Two questions...

[ltk202]

Just now, my dog is acting really strange. Anytime he is awake, he usually is very active (ie wanting to play, running around, etc.) but right now he's sitting outside, right in front of the door. I don't know what I did, but I think I might have scared him while he was sleeping. A bug landed on my head and I freaked out (bugs and me don't get along) and he woke up. As soon as that happened he ran into the other room, and wouldn't come back to the room I was in. I don't know if that was really the cause of it, but he isn't his normal self.

Another problem I've been having with him is that he never gets along with other dogs. I don't socialize him with other dogs too much, but the only reason why is that every dog (and I mean every dog) he's ever met, they always snap back at him. I don't know how to make him act better around other dogs without actually making other dogs angry.

Any help?

He is going to be a year old, neutered Shepard mix.

 

[Renee750il]

It will help a great deal if we know some of his background. How long have you had him, was he a rescue, etc. Some of this may come from his background and will just need some work to desensitize him.

Right now, you need to go to him with lots of affection and kind, soft voiced talking and maybe a favorite treat or two to let him know he hasn't done anything wrong and you're not mad at him. It really sounds like somewhere along the line someone was physically harsh with him.

Let us know more about him so we can help the two of you more effectively.

 

[ltk202]

My family adopted him from the pound when he was about 3 months old, so we've had him for about 9 months. He's starting to act normal again, so now he's the hyper dog he's always been. I don't know what got into him last night, but he seems to be fine now.

We're the only owners he's ever had aside from the owners who left him and his mother at the pound, and we've aren't abusive to him in anyway.

Right now I'm more concerned about socializing him with other dogs. I'm planning on taking him to an obedience class during the summer, and I don't want any problems with him being around other dogs.

 

[Doberluv]

To be really effective, socialization needs to take place by the time they're 16 weeks old. It is important to continue though, throughout life. Your pup had some bad experiences with other dogs. That definitely doesn't help. But dogs can't possibly like all dogs and they don't need to. If you go to class, your trainer may help you with some desensatizing. Or class may be too overwhelming for your dog. If you can show him dogs from a bit of a distance, where he can see them, but is not feeling threatened by them, give him some treats and try to associate dogs with good things. He can learn to focus on you intently when commanded so hopefully you can divert his attention from other dogs when you need to. He may never like other dogs, but as long as he learns to be ok and calm, that's about all you can ask for. Dogs simply don't always like other dogs.

My Doberman use to like all other dogs, was in classes during puppyhood, but he's maturing now and has recently become quite dog aggressive to some dogs he sees. And others he's eager to play with. I have some work cut out for me in that department. He doesn't need to like all dogs or be taken up close to random dogs, but he does need to learn to control himself and not lunge from the leash as he has just started doing.

 

[Renee750il]

Poor guy. Anything could have happened to him during those first three months of his life. I'd guess his puppyhood may have been pretty hard.

You're going to have to approach his training with soft voices and gentle treatment to get him over those reactions.

Desensitizing him from a distance to start with is definitely a good idea.

As far as socializing goes, I'm not sold on the traditional "16 weeks" viewpoint. Charley's paranoid about not taking the dogs away from the house until they're older pups (although I did slip Kharma out a time or two at 3 1/2 months), but socialization has been very successful for my two Filas so far, and they're one of the more difficult of the breeds to socialize around humans. I think it depends more on the individual dog as well as the messages he/she picks up from you.

Yours sounds like he mainly needs lots of encouragement and work on self confidence.

 

[ltk202]

Would getting another dog help him with his socialization problems? My parents and I have been speaking about this, and they seemed convienced that getting another dog would help him. They aren't sure what kind of dog to get though (I was thinking a small dog, but my dog is pretty big, so he might end up hurting a small dog). If I were to adopt a pet from a shelter, would it be a good idea to take my dog along as well to see if the dogs would get along?

 

[Saje]

Would getting another dog help him with his socialization problems? My parents and I have been speaking about this, and they seemed convienced that getting another dog would help him. They aren't sure what kind of dog to get though (I was thinking a small dog, but my dog is pretty big, so he might end up hurting a small dog). If I were to adopt a pet from a shelter, would it be a good idea to take my dog along as well to see if the dogs would get along?

I can only tell you my experience with this. My dog Mikey is a bit dog aggressive. But he is fine with Maverick (my other dog). He likes some dogs but not in his yard, near me or any other member of the pack. Some dogs he just does not like. Period. He knows how to be a dog. He's very social with Maverick. They play all the time. Maverick 'tunes him in' when he gets too rough or annoying and he's fine with that. I don't think getting another dog is going to 'cure' him and make him more social. He may just accept that dog as family and continues to not like others.

I could be wrong though that is just my (one) experience on the subject.

Plus, if you got another dog, particularly if it was a young one, then you will have to spend more time on the two of them and someone will probably be left behind.