Kingdom of Pets

Posted by teresamurphy
May 5, 2010

Hi, can anyone help me understand my dog ???

Mojo is a 3yr old labrador cross rescue dog. We have him 2 1/2 yr and he
is such a good dog. He's an indoor dog perhaps bit spoilt and pampered (allowed on the couch/beds etc) but he is always well behaved and friendly.

he likes to greet visitors with a good sniff and pet if they are willing, however he has scared me on two seperate occasions recently by snapping at the faces of female guests, both of whom he has met previously.

I cannot understand what is happening, I don't feel I can trust him anymore when people call so we have decided to put him in another room but I am so puzzled that my sweet dog is behaving like this.

Can anyone help, please

Posted by kjd
May 5, 2010

Do you remember what they were doing just before he snapped? Were they wearing a new perfume? And, have you had him checked by the vet to ensure there is nothing wrong with him.

Sorry to have questions instead of answers,
kjd

Posted by teresamurphy
May 6, 2010

Hi
Both ladies has just come in and sat down, not in the same room, (1 in living room, other lady in kitchen) He approched them friendly and tail wagging, they rubbed back of head, low growl followed and then he sprang up and snapped at face.

Dont know about perfume but they are both dog owners..
No haven't taken him to vet... do think he is shaking his head alot lately
thanks, will get him checked but still puzzled as to why he snaps at the face

Many thanks
Teresa

Posted by kjd
May 6, 2010

Hi, Teresa,

I don't know why the face in particular, but shaking the head a lot could be something in his ear. You might look there. If you cannot find anything remiss, the vet is always a good choice.

Let us know,
kjd

Posted by teresamurphy
May 6, 2010

Hi jkd

Have check his ears all seems well, will have him check by vet.
Will let you know
Many thanks
Teresa

Posted by teresamurphy
May 6, 2010

Hi Kjd

took Mojo to vet, he has problem with both ears, red and alot of puss in his ears, got some drop to use for next 10 days. Used them earlier and I have just removed two black seed-like things from his outer ear.....

However he doesn't think that's causing the snapping, advised to get back to basic training and house rules, he feels I should stop allowing Mojo on couch and bed and apply strict procedure whereby Mojo goes to a quiet corner before visitors call and remain there until invited to join the group.
And should never be allow to approach visitors....

Think I've got alot of work ahead and trying to keeping husband and teens
on board seems challenging....

Don't feel happy about banning the couch at all as he sleeps there during day while i'm at work...

Any ideas............

Thanks
Teresa

Posted by kjd
May 7, 2010

Obedience training is always good, Teresa. Especially formal classes because he gets exposed to lots of other dogs and people but, even more, because he gets about an hour of your undivided attention.

You can put aluminum foil on the couch or just load it up with things so there is no clear place for him to lie.

The vet knows your dog better than I do and actually examined him, but he does seem a bit harsh. If I had pus coming out of both ears and black seed-like things in the outer ears and you rubbed me on the back of the head, I might not be responsible for my actions! Still, what worries the vet is the snapping; you don't want your dog biting. Stick to the vet's program, then see how he reacts the next time he sees the vet. Depending on Mojo's reactions, the vet may feel he can have more privileges.

Poor Mojo has been in pain for some time -- animals tend to hide these things from us. Let us see how he does when he is feeling well.

Do let us know how he is after the ears have cleared up. (And do double-check with the vet on his ears when you feel they have cleared up; the vet can look deeper into the ear canal than you.)

Good luck to you and Mojo,
kjd

Posted by teresamurphy
May 7, 2010

Hi Kjd
Thank you so much for your advice.
Yes vet does sound harsh but I understand why. He took a alot of time to explain to my teenager daughter about dogs, why they have to know their place and the consequences if he bites somebody.
He will check his ears again in ten days. Mojo was really well behaved at vet's even though vet was hurting him when examining his ear.
Poor darling slept beside my bed last night and he only every does when he's sick on unhappy.... Know i'm too soft...

Thank again will let you know how we are progressing.
Teresa

Posted by teresamurphy
Jun 6, 2010

Hi Kjd
sorry for delay but i'm back !! forgot password, locked myself out etc...
Anyway Mojo is doing well, got the all-clear from vet. Hasn't been on couch since we last spoke. When people call, Mojo goes sit on a mat/rug... one in every room so that's easy. so after a bit of nervousness on his part he usually just considers it all so boring are goes off somewhere quiet.

