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Oh boy....longer worry post...

1K views 15 replies 8 participants last post by  JacobAlthea&Tatum 
#1 ·
Ok, so the other day, I was hanging out with my sister and we both came to the conclusion that we have never seen a gentler, friendlier, sweeter dog than Saba. I mean, he truly truly is the best. Never aggressive, you can snuggle to him anytime, and he’s just always so friendly to everyone. I don’t think he has a mean bone in his body…
Well…. lately he started to bark more. It only happens when he’s in the car and we pass someone walking or their dog. Then he goes all nuts and barks - and we all know there are different barks – “I wanna go out” bark, “play with me” bark, etc. and I think these ones are aggressive barks. Maybe he’s feeling brave because he’s in the car… I dunno. And then this morning, I pull up to my mom’s, there is a guy across the street walking his 2 little dogs. Saba starts to bark before I pull into the driveway. I firmly tell him to be quiet, etc. I get out of the car, he wants to go out, but I always make him sit till I have a firm hold of his leash. I tell him to get out and he jumps out and leaps forward (as in to jump across the street) with loud barks and growls towards those little dogs. Thank goodness the guy was across the street. I was so shocked. I automatically yelled at him to sit and corrected his behaviour by telling him no! bad! etc etc. then we went right into my mom’s and I made him go on his bed and lie there. Told my mom to ignore him for a bit so he knows he did something wrong.

You guys, I was just so shocked. He’s barked like that before but then he always goes up to the other dogs and wags his tail and is all friendly. But I have no idea where this behaviour came from! I’m worried. What am I doing wrong? He’s never been attacked by dogs, he’s never been harmed or hasn’t harmed anyone. Is it nothing? Is he just being all brave from a far? I don’t know what to think. ???
 
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#2 ·
I don't know what to tell you other than to share that Billie is the same way toward small dogs. When we're on walks and I see them coming I make her sit and watch them go by. At daycare they have a note in her file that she does not like small dogs (and has a particular hate for Poms).

I don't know what else to do. I figure that as long as I'm aware and make sure that I keep her under control that's the best I can do.

Someone else here may have better suggestions.
 
#3 ·
Neska74 said:
I automatically yelled at him to sit and corrected his behaviour by telling him no! bad! etc etc. then we went right into my mom’s and I made him go on his bed and lie there. Told my mom to ignore him for a bit so he knows he did something wrong.
First, I think his behavior is pretty normal. Jacob and Aly go ballistic when they see a small dog - I think they think it is a rodent and some sort of hunting instinct kicks in. Yelling at your dog will make it worse, because he can sense the stress level in your voice. As alpha, you need to stay firm and confident.

Second, perhaps I misunderstand, but you should never correct your dog *after* he is doing the right thing. If you had him sit, and then you told him he was being a bad dog for barking, you have totally confused him, and have basically told him he is being bad for sitting. Also, making him lie down as a punishment after the fact will not help - he cannot connect the two events like that. He might be smart, but a dog is not wired to think that way.
 
#4 ·
Momma to J and A said:
Second, perhaps I misunderstand, but you should never correct your dog *after* he is doing the right thing. If you had him sit, and then you told him he was being a bad dog for barking, you have totally confused him, and have basically told him he is being bad for sitting.
I never thought of it that way... when I say yelling I mean telling him in a raised voice. The whole "Sit" "Bad" was all at the same time... but it's a good point.
 
#5 ·
Agnes, I have no idea what to tell you. You know what Yeller is like..... She only started that after Jordan died. Sometimes I think she's saying "omg, don't let them take you to the vet's, you might not come back" or "hey, have you seen my buddy? she's missing.".

I don't know how to fix it either. I hope someone here can give you some advice and I can steal it. I make Yeller sit but she still insists on whining and barking anyways.
 
#6 ·
TangerineFizz said:
Agnes, I have no idea what to tell you. You know what Yeller is like..... She only started that after Jordan died. Sometimes I think she's saying "omg, don't let them take you to the vet's, you might not come back" or "hey, have you seen my buddy? she's missing.".

I don't know how to fix it either. I hope someone here can give you some advice and I can steal it. I make Yeller sit but she still insists on whining and barking anyways.
Oh Karina that makes me sad.

Billie whines, yips and pulls when I put her in a sit on the leash to let them go by. I don't know if she's telling them to prepare to be a squeaky toy or what...
 
