Why Has My Dog Started Humping Other Dogs?

Here is a question I received recently, does it sound familiar?

I first got my dog as a foster when he was already three years old. The previous owner has not had him neutered, and he is a full-breed black lab that weighs 120 pounds. So you can imagine when he jumps on other dogs, or people, to hump on them it's a pretty big deal and it's hard to get him off of them. Anyone who has had one, pretty much knows that labs are typically all "puppy" even when they are full-grown.

Once I had officially adopted him, I did get him neutered so I thought that would calm down his hormones and stop his urge to hump on other dogs. It did seem to deter him for a little while. Unfortunately, in the past few months, he's been really going after these other dogs at the dog park and finds one to focus on and then proceeds to hump on her, or him.

The gender of the dog doesn't matter, my dog just simply gets excited and decides he wants to dominate one particular dog. Now some dog owners don't make a big deal of it, because they are dogs. Other dog owners can become very upset when their dog gets dominated by another dog.

I had a conversation with a woman at the dog park last weekend and she had a large Golden-Doodle breed dog. He seemed to be the sweetest dog in the park, yet she claimed that her dog, although neutered, also does the same thing that my dog does. She shared with me that she has actually been asked to leave the dog park because of her dog's behavior. How embarrassing. I think that's the worst part, is that this kind of behavior is very embarrassing.

So why do they hump other dogs? I've searched for some answers online and talked to other dog owners and they all say the standard answer, it's just about domination. I'm not so sure. Even though my dog has been neutered, he doesn't seem aggressive enough to dominate other dogs, it seems like he just gets excited and that's his instinct, to hump on other dogs.

I've watched training videos on what to do, and for the most part they say I need to just use a very firm command to get him to stop. I would have to be very loud though because when he gets in that mode, he's so focused and he doesn't listen to me. So I typically have to grab his collar and remove him from the situation altogether.

I really love going to the dog park, but now I fear I have to go when no other dogs are there so I don't have to deal with the humping. I'm not sure if formal training is the answer for us in getting him used to being calm around other dogs or not. I would be willing to try almost anything just so that we can go to the park and have fun with other dogs without getting embarrassed about his behavior.

How to Potty Train a Chihuahua - Without Getting Angry

Are you sick of picking up steamy piles and soaking up smelly stains? Wouldn't it be great if you could learn how to potty train a Chihuahua in 3 simple steps? I'll show you just how to do it in this article.

Chihuahuas are the only dogs that were bred specifically to provide companionship to their owners. They are smart, playful and sometimes demanding, but are fiercely loyal and have an almost human way about them, making them some of the most unique and fun breeds to own.

While small in stature, Chihuahuas require training in order to become well-behaved members of your household. Regardless of whether you choose to paper train your Chihuahua or train him to use the potty outside, there are three simple steps you can take to make potty training easier and more enjoyable for both of you.

How to Potty Train a Chihuahua

Chihuahuas, as with all small breeds and toy breeds, have tiny bladders. This means that they can't hold their bowels for long - especially if they're puppies. So this breed needs special attention. You're going to have to take your dog out more often than the regular, larger breeds. If you've got a puppy, you can look forward to taking him out at least 7 times a day! As your pup gets older, they'll have learned how to hold their bladder resulting in less trips to the toilet.

Step One: Get and Use a Crate

Learning how to potty train a Chihuahua requires being open to certain methods. Some methods may seem cruel to you, like the crate. While you may think your dog finds his crate to be a prison, I assure you, he doesn't (unless you've traumatized him with it).

Here's the deal. There's no more useful tool than a crate. The crate should be just large enough for your Chihuahua to lay down in and turn around. Any larger, and your dog may use one end of the crate as a toilet and the other as a place to sleep. It might be difficult to find a crate small enough, so you might want to consider using a carrier designed for cats.

Your Chihuahua should be in his crate whenever you're unable to be with him. This will prevent him from using the bathroom anywhere in your home. The more times he uses the bathroom in the house, the harder it will be to break him of the habit. So, be diligent in your use of the crate when you can't watch your dog.

