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4 Posts
Hi everyone,
I'm having a number of problems that are all cropping up kind of at once. I have an australian shepherd named Moro who I've had since he was 9 weeks old that is now 8 months old. I have been socialising him and taking him to classes since he was old enough to safely do so. Recently he graduated a basic manners class after completing puppy kindergarten. He gets along well with other pets and people and is friendly to approach strangers and strange dogs. However, the older he gets, the less interested he is in what I have to say.
I have noticed that instead of finding a dog that likes him that wants to play, sometimes he will fixate on a dog that does not want to play with him, get right up in that dog's face and bark a shrill, "demanding" bark, sticking to it like glue and annoying the crap out of it until that dog either finds the kutzpah to tell him off or gets called away and leashed by their owner. He will also play "police" and get between two dogs playing rough and bark them down in their faces. When he is fixated on these activities he is impossible to recall. I could have the tastiest cooked chicken in my pocket and he will not care. This has started to develop in the last few weeks to begin making me anxious taking him to the park, and my fears were realized yesterday when I brought him to the park and he decided there was a dog he wanted to play with that didn't want to play with him, the barking started, his owner got upset with me, and when my dog got within arms reach of this person he decked my dog in the face. I took my dog and went home and we are not going back until I can figure out what to do. His barking doesn't seem to be aggressive, there is no snarling, growling, or snapping, but it looks very confrontational and I can see why other owners watching this would get upset. It's like my aussie can't "read the room". What's worse is that his brain seems to just be on fire around some dogs and I cease to have control of the situation.
Suggestions welcome. I'm in between classes for monetary reasons and when I have money for class he will be taking individual lessons from a behaviorist. Until then I feel like I can't just sit and do nothing. He has an endless well of energy and without playing at the park I need to figure out how to keep him happy because at home he is an insufferable demanding and loud annoyance, and it's sucking the joy out of my ownership experience.
I'm having a number of problems that are all cropping up kind of at once. I have an australian shepherd named Moro who I've had since he was 9 weeks old that is now 8 months old. I have been socialising him and taking him to classes since he was old enough to safely do so. Recently he graduated a basic manners class after completing puppy kindergarten. He gets along well with other pets and people and is friendly to approach strangers and strange dogs. However, the older he gets, the less interested he is in what I have to say.
I have noticed that instead of finding a dog that likes him that wants to play, sometimes he will fixate on a dog that does not want to play with him, get right up in that dog's face and bark a shrill, "demanding" bark, sticking to it like glue and annoying the crap out of it until that dog either finds the kutzpah to tell him off or gets called away and leashed by their owner. He will also play "police" and get between two dogs playing rough and bark them down in their faces. When he is fixated on these activities he is impossible to recall. I could have the tastiest cooked chicken in my pocket and he will not care. This has started to develop in the last few weeks to begin making me anxious taking him to the park, and my fears were realized yesterday when I brought him to the park and he decided there was a dog he wanted to play with that didn't want to play with him, the barking started, his owner got upset with me, and when my dog got within arms reach of this person he decked my dog in the face. I took my dog and went home and we are not going back until I can figure out what to do. His barking doesn't seem to be aggressive, there is no snarling, growling, or snapping, but it looks very confrontational and I can see why other owners watching this would get upset. It's like my aussie can't "read the room". What's worse is that his brain seems to just be on fire around some dogs and I cease to have control of the situation.
Suggestions welcome. I'm in between classes for monetary reasons and when I have money for class he will be taking individual lessons from a behaviorist. Until then I feel like I can't just sit and do nothing. He has an endless well of energy and without playing at the park I need to figure out how to keep him happy because at home he is an insufferable demanding and loud annoyance, and it's sucking the joy out of my ownership experience.