Two recent questions, on Marking and humping
Adolescent shenanigans… Whether it’s tearing things up, humping or marking!
These are two questions that have come to me recently, that I will add to the F.A.Q. But I thought that I would post them as a blog first, in case they are useful to someone! Since it has become more and more apparent that early spay and neuter is detrimental to the long-term health of our dogs, owners are having to learn to teach their little adolescent hooligans how to behave in civilized society! So to start with,
Q: Do you have any recommendations in regards to training for marking? My little monster is marking everywhere, and he has started humping as well. He”s like velcro. I’ve been picking him up and moving him away with a stern “stop!” Any ideas?
A: Unlike potty training, where you need to be very careful not to scare or startle the puppy, and negative consequences do not work, marking is different. This is not a “bodily function“ that NEEDS to be taken care of. All of us have seen male dogs out on a walk who will dribble tiny amounts on every single telephone pole they pass, even when there is nothing left to dribble. Marking has NOTHING to do with needing to pee.
Assuming that your puppy IS properly potty trained by the time marking starts, you need to be on him like white on rice. Until you get this under control, he needs to be in a pen or tethered to you at all times indoors. Any time you see him sniffing a vertical surface, especially corners, redirect him. If you see him lift his leg, clap loudly and march his bad self outdoors, saying something like, “ You can mark out here!” It doesn’t matter whether he does or not… remember, he doesn’t need to pee, so he may not feel like making right after you chastise him. That’s fine. The big point is that he learn that he mustn’t do it indoors!
The good news is this typically takes less time than potty training, simply because it is not a case of them having “accidents” if you don’t get them out on time. Where you WILL need to watch them like a hawk is in other people’s homes, especially if they have intact dogs. This will make him much more likely to want to mark his territory. Many years ago, my sainted Kodi, who was a fully mature, NEUTERED boy, and had NEVER marked in a house, walked into a friend’s house and marked on some floor-length drapes. I was shocked and aghast! It turned out that her stud dog had previously marked those same drapes. She had sprayed them with an enzymatic cleaner, and a human couldn’t smell anything, but dog noses are amazing! Kodi was just adding to the “pee-mail!” I was VERY careful with him in that home from that point on!
Conversely, my 4 year old stud dog is very reliable IN MY HOME, and as long as there is not a girl in season or another stud dog present. In those instances, he simply wears a belly band. It makes no sense to argue with Mother Nature!
For a pet owner in someone else’s home, you have a couple of choices. My personal choice would be to train the puppy, just as I would at home. That means keeping the puppy tethered to me or in a crate at all times in someone else’s home. But some people don’t want to pay that much attention to the dog when visiting. In that case, a belly band won’t teach him anything, but will protect your friend’s house from him marking. And if you DO happen to see him lift his leg, you can still clap at him and hustle him outside, even with the belly band on!
Here is a video of using a disposable diaper as a belly band
While virtually no one finds marking in the house acceptable, people have different levels of tolerance when it comes to humping. A good friend of mine has a saying about dog behaviors in general… She says they are a matter of “Mind over Matter”… If you don’t mind, it doesn't matter!
My personal rules on humping are: Absolutely no humping humans, EVER!!! Humping other dogs in play must be “consensual” and that play must stop when the “underdog” has had enough, Humping of “things” (like donut beds) must not damage them, because they are expensive, and I hate sewing.
If humping is not breaking these rules, I leave them alone. If they even TRY to hump a human, they get abruptly removed, and told, pretty hard, that that is NOT acceptable. If it happens more than once, they get put away. Likewise, I will interrupt rough play with another dog a couple of times if they are not taking “no” for an answer from their playmate. After that, the offender gets put away. When they are ruining a nice donut bed with “rough love”, THAT gets taken away.
You need to decided what your own limits are in terms of humping, and then be firm about holding that line.
Oh, and one other comment about marking and humping. We’ve been talking as if this is a just a “boy problem”. But girls are also very likely to both mark and hump. They are just much sneakier about the marking, so are less likely to get caught. And they are more likely to hump inanimate objects (like those donut beds!) not so often their owner’s arms and legs!
And though this is a younger puppy problem, it too, is a concept we see many people struggle with!
Q: Our puppy is 4 months old, and loves to sleep all morning-like 2-3 hours, afternoon for a couple hours and in the evening from 7-9. Then we go to bed about 9:30. Should we try to keep her up? We are worried she won’t sleep through the night if we let her sleep in evenings on the couch while we watch tv etc., but it’s hard to keep her awake!
A: No, I would not try to keep her awake In the evening. Just like human children, an over-tired puppy can have more trouble sleeping than a properly rested one. Instead, make sure that she has an appropriate amount of physical activity (play, not forced ”walks”) plus mental stimulation like games and training during the day, and you will all have a peaceful nights sleep! Young puppies still need a tremendous amount of sleep on a daily basis, but even an adult dog spends a larger amount of their time sleeping than we humans do!