Step Two: Know When to Use Positive Reinforcement and Correction

When learning how to potty train a Chihuahua, anticipation is key. You need to know the warning signs that your dog needs to poop and pee. You also need to know when your dog most likely needs to go to the toilet. Take him to the appropriate potty spot after he wakes from a nap, after he eats or drinks and right after he begins to play.

Become really adept at spotting visual clues that your Chihuahua is about to use the potty. Sniffing around on the floor, circling and acting anxious can all be signs that your Chihuahua is about to use the bathroom. Take him to his potty place as soon as he begins exhibiting signs of needing to go and praise him profusely for the right behaviors.

If you catch your Chihuahua in the act of relieving himself in an inappropriate place, it's appropriate to scold him. By scolding, I don't mean hitting him. Make sure you say "NO" firmly and loudly as he begins to pee or poop in the wrong place.

This will help reinforce that there are only a few places where using the bathroom is appropriate. Only when you catch your Chihuahua in the act is it OK to scold him for an accident.

Step Three: Clean Up Accidents

As with all dogs, Chihuahuas will have accidents during potty training. How these accidents will affect your potty training efforts will depend on how you clean them up. Chihuahuas will potty in areas where they have used it before.

If an accident isn't cleaned up using an enzymatic cleaner to remove all traces of the smell, your Chihuahua will be encouraged to use that spot again, thwarting your best efforts to train him. Find a good quality enzyme cleaner and make sure that you immediately clean up any accidents to prevent recurrence.

Toilet training your dog takes time, patience and consistency. If you follow the 3 steps, you'll have a toilet trained dog in no time.

When it comes to potty training a Chihuahua, by following th

Why It Is So Easy to Love a Dog

When we see a baby most grown people will turn into morons goo gooing and making impossibly ugly faces over the nearly terrified child. We move in close to the child's face, take impossible liberties touching and caressing the face, hands and feet of the child and then declare how tiny everything about them is.

They are adorable. We are seized by human survival when we see them.

When we see a baby we are reduced to idiots by nature. The baby's movements of hands, feet and face cause a very powerful hormone to be released in our bodies: oxytocin.

Oxytocin is the hormone that recruits our cooperation with the infants of our species. What triggers the release of oxytocin that causes us to want to touch, accept and defend a baby?

The movements of the baby. Those jerky, subtle movements of arms, legs and face that combine to reduce a grown adult to babbling fool. And Oxytocin works every time.

Nature has provided this to protect the totally vulnerable young. Even if someone meant to harm a baby, oxytocin makes it very difficult to think of such things by flooding our bodies with this recruitment to cooperation hormone. Even thinking of harming a baby seems hard to contemplate: oxytocin in your blood right now.

Dogs, once untamed hunters in the wild, found that sort of life a bit on the shaky side. But they did notice that in cooperation with humans, food would always be more available. Not to mention the care of their young and the scratching where no one had ever scratched before. But the humans were afraid of the wild dogs.

So the dogs of eons past learned from the humans. They noticed that if the humans found a litter of their offspring, the movements of the baby wild dogs caused the humans to not only not fear them but pick them up and take care of them.

At some faraway, nearly forgotten council of the wild dogs, the chief dog must have ordered an investigation into this matter of human acceptance of the little, wiggling and randomly licking infants.

The report came back to the chief. To gain human acceptance and love, the dogs would have to adopt the behaviors of the puppies and never forget to turn on those behaviors if the humans showed any signs of turning off the cooperation button.

The psychological report, not recently found in ancient dogglyphs, recommended that wild dogs, now tired of the hunting and getting trapped lifestyle, should learn to turn on the charm with humans in exchange for their cooperation.

Here are the ten actions the dogs have learned that make us love them (complete with notations and directions from the dog council):

1. Always wiggle with abandon when the human arrives into the human places.

This wiggling, like the wiggle of a baby, triggers the release of oxytocin. We cannot help it. When we return home and our dog wiggles and randomly squiggles in unrepentant joy, we want to return the love. We feel guilty if we don't.

2. If the human looks annoyed for any reason, begin rolling with abandon and making yipping noises.

This is another oxytocin trigger that works like a charm. Garbage dug into again? Go wiggle on the floor and roll around or...

