Actually he is the only neighbor my mother has. Plus Dimitri was around back. Out back is her property all of the 19 acres are wooded. I did not start the collar on the highest level. The 1 and 2 levels wouldn't even faze him, he would stop for a sec, then continue. No, I don't believe the guy was being unreasonable. Dimitri would wake him up around 1-3 am barking and howling. I have that problem with him if I leave the backyard at my home just for a few minutes.

I think this dog is being judged a bit harshly. The only thing you mentioned in the original post ( other than your own diognosis of being a fear biter ) that made the dog sound nervy was this barking and retreating. This happened when he was getting fit for a muzzle. I'm assuming that this was a strange place for the dog. Even the best dogs will be a little nervy when you take them to the vet the first time etc. Let's remember he is only a year old. A dog with weak nerves usually does not charge towards strangers acting aggressive. It sounds to me like this dog has a high guard drive. He needs to be socialized, obedience trained, and worked in prey. You also need to tell your friend not to stick her hand through the window of a car when there is a dog in it that thinks he's guarding it.

Mary, was your dog ever left outside unsupervised for an extended period of time? The answer is yes. Did you use a no-bark device to attempt to control his barking? Yes. Did you at any point have the no-bark collar on the highest setting? Yes. Was this done before the dog was one year old? Yes. Your friend who had been around Dimitri a lot; did she know that he was unstable when she reached into the car? Yes.

My points still stand. Even if his barking/howling is not alarm barking, but rather, a symptom of separation anxiety, it should be understood that a no-bark device may not be the most effective way to handle this.

When you take him outside and he acts aggressively toward the neighbors, how do you react? What is your response?

Again, I think that this dog is probably a nervous/anxious type by nature, but not neccessarily aggressive if handled properly. I've seen many nervous dogs who don't have an aggressive bone in their body. Was he extremely affectionate when you got him? Has he been kind of "clingy", needing to be around you and demanding a lot of physical affection?

Mary, get this dog evaluated *in person* by a knowledgeable professional. Key word is *knowledgeable*. You don't have to have any credentials to call yourself a dog trainer, and beware of so called trainers that will tell you what you want to hear just to get your business. If it sounds to good to be true, it probably is.

And one last thing; don't allow pride to stand in your way of accepting valid information. We have all made embarassing mistakes with our dogs; no trainer with any amount of experience hasn't. You won't be able to make any progress until you own up to your handling mistakes.

Jason,

Actually a dog with weak nerves will often times put on quite a show, like growling, barking, hackles raised, teeth shown and charging then retreating. When stood up to though they will fold, or bite out of fear if backed into a corner.

Also, when the friend stuck her hand in the window to pet him, was this a friend who the dog has seen before and was familiar with or was it not? Was the dog growling before the friend stuck her hand in or did it all happen so quick that the friend couldn't get her hand out in time. Obviously only an idiot would stick their hand into a window to pet a growling dog.

JParker,

I agree with a lot of what you say in your last post. At times I can be a bit impulsive on the board. Fortunately I give things a lot more thought before I act when it comes to my dogs! One thing I have to clarify is that any time I mention the word "severe" when it comes to prong collar corrections, I really should use the word "strong". I agree that any time a correction is used it must be fair. Only in the case of the dog showing agression towards someone in the form of a snap or a bite do I mean that a "severe" correction is needed. Not every time the dog should bark at someone. I may come across a little rough sometimes but I truly do strive to be fair at all times. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Chuck,
Thanks for that clarification. I'm not opposed to using corrections; they have their place. I'm just hesitant to prescribe that as *the* remedy for any behavior problem, when so many undesireable behaviors are actually taught/reinforced, albeit unintentionally, or are a result of an imbalanced dog/handler relationship. We probably agree more than we disagree!

So true. I think that the great thing about this board is that it provokes thought. Sometimes after you read the original post and some of the follow ups a couple of times its like "oh yeah...that makes sense now!" I think in this case we truly have a dog with weak nerves to begin with, followed by some pretty clear mistakes made by the handler. The main goal has to be to insure that the dog can be safe.(I cringe thinking about that 17 month old!)Good posts.

Mary and Dimitri,

I echo what JParker said in his earlier post.
Definately don't beat yourself up. The dog is not genetically sound to begin with and most of us have messed up a dog or two at some point in our lives. We all make mistakes. Good luck.

Yeah, I'd be concerned about the child too, but I'm still not quite clear on the nature of the aggression. It sounds like territorial aggression mostly (barking from his yard at the neighbors, and biting a person who reached into the car), but again, it's hard to say from the information that has been given, as it's not all that clear (is he also barking and lunging at strangers when being walked?). A dog who is territorial won't neccessarily see a small child as a threat; though it is completely possible. I would be concerned about the child trying to take a toy from him, or dropping a piece of food and then trying to pick it up, or even surprising him while he's sleeping. But just the presence of a small child, known or unknown, wouldn't neccessarily trigger an aggressive response.

Generally, my understanding is that territorial aggression is a symptom of a lack of strong and consistent leadership. In other words, Dimitri does not see Mary as the leader in this relationship, or does not trust her to make the decision whether or not the property needs protecting.

Of course, I could be way off base, and this dog could be a genetic basket case, and no matter what kind of handler he had, he could be aggressive. It's just not possible to evaluate over the net.

Hm. Double post, and I can't find the "delete" button.

When he barks at the nieghbors, I tell me "NO", and I put him in a down stay. Sometimes he listens, and sometimes not. He is was more curious than affectionate, but now I guess yes, you could call him clingy, I can't leave a room without him following, even if he had been asleep. If I close the door behind me he just whines.

No, Dimitri did not growl, or even offer a sign of aggression to my friend until her had made contact to pet, and she didn't have enough time to pull away her hand.

Dimitri does not lunge at stranges when I walk him. He will stop, growl, sometimes bark, and stare at them until they are on down the road.

Dimitri, and Trinity (the 17 month old child) get along just fine. She can take the ball from his mouth and throw it, though it doesn't go too far. When she gives him a treat he takes it gently from her hand. I don't worry about her dropping food and the dog taking it because she doesn't eat unless she is in her highchair. Dimitri doesn't sleep when she is over, because I am always moving around to keep up with the child, and he can't stand for me to be out of his sight.

Mary,

I have been watching this thread for awhile now. I have a couple of observations. One I get the feeling that you are a little unsure about training in general. The very first thing that will help most problems is a sound foundation in obedience. At this age there should be no time that the dog won't follow an obedience command. So my first recomendation would be to take him to an experienced trainer that works with protection breeds.

The next thing that strikes me is that this dog doesn't seem to have a clear set of guidelines. At 6 mo old I am curious why the dog is outside at 3 am? I would have the dog still in a crate. One of the things the dog needs to understand is that there will be times he has to be alone. Crate time is good for this. I know this may sound like closing the proverbial barn door, but part of the reason this dog is getting progressivly more clingy is that he has been allowed to. If you respond to him very time he whines and cries he will just become more aggressive about being vocal as you are rewarding it. That will go for the barking also.

At this age you are probably seeing the dog start to take possesion of his territory. That would be the car, house, and you. If you don't demonstrate clear control over the dogs behavior through obedience the dog is left to make his own decisions, and you won't always agree with them. This means that the dog needs to have a clear idea of what you want. Again obedience is how you are going to establish what your expectations are. There should be no question at any time that the dog is expected to follow your direction.

I think that this is not an irreversable problem, but if you don't get and maintain control now these problems will get worse. Get some help from someone that understands protection breeds. Get control, and have a clear understanding of what you want from the dog and make sure you know how to communicate that to the dog.