Behaviour advice?

[Luce85]

Hi,

We have recently taken on a 3 year old male sprocker (Springer x Cocker). This breed we know are very bouncy and energetic, and believe me he gets more than enough exercise. Our problem is that he is very nervous and barky, he is always on edge, and cannot settle.

He has improved a lot, he now walks on the lead and off the lead without barking at strangers, the odd 1 or 2 he might still have a little bark, but nothing compared to how he was previously, but he is very anxious and nervous. When people come into the house he barks and depending on the person he settles or will still be a little jumpy and bark but in general he is okay, but it varies on each person.. He is not a bad natured dog, he is lovely and gentle but he does have this anxiety I think that makes him bark and scared?

He pulls on the lead so currently he has a nose harness thing but we are working towards getting rid of that, but he can be so difficult when he is in a mood whereby he barks and is jumpy in public..

So my question is, does anyone have any experience or anything they would recommend in a way to attempt to tone it down, I personally think he is a very nervous dog with a lot of anxiety, but I am no behaviour expert, my expertise is not in dogs. Also I would like it if no one gave me any silly comments, as this is a genuine concern and I haven't posted this to be battered down. Or could anyone offer me a PM.

Jelly and Icecream if you made it through that

 

[planete]

Not an uncommon problem in newly adopted dogs. You do not say how long you have had him? Try and stay relaxed yourself around him and give him a few weeks to settle down while establishing a routine for him to relax into. He may well calm down once he knows what to expect from day to day. If it goes on I am afraid you may need a behaviourist to help you both as it is impossible to work out why he is reacting this way without being able to see his body language and his environment. From your post it does sound as if he is already improving?

 

[paulineh]

look at this website. I use their products on both my Dogs and Horses and find they work well. You may only need to use it for a short time until he settles down.

http://nupafeed-dogs.co.uk/stress-less/4582282169

 

[Luce85]

We have had him a little over a year, he came from my cousin so he has known us since a pup. Do you know of any good behaviourists in west midlands?

What kind of work do they do? I've never had any experience with them paulineh thank you, will have a look.