I am so upset! My pup is 'sharp' and I have been working very hard at socializing her. We were walking down the street and there were some kids playing--she was alert, but doing well. I was not pushing her and you could see she was starting to get more comfortable with the noises.

All of a sudden, from across the street a dog came running toward us, barking and growling. I stepped in front of him, stomped my foot and shouted NO! This stopped him for a second, but suddenly there was a second dog (from the same house) that came out and was behind us, also barking like mad. I tried to pick my girl up but it was a tangle of legs, the leash, and my screaming puppy (meanwhile the woman who let them out was calling them, "come here, little darlings..."). It was all of 30 seconds but it seemed like an hour. Thankfully she was not bitten. I didn't know what to do!

The offending animals were captured by their "owner" and we walked off. As soon as we got around the corner I offered her a treat, which she ate. She was puffed up and nervous, but seemed OK. We had to walk the long way home to avoid that street and every time she heard a dog bark, she puffed up, got nervous, and started barking (this is new).

She is 12 weeks old and I am wondering what is the best course of action to prevent her from being afraid of all dogs, dog agressive, whatever. I feel like I've ruined her!

Thank you for any insight.

YOUR reactions and actions are going to be the biggest factor here.

Calm, confident, in charge..... the calm protector. You DID protect her.



What did/do you do when she started barking later?

Hi Kim,

First of all - forgive yourself! It's important you do not dwell on what happened.

I don't think picking her up was the best thing to do, but I can understand why you did. (Giving the other dogs a swift boot or whack with a walking stick might help!)

What you must do now is forget about it and move on. Dogs, as they say, live in the now. If you get nervous,tense or worried when you walk past that house, pup will pick up on that and get very stressed.
If you walk past as if nothing has happened, she will soon relax. It's good that she took the treat so soon after too.

I've had similar experiences with Teagan. How the 'pack leader' handles it is all important. Be calm, confident and act as if nothing happened. Don't worry about what did or might happen, just deal with the day as it occurs.

If you're confident, she'll be fine.

HTH
Rob

Well, I was not as calm as I should have been . When just the one dog was there I really had it together--I've read on here exactly what to do and I was prepared. I just wasn't ready for that second dog and I was so afraid they were going to eat her. I started grabbing for her and...it wasn't pretty. As soon as it was over I did regain my composure, and just walked on. But initially I'm sure I made it worse by being upset.

Other than prepare myself for the possibility of being charged by more than one dog, what can I do now? Should I bring her to a dog park (JUST to watch from a distance), walk her through the neighborhood with my other dog (who is afraid of nothing), bring her to Petsmart? What should I do when she starts puffing and barking at the sight/sound of another dog?

Kim,

Is this Embers sibling?

Yes.

Kim - puppy classes.

GREAT for socialising puppies, in a safe controlled (hopefully) environment. Will build her confidence up again.

Kim,
Check your PM's.

Trust me, you and the little one will be fine.

Chin up and keep the band aids on hand.....

 Quote: Rob Bruce

Kim - puppy classes.

GREAT for socialising puppies, in a safe controlled (hopefully) environment. Will build her confidence up again.

Sorry, I don't agree with the puppy class idea. Puppy classes are too often a free for all with puppies all focused on one another, and that is not the type of environment Mika needs. I know this puppy (I am the breeder) and I think what you need to do is go on like everything is fine. I would have picked her up too, to avoid having her chomped by one of the dogs. I do know that the owner of the dogs that did this would be getting an earful from me!!

dogs don't live in the past and if you are uptight and giving off tense and nervous energy, this puppy will pick up on it in a nanosecond. Deep breaths.

Don't go out of your way to put her in a situation so you can test what her reaction is., NO petsmart or dog park!!!!...if your other dog is a confident and calming influence on both of you, walking them together is not a bad idea. If your older dog has any issues that you don't want Mika witnessing, then I would nix that idea.

Connie's advice is dead on... just act calm, confident and in charge.

I would probably pick a new route to walk,one that I had scouted out ahead of time. I am insanely careful with my puppies environment as they grow but things happen. I am sure Mika is over it, and will be fine. she's a tough cookie!

Look at Rush's picture in my website, one of the Corgis grabbed him by the nose when I turned my back for a second. I had him on leash in my own house!! He's a little wary of the corgis but I act like nothing happened and he's more relaxed every day.

if Mika starts huffing and barking, I would redirect her attention to something you know will get her focused on you (food or a toy)