b) requires rapid introduction to my favorite booby-trap.
A dog which jumps-up, needs simply to be taught to sit when greeting people.
A dog which is tricky about eye contact should be taught a) that human eye-contact is no threat, b) to look away, or look at its paws on command, and c) to lovingly gaze in the eyes of its understanding owner.

Certainly, we need to control dogs - but mental control is what is required, not physical domination. Even though an ill-experienced, middle-ranking dog 'handler' might be able to jerk, hang, roll-over, and/or beat a dog into submission, what is the point of winning the battle and losing the war? What possible advantage is there in converting a 'dominant' dog into a fearful one? Both are equally as worthless as companions or working dogs. Furthermore, most physical corrections are well beyond the physical and mental capabilities of all but a few dog owners. And so, why advise novice owners to enter into a physical contest that they are bound to lose? In fact, why abuse the dog at all, when it is possible to achieve the same end using brain instead of brawn? Why try to wade the Atlantic, when one could take the Concorde?

We must prescribe training methods which are effective and lie within the capabilities of the average dog owner, including women, children and the elderly. If we have learned anything at all from studying dog behavior, ... owners must establish control in a developmental context, whilst the dog is still a puppy. Rather than browbeating the dog into submission, it is far easier to convince the dog to join the team, so that it enjoys life living with us, rather than fighting against us.

Ian Dunbar Ph.D., BVetMed, MRCVS
copyright 1989 Ian Dunbar
 
UGH! Toby is only 8 weeks and has started humping his stuffed sheep:swear: He will bite it, shake the sheep then get so riled up he starts the humping thing. I hope this does not mean the end of the sheep! Has anyone had this problem so early in age?
Becky

OH that is normal!
 
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