[CrankyEater]

Trying to understand a new dog...

Fezi is about 3 years old, adopted from a shelter. She was initially very shy, shook a lot, but in the past month has become much more active. She plays better than she did, but is only interested in balls for a couple of minutes, and not interested in any other dog toys (squeakies, stuffed animals, etc...no dice.)

The peculiar part of her behavior is this: when we go to the dog park, if she sees a dog larger than herself (particularly male dogs) she will streak across the park toward them, and growl as she gets close. As soon as the other dog turns to face her, she will lie on her back and urinate submissively. To me, it looks like she is saying "Hey, don't mess with me, punk...oops, I mean...I'm so scared of you!"

She sniffs and plays enthusiastically with dogs her size (35-40 lbs) and smaller. She has also made friends with some larger dogs and will chase them / let them chase her. Often she goes through the growl routine and then spends the next 1/2 hour playing with the dog she growled at.

So...what's the deal? Is her initial growling a sign of aggression that I need to work hard to correct? Is she challenging these other dogs who merely need to stand up to her in order for her to back down (ie, trying to find her place in the pack?) If the other dog rolls over, Fezi just looks confused and walks away, tail level with her body or slightly lower (not elevated over her back).

My first dog was 'classically' dog aggressive, so I'm really worried about the trait showing up in her, maybe because of something I am inadvertently teaching the dogs? (We do the "look how exciting it is to see another dog! you get treats!" routine when she's outside of the park)

My other concern is that she sometimes, but not always, guards me from other dogs, putting herself between me and them and growling at those who approach within 2 feet of me...but, if she's not by my side and another dog approaches me, she will ignore them and continue about her business.

Lastly, she sometimes growls at people who come into the apartment (my boyfriend, in particular) although the behavior tends to stop after she sees them a couple of times.

Sorry for the long email, your thoughts are appreciated!

(ps--if I raise my voice to her or lean over her, she pees on the floor, so we are trying to work mainly with positive reinforcement!)

[fearfuldogs.com]

I think that you are right that your dog is scared. Some scared dogs as they develop even a little confidence will go after the things that scare them. You can help your dog by rewarding her for the behavior you want. But first you need to prevent the inappropriate behavior. You should learn about triggers, thresholds, counter conditioning and desensitization. You'll find info at this site

Working with a fearful, scared or shy dog

Do not punish your dog for its behavior! Punishing scared dogs, or forcing them to deal with the things that scare it rarely helps.

[suebgone]

we'll do the easy one first - it is called submissive/excitment urination. you can google for lots of information. it is a matter of you changing your behavior by not doing what causes it. there really isn't any way of using positive re-inforcement for that.

as an example - many dogs do that when you first come in the door - the answer is do not speak at all to the dog. just come in & immediately take her outside

I am not a fan of dog parks at all. I read way to many times of dogs being injured in fights, people injured trying to break them up - no enforcement even when there are rules, fleas & on & on.

can you set up play dates with friends & just a couple dogs in someones fenced yard? much safer & far less stress on you.