puppy fear agression??

Hello all,
I’m new to this board and would like to ask your opinion on my pup’s behaviour, because to be frank today he really freaked me out. Sorry if this is a long post but I know its hard to judge a dog without having seen him, so I’ll try and give as much info as possible.

Monkey is 8 months now and I’ve had him since he was 10 weeks. We went to puppy class, did LOADS of socialisation (i.e. new people, dogs and places every day). Up until about a month ago he was a very confident and gregarious young man – if anything a bit over-eager in his interest in everyone, but hardly ever scared.

Once in a while (maybe once a month) he would bark or try to lunge at someone in the street out of insecurity. There was no particular pattern to it, the people were young, old, male, female and of different ethnicities, all one-off’s. At home, he would typically bark excitedly when he heard someone at the door, but and when I let them in he’d instantly be quiet and accept them with a wagging tail.

For about a month now I have noticed that he is getting increasingly more tense and anxious on walks, especially at night, which is why I make a point of taking him out after dark every day now. From perhaps one barking incident a month we’re now down to one a day – again, no pattern, something just freaks him out. It is always humans as well, he never reacts badly to other dogs, even if they are acting aggressively towards him.

On top of this, we have moved town two weeks ago as I have a new job. We’re staying with a friend until I have my own place, and Monkey has accepted the friend without issues. Out and about, he is quite skittish at the moment, but I put this down to the new place and thought it would pass as soon as he’s settled in.

But: here it comes. Today, my housemate gave his keys to a friend of his to borrow some kitchen equipment. When Monkey heard her at the door he barked as usual and I went outside with him to see who it was. I should have realised then and there that his barking wasn’t excited but hostile, but after a few minutes he settled down with his rawhide, the friend went to potter around the kitchen and I thought it was fine.

Wrong. After about 15 mins she appears in the door to “our” room and asks me a question. We exchange a few sentences when suddenly Monkey (who apparently hadn’t noticed her approaching) jumps to his feet barking, lunges, and actually nips her on the belly!

I quickly jumped in between, shooed him back and to his place and told him to down and stay, which he did. The nip did not leave a mark and the friend apologised for freaking out the dog while I apologised for the dogs inacceptable behaviour – after a lot of mutual apologising she left (with a wary look on Monkey, can’t blame her).

And I must say I’m VERY freaked out just now. It was probably my fault to start with - If I had assumed for one second he would try to bite a person I would not have had him loose around the house in the first place, but he has never reacted like this before. Is this just the effect of the move or the beginning of serious fear aggression? A possessive/territorial thing (no one else has entered our “new” room so far)? Adolescent fear stage? Whatever it is, I need to do something about it – but I understand that depending on the type of aggression there are different ways forward.

I would really appreciate your opinions and thanks for reading this far.
Thanks! F

[J&J]

He's still very unsettled with his new surroundings etc... Big move for a young pup..

I would go back to basic training, and do introduction with new people etc same as you did when he was a pup.. with a lot of basic training etc...

[TiasDad]

I think that when out on walks and you see people approaching, you may be getting a little anxious, anticipating the reaction from Monkey who, in turn, senses your mood and either goes into protective mode or feels stressed himself. You need to be calm but firm and talk him through these situations with a soothing voice and calming touch. Then give him lots of fuss when he gets it right

[Stuart]

It difficult to know why Monkey started this before the move, but I agree, that the move is at the heart of this latest problem, everything is new to him except you, you are the only link to his past place,..if he sees the move as something he doesnt like, then he is going to see you as the one thing in the world that he wants to protect, the only link to the old place.

This of course would have been his second big move, the first was from him mum and siblins, people often have these kind of problems after getting a new dog home.

A new place,..so I think a new start is probably called for,..so get him back to classes and start again with people who know what they are doing,..and explain to them the problems you are having

...and let us know how you get on

[Tedsmum]

I totally agree with what has been said.
The unsettling effect of the move, a difficult time in his life in terms of his age and strangers to cope with too.
I would not become overly worried that you have an aggressive dog but having said that, it does need work and cannot be ignored.
The nipping your friend seems to me to be purely over guarding and you must be vigilant about this as he is feeling the need to protect your room and you in his confused state.
Being in a different part of town with unfamiliar routes to walk has prompted him to be insecure about being out at night. If you can get a stooge or two to approach him and give him a treat in the street it would be good. Or go to an area like a bus station etc where there are lots of people coming and going and just sit on a bench and people watch.
Like Jo says, back to basics is the key. You have put in some good ground work so far but you now need to reinforce all he has learnt on a dialy basis for it to set in his mind. x

[zetstaff]

Agree, back to basics.

As an aside, rawhide chews can be extremely dangerous for dogs, a couple of mine have almost choked on them + I never give rawhide now ever

The dog sounds insecure to me. Re-establish boundaries with obedience both in and out of your home. And ditch the rawhide as Tracey says, there's better chews

[wildmoor]

he is going through the second critical fear period it varies slightly but in GSDs around 6-12 month
you need to go back to basics join a training club as this will boost his confidence, be matter of fact about strange encounters - basically go back and do the same you did in the 8-12 wk stage, otherwise he could have this fear of people for life, dont force contact but gradualy build his contact with people start of distance first - he could be worse during encounters in the dark - make sure all encounters are positive get people to talk to you but act as if the dog isnt there, no eye contact, touch or talking to the dog untill his confidence around humans as been rebuilt

Thank you all for your kind replies - you're making some very good points. Stuart, you've really made me think (and a little bit sad too) - its true, I'm putting a lot on the poor little bugger just now, especially if he is really going through a fear stage as well. I suppose I just expected him to know that here the same rules apply as back home but I'll need to re-establish them all from scratch.

I've got in touch with a local trainer and will look around for group sessions as well - he needs some new friends (doggy and human) and he needs to realise I'm not the only friend he has around here. Also, that there is no need to guard me as guarding us is my job for now.

We'll take it slow for now, find some new routines - I'll keep you posted on progress (and no more rawhide).

regards, f

[zetstaff]

Originally Posted by MeAndMyMonkey

Thank you all for your kind replies - you're making some very good points. Stuart, you've really made me think (and a little bit sad too) - its true, I'm putting a lot on the poor little bugger just now, especially if he is really going through a fear stage as well. I suppose I just expected him to know that here the same rules apply as back home but I'll need to re-establish them all from scratch.

I've got in touch with a local trainer and will look around for group sessions as well - he needs some new friends (doggy and human) and he needs to realise I'm not the only friend he has around here. Also, that there is no need to guard me as guarding us is my job for now.

We'll take it slow for now, find some new routines - I'll keep you posted on progress (and no more rawhide).

regards, f