Hello Dog forum!
I have a hopefully simple question for you all today. Our brand new rescued dog "Noggin" is settling is great so far. We've been together for one week, and he's 90% grat with loose leash, sits, backs, and comes with acceptable reliability for the time we've had him.
My question is really about dog to dog manners. We live in New York City, and there are thousands of dogs, of course. Noggin is a 30 pound, 1.5 year old whippet/boxer mix, and he has 2 tendencies I think are rude and would like advice on how to modify these behaviors.
First, when Noggin sees a dog, he goes into a stalking pose. I do not think he is actually in a predator mind-set, but it does look a little intimidating to humans. He is not an aggressive dog, nor observably over-dominant (I may be wrong.)
Secondly, he tends to "box" with his front paws when they begin playing. This could escalate to mounting, but I stop it so can't be sure. We've only begun to allow him to interact with other dogs, and it's sometimes unavoidable in a city this dense. Also, his hackles do fluff up a bit on some of these chance encounters, but always, the dogs give play bows and get along.
So the stalking look is a rude thing for humans, and it looks like he's hunting. This especially can upset owners of small dogs.
The front paw Boxing is less a problem with larger dogs, but certainly can be dangerous with small dogs. It may actually be a dominant behavior.
Perhaps I am jumping the gun, and Noggin needs to continue to adapt to his new home and neighborhood, and continue gradually meeting and socializing with neighborhood dogs.
We have a few play dates set up and will see how it goes.
Any advice or info is appreciated.
I have a hopefully simple question for you all today. Our brand new rescued dog "Noggin" is settling is great so far. We've been together for one week, and he's 90% grat with loose leash, sits, backs, and comes with acceptable reliability for the time we've had him.
My question is really about dog to dog manners. We live in New York City, and there are thousands of dogs, of course. Noggin is a 30 pound, 1.5 year old whippet/boxer mix, and he has 2 tendencies I think are rude and would like advice on how to modify these behaviors.
First, when Noggin sees a dog, he goes into a stalking pose. I do not think he is actually in a predator mind-set, but it does look a little intimidating to humans. He is not an aggressive dog, nor observably over-dominant (I may be wrong.)
Secondly, he tends to "box" with his front paws when they begin playing. This could escalate to mounting, but I stop it so can't be sure. We've only begun to allow him to interact with other dogs, and it's sometimes unavoidable in a city this dense. Also, his hackles do fluff up a bit on some of these chance encounters, but always, the dogs give play bows and get along.
So the stalking look is a rude thing for humans, and it looks like he's hunting. This especially can upset owners of small dogs.
The front paw Boxing is less a problem with larger dogs, but certainly can be dangerous with small dogs. It may actually be a dominant behavior.
Perhaps I am jumping the gun, and Noggin needs to continue to adapt to his new home and neighborhood, and continue gradually meeting and socializing with neighborhood dogs.
We have a few play dates set up and will see how it goes.
Any advice or info is appreciated.