3. Look hurt with saggy eyes and do not resist punishment.

This submissive behavior releases tons of oxytocin causing your human to regret ever punishing you. They will move the garbage can before they will punish you again.

4. Bring toys to them and step back and seem eager.

Humans cannot resist the oxytocin "cuteness" of a child handing them a toy and then eagerly expecting to play with it. Impossible. Even if the human doesn't want to play just then, they will apologize and you can try again later. The real strategy here is not to play - the strategy is to make the human feel sad they are not going to play. This will cause them to feel they owe you and give you treats later.

5. Run off and then come back

Humans fear desertion. Any chance you get, run away outside and then run back to the human like you have been scouting ahead for danger. This behavior releases so much oxytocin that the human nearly bursts from joy knowing you love them. You are not just "there" because you have to be. You are there because you love them!

Of course, you know you are there for food, warmth and an easy life, but the humans must never suspect this.

6. Make your human look good in front of other humans

Obey instantly. Sit. Stay. Perform whatever silly trick they think they have taught you. How you act in front of the human friends will cause not only your human to feel delighted but will encourag the other humans to give a dog an easy life if they have the hopes of getting one like you. You serve the dog community when you are so "good" when company comes over.

Never make the mistake of treating other humans with the same love, devotion and oxytocin releasing behaviors with which you lavish your human. This will win you no ponts. Your human wants to reserve the secret love relationship when no one is looking. When people are looking, be a champ of obedience!

7. Be friendly to all human children but standoffish to all human adults

This rule will win you points with all humans. Love the children and forget you could eat them with one swallow. Lick them, sniff them and play with them. Let them ride you and pull your ears until you yelp. When you yelp it is the human child who will pay the price while you get extra attention.

Your yelp will release oxytocin in all the adults and the child who pulled your ear so use it with gusto! Yelp!

With adults, keep your distance. Act like you are studying them. Do not run to them or be anxious to be petted by them unless you are in the dog jail and you need a human to escape. If that is true, then forget this rule and turn on the oxytocin charm.

8. Always try to help when humans have emotions

Don't get lazy and lose your ability to sense emotions in humans. When they are sad, try to nuzzle them like you would a sad or sick real dog baby. Roll on them and try to comfort them. Act like you "know" they need you but you don't know what to say. Just let them know you know.

Your efforts are the same as a human child saying, "Mommy, did you get an owie?" The oxytocin flows like magic and you come out the winner.

9. Act sad when the human leaves

Unless you make the mistake of getting attached to your human, you will never be sad when they leave. You may want to go fast in those noisy boxes they roll around in, but the freedom of being the lone wolf in the house is in our nature. Nevertheless, act sad. Only cats are dumb enough to act disinterested. That is why we hate cats.

Stop at the door and droop your eyes and back as if you are begging to go. The human will try to explain to you why you cannot go. Look like you don't understand. Usually the human will feel like they are deserting you and a treat will arrive with them when you roll around with glee when they return.

Enjoy your day of freedom.

10. Use your hearing to be the potential hero

Humans cannot hear. They are all deaf compared to us. Use this advantage. They will not hear the clumping of the stranger going down the street outside the den, but we do. Bark like mad and run to the door as if you were protecting the pack. Really let it rip.

The human will peek out and see (if they really can see) the stranger and know that you are the true guardian of the house. This gives them a sense of safety and security that will hasten your forever place in the human space and all the free food and water and warmth a dog could want.

--These reasons and much more are why we love dogs. We cannot help but love dogs. They have figured out that to be our best friends they had to use our hormones against us, but, then again, it seems to have worked out for everybody.

P.S.: Never let the humans know you really like "visiting dogs." Any dog with class will know you will have to give the humans a fright by doing the "will they fight" dance. It is entertainment to them. First things first. Otherwise, both sets of humans will feel you are far too fickle.

How About a Standard Poodle As a Pet?

When one thinks of a Standard Poodle what generally comes to mind is a nearly bare-skinned dog with large powder puffs protruding from its head, ankles, tail tip and sometimes its buttocks. They are viewed as high maintenance and often just plain silly looking. But the Standard Poodle never asked for and doesn't deserve such a reputation.

