shiba help

jessefritschzyjessefritschzy
edited June 2009 in Behavior & Training
I just got a new puppy a couple weeks ago, and my older shiba (who is only 2 1/2) are finally getting along. The puppy is a male, and my other shiba, Zoe, is a female.

Now Zoe is randomly being mean and aggressive towards stranger. Is she being protective of the puppy? How can I get her to stop this behavior...I obviously am not doing a good job of asserting my dominance in this situation.

Comments

  • JessicaRabbitJessicaRabbit
    edited June 2009
    It isn't about dominance. It is about making everyone feel like they are safe and secure and have no reason to guard.

    Can you be more clear as to what you mean by mean and aggressive?
    Is she biting?
    growling?
    What exactly is she doing?
    And what are you doing?
    Make sure that you do not yell, or punish her.

    Really your best bet for your whole pack (you included) is to have a qualified behaviorist come and assess the situation. Make sure that they use strictly positive reinforcement techniques.

    Good luck.
  • jessefritschzyjessefritschzy
    edited November -1
    she is just growling and barking. she hasn't bit anyone.

    I just calmly say her "no" and have her sit and look her in the face and say no again. Sometimes she will just repeat it as soon as she stands up again.

    She is fine with other dogs, and okay with the people she meets at my house. She just has a problem when someone gets near the fenced yard. I guess it is like a territory thing...but she is fine when they are in the yard
  • jessefritschzyjessefritschzy
    edited November -1
    i think i will look into a behaviorist. thank you
  • Honey's momHoney's mom
    edited November -1
    I hope things settle down with Zoe. What kind of puppy did you get? And WHERE is the spam????? lol
  • JessicaRabbitJessicaRabbit
    edited November -1
    Many dogs growl when there is a fence between them. That I wouldn't be AS concerned about. Especially if she is chilling when you let them in the yard. Almost every dog I have ever had has barked at people through the fence. Most of the time it is merely to alert the passersby of their presence.

    Even still check out a behaviorist now, that way if it is the beginning of an issue you can address it early.
  • tsukitsunetsukitsune
    edited November -1
    Our male has recently (in the last, oh, 6 or so months) widened his vocal vocabulary to include a strange range of growls, yips, howls, barks, etc., for all sorts of things like alerting us to someone loudly walking by the house/yard or when he's bored or when he is excited or playing has brought on this fab new gurgle growl thing..

    If I didn't know my dog, I would probably assume aggression from the other side of my door, but he has never shown anything other than hesitance towards humans, and nothing but excitement towards outside dogs.

    Now, my female shiba (who we had before our male) only started barking at people outside the door when 'trained' by our male. She took on this behavior only after he showed her how.

    I think its probably a great idea to check in with a behaviorist to be sure, there are probably several reasons why she's exhibiting this behavior all of a sudden, maybe because of the changes and she's more aware of things, maybe because she's mimicking something... Good luck... and lets see that puppy!
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