Our Pup Gradywho I have been posting about a fair bit is a Siberican Husky Border Collie Mix - he’s a working puppy. I’ve given him tons of jobs and he has been getting relatively good about being a good puppy - not digging under the fence, not jumping too much and not destroying the house as much as he used to. However, we noticed when we got him -at 4 mos - he would get very excited and pee on the floor when we pet him when we got home. That soon subsided and he’s been pretty good.
One thing he does when he is in trouble is he makes this half-smiling face, lifting his left jowl up a bit, ears go back, and his tail goes down. I always know he is up to no good when that happens. It kind of looks like the face people make when they get their picture taken and part of their lip sticks to a tooth…
Let me preface the next part by saying I have a naturally loud voice and have a tendency to raise it when I am correcting during training - do not read that I am yelling at him, as I am not. Just raise the tone one or two octaves. Grady hates that, he immediately sits or lays down when I correct, which is fine unless I need him to drop something, like the squirrel he got the other day…Anyway, lately, Grady has been peeing when I simply walk up to him and pet him. He does it for me and my wife. This is a totally new behavior - and this morning, I woke up and there he was in his bed all happy to see me get up, so I went over to his bed, he turned over for me to pet his belly and the second I did he pissed all over me! WTF!!!
My wife and I think he may have been beaten, or lived with someone BIG who raised their voice and coupled the raised voice with a hit or slap. We have never hit him, not even for play.
Any idea what this might be? Could he be sick? Could it just be anxiety? Am I doing something wrong? How do I train him to be less anxious around his people?
Sounds like submissive wetting. Many dogs eventually outgrow it, but you can reduce it by building the dog’s confidence up. Start with obedience training. The key to most behavior problems is approaching things using the dog’s natural instincts. Dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog. Life is much easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones. You can learn to play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands with a treat. As you praise the dog for following your commands, it will build its confidence.
Play tug of war with the dog and lose. However at the end of the game, take the rope or toy and put it up, less the dog becomes confused about who is top dog. Ropes from the pets’ store quickly turn to hazardous shreds. Ones I made lasted much better. Go to a hardware or home center that sells rope by the foot. Buy 2’ of 3/4" poly rope. Melt the ends, and tie knots in it. Get them as tight as possible, put it in a vise and pound it with a hammer. Watch carefully, and be ready to discard when it comes apart.
Finally, make sure it has a den to live in. If you are not using a crate, buy one. The dog may be happier in its den than loose in the house. It relaxes, it feels safe in its den. It rests, the body slows down reducing the need for water and relieving its self. Dogs that have been crated all along do very well. Many of them will rest in their crates even when the door is open. I think the plastic ones give the dog more of a safe, enclosed den feeling. Metal ones can be put in a corner or covered with something the dog can’t pull in and chew. Select a crate just big enough for the full grown dog to stretch out in.
A dog that has not been crated since it was little, may take some work. Start out just putting its toys and treats in the crate. Praise it for going in. Feed it in the crate. This is also an easy way to maintain order at feeding time for more than one dog.
He’s an outside sleeper and we have been thinking about a fun dog-house for him as we know he’d use it. Already when it is snowing he’s outside sleeping in the snow!
Also, when you say leader of the house - wouldn’t you think he already thinks of me that way? Or is the type of submission he is showing not conducive to being pack leader and more a fear response - because that is what it feels like.
When my mom’s current dog was young, he would often get over-excited when there was too much going on (often when there were a lot of people visiting, for instance). She’d tell him “Kennel up, Bowser”, and he’d go upstairs and into his kennel to calm down. She only had to show him where it was a couple of times before he started going up there unescorted, and within a year, he didn’t even need to be told to kennel up: He’d recognize on his own that he was getting too excited, and go up completely of his own volition.
I agree fully - and lately because it’s been so stressful, I have been doing the latter. He is so smart I can show him just about anything and he’ll get it. Last night we taught him some target training in a matter of minutes. You know, touch this, get a treat, touch that get a treat etc.
Yes you are the pack leader but your dog should not feel the need to be so submissive.
I’d suggest working on calming things down.
Pay attention to your voice (tone and volume). The dog will take corrections without being barked at (pun intended). They will pick up on your displeasure with no problem. You do not need to bellow to get the point across to a dog.
Make leaving and arriving home more calm. Do not make a big show when you leave of saying goodbye. When you return (which might only be walking the garbage out for a dog) and the dog is all super happy to see you do not indulge the dog in, “Yea! So happy to see you! Who’s my buddy!? Who wants the ball!?”
I am not saying you can’t be exuberant with the dog but do not make meetings a big deal. Walk in, pat him on the head nicely maybe or perhaps even ignore him for a few minutes. Again, I am NOT saying do not play with your dog or have fun times. Just do not make walking in the door a hyper moment. If the dog has done something wrong and you walk in and there is all that energy there. Defuse that part (and yes I know this is as hard for you as the dog…you so much want to hug and play when they are so exuberant that you came back…even if you only left for 30 seconds).
Likewise, if the dog does something wrong, do not make a big deal out of it. Rebuke the dog (gently) and then ignore the dog (or tell him to go to his corner). Basically give the dog a timeout. Believe me, this works well. Your dog “gets it” and is not happy at the punishment. Yelling does nothing except make the dog fearful which is not good. A calm disapproval coupled with a timeout (or you ignoring the dog for a bit) sends the message loud and clear to them. In short order they will slink back to “apologize” and then you can give an ear scritch so they know they are still loved.
TL;DR version: Decrease the energy in your interactions. Play time have fun and be all exuberant but lower the energy elsewhere.
Edit: Take a look at the guiltiest dog in existence to see how a dog will be upset all on its own with no yelling (amazing video).
