Hello again Jane,
I have had a fairly stressful time work wise since January/February, so maybe she's picked up on that? We were burgled four weeks ago.
Dogs are so quick at picking up on our moods and worries. When my late father was suffer from Alzheimer's it really blew poor Lucy's mind. She was really flaky. At the times when he went into respite care she soon settled, but when he returned home she was always so pleased to see him, but within minutes would realise nothing had changed and would leave the room, refusing to come back in until he went to bed. Stress takes dogs in different ways. Some retire into their shells, some literally get so worried that they will lash out at anything.
The first few times she did it was when she was on lead and so I thought that was the trigger, but now doesn't appear to be the case. I hadn't thought about the sex of the dog, so maybe I'll try and keep a watch on that one.
The lead could have been the initial trigger, but once started it can progress.
I hadn't thought about the sex of the dog, so maybe I'll try and keep a watch on that one.
With a bitch, I would expect the biggest problems to be with another bitch. But I'd not rule out bitch to dog aggression. It's not as clear cut as it tends to be with dogs, who rarely attack a bitch!
It does appear to come and go, almost like maybe a grumpy hormonal teenager - do they remove ovaries when they are spayed or just uterus?
It's interesting you say that, there are differing techniques used these days when neutering a bitch. In the old days a vet would remove everything, but these days sometimes a vet just removes the ovaries because it's less invasive. This is perfectly satisfactory because a bitch is born with all the ovaries she will ever posses, no new ovaries develop later so once they are removed the bitch is sterile. But with both techniques sometimes little pieces of tissue are left and a bitch can get hormonal at times when she would otherwise be coming into season. So unusual, but not impossible.
Thinking of the most recent cases that she has done it:-
A staffie off lead in the woods whom she approached fairly slowly, and it responded by putting down a stick and doing the normal sniffing to greet. When it picked up the stick she also tried to pick it up and it started growling so she went for it. Yes I know that was about possession of a stick and 50/50 but still quite scary when she had to be dragged away.
Two miniature poodles. All three on leads. The poodle barked nervously as she started to approach to sniff and Lily went mad and had to be pulled back and walk away.
A small white ?? Took her by suprise and we left our driveway - appeared from behind the wall and was suddenly in her path. Pulled back and then because I know the owner was allowed to gently say hello and all was fine.
Another staffie on lead on fairly narrow pavement. We had met before with no problem. But on this ocassion she simply went straight for it.
A smallish sheepdog-ish type of dog - again on lead, again we had met before with no problem.
Several other incidences in the woods with bigger dogs, but usually she then puts her hackles up and when called comes running to me in fear.
So it appears from that she's prepared to have a go at what she sees as within her capabilities, but is aware of her limitations! This is again born out by what you said in your latest post. This is a useful piece of information and tends to bare out the "Nervous Agression" theory.
Within minutes of leaving home we met the two miniature poodles. All three dogs on lead and walking at normal pace towards each other. Because of what had happened the other week when we met them, I got a treat out for Lily and said "What's this" she focussed on it and we kept walking with her still focussed on the treat. However when we got level she suddenly pulled and barked. I said "No" and kept walking and put the treat back in my pocket. SHe continued to walk with me looking for the treat - which she didn't get.
As we entered the woods, she was off lead and we were approached by a rottweiler cross which was on lead, so I again got a treat out and got Lily focussed on it. This time she walked past perfectly and was rewarded with the treat.
In the early days, she would run up to other dogs with great enthusiasm wanting to play. I don't recall having told her off. It used to be great fun watching her desperately wanting to play and the joy when she found another dog that responded and would play chase. If the dog didn't want to play, I would simply walk on and call her to me and give her a treat when she got to me. So No, I don't recall having told her off for running up to other dogs in the early stages.
I imagine you can guess my thinking when I asked that question, but it does happen so often. Dog runs up to another, owner calls it back sounding worried/scared, dog thinks there is something to be scared about and decides to get the first bite in!
So, lets look at what you can do. Ian mentioned tensing up, and that is so important for a couple of reasons. Firstly it tells your dog that you believe there is something to worry about, but secondly it also tells your dog that you believe you are not in control of the situation. It is important that you present a calm, confident appearance, showing you are in control of the situation.
Distraction techniques are good, but you need to be very careful that you are rewarding the right thing. And it's so easy to get it wrong. Take this scenario. Your dog rushes up to another. It's owner grabs it and being small lifts it up out of the way, You call Lily, who returns to you so you reward her for returning. But what does she think? "Wow, I did the right thing there by chasing that other dog off, mum was so pleased she rewarded me with a treat!" Can you see what I mean? It's so easy for us to read something totally different to the dog!
With repeated occurrences, I have become more stressed and yes I have screamed "Lily" in fear as I have had to go in to get hold of her and pull her away from the situation. Maybe I should just call her to me and reward her, but I don't think she would come, she becomes so focussed on the other dog, and I have to say fear overwhelms me and rational thought goes out of the window and then I become cross and grumpy with her for the next part of our walk.
I can quite understand this reaction on your part, but can Lily? It's so easy for her to think, "Mum's frightened to, so I was right to get the first bite in! As to calling her away and rewarding her, Would she relate the reward to coming away, or would she still be thinking of going in and relate the reward to that?
So you can see how easy it is to inadvertently make a situation worse. Dogs don’t tend to think around corners, so what seems perfectly logical to us, particularly when combined with a language we understand, can mean something totally different to a dog when the words we are saying are little more than sounds to her. Take as an example "I have screamed "Lily" in fear." At that point Lily would have been between you and the other dog. In other words, you screamed in fear at the other dog! Can you see how that could have been misinterpreted? To get yourself between the two dogs, facing Lily and with your back to the other dog, and using a commanding (even angry) voice would have left her with no doubt who was getting the rollocking! Particularly if she is on the lead you can pull her back so you can turn across in front of her in order to be facing her as you tell her in good old "Anglo Saxon" exactly what you think of her!! It's important that you leave her in no doubt that it is her who you blame! Immediately this has the desired effect lighten up. Dont nag! You are aiming at maximum difference in tone between right and wrong. I would not treat at that point at all. As to treats, If you tell her to leave as you approach a dog, and she's good, then treat as soon as you are past. I'd make sure she knows I have the treat, but she must earn it, and she must learn to recognise the fact that it has to be earned.
Which brings me nicely to another technique which is so useful in these cases. It's called NILIF (Nothing In Life Is Free.) Basically this is exactly what it is. Everything has a cost and everything has to be paid for. This does not necessarily mean the dog must do something for a titbit,(although it can) rather there are all sorts of ways it can earn a reward. Sit quietly whilst food is put in the bowl and placed on the floor, the reward is the food. Sit quietly to have the lead put on, the reward is going for a walk. Sit quietly whilst the lead is removed, and possibly do a short bit of off lead heelwork, the reward is some off lead running. All this is aimed at making compliance with your instructions seem worthwhile until it becomes second nature. Have a read of this
http://k9deb.com/nilif.htm
Joan mentioned leads and how these can cause apprehension, as Lins says, if it's flight or fight, if the lead is preventing flight then fight is the only alternative. But this not only applies to leads. Anything which places an obstruction to flight has the same effect. It could, for example, be us ordering our dog to sit whilst another dog sniffs around it. The nervous dog is not a lot different to the nervous person. What it wants is someone it believes it can rely on. Someone who can protect it. Someone who can make everything right. The very thing I've been talking about all the way through this post. Quiet calm handler presenting a confident appearance and expecting immediate obedience. Again this is an area where NILIF can help. You are aiming at being the most important thing in your dog's life.
Regards, John