Had photographer call to house last week to have his photo taken.
Photographer decided he needed to get to know Mojo before the session
and approached him and started rubbing him, seem to go ok at first but then Mojo growled at him. So we have decided that nobody is allowed touch Mojo in future. Seems to be only safe way.
Other than that he is so well behaved and obedient.
thanks again for all you help and advice.
Teresa.

Posted by kjd
Jun 7, 2010

I'm sorry it didn't work out for Mojo. However, keep your eyes on those ears. I had a dog who constantly got ear infections. At first, it took two trips to the vet to solve the problem -- I could tell it was starting before anything showed up for the vet. Then he just gave me the medication and told me to use it whenever I thought her ears were getting bad.

This could be Mojo's problem. It could also be he remembers those sore ears and doesn't want non-family touching them. Doesn't hurt him to be left alone by others.

If his ears seem very warm, have the vet check him out. This is probably something you should regularly check -- temperature around his ears.

Good luck to you and Mojo,
kjd

Posted by MaxHollyNoah
Jun 7, 2010

Hi Teresa and kjd,

I read the entire postings and I feel bad for Mojo. You said he had been very nice and friendly dog until he snapped at those ladies. Once he did, he has been seen as an "unpredictable dog".

Dogs see and sense things that we human beings don't. In other words, the photographer might have smelled different, very new or unusual smell for Mojo, he might have had a big camera with him, along with some unusual equipment.

Those ladies might have missed some signs of uneasiness, or calming signals that Mojo was sending out. Or, in fact, he might have had a pain in his ears and head.

Let me tell you a story of one of my dogs, Noah. He is very friendly to people although he is not with stranger dogs. We all thought he was friendly with ANYBODY. One day, we left him with my mother-in-law whom Noah knows very well and she had a dinner party with some of her relatives, whom Noah also knew pretty well. And of course he was with our other two dogs and my mother-in-law's dog. There was my husband cousin that Noah had met many times before but always with me and my husband. This cousin is a pretty large man with a kind of rough voice and gesture. All of sudden Noah started barking at him and charging at him so fiercely that the cousin got very upset and told my mother-in-law that he would never come to her house again when the stupid dog (Noah) is around!!

When my husband and I heard this story later from my mother-in-law, we got upset with our cousin. We were sorry that Noah barked at him but there was a reason for his behavior. He felt unsecure being left by us and the cousin was pushing Noah into the emotional state that he felt intimidated. I don't think it is fair to label Noah as a "bad dog" for that particular incident.

Another time Noah barked at a man was inside the Petsmart. He was a Petsmart employee but on that particular night this man was carrying a large black metal safe. I could see uneasiness in Noah's gesture and body language when this guy came up to him in a friendly manner and tried to pet him.

People should look at dogs body languages and calming signals more carefully. Most of aggressions are based on fear on the dogs side.

I hope you, Teresa, and your family won't label Mojo as a dog with unpredictable behaviors, and won't keep him away from new people. Dogs are very sensitive so Mojo will sense your perception on him and it will damage your relationship with him by great deal. Instead let him meet people under your supervion and help him build confidence being around people again.

Posted by teresamurphy
Jun 7, 2010

Hi MaxHollyNoah,

Thank you for your interesting reply, certainly food for thought there.
Of course you are correct I now feel very nervous when people call and I can see it's having a negative effect on Mojo too. He has started to shake when people come into the house.
However I honestly dont know what to do, we love Mojo to bits and dont want to lose him, which is my biggest fear if he bites somebody.

Do you think I should keep him to mat routine and hopefully he'll learn to ignore visitors ????

Thanks again.
Teresa

Posted by teresamurphy
Jun 7, 2010

Hi Jkd

Will be having his shots end of June so will have ears checked again.

Thanks again for all your help

Teresa

Posted by kjd
Jun 8, 2010

Teresa,

You say Mojo has already picked up your lack of confidence. Let me tell you about my current dog.

