Seriously Reese!?

[BC Lover]

I was outside working with Reese a bit and we were taking a break and when I went down to pet her she snarled and tried to bite me!! So I screamed no at her and she just showed her teeth at me.

So I thought maybe she is thinking my hand is a bad thing or somthing like that so I put some cookies in my hand and put it down by her and she relaxed a bit but as soon as the cookies were gone she snarled and bit my had so I backed away and she lunged for me knee!

I'm really upset right now! Nothing has changed in her life or anything like that she just..... I don't know. The last thing I want is her biting me and thinking she is in charge.

I have no idea what to do!! Help!!!

 

[mrose_s]

If its sudden change in behavior I'd vet her ASAP and after that look for a behaviorist. It doesn't sound like something that could be solved over a forum, too many factors.

 

[JessLough]

If its sudden change in behavior I'd vet her ASAP and after that look for a behaviorist. It doesn't sound like something that could be solved over a forum, too many factors.

I am seconding this.
I doubt she is doing it to show you that "she is in charge". It is just not the way dogs think.

 

[skittledoo]

I second mrose on this one... vet asap and then behaviorist. Best to try and get to the bottom of this asap, but first thing is first... make sure there isn't something medical going on. Good luck. Keep us updated.

 

[Maxy24]

That is a very sudden and extreme change in behavior. Are you sure she wasn't guarding anything or in any pain?

I mean is she had just done it when you first reached down I could see it as maybe she was startled, but she actually pursued you and that's very concerning.

 

[BC Lover]

Is there anything I can do if she tries it again? I'm going to talk to our old trainer about it too, but she said something about retiring this year I'm very worried about Reese, she hasn't done anything since her episode, but I'm still so worried!

 

[milos_mommy]

This sounds like something that needs more than a trainer's help, I would see a vet ASAP and then a behaviorist....what do you mean "since her episode"?

 

[BC Lover]

What I had said before when she was outside and snapped and bit me.

 

[Dekka]

Really in that situation the best thing to do is what you did, offer food. Getting angry at her and going after her likely will make it worse.

Was she ever suspicous of hands before? If not then I would be getting her into a vet asap and not worrying about a trainer. If this was an underlying problem I would still be getting her to a vet, but make a regular appt (vs trying to get one like tomorrow)

 

[BC Lover]

Yesterday when she snapped she won't let me near her too much, so I just left her alone for a while and let her sleep. There was also a huge storm here yesterday evening with funnel clouds spotted very close to us so she was worked up over that and the thunder.

After she slept for a while I got some cookies and sat down by her runnning my hands all down her, and did some T-touch on her, then she went back to sleep.

I woke her up to put her in her crate to go to sleep and it started all over again.... I opened her crate door and she walked in and I leaned down to close the lock and she showed her teeth, barked and started bitting on the bars of the cage. So I took it back to stage one and fed her cookies through the cage bars and pet her nose with my fingers through the bars also. I opened the cage door gave her a cookie and a big pat and closed the door and she just silently growled, almost just a groan.

Did I handle these correctly? We are still going to take her to her regular vet appointmern and ask about it. I would like to handle these myself and not use a behaviorist because we are really tight for money. I also know you are all going to say would you rather get a behaviorist or get her put down or something along those lines but if I was able to handle this with her it would also show her that I'm in control, not her, which could solve more problems before they start. I will meet half-way though and ask our old trainer about some of these issues.

 

[Taqroy]

Keep in mind that I am not a vet or a behaviorist or anything remotely resembling those two. But, it sounds more like a medical problem than a behavior problem to me. I'd definitely get to the vet and explain what happened and get some tests run.

My Murphy dog (who is the best-natured dog I've ever had) was growling at me a couple months ago for LOOKING at his tail. Seriously, I was checking his tail for burs, no pulling, no combing and he started growling at me. I took him to the vet the next day and it turns out he had a rotten tooth. Super rotten. So rotten that he'd probably been in pain for months and I didn't even notice. I felt like a complete ass. Now that his tooth is pulled he's acting about 5 years younger (and no more growling or grumpy behavior). It's scary when dogs do things like that...but they don't speak English and they have limited ways of expressing themselves that we can understand. It makes sense that they revert to growling when they're scared or worked up or hurting.

 

[Dekka]

but if I was able to handle this with her it would also show her that I'm in control, not her

This sort of thinking will an all likelihood increase her desire to bite you.

From what you are describing it sounds NOTHING like a dog testing boundaries.

