June 26, 2013
Our young dog was scared by a person who charged at her during a family gathering and now she reacts aggressively in other situations. Do I have a problem?
Full Question:
Hi Cindy,I have a 16mo GSD. A month ago, someone charged my dog for "fun" at a family party. Initially, my dog cowered, and everyone got a pathetic laugh. That same person who charged my dog, could not stand up from a sitting position without my dog jumping up on all fours and barking aggressively at the previous perpretrator. My dog could not relax while that person was present. This person told me that I had a serious problem with my dog. I laughed.
Today I took my GSD to the vet. The assistant entered the room unannounced, and stated: "I'm going to take your dog now for its shots." As she approached my dog, the dog barked aggressively at her. I want to blame the staff's poor approach: entering a room without announcing, approaching the dog and owner without repore first established.
Am I rationalizing or DO I HAVE A PROBLEM??
No aggression in other social settings. (Neighborhood walks: Loves people and other dogs) Working on mild seperation anxiety.
To be concerned or not??
Cindy's Answer:
Your dog is lacking confidence, probably in part due to the core temperament paired with the experience of being charged. If anyone did that to my dog it would have not ended well for the person who thought that would be funny. Young dogs are impressionable and look to us (as a leadership figure) to protect them from outsiders or scary situations.
The vet's office is another place that most dogs lack confidence, and I'm guessing that your dog felt vulnerable and scared and used the aggressive bark to try to "make the scary person go away" For what it's worth, I also NEVER allow my dog to be taken into another room when I have reason to take them to the vet. Anything they need to do with my dog can be done with me present. I do agree that the staff member of the vet could have approached the situation more sensitively.
I'd work on being more of an authority figure to your dog, by controlling the environment when you can. (i.e. if you need to take your dog to family gatherings, keep him leashed and on a down right next to you). Part of this is educating the people around you, "please don't approach my dog, he's in training, etc."
You may benefit from Pack Structure for the Family Pet.
I recommend this 3 part video series on fear periods in dogs, it explains how to condition the dog to things that make it nervous. It's geared towards pups but contains some excellent info.
Cindy Rhodes
The vet's office is another place that most dogs lack confidence, and I'm guessing that your dog felt vulnerable and scared and used the aggressive bark to try to "make the scary person go away" For what it's worth, I also NEVER allow my dog to be taken into another room when I have reason to take them to the vet. Anything they need to do with my dog can be done with me present. I do agree that the staff member of the vet could have approached the situation more sensitively.
I'd work on being more of an authority figure to your dog, by controlling the environment when you can. (i.e. if you need to take your dog to family gatherings, keep him leashed and on a down right next to you). Part of this is educating the people around you, "please don't approach my dog, he's in training, etc."
You may benefit from Pack Structure for the Family Pet.
I recommend this 3 part video series on fear periods in dogs, it explains how to condition the dog to things that make it nervous. It's geared towards pups but contains some excellent info.
Cindy Rhodes
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