So I have a GSD pup, he is a white male just under 5 mo. while I am EXTREMELY happy with him in every other way he has but one problem that is worrying me a great deal. When out on walks when he encounters other dogs his behavior is at very best timid to down right cowardly. It is very perplexing...it doesn't matter the breed nor how the other dog is behaving. In fact his last incident was with a Chow who showed NO signs of aggression at all. The Chow was behind his iron gate and he came out wagging his tail in a lower horizontal fashion and never uttered a sound. My dog actually cried and tried to run away. That was his worst response yet. I don't want an overly aggressive dog but a cowardly dog is not good either.

I am trying to anticipate some questions you might ask. He has never been to a dog park as most of the pros are down on them plus he gets his rabies shot this week. When at home he shows sign of being territorial, he barks when other dogs, people etc that he does not know come around. I have never heard him bark a single time away from home. Most times when passing barking dogs from a distance he just ignores them but never barks back which I like. He takes to training quite well and a great disposition in every other way. The only other small issue he had was that he was very nervous around traffic, which is pretty normal for small pups, but I worked him through that very easily.

He has had only a couple of play dates. The 1st was with my brother’s box/bull dog mix. Cash is a big boy (a little too big) about 75lbs and he was very patient with my pup Casper and let him get away with murder. Casper was under 20 lbs and about 11 or 12 wks at the time. He was quite intimidated at 1st but soon he was trying to dominate the big dog.

The last play date was last weekend Casper is now near 5 mo and about 30ish lbs (I know he is on the small side but very healthy and strong) and he played with a Chow who is about his size put maybe 5lbs heavier. Casper is now territorial so at 1st he was upset with another dog being in his yard but after I told him it was ok they played and Casper clearly dominated through out.

He is not fixed. I am sorry this is so long but I am just trying to give you as much to go on as possible. How worried should I be and what should or shouldn't I be doing? There is tons of info about aggressive dogs but not much out there about this and most people don't understand the problem. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Hi Daniel,

Congratulations on your new addition! Sounds like a cuteypatooty!

Based on your post, I believe this is a classic mis-read of your dog's, AND the 'other' dog's behavior.

Of course you're little dude is scared of dogs - everything in the world is new to him. Lie down on the ground, belly on the floor and have your brother release his dog from the other room. Intimidating? This was his 12 wk old experience.

Fast forward - A little bigger now, and being introduced to new dogs on a regular basis. Polite dogs don't hard-stare at other dogs. Polite dogs don't hump, slap or body slam other dogs. Polite dogs don't control ALL of the play. There should be a back and forth, not one dog constantly pinning the other dog all of the time. Any of this stuff sound familiar, or your dog's end or the other? If your dog is doing these things, or if the other dog is doing these things, you need to intervene and break it up. Have them take 5 from each other for a bit.

Of course, the best thing to do, is worry about his social bonds within his family, and don't let him interact with strange dogs. If the other dogs are dogs he's going to be forced to interact with on a regular basis, then it's worth working on those relationships. But as far as meeting other dogs on walks etc... Why? Why tempt fate? Especially when your dog is telling you he has ZERO interest in meeting that dog. Do you know what's going on with that dog? Do you know how it's owner will react if something goes wrong?

Casper is 5mos old.... He is not who he will be. But if you continue on this path, you will end up with the overly aggressive dog you said you don't want.

First off thank you for your response. @nd let me clear some things up and get some clarification on my part. I understood it at 12 weeks at 5 months I did not which explains my post. You say "of course he is afraid" it is normal for a dog at 5 mos to react this way even to a much smaller dog? As far as meeting other dogs on walks, that is not the case. I am not introducing him and trying to arrange spur of the moment playdates. However there are dogs eveywhere I am mere talking about passing a dog while we are walking down the street. Also I am not clear what path I'm on? What is the behavior that I am doing but should not be doing that will lead to an overly aggresive dog? Again I appreciate your input.

By path, I mean allowing him to approach, or be approached by strange dogs. Somewhere along the line he has decided that is scary, even if you're not doing it anymore. And yes, it's relatively normal at this age (5mos) for a GSD. Here are some videos I really think will help:

http://leerburg.com/flix/videodesc.php?id=239
http://leerburg.com/flix/videodesc.php?id=240
http://leerburg.com/flix/videodesc.php?id=241

Here's HOW you do it : http://leerburg.com/flix/landing.php?id=664

Thanks much.

JMO--but I don't think dogs need "doggie friends" outside their own household. It's much easier to just train your dog to ignore all other dogs in the world. Then you don't have to worry about how strange dogs you meet on the street might react.

When you're out for walks, simply keep walking past other dogs--pick up your own pace, or get out a treat to keep him focused on YOU. There's no reason to stop and say hi to strange dogs.

 Quote: Daniel Redick

How worried should I be .... There is tons of info about aggressive dogs but not much out there about this and most people don't understand the problem. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

1. Not at all
2. If you use the search terms desensitize and desensitizing for this board, you will find many threads that address reactivity (and there is a rainbow of kinds of reactivity). Use "advanced search" and expand your date range to a couple of years.

They'll give you step-by-step pointers for doing exactly what Lisa said and what Tracy describes: "When you're out for walks, simply keep walking past other dogs--pick up your own pace, or get out a treat to keep him focused on YOU. There's no reason to stop and say hi to strange dogs."

You have some great answers here! Big point for me is that you want the dog to focus on you. You are the leader, protector, and source of all that is good. Those strange dogs have nothing to do with him, and he has nothing to worry about. THIS is what you will show the dog as you march on by, completely ignoring strange dogs.

I thought we were suppose to socialize our dogs with other dogs and people?

Again I want to be clear I am not having him socialize with random dogs on the street, I am talking about how he reacts when we are walking and a dog appears behind their gate.

Thanks a lot I will do this.

 Quote: daniel redick

I am talking about how he reacts when we are walking and a dog appears behind their gate.

Keep walking. You ignore crazy dogs, he will ignore crazy dogs.

This is really all about building confidence that nothing out in the world--crazy dogs, loud motorcycles, baby strollers--nothing is scary or unexpected (because they aren't.) But none of that matters, because YOU aren't phased by these things, and neither should he be. None of these things are something to react to one way or another--positively or negatively. They simply are part of the landscape of a city.

This is the other side of the coin to a dog that is overly dog-friendly. Imagine if instead of being shy or fearful of other dogs, yours wanted to happily stop and greet every four-legged creature you encounter. You wouldn't want that either, right?

You're much better off with the mindset that neutral reaction to dogs is the ideal--a dog is no more interesting than a newspaper box. Rather than thinking you want him to be "happy" around these random dogs.

"Socializing" your dog doesn't mean having a party with everyone and everything he meets. It just means he is being exposed to them so that he doesn't fear them. One can "socialize" a pup to walking on surfaces, observing all different kinds of people, sounds, etc. without directly interacting with them.