dogs strange behaviour

I think you need to make sure it''s a positive reward-based training otherwise it could make the situation worse. I''ve done some one-to-one with my dog trainer which has really helped (not the same issue as you). I don''t know where you are based but, on the off-chance that it''s anywhere near me, send me a PM of rough locality if you like, and I can give you my trainer''s details.

My dog is usually fantastic around other dogs but recently she snapped at a dog that growled at her. My trainer''s immediate reaction of seeing something so out of character was: ''Has someone being talling xxxxx off?''. She was absolutely right as my son has started to really shout at her when she does something wrong.

my dog is fine around other dogs and people all the barking, growling and teeth barring are all at me, thats why i can relate to the post that she is now the alpha, she taken over from the ex being the aplha, im just a member of her pack. i will try the treat training see how it goes, but i dont want to feel frightened of her like i did yesterday.

Hi

I''ve had issues with my dog though not the same as yours. I would suggest a phone call to a behaviourist first - try your local rescue centre (RSPCA) first as they often have on site experts with years worth of experience. My local centre was happy to help me as a private dog owner asking for a donation as a fee for a one to one - much cheaper than the expert recommended by the vet& more effective. The emphasis was on positive training - ignoring the bad behaviour & rewarding the good. Have you tried walking away when the dog growls or turning your back ? It may be a form of attention seeking & you may be rewarding (the attention is the reward) the dog by telling it no, shouting at it or something similar. A bit like a toddler throwing a temper tantrum. If the dog is behaving well make a fuss of it. However I think you may need help to get past your nervousness of the dog as this will also be picked up by the dog. If you PM me I can also give you the name & contact details of my local rescue centre who now have a dedicated team of behaviourists working with their animals as well as training & social classes for the dogs.

Barbs

when she started yesterday when my friends were here i kept putting her outside, but as soon as she came back in she started again, ive just also realised that when ive been out in the garden with friends shes ok ? when she got really bad yesterday i didnt move from the sofa, because i did feel very wary of her, but i didnt look at her or shout at her, or try to talk to my friend the growling teeth barring just went on and on, i havent tried the turning my back on her i will next time i have visitors, i didnt think about phoning the local animal rescue i will do though xx

You do need to get help as soon as possible.I had a Collie who displayed behaviour like you are describing.I think it stemmed from anxiety that I might leave her too.Outside the house she was fine and everyone thought she was an ideal dog but inside she started barking if I talked to visitors,then she tried to stop me answering the phone and then it went to stopping me answering the door.She would run at me and jump up barking and it''s very frightening when you are faced with a large dog doing that.I took her to the Vet and he tried Valium to calm her down although by that time I probably needed it more!Sadly nothing seemed to work and after a few years of putting up with it she eventually bit me when I tried to answer the phone and then I decided that she had to go.I was frightened as to what would happen next and had her put to sleep.That was a long time ago and dog behaviour advice is now much more available. I think the advice now is to ignore the bad behaviour and that may be the way to go but if it goes too far how do you ignore being bitten? In between these attacks she was a lovely ,affectionate dog and I think it did all stem from her insecurities about being left.She may also have thought she was keeping me safe from other people it''s impossible to know.
I hope you can get it sorted out and the outcome is much happier than it was in my case.

that sounds extremely scary, i hope it doesnt escalate to that situation, shes ok with the phone and front door at the moment, rspca tomorrow am for advice then ive got another friend coming over tonorrow pm see how she reacts then.

just a quick update, got some advice this morning from a nice little lady at my local rspca centre about the dogs behaviour, she recommended that when she starts the barking etc at me when friends are round completly ignore her, dont look at her dont talk if we re stood up turn our backs on her when she has calmed give her a reward, well my friend came round this afternoon i explained to her about the dog, as soon as she started we turned our backs, she soon stoppped got her reward, she started 3 more times when we were sat on the sofa, we ignored her, she stopped again, it was no where near as bad as the previous time when she scared me. im going to persevere with this and hopefully she ll soon learn xx