Sam was living with us and Sunna picked up from me that it was long past time for him to get his own place. I think more than that was going on, however, because she had become skittish about noises -- something she used to take in stride, and was beginning to fear long sticks (like his cane). He told me that she jumped up and bit him and he needed stitches. Since doctors rarely stitch animal bites and nobody ever came by to check her temperament, I am not sure this ever happened. But I did notice she had become very suspicious of men. Once I got Sam out of the house, I began re-socializing Sunna. I praised her for approaching men and also hugged the men (my brothers) or took their hands to show her I liked them. Like you, I was afraid she might bite, but I watch her body language closely. A shy dog to begin with, she is not only getting over her suspicions of men, but she is becoming friendlier with everyone.

When Mojo seems not quite sure, tell the people what Cesar Milan always says: "No eye contact, no speaking, no touching." Let the dog gradually check out the person. From what you've described, Mojo has always reacted to touching on the ears. When you think people can touch him, tell them to stick to the back (gently). I lean towards disagreeing with your vet (those ears sounded painful to me). I agree with MaxHollyNoah that Mojo is not unpredictable.

You don't want Mojo to turn into a fear-biter. To re-gain your own confidence, you may want to muzzle him when non-family is about. [Introduce him to the muzzle carefully. It isn't a punishment.] Then watch his body language. If he does react badly, take note of where he is being touched. Check to see if that area is warmer than other areas this could be the sign of an incipient infection. Give him some slack on the ears; he might be shy about them because they hurt in the past. I think you'll reach the point where you'll agree with MaxHollyNoah Mojo is a sweetheart.

By the way, don't tell the vet about the photographer unless he specifically asks. He is already pretty negative about Mojo. Many vets get no training in the behavior of dogs. They can make judgments based on the actions of dogs (and cats) in a very stressful situation -- the doctor's examining room. Unless he has had training in animal behavior he is really no more knowledgeable than you. And you probably have more knowledge of the actual behavior of Mojo. So, unless he has had the appropriate training, use him for his medical knowledge and go to an expert in animal behavior for behavior. MaxHollyNoah and some other people on this forum have had lots of OJT (training with many, especially rescue, dogs that lived with them) and dispense excellent advice.

This is getting very long, but I want to make one more suggestion. Take Mojo to obedience class. There are so many good reasons: you meet other dogs, other people, spend quality time with Mojo, he learns to work around distractions. You can also talk with the instructor about your problem. She might have some great suggestions. You may also find your fellow classmates are helping you to de-sensitize Mojo. (And I've been told that, at least in Maryland, dogs don't get into trouble with the law for biting obedience instructors; it is assumed they push the dogs too far. Same goes for vets. That makes the class a safe place for you and Mojo.)

Also, learning to read your dog's body language is a great skill. As dogs grow older, things they enjoyed in the past can become bothersome. You'll be able to catch that and make the dog's old age that much easier.

Hope this helps some,
kjd

Posted by MaxHollyNoah
Jun 8, 2010

Hi teresamurphy,

>I now feel very nervous when people call

Does this means that you think Mojo might bite people?

If so, I don't think you need to worry about it at this point. Growling and snapping are different from biting. Dogs growl and snap to tell us that they don't like what we are doing (like petting, or coming closer to them). It is a way of warning us that they might have to bite us if we don't stop what we are doing.

We, people, can say "please don't do that" but dogs can't speak and snapping and growling are their language that is equivalent to us saying "No".

Unless we ignore the warning and go beyond Mojo's tolerence, I don't think he would bite us. Of course, we don't want to encourage him to communicate in that dog's way of growling and snapping, just because it is not a nice way of communication in our human relationship. What Mojo needs to learn is to ignore and walk away when he doesn't like what people do to him. In fact, Holly, our most confident and smartest dog, always tries to stay away from kids and puppies, or walks away from them when they come too close to her just because she doesn't want to get in a trouble by growling/barking at them.

We need to learn dogs' communication but dogs also need to learn our way of communication and we need to respect each other.

By the way, are you afraid Mojo will growl or snap at you when you, for example, put your hand in his mouth? Do you brush his teeth sometimes? Does he let you clip his nails? Does he let you grab his tail? Does he let you hug him? Can you clean his ears with a cotton swab? Is he OK when you put your hand in his food bowl when he is eating?

