Other dogs don't like my dog!!!!

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Evie91

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After having such a fantastic response ( and some brilliant suggestions) to my first ever thread- I've decided to post another!

My dog ( rescue collie, 3.5 yrs old, owned by us for 2.5 yrs, had five homes, 2 rescues and a foster in his first year, high energy, short attention span, very much loved by us!) is often attacked by other dogs. So far he has never been physically damaged ( just hair missing) but I'm constantly worried its only a matter of time before he gets properly hurt.

I'm pretty sure he was well socialised in his first year and I feel he does not know how to meet other dogs properly ( never seen another dog meet and greet the way he does). His idea of meeting a new dog is to run up to them, grab a leaf, stick, strand of hay, needs something in his mouth and start jumping around, growling ( he always does this when playing) and bouncing around. He wants the other dogs to chase him. Other dogs tend not to like this!

He will otherwise completely ignore dogs and go racing past them. Other dogs don't like this either and will have a go at him for doing this!

If he's on the lead he will either look the other way or jump towards them. Again other dogs don't like it.

He's not into bottom sniffing. Just likes to play, but he won't join in, likes to carry his own thing and run around dogs who are running after things ( herding them?)
He has been told off by various dogs, the soppiest dogs who I know have never had a go at others, ones where the owner has put one dog on the lead and said other dog will be fine, invariably other dog pounces on mine! Sometimes after these skirmishes he is able to go on and play with them, other times it is clear they hate him ( think growling, eyeballing him, growing in size; my dog responds tail between legs and won't look at them at all, not even in the same direction).
He is happiest at the yard running up and down the barns. Even if his dog friends come over to try and get him to play he will ignore them, but will play in school or field.
He doesn't wrestle. His problem is mainly with other dogs ( he does have problems with bitches but less so). He will have a go back if others start on him. One small terrier at the yard chases him, growling and he runs away.

The other unusual thing is that he seems to favour dogs, those he really, really likes he will hump ( never done this with bitches), obviously he sometimes gets told off for this but some of his friends tolerate it. He is neutered and I've no idea why he does it.
Sorry for long post, any help gratefully received!
 
I have a 4 yr old border collie who we have had nearly 18months now. He was in the rescue kennels for over 12 months before we took him, so we knew he had problems. He is obsessive, digs, chases cars if given a chance and very upset by noise!

He does not seem to know how to react to other dogs which is strange when he was in kennels for over 12 months. He is good now with the other dogs belonging to members of the family, but does not want to run or play with them. When on holiday with sisters recently other dogs were running on beach, ours just wanted to dig large holes endlessly in sand.

To try and help OH has taken him to dog training each week and he is better with others, but still not as others are! He reacts badly to other dogs when walking, lunging at them and barking, so we are now making him sit when we see another dog in an attempt to calm the situation down.

When I look back, he is better than he was, so at this rate maybe by the time he is 10 we will have a well behaved dog!
 
Ha, ha bit like us - we hope by the time he is ten he will have improved!
We make him sit when we meet dogs that are walking past. He's fine then, just when left to his own devises and when trying to make friends he seems to get it all wrong!
Just feel sorry for him really :(

Same as you I thought coming from kennels ' meet and greet' wouldn't be a problem - think I was just naive!

Glad your dog is coming on well. Ours too has vastly improved in the time we've had him ( went to dog training class but he just rolled on the floor the whole time, in the end got a trainer who came to our house; he was brilliant in helping us establish the basics) just would like this area of his life to be easier for him!

Thanks for your response.
 
you are ahead of us, we can not let our dog off a lead when away from home, he will just not come back, and if he saw a car .....................

Recall is working at home most of the time, spent a fortune on fencing part of garden so he can run freely!
 
I have funnily enough found with rescue collies and boarding dogs (client dogs) they have all been dog humpers and the ones at my mams training class, I used to say they where gay.
He sounds a bit full on and other dogs are letting it be know they ain't happy or accepting it (perfectly natural) he sounds high energy and most dogs don't like that esp upon first meet. Find similar energy dogs or accept other dogs will put him in his place.
On the lead you should really not stop and let him sit and focus instead get some focus on you and teach him "there is nothing to see here" and pass like there literally is nothing there at a descent pace, use a tube of primula (with a command) "watch me" and let him take little licks as you pass your distraction practice this with no distraction 1st, or his favourite toy (raggy/ball) preferably not a squeaky one).
Keep play to organised groups/familair dogs and otherwise don't let him pester unknown dogs (keep his focus once again)

