Dog biting at ankles...any advice please?

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Sticker

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I will try to keep this as short as I can :o

My rescue collie is 8 years old; we have owned him for 5 years. We know nothing of his background before then; just that the dog warden found him, & we bought him home from the local council pound.

He has always been a nervous dog, and still is, although much improved over time. We took him to regular training classes for the first couple of years, and we are lucky that he is generally immaculately behaved, and perfectly suited to us.

The problem is that he has begun biting my ankles :( I am self employed, and he comes to my office with me every day. It began when I picked up my purse or keys, and he knew I was leaving without him (mainly to get milk from the shop next door, never for long).

Initially, he would nip at my ankles. I would firmly tell him to sit on his mat, and reward with a treat when he settled. However, he is just getting worse and worse, the nipping has become full on biting. Today the behaviour started when I just stood up to put the kettle on :(

He is not at all food orientated (we struggle to keep weight on if anything) - so a food reward isn't motivation enough. It's almost as though he loses control of himself, he gets so wound up, which is so out of character for him in every other situtation.

I should add that he gets an hour's run chasing a frisbee every morning and evening, absolutely without fail. He has lots of mental stimulation throughout the day (treat ball, carrot rolled in newspaper to open etc) and lots of doggy socialisation.

I'm really at the end of my tether with him - I know there is a wealth of knowledge of this forum, and any suggestions would be much appreciated.

I'm also thinking of calling in a behavioural specialist to help - has anyone had experience of this in a similar situation?

Thank you :)
 
It's typical herding behaviour/anxiety/trying to keep the herd together. I used to have it with an 18mo GSD I used to walk, when I tried to take him home he would bite my ankle and scream, neighbours used to come out to watch :o
He was a bit of a thug though so I did use to lead check him.

I would first of all get him a full check up at the vet because of his advancing years.

Is he a sensitive soul? There are things you can try like waterpistols and rattle bottles you can try but not all dogs react well to things like that. Otherwise putting him in a place with a stay command and making sure he stays there and does not break, while you get up and about and do things?
Could you attach a small hand line to his collar to physically remove him from your person?
 
Thanks CaveCanem :) At least no-one comes out to witness my dog!

He had a full check up at the vets when he had his annual jabs recently - weight, ears, eyes & heart, and came away with a clean bill of health.

He is a nervous soul, especially with loud noises & sudden movements (things blowing in the wind, fireworks etc). I imagine something like a rattle bottle may break the cycle if he goes into snapping mode, but I'd be worried about panicing him, and my ability to time my reaction well enough?

His 'stay' command is otherwise very good, but once he becomes fixated on my ankles, my voice commands have absolutely no effect, however loud/firm. It's so out of character for him, he usually lives to please - I guess the herding / anxiety instincts just takes over.

I have tried clipping a line to him, to physically hold him away from me, but he still went for my legs, and I couldn't hold him away. He genuinely goes into frenzied mode, to the point where I'd worry about him biting my hands / arms if I try to restrain him :(

I should add too that it's just me - he poses no risk of biting anyone else. Everybody else can come & go with no problems at all, including my partner. But it is me he spends all day every day with, which I guess is the 'keeping the herd together' mentality again...
 
Sticker said:
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Initially, he would nip at my ankles. I would firmly tell him to sit on his mat, and reward with a treat when he settled.

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Click to expand...

..... and therein lays your problem. You've rewarded him. The real trick would be, to preempt is attack, and as you go to pick up your keys (or whatever triggers his behaviour and bawl at him, putting him in the down position, OR and completely out of the blue, put him in a submissive position, before you pick up the action which triggers his reaction. Does that make sense?

His behaviour is one of frustration, but that has to be addressed. He has to realise that you will be respected, and rewarding him with treats isn't generally the way to achieve that.

Alec.
 
Alec Swan said:
..... and therein lays your problem. You've rewarded him. The real trick would be, to preempt is attack, and as you go to pick up your keys (or whatever triggers his behaviour and bawl at him, putting him in the down position, OR and completely out of the blue, put him in a submissive position, before you pick up the action which triggers his reaction. Does that make sense?

His behaviour is one of frustration, but that has to be addressed. He has to realise that you will be respected, and rewarding him with treats isn't generally the way to achieve that.

Alec.
Click to expand...

Thanks Alec - I thought I was rewarding the desired behaviour (ie. stopping snapping & sitting quietly), but on reflection, I can entirely see your point.

The difficulty I have is that I can't seem to preempt his reaction effectively - even when he is entirely submissive beforehand, once I then do something that triggers his reaction, I lose all control. If anything, bawling at him inflames his reaction.

CaveCanem, I will try a bigger distraction tomorrow - food didn't cut it, but I can try his favourite toy.

I really do appreciate your input - he's fast asleep as I speak, looking like butter wouldn't melt :rolleyes:
 
Put your wellies on - then he can't hurt you. If you think he's up to it, give him a squirt with a water bottle as soon as he starts, then ignore him. Bawling will raise the stress levels, water is more impersonal, if that's the right word. Putting wellies on means you can stand firm rather than having to try and avoid his teeth.

ETA also, get up and leave for short periods frequently, so it becomes less of a big deal to him.
 
Thanks Spudlet. The water pistol/bottles are I think the next thing I will try, failing a bigger distraction - know totally what you mean about water being more impersonal. I think he'd cope better with that that noise, once he gets over the initial surprise.

Already have my long leather boots on (always a good look in July!) but wellies would probably save my battered old ankles a bit more, dunno why I didn't think of it :)
 
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I would also check out advice on websites like Victoria Stilwell http://positively.com/ and Roger Mugford http://www.companyofanimals.co.uk/dog-training-and-animal-behaviour-centre

I'm completely against many of the so called 'techniques' used by that awful Cesar Milan or shown on TV on things like 'Dog Borstal'. There's definately a place for firmness and sometimes consequences the dog doesn't like but Milan (and his ilk) is a menace, imo. Just my view.

Hope you can find a solution and you can ditch the wellies again :p.
 
Quite honestly I would use a zapper collar on this one, done right it only takes one lesson.He`s herding you,so gues a "lie-down" plus folow up is the way to go that really works..only zap JUST before he bites,timing is everything.
 
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