Behavioral "quirks" I'd like some suggestions

[Rich73Kelly]

Hoping for some positive responses that work from experienced owners.
I will start from the beginning for those who didn't read my introduction post.
We inherited a (just) 2 year old papered female GSD from my daughter. She was named "Sheena" by the mothers owner. She will be Sheena as long as she remains in our family. My daughter would have had to give her up if we didn't take her. She grew up on a farm with a 4 yr old rott/australian shepherd mix, several cats and a few horses.
My daughter recently separated from her abusive husband and his 3 girls and moved in to the city. She had a tough time finding a landlord to allow one dog and 2 cats so, Sheena came to live with us. This was not an overnight decision. We went to the farm to visit on weekends and Sheena kinda took to me so I found it only fair to take her home.
However, Sheena has a few nasty traits I need to correct ASAP! For this, I am asking for here ... First, I have heard this is a "Shepherd" thing ... she piddles at the littlest bit of fear! She did this a lot out at the farm when certain people approached her but, never with me. Now that she is here, I can't even as much as try to teach her to shake and she leaves a puddle on the carpet! Next, during the interum of my daughter leaving her husband and finding her own apartment, she stayed here with both dogs ... Sheena and Anna get along well for the most part although, we have caught Sheena being food agressive on different occasions. They both have their own bowls and shared a water dish. Sheena would "inhale" her food and then go lay in front of Anna's dish and growl any time Anna would try to get near. we took care of that by putting their food in different rooms and putting a child gate in the doorway to keep them separate! Keep in mind, Anna is the older of the two and looks like a smaller Rottweiler but the top of Anna's back is not much higher than the bottom of Sheena's chest and Anna is really laid back for a rottie mix. This is why my daughter picked her, she never heard her bark until Sheena joined the home! lol ... While here, we let them both out at the same time ... Sheena woukd chase Anna and nip at her while out. So we started letting them out separate so Anna could do her thing! NOW we notice Sheena's next bad habit ... Sheena goes out and instead of going to the bathroom, she goes looking for what Anna just dropped and starts EATING IT! How do I stop this ??? She not only tries eating what Anna leaves behind but, we have caught her trying to eat her own after going! I can't take her for walks cause it's like all she does is look for other dogs poop! Then when she comes back in, she comes up and pants in everyones face! YUK!
Don't get me wrong here, I love this dog, she gets her ears cleaned every other day cause the cats always had mites and she spends a lot of time scratching her ears. They are getting better! I got her several different treats .. biscuits, pig ears, rawhide bones, a pull rope ... for the most part, none of these interest her. they lay on the floor. If I give her a biscuit (Pedigree breath biscuits) she drops it and goes back for it later. She don"t leave my sight. Or, I should say, I can't leave her sight! She is lying right next to the desk sleeping right now ... I will attach a pic ... lol ... oops, she got up, now I can't type without her nose nudging my wrist!
Anyway, some suggestions here will be appreciated! Thanks in advance!

[middleofnowhere]

All of this is fairly easy/simple but that kind of stuff that is hard to figure out when you are right there.

Submissive urination - dogs usually outgrow this if little fuss is made over it (it's an anxiety thing) - quit making a big deal out of it by greeting/working with the dog in an area (outside usually) where this won't be a big deal. It might have been exacerbated by the abuse the dog witnessed earlier but that doesn't help you "cure" it.

Food aggression -- You've got that one figured out -- keep dogs seperate when they eat, pick up the food if one dog doesn't finish.

Herding another dog (aka nipping at legs and heels) -- what do you want a herd dog to do? This IS what they do. (No magic bullet here, sorry.)

Eating feces -- two approaches here -- don't make a big deal out of it, then the feces will not be a prize & will be less attractive. Second approach -- pick it up! If it isn't available, it won't be eaten. (There is no magic bullet for this either)

[BowWowMeow]

The poop eating can also be a sign of health problems. What food are you feeding her? How are her poops?

Find a good positive trainer and sign up for a class with her.

[Emoore]

First, try to keep in mind that the dog has just come from a scary situation where her "mommy" got abused, into a new household with new family members and different expectations. I'm a rescue volunteer foster home and one of the things we tell new adopters is to give the dog about a month "settling in" period before they try to "fix" anything or do any training or behavior modification. You'll find some things work themselves out on their own.