 

[Fran101]

I don't know the specifics.. but for a dog to suddenly start acting like that, I would start with ruling out any medical problems. I would take her to the vet ASAP.

 

[mrose_s]

I know you might not have the money atm but if it was an emergency vet appointment I assume you'd find the money. It will probably cost LESS to nip this in the bud now.

There isn't much point in asking for advice on here as no-one has seen the behaviour or personally knows the dog and their usual behaviour, you need someone that can see the dog and understand what is going on, this is even if it IS a behavioural problem and not just something that is unbalanced medically.

Like Dekka said, it doesn't sound like boundary testing, everyone is saying to see and VET NOW and if that doesn't show up anything than behaviourist ASAP.

 

[Zoom]

This is not a "who's in control" issue. A sudden onset of aggressive behavior usually points to some sort of medical issue, even if it's just overwhelming anxiety at all the severe weather that's going on. Trying to force "I'm the boss" is only going to get you really bit, which no one wants.

No one is saying to put her down, we're saying go make sure nothing is physically wrong with her. Issues of this nature, that set in quickly, often have so many random things associated with them that they're impossible to diagnose over the internet. A good behaviorist will be able to spot them. Or talk to your old trainer now before she retires, but only if she's not the type to suggest that you yell and alpha roll a dog for growling and showing teeth. That is NOT going to help this situation.

 

[milos_mommy]

Honestly, this doesn't sound like an issue you can handle yourself because money is tight. If you don't find a behaviorist to figure out exactly what is causing this, you're going to end up with BIG, BIG problems.

Although it really, really does sound like a medical issue because of the very fast onset. Does she have a history of acting aggressively or excessively fearfully towards you during storms?

 

[Dekka]

This could be nothing, or it could be something like a brain tumour...

I had another thought, did you get her from a breeder? If so talk the breeder, perhaps they might know of an issue in the lines that might account for this.

 

[Libbys person]

I wouldn't think of it as a "who's in control" issue. More like a distress signal.

It's possible that she's been giving you subtle "back off!" signals previously, and that you didn't notice, and so it wasn't quite as sudden as you think. But if the behavior change really was that sudden, I agree with everyone that you should take her to the vet immediately - she could be in pain. If there's nothing physically wrong with her, another possibility is a fear reaction. You mentioned the bad storm - it's possible that at some point, there was thunder or other storm scariness right as she saw you moving towards her, and so she might have made an association between you and scary stuff. What you're doing with her is just right for this; re-associate yourself in her mind with good stuff.

Good luck! I can imagine how upset and worried you are. I hope it resolves quickly.

 

[Doberluv]

It may definitely be medical. But just because she hasn't acted this way before and now she is, doesn't mean that it isn't behavioral. This could have been brewing for a long time...her tolerance level could have held off this reaction up until now. That is....if you have been raising her all along with this attitude that you need to be in "control" or she'll think she is the one in charge. (this isn't how dogs work...it's an old myth and it can cause harm) If you have been raising her in a strongly compulsive way or punishing her a lot, this can bring on this kind of behavior. It may not show itself right away, but simmer until the dog finally reacts. This is not to accuse you of mistreatment of your dog, (I don't have enough information to assume that) but simply to bring it up because of some comments you've made about the fallacy of having to show a dog that you're in control. If it's done in a stern, threatening way where the dog feels defensive, it can definitely cause this kind of behavior...maybe not right away, but often it shows itself some time in the future. That's why sometimes people are surprised that "suddenly" their dog's behavior has changed. It's not actually sudden at all. Only the outward signs are sudden.

She may not have shown it before but now she simply came to the end of her tolerance. A different combination and amount of other stressors can contribute to whether a dog goes over the top or not. Maybe all along, other stressors weren't present and she was able to keep under threshold. And then lately, something else has combined to push her past her threshold.

So, barring this...if this hasn't been the case or your relationship hasn't been one where the dog has been "shown who's boss" in a threatening, punishing manner, then it could be something else. Maybe the dog has been affected very strangely by the storms and is terrified. I think you're handling it well when you associate treats with your presence. But I agree to get a behaviorist after ruling out anything medical. (thyroid imbalance, brain tumor or something else) They are expensive, but maybe one session would be enough....one where your dog is evaluated and you're given some exercises to practice.

 

[Misty+Mason]

I wonder whats going on? No word from the poster yet, getting worried for her saftey and the well being of the dog.

Everything okay?