dog aggressive?

[feraloup]

I love that there are so many knowledgeable and helpful people, here! A lot of the points everyone has been mentioning are great.

Just to add my two cents, I agree that just because someone works at PetSmart doesn't mean they know their stuff, my old GSD, Cory, and I went into one once, and the gal at the register gushed "Oh what a beautiful dog! What kind is it?" I was feeling cheeky and mischievous, so I mentioned, "Oh, she's a Brazilian Squirrelhound." She looked impressed and said, "Wow, I've never heard of that breed before!". So without missing a beat I went on, "Not surprising, they're very rare in the U.S., right now there are only about 12 stateside, I had her imported, I'm hoping to breed her to further the U.S. population." This was probably around 1998, 1999 or so, I was a bit more of a smart@$$ in my youth! my point being, just because they work at Petsmart doesn't mean they're an authority.

I agree you should do some classes and see how she does around other dogs both on-and-off leash, and with knowledgeable trainers present to help you.

If there are signs of aggression in certain circumstances, they can also help you figure out the main motivation behind it, and then help you to work with it and around it. (Is it fear-based/ resource guarding/ protective of handler when on a leash/ etc...)

Each dog is very individual, too, my Singer-mix, Maiyou, for example, speaks with a weird "dialect" as it were, and sometimes has miscommunications with other dogs, even though she was raised in a multi-dog household. She doesn't play-bow, but leaps out and "shoves" with both forepaws as play invitation. She "smiles" when she's feeling submissive, which some people who don't know her, misconstrue as a snarl, but if she turns her face pointedly away from another dog and growls, That's when I need to watch out and tell her "Leave it!" Followed by a command to "come" or "go" with a directive finger-point.

The more time you spend getting to know her, the more adept you will become at reading and predicting her little quirks and idosyncracies. (*lol* or "idiot-syncracies" as I like to call some of my critters little unique neuroses, )

It sounds like she's in good hands with a loving family!

(And my guys are allowed on the furniture, too, for safety reasons, my dogs have always been trained to wait when a door is opened, be it house or car, until directed out with a wave of the hand, but I don't make them let me go first.)

[feraloup]

Had to run, earlier, needed to go play with my son. *grin*

I wanted to mention I loved the bit about playing with the vacuum!

Reminds me of my old boy, Cedar. He was a rottie/pitbull mix, rescued him at 10 months old. Sweetest, sweet boy, ever. He excelled as a therapy dog and helped raise Maiyou, my current dog. He began to lose his eyesight at only a little over a year old, Progressive Retinal Atrophy, but he navigated really, really well. In familiar turf, he memorized layouts quickly, and unless someone moved something or left an object in his way, you'd never know he was blind. In unfamiliar places, he used my GSD, Cory as a guide dog, he'd lean his chin against her hip and follow her lead.

Anyway, I digress, my point being (and I did have one, *lol*) was that I laughed out loud at your description of Stella's vacuum game, because Cedar used to play "chicken" when I would vacuum.

Cory and Maiyou would both leave the room to avoid it, but Cedar would get all excited and tapdance and prance and "drumroll" with his front paws, psyching himself up, then he'd do a couple of false-starts, and then suddenly charge the vacuum, jump over it, run past, then whirl around and begin the whole tapdancing routine lead-up again, and then run back and leap it the other way, back and forth, back and forth. Even when he was old and lazy and mostly just wanted to snooze on the couch in his dotage... He'd wake up and get all puppyish again if I got the vacuum out. *grin*

[katm4110]

Feraloup.... That's so funny.... Stella was so intrigued by the vacuum although she's over it now (I seriously vacuum my family room like 4 times a day... dog hair and hardwood floors just don't mix) her curiosity just kills me.... from what I've read it seems to be a DS trait

I totally agree about the employees at Petsmart (my husband and i were cracking up about your "squirrel hound" that's hilarious!) but at her eval with the trainer she showed signs of dog and or leash aggression. The trainer said the only way to truly know would be to let her be with another dog but that's not anything we would chance. According to the woman who worked with her at the shelter she was at she was in a "play group" with several other dogs and did fine which leads me to believe its more of a new environment or leash thing. She had her first class tomorrow and the trainer will have his "pack" there (3 GSDs) so she will learn to play nice.

[Marjolein]

he doesn`t care for food outside, so I don´t really know what to do.

start inside
proceed to the backyard, frontyard, oustide but no other dogs, outside dogs at distance, less distance etc.
Takes time...

I am. But he gets so easily distracted that have to LITERALLY go step by step. He loses concetration on every sound, movement,person passing by etc.

So, what's wrong with going step by step? Take your time, once it clicks, it will go faster