#7 ·
oh that is sad… and funny… I thought something similar at first too, because one of the little dogs always barks at Saba and is ready to jump at him, mind you he’s little and easy to control.. so I thought after over a year of seeing that, Saba finally is saying: “yo, I could kick your butt if I wanted to you little show off.... but my mom won’t let me! so stick to your side of the street!”
 
#9 ·
My 2 are like that too unfortunatly and I'm also not sure how to fix it. Especially if I'm walking them both it's not easy when they outweigh me. I normally put them in a sit/stay and praise them for watching me and staying. This works pretty well with Mocha but Zeus isn't near as interested in the treats and has a higher prey drive so he's not as easy to distract.
 
#10 ·
TangerineFizz said:
Is it the family who has the pug/jack russel cross and that other fuzzy thing? I feel so bad for them cause Yeller always barks at their dogs like a loony toon.
Yes yes!! it's the pug!! he is alwasy ready to jump Saba (and not in a good way lol) so I think Saba finally had enough... I did apologize to him tough because I think he got scared.
 
#12 ·
Another consideration: I think that dogs feel that "their" car is an extention of their territory. I know all dogs are not aggressive in cars, but whenever I pass a car in a parking lot where a dog is waiting for master's return, the dog barks aggressively if I come to close to his car. Just protecting territory.
 
#13 ·
Yes yes!! it's the pug!! he is alwasy ready to jump Saba (and not in a good way lol) so I think Saba finally had enough... I did apologize to him tough because I think he got scared.
So Saba has encountered this pug before, and it was aggressive towards him? And that's the only time he's reacted this way? I don't think I'd be too horrified - its not appropriate, and I would redirect and get him focussing on something else when he sees this dog. But I don't think he's becoming aggressive generally.
 
#14 ·
What Nancy said. :)

Also, were the little dogs looking at Saba when this happened? Often there is something in the body language of the other dog that can set your dog off. There was a little dog who lived in our old neighbourhood that used to stare down every dog that would walk past, almost challenging them, including Henry. It took me a while to realize what was happening, but the body language is there.

And, if it's any consolation, Henery isn't a fan of little dogs either. He'd much rather be around dogs of the similar size/energy level. So what do we do when I we're out walking and those little ones come 'round the corner? I'll take him across the street and redirect his attention to me when we pass them. Really good treats help. ;)
 
#15 ·
Thanks guys, makes me feel a bit better... yes, this pug for a year now barks at Saba evertime he sees him, so I guess my pooch decided yesterday it was time to bark back... only took him a year to figure out he could do that... ::)
I'll just try to redirect his attention like you guys suggested.
 
#16 ·
I was in a hurry and couldn't finish my post yesterday, but here is what I have to add:

These two concepts are very helpful:
1. "Look at me"
2. "No speak"

I'll use my Jacob as an example, since of my pack, he is the one most likely to lose his head over a small dog.

First, I need to be vigilant in assessing his surroundings for him. I need to notice that he is about to go ballistic. Once he loses it, I have lost him. As soon as I see his body language change (ears perk up, eyes fix on object), I use the command "look at me."

"Jacob, look at me." I see his eyes register the command, but his gaze stays on what he is tracking.

"NO! Jacob, LOOK at me." Jacob glances in my direction.

"Jacob, Good BOY! Good LOOK!" Jacob goes back to what he was tracking.

"No! Jacob, look at me." I get his attention for longer. "Jacob, good boy! Jacob, no speak. No speak at dog." "You see dog, Jacob, no speak at dog." Jacob groans and moans, but does not speak.

"GOOD BOY JACOB! GOOD NO SPEAK! NO SPEAK AT DOG JACOB, GOOD BOY!"

He really responds to this.
1. Get his attention
2. Praise him for looking at you
3. Tell him not to bark
4. Praise him for not barking
5. Name the object he is interested in (dog, cat, squirrel)
6. Tell him not to bark at that object. (No speak at cat, Jacob).

Obviously, this takes time, because you have to train "no speak" and "look at me." But, I think it is worth it.

Jacob still goes ballistic if I don't catch him before the point of no return. But, if I am paying attention and can stop him before he gets to far into nutzo land, we can stop the whole event before it gets going.

HTH!
 
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