Those are the things I would expect Mojo to be comfortable with you doing at least. It will be nice if all your family members can do without any fear of being snapped or growled. If he lets you do those things to him, it shows that he trusts you.

As kjd said obedience classes will be very beneficial for him. He will get to know other dog owners and will interact with them. In my classes, dogs should let other owners touch their paws, look into their ears and at their teeth.

By attending classes you will also see other dogs and how they behave. Your instructor will give you some advise on Mojo's issues.

As for with your guests, I think it is a good idea to have him sit/lay down on his bed and not have your guest come to him, unless he starts coming to them on his own. Even then, have your guest not look at him or pet him right away. Instead wait until he feels like it. Give him sometime to regain his confidence.

Please remember to let Mojo decide if he wants interaction with people or not.

Good luck

Posted by teresamurphy
Jun 9, 2010

Hi Kjd & MaxHollyNoah,

thank you both for going to trouble of sending such detailed messages and sharing your stories with me.

I'll start by answering some of your questions.
No i'm not worried that Mojo will snap or bite any family member. Can clean teeth, ears, take away his bone, food bowl, no problem.
Obedience classes are not easy to find, we live in Ireland, in the countyside, nearest city that might run class is 1hr drive and Mojo is not a happy traveller.
When I walk him, he is off the leash and we meet lots of dogs and owners.
Occassionally we meet a dog Mojo acts aggressively to, but mosly he enjoys
good fun with neighbours dogs.

regarding visitors, yes i'm scared he will bite. He always approached visitors looking for attention and he seems so friendly people really like him. Going back to 1st incident, lady (Joan) came into living room and sat on couch, Mojo went up to her, and started nudging her hand, she leaned slightly forward and saying " hi mojo" rubbed his head. Immediately we heard low growl and he sprang up bearing his teeth into her face. I reached out and pulled him back.
Second time teenage girl Toma came in, sat in kitchen, didn't pay any attention to Mojo, he started smelling her sleeve and nudging her hand ie. wanting to be rubbed. She gently rubbed back near his ear, low growl sprang up at her face meeting her on the chin with his teeth. I didn't even know anything had happened till she said "I can believe he just did that" Both ladies reacted very calm and just turned their face away when he sprang at them.
Photographer left Mojo have a good sniff first, then bent down and rubbed back of his head, Mojo growled and photographer immediately stood up and there were no more problems. I was considering a muzzle but husband and daughters are not happy with the idea.
I'm honestly not happy to leave Mojo unattended with anybody for a second now. Feel I must protect my visitors and Mojo too.

Will pay more attention to his body language, he always starts trembling now when anybody calls and I'm really worried he will bite with fear.

Thank again folks, will keep you posted.
Teresa

Posted by MaxHollyNoah
Jun 10, 2010

Hi Teresa,

I am pleased to hear that Mojo lets you and your family members even take his bone away. That means he trusts you guys and he has no resource guarding aggression. He is basically a nice and trustworthy dog.

I think those two or three episodes are all related. As kjd said maybe his ears were hurting when Joan and Toma petted behind his ears. He got scolded or pulled away from those people and that might have caused some kind of lack of confidence in him. After those incidents you guys got nervous thinking he might hurt people and he felt the nervousness and started acting as if he was a fearful and protective dog. His shaking really bothers me though. It sounds as if he might get triggered to bite if it reaches his threshold. Can you make him calm and relaxed when you have a visitor? I think it is a good idea to have him in the room but away from your visitors. This way, he doesn't need to get close to them if he doesn't feel like but he is still being exposed to people. I don't want to exclude him from family activities. As long as he can share the same space with visitors and he can keep himself calm and relaxed, it would be the best solution.

You can warn your visitors by telling them what has happened recently and ask them to just ignore Mojo even if he comes close to them. When you see him walking towards your visitors call him to you and give him a treat. If there is anybody else besides your family members who he can trust, you might ask that person to give him a treat every time he/she visits you.

It might be frustrating but you will need to start it all over again in his socialization to people.

I hope there will be a breakthrough soon.

Good luck

Posted by teresamurphy
Jun 10, 2010

Hi Max Holly Noah,

Thank you for that, what you say makes sense and the treats sounds good idea.
Will try that and let you know how things go.

Thanks again
Teresa

Snappy dog