humping!!

Question
What can I do to make my 40lb shepard mix Porsche stop humping my two boston terriers? I realize that she is trying to establish dominance, but she is the least dominant of the 5 dogs we have. Diamond is 3yrs and 15 lbs & Bently is 2.5 yrs and 24 lbs. All of our dogs have been fixed since the age of 4 months. Porsche is a spayed female, age 7. She does have some anxiety issues but not on medication (thunderstorms, going to the vet and grooming). She humps them and leaves marks on their underside. Bently is limping pretty bad and Diamond had tibial ligation surgery on her back right leg 3 months ago. Please help! Laura

Answer
Dear Laura,
Thanks for writing.

You didn't mention if this occurs when you are present or absent. I'll assume it's when you are present.

Short term- Prevent the behavior by attaching a leash.
Long term - Teach Porsche an alternate behavior to replace the humping. Go-to-Place or Fetch are good ones.

Also, review the amount of exercise she gets. It may be that she is "wound up" and looking for something to do.

IF you focus on stopping behaviors, you will become frustrated. Think about starting behaviors instead!

Anytime you say "no", ask yourself two questions. At this instant, exactly what would I like my dog to do and where would I like her to do it?  Once you've answered these two questions, now you have your next training goal? Teach her to perform the alternate behaviors during very controlled training sessions. When she starts to get into trouble, redirect her to perform the alternate behavior.

Happy Training!

Alan J Turner
Collierville TN Dog Training
"Teach Your Dog to Ring a Bell"
http://howsbentley.com