Aggressive Male Puppy? Worried :(

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Thanks everyone for replying! Duncan was just about 3 months when we took him from his parents, and honestly he seemed ready since he was pretty much jumping in our hands/car when we got there.

I'm unsure if I agree that his humping is a sign of dominance since he only does it at a certain time of night. It seems more of a sexually drive than anything. He is great throughout the day! It's between 7-10 that he becomes the little humper/nipper. I will talk to my vet to see if I can get him fixed earlier and also to find out about other puppy classes. Thank you all so much.


Denise & Duncan
 
3 months is actually a pretty good time. So that likely isn't the issue. You will often see the nipping reactions from dogs that are taken too soon from the litter, but anything after 10-12 week is pretty good, so 3 months is fine.

You are probably right that the humping is not a dominant thing (humping is rarely a dominant thing anyways), and more just a way of him trying to deal with his developing hormones. If he tries to hump you, a firm "no" and remove him from you placing him a couple feet away. Praise when he approaches you without humping, repeat the "no" and removal if he tries to hump again. Basically telling him "game over, no fun" unless he plays by your rules (which do not include humping :lol: ). Offering an alternative to humping is another option. Remove him from you when he humps, then distract him with a game of fetch or tug, or a bit of training fun.
 
It sounds as if your pup could possibly be having some dominance issues but its tough to say. Some times humping is just excitement. I'm really not sure that its linked to not being fixed yet as he's still quite young but fixing him will definitely help with dominance when he gets older, if that's the problem.

GeeRome's last suggestion is a very good place to start!

I haven't had any experience with dominance issues myself but would strongly recommend finding a very good trainer to help you get control of this problem while he's still young. A trainer can teach you how to gently assert dominance over your dog. The following link has some good suggestions to start with, even if it turns out dominance isn't your dog's issue:

http://www.bigpawdesigns.com/gewatoasdowi.html

You may also want to watch the Dog Whisperer if you've never seen it, many of his episodes he deals with varying degrees of dominance issues, how to handle them and how to be a good 'pack leader.'

Again, assuming this is the issue. Definitely find a trainer to help you find the root of the behavior first and foremost.
 
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I'm going to second Pogopup's choice of TV- Victoria Stillwell on It's me or the dog. It's on Animal Planet 6 pm ET on Friday evenings. Victoria always uses positive techniques. I know there are some Cesar Milan/Dog Whisperer fans on here and I was a fan the first season. but as time went on, more choke chain/old fashioned intimidation techniques were evident. I do agree on his first piece of advice to practically everyone on every episode- more exercise/ walk your dog daily. seems most of the people who have to call him in don't bother to train or walk their dogs so of course, the dogs have problems. Cesar may be famous but there are plenty of certified dog behaviorists out there to help all of us who need advice.
I agree with GeeRome- teenage hormones are out of control. Duncan needs to learn boundaries so training will help with that.
Good luck and keep us posted.
 
everyone has oppinions and we must agree to disagree.

Wow! I have never felt so lambasted in this group as I do right now. I know everyone has different opionions but had I not seen Cesar's techniques work for myself, I wouldn't have recommended it. Thanks a lot!
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Please take things in stride, GeeRome had some pretty harsh words there:uhoh: but we all have our oppinions and thats what makes this forum such a great place. :biggrin2: Okay off my soapbox now.:lol:
 
mcguiregirl2248 said:
Wow! I have never felt so lambasted in this group as I do right now. I know everyone has different opionions but had I not seen Cesar's techniques work for myself, I wouldn't have recommended it. Thanks a lot!
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I hope you don'tf feel personally attacked, McGuiregirl -- I'm sure that wasn't the intent. :no: Sometimes people have visceral reactions to certain techniques. :eek2: In my case, I know my Shelties very well and in the case of a gentle scruff shake, have found it very effective. However, I only use it for the most heinous offence: deliberately biting or snapping in anger or defiance. It's not a matter of alpha for me: it's a matter of clearly delineating forbidden behavior in a manner my Shelties understand. That light shake coupled with a firm "No!" send a message that reaches the instinctive behavior level. So far, once has sent the message, and the behavior has never been repeated.
 
