I have done several searches and read all the threads that I could find, but I don't think they have covered what my particular problem is. If I am wrong I apologize!

Here is the issue--I have a 14 week old Mal who was charged by two dogs recently. I wrote about it here (I didn't handle it perfectly, but I've lived and learned) and ever since then she barks at...everything. If we are walking and a dog barks in the distance, if she sees a dog, if she sees a child, a bike, a jogger...she barks and the fur on her back stands up. She even goes to run towards the offending person/canine. My interpretation is that she doesn't understand that I will protect her, and she feels the need to do the job.

I have been attempting to distract her with food or a toy, but often she (now) ignores my attempts until we are quite far away. This is a sharp pup who I am diligently attempting to socialize, slowly, and I don't want to waste precious time keeping her isolated.

I have the new Pack Structure DVD, we are working on that. But now if she is laying quietly in her crate and she hears a child outside she starts barking! I've never had a yappy dog before, and I just don't know how to handle it. She is usually wonderful in her crate, she sits calmly to come out, sits before doors. I guess my question is, do I just assume that as our pack structure is stabilized, will she grow out of this? Or should I be correcting her? Or making her feel 'safer' somehow? It is to the point where I can't walk her early in the morning in our neighborhood, for fear the neighbors will be irritated.

Thank you for any suggestions.

Kim,
It doesn't sound like fear to me, not the way you described. I could be wrong but I think if it were fear based, she may still bark like crazy but she would rather be kind of stuck to your leg or maybe even a little behind you. That she is willing to go and take on what she feels threatened by, I would take as a good sign of what she's made of.
If she's somewhat sharp, so what. She's still very young so be careful with this pack structure stuff. Patience is of first order right now. Once she learns to trust you, things will even out nicely (if you do your job), trust me. You can start shaping and imprinting now, but play and bonding for the next few weeks are what is important.
She doesn't sound afraid to me.
Have fun!
Randy

Hi Kim,

Is it possible she is feeding off of your energy? Are you as relaxed as you were when you walked her before the dog charging incident? IMO she is young to have generalized that one incident to so many different scenarios unless she is receiving feedback from you that you might not even be aware you are sending. That being said, since I have no Mal experience I could be completely wrong and there are so many here with that experience, I'm sure they can advise better about that.

In the mean time, do not dwell on what transpired...she doesn't; and continue the work from the Pack Structure DVD.

Goodluck

Take it easy with the pack structure at this age. It really isn't crucial that she be 100% on structure right now. If she's a little firecracker right now, that's probably ok. Don't encourage the behavior, but at this age don't take drastic steps to change her, either.

It sounds like she's got some pretty good traits, I'd continue to do the imprinting that you're doing, when she gets barky ignore it, reward her giving you attention, and make a log of her progress over the next 4 weeks. I really think she'll stabilize on her own, and even if she doesn't, this is an inappropriate time to correct that sort of behavior. You really dont' want to correct the "Boldness" out of her, just because you don't want her barking at everything, right?

In a post a few months ago, Cindy says she likes hard dogs that get their dander up faster as puppies. She sees it as sharpness, and a great attribute for a PPD prospect or sport dog.

Kim,
Are you sure she is fear barking?

Ember seems to be the same way by what you are describing, and I just make sure to be extra alert when I have her out where there might be a distraction like that.
She is not that way with people, but other dogs, she thinks she can take them. (we are working on that)

What are you using for treats to get her attention? Raw ground turkey is Em's thing. One whiff and hearing the bag in my pocket and I have her FULL attention. She will look at other stuff, but looks right back at me.

Maybe try a different reward?

I am working a little bit of pack leadership, but we are concentrating on her and I stuff now.

Hmm. OK, maybe not fear. I'm thrilled that she has guts and I don't want to stifle that. Perhaps it is a coincidence that she started doing this after the two-dog incident. Maybe she's just older and a little more confident.

I have been using cooked chicken for treats, but this is a pup that will eat ANYTHING (she eats 1.5 pounds of meat a day, plus a kong filled with salmon and yogurt, and she's still skinny as can be).

This pup is such an anomaly to me--one minute she is a bit scared of new things, and the next she is this 18 pound toughie who bosses everyone around.

Her newest thing is that when we walk, especially if it's dark or a new place, she holds the leash in her mouth and walks ahead. I figure if it gives her more confidence, who cares? It seems like she's trying to act like the protector.

Carol, how are you 'working' on Ember's desire to take on other dogs? Mika is exactly like that.

Thanks for the advice, everyone. I will lighten up (again) and get better treats.

 Quote: Kim Condon

Carol, how are you 'working' on Ember's desire to take on other dogs? Mika is exactly like that.

I will PM you when I get home. It's a secret....hee hee

Oh yeah, Ember is a picky little shit, if it ain't raw, or real people food, she ain't touching it