Trusting the dood

[jamiegirl]

Our girl is generally very friendly with humans but tonight she was definitely sending this one guy the I-don't-like-you-stay-away-from-me bark when he came up to us to try and pet her. Part of me wanted to correct her but I trusted and respected her judgement. She couldn't have done much damage to him other than the bark anyway as I had her on a leash close to me. One less person in our neighborhood who thinks that our girl is the friendliest of dogs and I'm okay with it.

I would love to hear your thoughts or similar experiences.

[Tante & Jordan & now Annie!]

Jordan since she was a puppy, HATES our water meter Guy. She was maybe 4m old and we were in the yard playing and Payton (other dog) knew him went up to him for love.He came over to meet the new puppy.Jordan barked and barked and ran and body blocked me.Now that she is 4.She still barks at him. I do look at him differently because of her reaction to him.
My Mom tells a story about 2 different dogs we had growing up (we had at different times). In one a repair man came to the door, Socka freaked out and my Mom said to the man I am sorry you may not come in.My dog does not like you.You will have to come back when my husband is home. The other was one of my Sept Dads friends. Diggity who never barked ever,did this low growl. He was not let in the house as well.
My Mom always said trust the dogs and I do.

[jamiegirl]

Your mom sounds really wise. You are right about seeing the other person a different way now that Jamie reacted to him. Funny thing is that we always joke about her being too friendly to be a good watch dog but I have to say that tonight I saw a different side of her. I still don't think she's in the running for a mean police dog (LOL) but I feel good knowing she has my back.

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

Ours will do that bark occasionally, but even at children, so I'm not sure if it's a warning bark or an "I-don't-know-you-I'm-scared" bark? Not really sure how to handle. Usually I just redirect him then praise him being calm, but sometimes want him to know it's okay and get used to the new experience. When he does it to adults/other dogs/strangers, I do pay attention and just remove both of us from the situation. Any thoughts? Where's Cesar when you need him?

[Eva (Lilo and Rocky)]

I would pay attention to his body language in addition to the bark to see if there's a difference between certain individuals, and to identify the feeling behind the bark (not sure Cesar would call it "feeling" though - maybe behavior??). I.e, see if you can tell from his ears and tail if he is timid, scared, confident, or whatever.

[Tante & Jordan & now Annie!]

Yes, there are different types of barks. Jordan's was back off, I do not like you. Not I am here and want you to know I am here.

[Kyoko]

Charlie barked at starngers most of the time, and we worked on this by playing " Look at That " game. ( Taught by her trainer) Everytime she looked at the stranger, BEFORE she started to bark, I say "Yes" and treat. Now, she would look at the stranger and immidiately look at me for "YES", even when I don't have the treat with me. In her case, it was more of " I-don't-know-you-and-scared-of-you. Don't-come-near-me." So, I needed to assure her that it is OK and has nothing to be afraid of...

[Karen & Lucy]

I do believe that dogs do have a sense about some people. For instance, Lucy's vet office has 2 docs. one is a female and the other is a male. She likes the male, or should I say tolerates him because she hates to go to the vets, and the one time she saw the female she was very standoffish with her. She did not even want her to look in her eyes and ears let alone anything else. I had a horrible time with her. SO, from now on I request doc Bob and she is fine. WELL, except when they want to take her temp, DO NOT TOUCH HER BUTT Lol lol lol. And this is not a male vs female thing with her either, she does not have a problem with any other female out in the general public, it is just this vet.

[Adrianne Matzkin]

Only once did Samantha not like someone she met. I trusted her judgement and always will. Turns out she was right.
Dogs sense things we can't possibly understand but unless a dog doesn't like everyone they meet, I would always side with my dog.

[Eva (Lilo and Rocky)]

I was sitting outside a Starbucks once with both dogs when a guy came up and asked if they were friendly. I said, "well, usually," so he approached Lilo with his arm out as if he wanted to pet her, and she growled (which she almost never does). He jumped back and left without saying anything. I think he was up to no good, and Lilo knew. I had another experience at the park with this really strange guy who appeared friendly at first, but them started asking me if the dogs humped each other. As soon as his questions turned inappropriate, both dogs started growling and showing a bit of teeth. I knew that was my cue to leave!! So I trust their instincts when it comes to strangers.

[Liane Thakur]

I had a labrador back when I lived in the States. I was seriously dating this guy, talking marriage when Amber started being very standoff-ish with the guy. She would shy away from him which was unusual as she loved him at first. A few weeks later, he broke it off with me saying he had found someone else. Amber had totally read his body language and change in feelings well before I knew anything. I totally began to trust dogs and their intuition after that.

[Natasha]

How old is she?

Rouser NEVER barked before 11 months old (that was the first time I heard him bark and I was shocked at how fierce it sounded). He had done this quiet "woof" thing a couple of times when he clearly didn't like someone that we walked past, but that seemed appropriate.

We were shocked when Rouser barked at this teenage girl (at 11 months) who was hanging out with her family in our local outdoor eating area. Then two days later he started barking loudly at a group of slightly older (and happily laughing) Asian women that walked past us at the local coffee shop. That was completely out of character and a shock as well. Then he barked at a man the next day.

We talked to our trainer who said that he was going through a fear period - a growth period where the brain is developing/learning. Basically, for a month or so, he was experiencing things in a new way and responding to them. Our trainer told us it was our job to keep him from becoming overly sensitive/responding at the wrong time so we had to use our better judgement as well. For instance, when he alerted us with a "woof" directed at a man just standing around his car in a dark parking lot - he got a "good dog." When he barked at the teenage girl he got a "no, down." When he barked and we couldn't tell what he was barking at, we said, "show me" and then responded accordingly (which sometimes meant that we apologized to the people that he walked up to barking like a crazy dog).

These incidents come and go between 10 months and 18 months. We're past that stage and what we now have is a dog who HATES loiterers (how he knows that they are loitering, I have no idea but he is always right) and woofs first and then starts barking if we don't respond. He also will take me by the hand in our house and lead me over to the window if he sees someone who is where they aren't supposed to be (like the electric company parked in the no parking zone outside our house - again, no idea how he knows it's a no parking zone, but it is and he always tells me when someone is parked incorrectly). He has stopped barking at random strangers who are clearly ok people who are just going about their business.

Bizarre, but true.

So, if she is in that 10-18 month period, be patient, but also help her to understand that

a) you are the pack leader and you will protect her if necessary; and
b) when it is and is not appropriate to alert you.

[jamiegirl]

She is 14 months old, so she does fall in that stage. Normally, she would sniff people out and then gladly jump up on them to show them she's happy or just back away if she isn't sure; the reaction she had the other night wasn't because of uncertainty, I felt that she surely didn't like him. I do also have a concern not to encourage this because I wouldn't want her to be mean to just everybody. That night, however, I thought that she was appropriate. If only there's a Cesar Millan pill that I could take to be able to read her as well as he does the other dogs. Hmmm, I think I might've just given him a business idea. LOL