my dogs behaviour has changed

Question
QUESTION: In August of 2005 my parents got a puppy that is half shietsoo and half pekinease.At the time I was living with my parents and MY father was the primary Teacher, caretaker.This dog is extremely smart and quick to learn and is very teachable. My parents have 2 homes, one in Florida and one in New Hampshire. The home in New Hampshire has a very large fenced yard and the dog gets to run and play daily. He will retrieve the ball non-stop 24 hours per day.The home in Florida has no place for the dog to run and play because the community has stringent leash laws. If he scoots out the door while in Florida and is off his leash he will run after other dogs,squirrels, rabbits, possum, chipmunks, and will NOT come when called once he has zeroed in on chasing something. DUE to the above fact,we always keep him on the leash ONLY in Florida from mid October thru mid June. The dog is in New Hampshire from mid June until mid October with my parents, I am only in New hampshire for 1 week in June to help my parents open up the summer home, and then again for 1 week in October to help shut down the summer home.I moved out of my parents FLORIDA home in feb 06, and would take the dog for weekly overnight visits to my home in Florida.My parents became too sick to care for the dog this past December 07 and the dog has been constantly with me in my home for the past 5 months. I take him to visit my parents for a few hours every week but have noticed that everytime he sees my parents he will come back to my home and then defecate in my home.? This started about 1 month ago. at first he would only defecate the day after his visit to my parents home, BUT now it has turned into a daily event???? This dog is very well house broken and never ever urinated or defecated in ANY home.He has also started to crawl way back in the corner under the table and refuses to come out. This dog has always been incredibly social and would play with anybody and everybody. I work from home and this dog gets my attention 24/7. When I am on computer he wants to sit or lay on my lap,when I watch TV he wants to sit with me on chair, when I drive he goes crazy if I Do not let him sit on my lap and let him stick his head out the window.He also sleeps with me and my wife. He gets walked on a very regular basis but I just can not comprehend why he will defecate in my home AFTER I just finished walking him? I also can not understand why he wants to isolate under the table way back in the corner??
The only exercise he gets in Florida is walking,or play fighting or tug of war with towel. This animal was sterilized against my wishes by my mother when he was 3 months old. I also have noticed that he will constantly bite himself and scratch himself to the point that he bleeds and then he licks himself for hours and hours in the rear right and left thighs. He does NOT have fleas, I keep his hair short,give him baths with flea shampoo weekly and use advantax flea meds monthly as well as heart worm meds monthly.PLease help me understand what is going on and how to fix this problem??

ANSWER: Hi, Bobby,

Thanks for the question. It sounds like a troubling situation.

I'm not sure I understand where the dog is now, in Florida or New Hampshire. You said he's living with you full time since December, so I'm supposing that he's in Florida and isn't getting enough hard vigorous playful exercise every day. Is that the case?

Also, do you have a crate for him? Or a Sherpa bag? It seems to me that he's getting too much positive attention inside the den and not enough stimulation and satisfaction of his prey drive outside. Am I on the right track?

I look forward to hearing back from you.

LCK

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Lee, The dog is with me in florida,but he will be going up to new hampshire with ONLY my parents from mid june until mid october.My parents and myself are hoping that this will not screw up his mind after being alone with only me in florida since december07.  he does NOT nor never has been put in a cage or whatever a sherpa bag is? he has always had complete run of both my parents home and mine. you are correct that he does not get any vigorous playful exercise while in florida as compared to new hampshire. he does attempt to play fight and wants me to try and catch him by grabbing his front paws. He spends a great deal of time trying to outsmart me by not letting me catch him by either grabbing and holding onto his paws or any other part of his body. this is a daily thing with him and if he wants to play more than I have time for,  he will consistently bark at me until i chase him again while I am on all fours opposite him. his diet has not changed whatsoever nor will it, he has non-stop water ad IAM"S but he will only drink water with ice cubes in it.I have noticed a new thing, that he wants to play fight the exact minute I release him from his leash after walking him.""He never did this before"",in th past he would jump on my lap and playfully and softly bite my fingers to innitiate a play fight and want to be caught.

Answer
Hi, Bobby,

Thanks for the further info.

This is a tough one for me to figure out because I'm only getting your side of the story. Plus I don't know how much my advice is going to help since you're the only one who'll be getting input directly from me.

That said, it sounds to me like he's fine when he's up north, as long as he's getting his daily dose of vigorous play. The reason I mentioned the crate is because it sounds to me like he's being too needy in one respect (constantly needing to be in your lap), and looking for his own hidey hole in another (hiding in small, compact spaces). Having his own private den would be good for him. Also, as soon as you come home from a walk, and is theoretically a bit worn out (and maybe you could find a dog park nearby where he could play with other dogs?), he could go directly into his crate for a cool-down period, which would prevent him from defecating in the house.

My other recommendations are to NOT play "chase me" the way you're doing it. It's normally better if you can get the dog to chase you. You can start off by coming at the dog, but as soon as he stands his ground in some way, you should run the other way, or fall down so he can jump on top of you. Playing it the way you are, with you being the predator can create unintended feelings of fear, rather than confidence. You should also work on getting him to play tug with you outdoors. And use a bandana or an old sock instead of a towel. This will increase the likelihood that he'll bring it back to you for another game after you let him win (and you should always let him win).

Finally, you should never scold or punish him for anything. For a dog like this (clingy) urinating or defecating is most often done as a way of getting attention. And the dog doesn't care if it's positive or negative attention. He just wants attention. In this case my supposition, without seeing the dog, is that he's defecating because he actually WANTS negative attention. So don't give it to him!

Also, if you hand feed him outdoors, using a pushing exercise, it may settle him down a little. Here are some links that might be helpful:

http://tinyurl.com/3balu6 (pushing exercise, a la Neil)

http://www.tiny.cc/SwimUpstream description
         
http://www.tiny.cc/tug

http://www.tiny.cc/CrateTraining

http://www.tiny.cc/jumpstart

Feel free to let me know if you need further clarification.

LCK