My dog has been marking all over inside Petsmart.HELP.

[Discussing Labradoodles & Goldendoodles]

I know there has been discussions similar to this but I need some fresh answers or new suggestions.My pug is neutered and 8 years old.Now he has decided to mark all over in the pet stores.Dakota doesn't.Thank God.He even marked right in front of me on the edge of a chair in our own house the other day.I gave him heck immediately and he then growled at me.Is he getting sick of Dakota and her puppy behavior?I mean bugging him and always trying to be the dominant one.I stop that too when it happens.They are both always trying to be alpha and I always put a stop to that also if it gets out of hand.Ozzy my pug was good and never growled at me when I had to give him heck for something in the past but since Dakota has come into the picture Ozzy has turned into a little brat at times.Am i onto something or am I way off? I thought i had control over everything but now I need help because I'm not going to stop taking them to the pet stores.What can I do?

[Kyoko]

I will watch his urination behavior, like how often, how much, etc.... to see if there is something medically going on with him. Has he been doing this all along since Dakota got there? Or this is something new? I don't know if this is a dominant thing or not, but when Butter urinated in the house a couple of times, I thought there were something medically wrong, and there he had UTI.....

[Jennifer and Jack]

I don't really know what to say, I think Adnia might have a better answer then me. My thought on marking in the store or in the house is that the dog needs to be put in his place of a lower position then you. Jack has never done that. We are in all types of stores and I now bring him in Walmart and Target.

 

I would immediately correct the behavior and if it is in your house, I would make them lose their privilege to that room in the house. Jack had to earn each room in the house that he was allowed to enter, it was a slow process that started with him being corded to me.

 

I would start from the basics.. First I would clean really good your carpets, rugs, and furniture so they don't smell anything that resembles pee.

 

In Pet Smart, I would make him walk heel to you this way he doesn't get the chance to smell and mark.. I would start at ground zero and work your way up. A dog who growls at a human is a bad sign and can only lead to worse behavior if not corrected.. I would take one out at a time until they learn better manners.

 

Good luck

[Deb, Connor & Simon]

I agree totally with Jennifer. Working with them one at a time is definitely the way to go.

How old is the pug and how old is Dakota? Am I correct in assuming that both dogs are neutered?

If necessary, find a trainer you like, have him/her observe what's going on and do a few sessions to correct Ozzy's inappropriate behavior.  As far as the growling at you goes, that needs to be dealt with NOW. It will not get better on it's own.

 

[Melissa & Porter]

I think I understand--sometimes it is semantics.  Cesar pokes the dogs with his fingers to get their attention and pull them out of a "zone".  A couple distinctions are timing and emotion.  Porter once growled at me when I went to take a hambone from him in the backyard, which he's scavenged from my neighbor's overfilled snowstorm trashcans.  I said "Hey!" and I poked him in the shoulder.  I wasn't mad or scared.  He sat and started to wag his tail at me.  I could have sworn he was saying, "WHoops, I forgot myself there." 

The dog crowd I walk with has a couple dogs who have been known to mark HUMANS.  Three males, and I am sad to say, Porter is one of them.  He did it one time to the owner of the most alpha dog.  That dog then did it to me a couple days later.  Sprinkles on the pant leg....embarrassing.  I watched him carefully for a couple weeks and shoved him away from people if he looked like he was going to lift his leg.  I think I was overcautious but he didn't do it again...

I like your idea of making Ozzy earn stuff, have training sessions everyday and have an eagle eye...give him opportunities to mess up and for you to deter him---try the poke and hey! 

 

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I would definitely put Ozzy in a heel in the pet stores.  If he hasn't been trained to heel, I'd just keep him on a very short leash which will force him to walk with you.  I think it's more effective to prevent the marking behavior before it happens.  You have probably learned his "signals", and I would give him a correction the instant it looks like he is even "thinking about marking".  In order to do this effectively, you may need to take the dogs into the store one at a time.  As for the growling, I really don't think that "spanking" him is the answer.  I also don't think it "hurts his feelings"...I personally don't believe they're capable of that.  "Spanking" is usually done in a state of frustration or anger, and that is not what the dog needs at this point in time (IMO).  I think there are other more consistent and effective ways of correcting unwanted behaviors...including growling.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

I would pop him on the snout if he growls at you and yell, "NO!"  If he seems to be getting ready to mark - like at a store, I would loudly yell no and give him a sharp yank on the leash. I think doing this when you catch him in the act could be very effective.

Sorry to be opposite but if I am not mad, why would I punish - dog or child?  I  spank or punish when I am angry and right then.  Waiting until I am not mad is totally ineffective.  That is not a license to 'beat' and I assume that you are certainly not doing that, Jared.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Nancy, my comments came from a recent discussion with the behaviorist/trainer we're using for Murph.  We also had a recent "growling" episode with Murphy...he growled at DH when he was getting him off of the bed (where I was sleeping).  He told us that approaching the dog at that point with anger/frustration usually escalates the dog's reaction.  They see that as "unbalanced" energy.  You definitely need to react "in the moment", but you need to try to be as calm as possible when you respond.  He also told us that even reaching your hand toward a dog who has just given you a "warning" is asking for a bite.  In our case, the response from Murph was because he was not viewing DH as a "leader".  He was saying...."forget it pal, I'm sleeping here with Mom, so beat it".  We have some work to do to ensure that Murph gains a better understanding of his "place" in the hierarchy of our home.  He told us that DH should have just gotten up on the bed and moved him off "with his body"....without saying a word.  This would show Murph that DH was claiming his space.  I don't know, but it did all make sense to me, at least in this situation.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Oh Jane you are absolutely correct. I was humanizing the situation and I was wrong. I was projecting in terms  that dogs live in the moment. I just always get a giggle out of the parenting advice to only punish when you are not angry.  I know a lot of children who were raised with this adage and never made the connection between their bad behavior and the punishment, or that making your parents mad should be avoided. Just because I am angry doesn't mean that I am out of control or can't address a situation responsibly but I didn't say that which could lead someone to think acting out is ok. I sometimes find it hard to get ideas across so that the reader really interprets what one means from what one writes.

Thank you for sharing with me. I am sure that I would react incorrectly if my dog growled at me because I would (whether calmly or not) not let my dog get away with it ( I am afraid of other people's dogs so I would never react at all!).  I am very lucky that I have really only dealt with a dog testing boundaries.

 

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

Nancy, I must have been a good parent because my kids always knew when I was angry :)  IMO, no one is the perfect dog owner or parent and we all make mistakes. My daughter and I were just talking today about the trouble with emails, etc.  and that sometimes the person can't hear your tone, etc. and things can get misconstrued. I hope I never have to find out what I would do if Fudge or Vern growled at me. I have a tendency to react in that moment and think later :)

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Laurie, I am sure you were mostly a good parent EXCEPT your daughter got the 'wrong' dog for a pet! teehee. So is she rebelling now or what???? Just kidding - to make sure my e-mail is understood.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

I forgot that Ozzie has no snout!  I really think that Dakota is pushing his buttons and he is trying to 'survive' the puppy.  Our Springer is very submissive. He became depressed when we got Ned (we had NO idea this would happen) and began to growl at him as a warning.  He never tried to 'fight' Ned but did begin the ineffective growling.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Our Springer did get over it eventually and we thought life was good.  We had a chance to rescue another doodle and we took the Springer to meet him.  All went well in neutral territory, but there was still a settling in for them both that took a couple of months.