Yes, my words were harsh. But so were the techniques and sources of information recommended to solve the issue. Talk about lambased? Imagine how a pup feels when their owners follow the advice of Mr. Millan and scruff, shake, roll, or "bite" the pup for merely being a puppy!

Has Mr. Millan had successes with is "training"? Sure. But those methods should be reserved for the most desperate cases, where the next alternative is euthanasia and they may be able to save the dog's life. But I have also seen those methods fail, and fail dramatically. A humping puppy hardly needs Dog Whisperer techniques.

Take my messages however you want. Think of me what you will. But if I can convince only one other person that the barbaric methods encouraged by the Dog Whisperer show and other "trainers" in that vein are not only unnecessary but have a high potentiality for physical, emotional, and psychological harm to the dog ... then my statements are justified. I have yet to see well implimented positive training techniques fail. And for a breed such as our wonderful Shelties, who are naturally soft dogs anyways, even the smallest amount of physical reprimand can result in shutting that dog down completely. I think we all agreed in another thread on this forum that a trainer was way out of line when she yanked the collar of a scared pup. What is so different in this case? Why are physical actions so abhorent in that case, while here people are willing to jump up and recommend a "trainer" that relies on threats and bullying to get results?
 
GeeRome said:
Yes, my words were harsh. But so were the techniques and sources of information recommended to solve the issue. Talk about lambased? Imagine how a pup feels when their owners follow the advice of Mr. Millan and scruff, shake, roll, or "bite" the pup for merely being a puppy!

Has Mr. Millan had successes with is "training"? Sure. But those methods should be reserved for the most desperate cases, where the next alternative is euthanasia and they may be able to save the dog's life. But I have also seen those methods fail, and fail dramatically. A humping puppy hardly needs Dog Whisperer techniques.

Take my messages however you want. Think of me what you will. But if I can convince only one other person that the barbaric methods encouraged by the Dog Whisperer show and other "trainers" in that vein are not only unnecessary but have a high potentiality for physical, emotional, and psychological harm to the dog ... then my statements are justified. I have yet to see well implimented positive training techniques fail. And for a breed such as our wonderful Shelties, who are naturally soft dogs anyways, even the smallest amount of physical reprimand can result in shutting that dog down completely. I think we all agreed in another thread on this forum that a trainer was way out of line when she yanked the collar of a scared pup. What is so different in this case? Why are physical actions so abhorent in that case, while here people are willing to jump up and recommend a "trainer" that relies on threats and bullying to get results?
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Dayna - I was done with this. Apparently, you have seen something that I have not. I am not an avid watcher of Cesar's but what I have seen was not pulling/yanking, yelling, bullying, whatever else you want to say. I was not addressing the issue of humping, I was addressing the aggressive behavior. If that is not corrected now it will get worse. I was not implying that the puppy needs to be bullied but he needs to understand that what she says go. If you also read the rest of what I wrote, I mentioned that he may need more exercise. I can't believe that I am having to explain myself over this. No one's training methods are written in stone and things have changed a lot over the years. There are a lot of different views out there and NO ONE is perfect. Again, thanks!
 
Peace!

Ladies... I think this is one of those cases we need to agree to disagree. There are as many different opinions as there are training methods, and we all feel strongly about those that work for us. As moderator, I would ask that we all temper our words so they do not seem to be accusatory or berating the opinions of others, and allow for different points of view.

Since we have beaten this thread to death, I am now going to close it. It's not necessary to create hard feelings in this wonderful forum to get your point across. We all want what's best for our Shelties. Denise, please feel free to start a new threat to update us on Duncan's progress. We all wish you the best of luck in finding an answer, and hope you'll share that with us when you do.
 
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