Also to add, bottom sniffing is good greeting etiquette (so jumping straight to play will also gets back up), like bypassing a hand shake to jumping getting you in a hugging embrace when you dont know the person from adam) bit full:p on
 
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I can definitely reccomend 'bark busters' for training. We were at our wits end - dog had absolutely no recall, literally jumped across the living room, clearing the coffee table, would throw himself at guests, jump up while we were sat at the dining table, jump up at kitchen surfaces, chase cats, completely manic.
We can now let him off in places we are sure of, as he does have recall, 90./. Of the time, we can have guests to the house, he gets on well with the cats, can sit , down, paw, find, bring, leave, wait,stay, drop etc.

we are fortunate in that our property backs on to a private wood which we have access to and I also take him to the yard, and walk round the fields when the horses have been bought in, all fenced and we only bump into people we know.
He has three walks a day (2.5 to 3 hrs total) all off lead, but every time I let him off in a field he literally runs at full pelt around the borders, you wold think he was never walked!
 
Cayla, - all of his favourite dogs are boys and they are the only ones he tries to hump! Why do you think this is?!
He most certainly is high energy; we were advised of that when we got him. Funnily in the house with us, he spends most of his time asleep. When he gets outside he is full of beans!
Thanks so much for that, nice to know we are getting so e things right ( he does have friends to play with. The dog walker has two collies, one who is ball obsessed, jack obsesses over him while he obsessed over his ball!). He has friends at the yard, my SIL 's dog and our negihbours.I like to make sure he does have time with dog friends.

Will definitely try the primula idea. When we see another dog out, we sit ( he often lies down without being asked) and wait for it to go past. He will do this off lead, think now ill try clipping him on and getting him to watch me instead as we walk past.

Do you think others having a go at him is pretty natural, ie will they tell him and sort it out. I always worry it will escalate into a full on scrap. To be fair lots of my friends with dogs have advocated letting them sort it out, I have managed to do this as trust them and their dogs and they generally end up friends. It's just a shame that he has to go through this every time, he often has a go back too, so I'm not just thinking its the other dog!

Although there are ones who obviously hate him, one has to be kept on a lead as she actively stalks him!!! We tried walking together but she just became obsessed with him and I don't think in a good way. We both put our dogs on leads if we are at the yard together now. It's a shame as all of the dogs who don't like him are really lovely when he is not there!
 
Do you know at what age your dog left the litter, or if he spent the first few months of his life in the company of well-adjusted dogs? Unfortunately, some owners think that "socialization" of young dogs means putting them with other dogs and letting them run amok, and it sounds like his life before you guys was pretty chaotic. Meeting/greeting and knowing how much sniffing is appropriate is one of the most important things a dog should know, along with how to read other dogs' body language. Only a dog who knows all the rules can teach them to another dog. Dogs who have grown up around dogs who lack social skills will not have the tools they need to cope in an environment filled with normal dogs. They don't speak the language.

Polite sniffing is good etiquette between dogs. Not sniffing and going straight to play isn't something that adult dogs tolerate. Until a puppy is about 4 or 5 months old, adult dogs give it some leeway. They won't let him get away with bad behavior, but they give mild, frequent corrections. When a dog is older and bothers other dogs, they aren't so tolerant. It's perfectly natural that other dogs want to have a go at him -- he's annoying them! Which is not exactly your fault -- he was like this when you got him!

A dog that's not at all aggressive can still be rude to other dogs.

This article by trainer Suzanne Clothier does a good job explaining what seems to be going on with your dog.

http://www.suzanneclothier.com/the-articles/he-just-wants-say-hi

[snip]
A good friend of mine was a case in point. Her Sheltie was a quiet, retiring little fellow who had never displayed any aggressive behavior towards another living being. Yet repeatedly, this dog triggered impressive displays from other dogs, usually those of the German persuasion, when he wandered into their space. Inevitably, my friend would be horrified by "those aggressive dogs" and retreat with her Sheltie, never suspecting that she and her dog were the problem.

Though charming and sweet, her Sheltie was extremely rude and invasive; the responses he got from other dogs were largely quite well deserved, though inevitably the Germans were blamed. In each and every class this woman attended with her Sheltie, owners of dogs who did not tolerate such rudeness had to watch her and her dog constantly. And in each and every class, she was completely unaware how many potential problems had been averted by alert handlers who simply moved their dogs out of her dog's rudeness zone.