Middleofnowhere is right on with the submissive urination. This is a fear response and if you try to correct it or train her out of it, it will just get worse because she literally loses control of her bladder at those times. Can you imagine how hard it is on her to go through life so worried and afraid that you lose control of your bladder when someone tries to teach you to shake? Be very quiet, gentle, and patient with her. As she starts to realize that she's in a calm, accepting home where nothing bad is going to happen, this should work itself out. Might want to keep her on tile or get some doggie diapers during the time being if it's really bad.

Food aggression-- feed them separately. You may have to do this forever, or the food aggression may settle down as she feels more secure. Give her time.

Like BowWow said, eating feces can be a sign that the dog isn't getting everything they need from their food. There are some powders that you can feed the dog that will supposedly make her poop taste bad so that she won't want to eat it so you can try that. You have to feed the powder to every dog in the household though. Or you can just pick up her poop right away.

Thank you for giving Sheena a great new home!

[mwiacek10]

Rich73Kelly, I just want to thank you for taking your daughter's dog in and being, what sounds like, very supportive parents. I was in a similar situation, a long time ago, and my parents helped me.

[Freestep]

I don't think poop eating indicates any kind of problem, some dogs just love it. My pup loves all kinds of poo--cat, goat, chicken--but she doesn't eat dog poo. There are powders (For-bid) you can sprinkle on the dog's food that is supposed to make it taste bitter. You could try this. When you're on walks, it's more of an obedience issue--she should be walking with you, not dragging you along to every pile of poo. An obedience class can help you with this.

The herding behavior... that's just how GSDs play sometimes. If the other dog doesn't like it, take them out separately.

The submissive urination, like the others said, is something she needs to grow out of. I didn't see how long you've had her, but she sounds a bit insecure in her new surroundings, which is not surprising. The best thing you can do is ignore it. When you come home, don't greet her right away. Ignore her until she is calm, then give her a CALM greeting, a scratch under the chin and a soft word will suffice. If she does it while you're trying to train her to do something, you'll need to change something about the way you are training. Google "clicker training", it's a great way to take the pressure off the dog.

[PaddyD]

Originally Posted by middleofnowhere

All of this is fairly easy/simple but that kind of stuff that is hard to figure out when you are right there.

Submissive urination - dogs usually outgrow this if little fuss is made over it (it's an anxiety thing) - quit making a big deal out of it by greeting/working with the dog in an area (outside usually) where this won't be a big deal. It might have been exacerbated by the abuse the dog witnessed earlier but that doesn't help you "cure" it.

Food aggression -- You've got that one figured out -- keep dogs seperate when they eat, pick up the food if one dog doesn't finish.

Herding another dog (aka nipping at legs and heels) -- what do you want a herd dog to do? This IS what they do. (No magic bullet here, sorry.)

Eating feces -- two approaches here -- don't make a big deal out of it, then the feces will not be a prize & will be less attractive. Second approach -- pick it up! If it isn't available, it won't be eaten. (There is no magic bullet for this either)

I agree with all of the above.
Submissive urination is cured by time and the dog feeling comfortable and confident in your presence. As stated make a 'little deal' out of greeting, even to the point of ignoring at first.
Herding nipping is one way that shepherds play and other dogs do too. Let them play for short periods of time and increase or decrease it as your and their comfort level dictates.
Feces eating can be difficult to impossible to cure. The best thing to do is pick it up immediately. I went through the same problem and used all of the products and 'remedies' to no avail. The only cure was keeping a clean yard and the passage of time. Mine is 90% cured at this point.
I have no experience with food aggression.

[msvette2u]

First, I have heard this is a "Shepherd" thing ... she piddles at the littlest bit of fear!

As Emoore said, shes been completely stressed out and if her last home felt her piddling was a potty issue they may have disciplined her for it, which could cause a lifelong problem.

Poop eating is not proof positive of a health issue or deficiency, dogs just like it, sometimes it starts out of stress but they often just like doing it.

If you can do a 2 week shut down it would be helpful I am sure but you've probably missed that window.

Bringing a New Dog Home!

Submissive peeing links
http://www.wonderpuppy.net/canwehelp/1htsubm.php