I am looking for the appropriate class to enroll my dog (Puma) in. I have a suspicion that she might need to be in the "Brats Class." She is a super sweet dog to me and my husband (we are separated and she lives with him temporarily). She is incredibly skittish around pretty much anyone else and has been since she was born. Ironically enough there was a puppy in the litter after her that turned out exactly the same. She is a year and a half and a bull mastiff mix. She is approx. 85 pounds. She gets along fine with her sister (black lab) but she has a little trouble with other dogs. I know I probably shouldn't have waited so long but I really need help. Like I said she is fine with us but she won't even go near my father in law who is living in the house. The vet highly recommended training and your organization. Please let me know if there is room in the class, I would like to sign her up. She has been spayed and is current on her rabies shot. Thank you.
my response:
I can meet with you at 7:30 next week. Please bring her in on whatever collar you usually use for her. If you normally use a training collar that's fine, but also bring a plain flat buckle collar as well.
Please do not feed her dinner before you come in and bring small soft treats with you such as cut up cheese, hot dogs, or small commercial soft treats.
Do you or have you ever had to muzzle her? Has she ever bitten a person, dog or other animal? Has she tried? Snapped and missed? Grabbed and not broken skin?
You said she is "skittish," what does she do exactly when someone approaches her?
What does she do if your father in law approaches her?
She "has a little trouble with other dogs;" would you please elaborate on that?
I'm just trying to get a feel for what I'm looking at with her. Has she had any training at all? Where, when and with whom?
Of course, now that I've said next Monday, I could also meet with you sometime this week if you are able to come out to the Fairport area between 5 and 6 on Tuesday or Wednesday.
Thanks,
Michelle
her:
Ok I will bring her at 7:30pm next Monday.
The vet made me put a muzzle on her the last time I brought her about a month ago because she snapped at them when they tried to examine her. Basically she tried to get away from them into the corner of the room and when they came towards her she snapped.
She has never bitten anyone or grabbed them.
I can give you an example of skittish. The last time I brought her to my parents house (they have three little dogs) she wouldn't let any of them (my parents or brother) get close to her. She would come up and kind of sniff them but if they tried to pet her she would run away. She did snap at my brother too. She liked him before so I don't understand that. She used to be skittish around men moreso than women but now it is both.
She is getting worse with my father-in-law. At first she would just run away from him to the other side of the room and/or bark. Now my husband said she just worked herself up the other day so much she peed in the house which she never ever does. He's tried to give her treats and let her sniff him and put her at ease like the Vet suggested but she appears to hate him and has since the moment we brought her home. Ace (the black lab) LOVES my father in law and is always around him when he gets home. But Puma wants no part of him.
She gets along fine with all of the dogs at my sister in laws house. My sister in law has Puma's mom and dad and some other puppies. She gets along with my parents little dogs for the most part. Only sometimes she is a little more energetic than they can take because they are older. Like I said my husband has another dog (black lab) and they get along almost all the time. They scuffle once in a while but the rest of the time they play and seem to have a great time. I took her out on a walk with my friends and their dogs and she was really bad and tried to bite them (the other dogs) but then when I brought her to meet with the dogs again at a BBQ the next week, they all played and she was absolutely fine.
It is so strange though. With my husband and me she is like a big baby she kisses us all the time. She goes on long runs with my husband and is so happy to play in the backyard. She is like a different dog.
She has never had any training and I'm hoping that it isn't too late to help her correct her behavior.
I hope I answered your questions thoroughly enough, if there is anything I missed please let me know. Thank you.
My first concern is that Puma lives with her husband, but she will be bringing her in. The rest of my concerns... well, I think the above pretty much spells them out...
Thoughts? Suggestions? I certainly don't think it's "too late" to correct the behavior, but I'm open to help with mapping out a plan for how to do it.