First, I want to start off by saying what a wonderful resource this site and forum has been - it's been very insightful and a great help in preparing for and living with a new dog in our household. Thanks so much, Ed, for this site and all the work you put into it and thanks to everyone that participates in these forums.

Anyway, I was hoping to get some feedback here, hopefully confirming that I'm handling a situation with our new dog the right way.

In October, we took in a one and a half year old mastiff mix (~130 lbs) rescue. She's recently been spayed (last month). Before bringing her home, we carefully read through all the new adult dog and groundwork articles and have been following through on everything the best we can.

- The first couple of weeks I hand fed her (and she has never shown any food aggression whatsoever) - she now "earns" her food with a down/stay and an "OK" when she's allowed to go to the food - I'll usually put hands on her while she's eating and replace spilled food in her bowl while she's eating (food aggression is obviously something I never want to see from her - and so far, so good).

- She's been 100% super with strangers and children either in the house or out. She doesn't get much interaction with others, per the groundwork article, but with a dog her size, meeting curious strangers is unavoidable, so I try to make the best of it and have her sit or down in those situations.

- She is crated when she doesn't have direct supervision. Until recently she'd get a treat when going into her crate and runs to her crate enthusiastically whenever she sees it. Her crate is her favorite place. I'd go so far as to say that she prefers the crate to my company at this point.

- When she's not crated I'm interacting/training with her and watch her like a hawk.

- I've started obedience training using the learning/distraction/correction steps with prong collar, etc, and while not the most "enthusiastic" dog I've ever had, she's gotten good with down/stay which we use frequently for the "nothing in life is free" approach - before she gets food, petting, comes in the front door from a walk, crossing the street (trying to make her "street smart"), etc. Nevertheless, compared to other dogs I've had, she seems to do everything grudgingly, even in "learning" with treats. That said, she's pretty much perfect on-leash and heels like a champ and never pulls.

- She was a kennel dog before coming home with us so we've been trying to expose her to city life the right way and we've come a long way - but she does have a tendency to get spooked by strange, loud noises, particularly when walking at night. However, she never seems anxious when alone - in fact, she's rather aloof and independent, which I'm assuming will lessen over time and with work. I don't know if her aloofness is a good thing or a bad thing, frankly.

- She also doesn't really seem to know how to play anything other than "keep away" and tug - which we just refuse to do with her - I'm trying to teach her how to play fetch using treats in exchange for a retrieved toy, but it's hard because she's just not that motivated with regard to toys. We have cats and while she's interested in them, she doesn't give chase - so I assume that means she doesn't display much in the way of prey drive.

- Her two main motivations are 1) treats and 2) being comfortable (she's not crazy about cold weather and has been stubborn about doing a down on a cold, hard surface, requiring a correction).

Anyway, to cut to the chase, on the whole she's been extremely easy to live with (much more so than any the retrievers I'd had before - no chewing, low activity, not up in my face all the time), but definitely more aloof than I'm used to - BUT I got one curveball thrown at me three nights ago... I went to get her out of her crate and she growled at me. This is the second time she displayed dominant behavior with me - the first time during week one when she jumped right on the couch in front of us and growled (and received a level ten correction - and aside from the crate incident, there's been no attempt to get on the furniture and no growling since).

I immediately realized that I'd let her train ME to give her treats on her terms when she gets into her crate - and felt stupid to say the least. Now I'm trying to figure out where else we might've slipped up.

In the meantime, we've changed the procedure with her and her crate - Now, as soon as she exits the crate, it gets shut behind her and when it's time for her to go back in:

- I get between her and the crate

- she must execute a perfect down/stay

- THEN the crate gets opened

- she gets a pet and a "good dog"

- THEN a "crate" command to let her know she can get up and go in.

She's being stubborn with this and really testing the limits with the crate routine, but she's absolutely not allowed in the crate until she follows through to the letter. By stubborn, I don't mean that she's being at all aggressive, just unresponsive - a light correction will get her moving, but it sometimes takes a couple of corrections and is definitely a test of my resolve.

Am I handling this situation the right way? Can anyone offer any feedback?

I'm definitely ordering the dominant dog video as soon as it's available. While I'm thankful that I don't have a huge maniac on my hands, I'm now acutely aware of the fact that I have a dog that's going to test me if I don't have my act together.

Thanks in advance for any feedback, positive or negative. Again, this site has been an invaluable resource.

DH

Have you considered that her growling (laying down on the floor and being in a down in the crate) could be a result of some sort of physical problem and not a dominance problem? Just an off-hand thought. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

It sounds like you're doing everything right. I can't comment on the crate situation because I don't use crates, but I have experienced lots dominance behavior with my male mastiff cross when I initially adopted him from an animal shelter. For the most part that should pass with consistency from you, but it may pop up in some other area. We've battle animal aggression, food aggression, toy aggression and more. Just correct it quickly and stay consistent. The dog just needs a reminder of who is in charge, plus she's new to your house and testing her boundaries. What your experiencing is not abnormal for the circumstances. Continue what you're doing, deal with issues that come up and it'll pass.

That's very brave of you to take in a 1.5 year old mastiff mix. What prompted you to do that if you don't mind me asking?

 Quote:

Have you considered that her growling (laying down on the floor and being in a down in the crate) could be a result of some sort of physical problem and not a dominance problem? Just an off-hand thought. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Oh, yeah - that's a really good point. As I mentioned, she was recently spayed and still has her incision (sutures haven't dissolved yet). She was definitely really uncomfortable the first week following surgery and that still might be an issue.

I just assumed the growling in the crate was a dominance thing as it was only the second time she'd ever growled at me (the first time was definitely a dominance test) - any other "attitude" I've gotten from her is her just being slow to follow directions. The growling in the crate rattled me because it wasn't something she's really done before (but not something I was unprepared for).

I'll bear this in mind until her incision is fully healed and try not to put her into a position where it might bother her - she'll just sit to earn food and petting for the time being.

Thanks again - I guess the biggest mistake is often overlooking the obvious.

What kind of crate are you using? I have had new dogs that were asleep in Vari-Kennels and basically woke up right as I came on them. I got growled at, but when I opened the crate it was pretty much over, with wags and nice positive body language. Just a thought.

Sometimes I wonder if training dogs to view the crate to be such a happy, safe getaway place can backfire on the owner. For instance, my pup unfortunately developed a fear of going for car rides due to her car sickness (we're working on this). But, she started running into her crate whenever she sensed that I was about to take her out to the car, knowing that I wouldn't drag her out of the crate. She has that uncanny ability to tell the difference between going out the front door for a walk vs. going to the car. I usually just close the crate door well in advance of taking her out to the car - problem solved. I didn't think of making her 'ask' to go to the crate (with a sit or down/stay). I think that's a great idea.

I would agree that it sounds like the growl was probably due to the recent surgery. But, still, growling is never acceptable so I think you're handling this in a good way.

I like having them in the crate in the car if they get carsick. Easier cleanup.