[squirt11308]

Squirt, my 2 year old Shorkie is a very protective dog of me. He is like this perfect dog when I am not around, he will let anyone come up and pet him. My parents have dog sat a few times when my husband and I have gone out of town and he will let anyone in the house/pet him/whatever it may be. Also the same goes for my husband. It is just me that he is trying so hard to protect. We discovered this over Christmas while my Aunt was at my parents house with us. When I was in the same room and she tried to get up he would bark and try to attack her (if she sits there and doesn't move he is perfectly fine), but when I was sleeping in the bedroom my husband was out with the dog and everyone else and she got up and walked around without any issues because I was not "there". I am starting to wonder if I did/am doing something wrong to make him protect me. Would like some input on how to change his/my behavior so we can go places/or have people over without having to lock him up. I should also mention that this behavior hasn't just started its been gradually getting worse over the past 6 months and we have tried dog training and medication (for aggressiveness).

[pug&boston]

i watched something like this before on a dog training television programme, is your dog a boy by any chance? basically hes just letting everyone know that you are his!! i would say get a dog trainer in to help!

[cigwyllt]

Can you tell us a bit more about your life with him? Does he always sit on your lap or on the furniture with you? Do you have a strict routine with him - ie does he expect (and receive) his dinner and his walks at a particular time every day? He is he generally pushy and demanding attention?

[mightymite]

What Cig is getting at is your dog has what is known as "resource guarding" habits. Some dogs are stronger resource guarders than others. If you allow your dog to sleep in your bed, or sit in your lap or if you carry him around a lot, this reinforces the behavior. To stop the behavior, you need to teach your dog that his guarding behavior results in the exact opposite of what he wants - the resource (you) that he wants to protects - LEAVES - in other words he LOSES it, by the naughty behavior. Here are some resources for you to take a look at:

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[squirt11308]

Mightmite, Thanks for the advice and resources. This is similar to something else I was told by a friend and she also recommended NILIF.