There were three basic factors at work: the Sheltie's lack of dog/dog socialization which resulted in his being completely ignorant about what constituted polite behavior toward other dogs; my friend's misconception that her "friendly, non-aggressive" dog could never precipitate a problem; and her giving her dog the freedom to invade the space of other dogs without any thought or understanding of how that might be perceived by the dogs who were minding their own business.

It might help if you let him burn some energy off before he meets other dogs off-lead. He can't be boisterous around them if he's tired. :)
 
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But there are, also some dogs who seem to attract bad behaviour from others. There was an elderly JRT in our town. It is now completely blind from being attacked, randomly by other dogs.. when on a lead and no where near others. I have seen dogs leave what they were doing and go after this dog. A good friend has a brown lab bitch. Now she is bouncy and full of the joys but again, while I can understand a dog telling her off if she is rude, this dog has been attacked, a number of times, while with the owner and on lead. Worst was she was in the owners lorry and another dog went into the lorry and attacked her.
 
Henry can be a bit like this, he can be a bit full-on and rude sometimes. I don't know how much of that is lack of early socialisation as I've no idea what happened to him in puppyhood, and how much is general spaniel-lyness - he usually gets on well with other spaniels, as they just bounce of each other's heads merrily:rolleyes:

Some training classes have off-lead sessions where you learn how to handle off-lead time and what to look for - we certainly do. These shouldn't be a free for all, but if managed properly they can be useful. Perhaps a class including this would be helpful for you?

Primula works very well, it is basically dog crack:D
 
Evie91 said:
.......

My dog ( rescue collie, 3.5 yrs old, owned by us for 2.5 yrs, had five homes, 2 rescues and a foster in his first year,.......

He will otherwise completely ignore dogs and go racing past them. Other dogs don't like this either and will have a go at him for doing this!

.......
Click to expand...

My bold print. It sounds to me rather like you have a Collie on your hands, displaying the frustrations which a Collie displays, when it's being denied its prime purpose in life, work.

Your dog is trying to "Head" others. He's trying, as he would with sheep, to turn them back to you.

You're right, other dogs hate it, it's the eye contact, which other dogs see as aggression. Your dog is another in the endless stream of those who are taken from a work environment, and asked to be pets. It isn't his fault. The poor chap can't help it.

Sorry, and I have no idea how to stop it.

Alec.
 
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My one year old lab is a bit full on. Dogs that owners say will be fine usually have a go at him- he is black bounces like a kangaroo and is a bit hyper!
He is much better with dogs who are grumpy, seems to tell so doesn't bother, he is also better after going to my dog trainers for boarding- her dogs told him off and he has better manners now.
Even if tired he sees a dog and gets extra energy! He is quite good tho likes to be chased so that's something!
If your near the midlands i don't mind doing a walk where they can play lots!
 
Wow loads of responses - thank you all. I've only just had time to check in on here. Great to hear of others who have similarly energetic dogs!

Nonstop; that is a fantastic explanation, thank you so much. Really helped to explain his behaviour. I will definitely look up the author you suggested and may well add the books to my Christmas list.

As far as his early socialisation goes we know; he went from breeder to a home, was handed in to rescue, was fostered for a couple of weeks before being transferred to another rescue. He was five months old. He went to be a sheep dog but was frightened of sheep and they knew it apparently ( he still is frightened of them and as returned to rescue, he then went to be a cow dog but liked them too much and chased them even when he wasn't supposed to and was again returned, someone else had him who didn't bond with him, then he came to us.
Alec; I know nothing of working dogs but the rescue we got him from specialises in collies and he just didn't cut it as a working dog. He is frightened of large machinery ( ie tractors) and terrified of shooting ( he won't leave the house when there is shooting locally).its unlikely he would do agility or obedience as has a short attention span. So he's with us in a pet home. We do try our best to give him the best life possible,hence posting on here for advice:)
He does have dog friends, has been on holidays with us, gets at least three hours walking ( off lead at day). Shame you've got no answers, I was looking forward to your response!! Bit disappointing but at least I have explanations as to why he behaves this way.

Thank you all for taking the time to respond. I appreciate it and feel I've learned a lot :)
 
Sorry dizzydancer didn't mean to ignore you. That's a lovely offer. Some of his favourite dogs are black Labradors, one is particular mad!would,you mind telling me whereabouts your trainer boards?
 
My trainer boards at a place called wink hill- its just out side leek.
She is a gun dog trainer as well as a normal obedience training but does the boarding as well.
Its kennel in a heated barn they sleep in pairs with suitable kennel mates and in the day go in a big fenced run off the barn.
 
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