This was originally a water dog, as well as a hunter. It is a sportsman at heart. In fact the name actually translates to "one who plays in water." It is also a good-natured, family oriented dog with a surprisingly high intelligence. He plays nice with both people and other dogs and is very trainable.

That is the upside to this beautiful and strong specimen of canine excellence. The down-side, if there is one at all, stems from its predisposition toward certain genetic disorders. These include a tendency toward retinal atrophy which can cause blindness. Some also have sensitive skin and ear infections. Then, of course, as is true of most larger breeds, the Standard Poodle is prone to hip dysplasia.

Generally though this is a hardy breed that can be just as content living in an apartment as in a yard with lots of room to run. It is just a matter of making sure it gets the exercise it needs; something as simple as a daily walk will do.

Grooming

Obviously, the typical poodle cut requires more groom time, as well as a certain expertise to accomplish. Your standard poodle should visit the groomer every 6-8 weeks for its bath and groom session. In between, it should be brushed daily to prevent uncomfortable tangling that can quickly turn to matting that is difficult to remove.

But there is no rule or requirement that just because you have a Standard Poodle, you must get him the standard poodle clip, unless you plan to show him. Many poodle owners prefer a simple puppy clip. This is a groom in which the fur is cut the same short length all over. It is much easier to maintain and is a very popular look.

Temperament

Besides the above-mentioned skills, Standard Poodles are excellent watchdogs due to their natural instinct to protect. This is not to be confused with an aggressive nature; far from it. This dog is excellent pet material. It's loyal and playful and easy to train.

Socialization and Training

Start socializing them early and they will not be a problem around either people of other dogs, and even cats. They are smart dogs and catch on quickly. They respond especially well to positive reinforcement and clicker training techniques. The better trained your dog is, the easier it is on you when you have visitors or must take him out in public, so be consistent and firm.

These dogs are often seen running agility courses, as they are fast, agile and thrive on the challenge of competing with other dogs. All in all, a Standard Poodle is a good choice for a family pet. He will give you years and years of pleasure and companionship and you will find him both loving and fiercely loyal.

Buying Dog Toys - Not As Easy As You Think!

Buying toys for our pets is not an easy job. You might think that buying one and giving it to your pet is all that you have to do, but that's not all! You have to be very careful about the toys you are buying because you don't want your dear pet to chew on just anything! Toys made of low quality plastic are of great danger to your dog's teeth and gums. Not only can their gums get damaged, they might even ingest some of the plastic while eating and that can prove to be fatal!

The best way to deal with all this is to buy dog toys online which fulfill the following conditions:

Is the toy so big that it cannot be swallowed by your dog? If yes, then buy it! Your dog will never be able to ingest any part of the toy so it is completely safe.

Is the toy made of material which can be chewed off into pieces? If yes, then don't buy it under any circumstances.

Is the toy a stuffed toy? Does it come with a "machine washable" tag? If yes, then buy it for your dog. He or she will carry it around at all times and never part with it. Dogs and their soft toys can make for great love stories!

Is the toy a hard ball which bounces irregularly? If yes, then please buy it as your dog will have to keep guessing where the toy is going and that will keep him/her busy.
Other than all the things listed above, there are also other things which you need to keep in mind while buying toys for your dog.

A tennis ball and a flying disc are must-have toys for any dog. Buy them in multiple quantities.

Thick toys made of rubber are a great choice because they can be chewed on, rolled on and also thrown like a ball! They are like a 3-in-1 toy!

Squeaky toys are a favourite of dogs because of the sounds they make. However, while buying a squeaky toy, please check that the squeaker is placed well inside the toy and won't come off as soon as your dog starts playing with it. Most dogs try to pull out the squeaker from inside the toy and that is why you need to check that before buying. A squeaky toy should be replaced as soon as the squeaker comes out.

Nikita has worked in dog care shelter for more than 4 years.

She regularly writes articles related to pets.

Currently she is busy working with leading Indian Pet Store that sells dog clothes, dog jackets and sweaters, dog toys, accessories, dog beds, collars and other dog related products. Check out the website now to experience the latest trends in pet fashion.