[litia]

We adopted a 4 year old boxer/border collie mix. We have had her a little over a week, crate and housetrained, good manners. All of a sudden, she is soiling her crate when she is put in no matter if it a couple of hours or longer. According to her foster mom, she never did this. Any ideas on what to do?

[labman]

This is a tough problem. I am sure being in a new home is the problem. Can you find out what her old schedule was, eating times and exercise? Are you continuing to feed the same chow? Sudden changes in diet can cause digestive upsets.

Make sure she goes out and exercises a little before being left in the crate. Leave her a Kong filled with peanut butter. She maybe too busy licking it out, to stress out over being left in the crate. If nothing else helps, talk to the vet about medicating her for a while until she gets used to her new home.

Dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog. Life is much easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones. You can learn to play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands with a treat. Start at Raising Your Dog with the Monks of New Skete For more on being top dog, see Establishing and Keeping Alpha Position, Letting your dog know you are the boss

Try these too:

''Elevation for small puppies: Sit on the floor and gently put your hands around your pup's middle, below his front legs, and lift him up. He is facing you. Hold him for 15 seconds. Repeat until he no longer struggles. If he is past 10-12 weeks, lift his front feet off the ground, but don't pick him up.

Cradling for small puppies: Hold your puppy gently on his back, as you would cradle a small baby. If he struggles, hold him firmly until he quiets for 10-15 seconds. With larger pups, you can do this as your sit on the floor, with your pup between your legs.

Quiet lying down: Place your pup on the floor on his side, with all 4 legs pointing away from you. Use your hands on his neck/shoulder area and middle, to hold him in this position. When he is quiet, praise him. Lengthen the time that you keep him quietly in this position. When he accepts this position well, handle his paws and muzzle, while keeping him quiet.''

The quotes mean this isn't my original work. It is copied from my Puppy Raising Manual. I have long used these or minor variations of them, and they are very effective. You may want to give him a belly rub while he is on his back too. Helps bonding. There is a big difference between him rolling over and demanding a belly rub, and you choosing a time to roll him over and rub his belly. The latter cements your place as pack leader.