Is this agression or dominance or just playing ?... video clip

[JR0579]

Hello all,

I have posted a video clip of Roy playing with my wife. His bark and posture are confusing me. I don't know if it's just playing or agression and dominance.
The clip is dark .... 4got to turn the lights on :mad: ... if it's not clear, please let me know and I'll try and do something about it. The link to the clip is below.

Thanks so much
http://ca.geocities.com/roy0579@rogers.com/ (http://ca.geocities.com/roy0579@rogers.com/)

[Doberluv]

I liked your site, but didn't see a video. And the other site says that it's temporarily unavailable. Maybe you can describe his posture and what he's doing in detail.

[amymarley]

I couldn't see the video...

Maybe describe the actions and body language of the dog.

Different breeds/mutts show different behavior and have different body language to a point. They are all canines and pack animals, but they also have their own personalities, obsessive behavior, quirks etc....

If you see a "play bow" going on, it's most likely o.k., but then there are several issues that can be going on. Is your wife a "toy" to your dog. If you have a "strong dog" than you must let you wife know that she has to be stronger.

If I was evaluating the situation, I may tend to "speak" to your wife, and not your dog... if that makes any sense (and no, there is no disrespect in that at all). Some people just don't know canine behavior and psychology. Then I would have a "play date" with your wife and dog to see the interaction. Your wife is human, your dog ....well, is a dog, and I would have to reinforce a behavior plan to your wife to teach your precious pet. Give us more input since we cant see the video. Good luck.

[Martoch]

How large is the file? I can brighten/adjust contrast of videos...I'll give it a shot with yours if you'd like. Looks like you've reached your xfer limit at the moment...

[JR0579]

It's kind of difficult to give a verbal description. Besides, the pitch of the bark is one of the things I'd like to get an opinion on. Martoch has generously offered to help ... so hopefully something can be done to improve the clip quality.

In the meantime, I'll try and do my best.

1. Tail : A little higher than horizontal with a little wag.
2. Body : Straight but not stiff
3. Head : A little lower than the body and the tail.
4. Ears : Pricked
5. Eyes : Focused but not staring
6. Bark : High pitched and loud with some teeth showing.

AnimalBiz : To answer your questions, although I do have a strong dog, my wife and I have made sure that he knows his place in the "pack". He does the same thing with me as well but not as often.

[sheps4me]

What kind of play is your wife doing with Roy? Tug? Throwing a ball? Understanding how your wife plays with Roy might help shed some light on his reactions.

[JR0579]

What kind of play is your wife doing with Roy? Tug? Throwing a ball? Understanding how your wife plays with Roy might help shed some light on his reactions.


Sometimes, she fakes being asleep and snoring :) other times meowing like a cat or growling ... his response is the same

[filarotten]

the video was to dark. All I could see was an occasional dark shadow bouncing around.

[Martoch]

He's going to send me the original .mov format of the movie and I'll do what I can to brighten it and save it as a .wmv for you guys to see on my web space (no file xfer limit). If it's still too dark (most likely the case), he's going to get more video with better lighting and send me that file for rendering.
;)

[sheps4me]

Sometimes, she fakes being asleep and snoring :) other times meowing like a cat or growling ... his response is the same

I'm not sure that I would consider that "play". It almost sounds like she's trying to provoke a reaction from him. Maybe Roy is confused and even a bit alarmed by the strange sounds coming from your wife. The high-pitched barking could be a combination of play and a bit of defense/fear due to the odd behavior. Not trying to be critical, but it might be better for the relationship between your wife and Roy if she played more constructive games with him, like two-ball or motivational obedience.

[DanL]

It doesn't sound like aggression but more like frustration, based on what I can hear on the clip (Can't see it either). Like sheps4me said, your wife is teasing him and she should do other things instead.

[Martoch]

There's just not enough light in the room...here's the brightened video anyway.

http://members.cox.net/mikeishome/aggressivedog.wmv (only 755k)

:)

[JR0579]

Martoch, Thanks for all your help and time you have given to this issue.
Veeeeery much appreciated. Thanks again

[TroyF]

Looks, or more like sounds like a dog being teased. The first video I looked at had the sounds of two dogs. I bet if she stops, the dog will too. :)

[Doberluv]

Ok...I finally could see the video. From what I can tell, I wouldn't worry about that at all. It looks like he wants her to play with him, but she's not playing. So, he's asking and asking. "Come on! Come on! Let's play already." He may be a little frustrated because he'd rather play a more interactive game, but I see no aggression at all there. It shouldn't be that he demands when to play. It should be up to the people in the family, however, it would probably be better to play a game he likes, when you're going to play, like fetch or hide and seek, a toy...something more interactive between dog and person. Dogs like learning tricks as well as obedience skills. Maybe she could teach him a few tricks with lots of fun and reward.

[Martoch]

You're quite welcome!
:)

Glad I was able to make it possible for others to see and help you out...

~Mike

(why can't I edit my previous post?)

[RD]

My dog does the same thing. It's frustration, at least it is with Dakota. My guess is that he just wants her to play with him.

[JR0579]

Thanks to all of you for your help. Very special thanks to Martoch who spent, I think, well over 1.5 hours trying to download and work with the clip to add some light to it to make it visible .... Chazhound.com rocks with awesome people

[Molly_Moppet]

I don't see any aggression personally. It looks like playfullness and a bit of frustration. My dog has the same body language if her ball rolls under the couch, or i pretend to hide it. His tail would have to be higher, and stiffer if he was being aggressive. He probably wouldn't be moving his feet like that either. Aggressive dogs have a high, stiff tail posture, raised hackles and they usually stay still, or move forward slowly.

[Fuzz Puppy]

Could it be the way your dog is? My dog, Liberty, always hsas his tail up and sort of curled all the time. So it could be the way your dog is.