I think some small dogs are like that, overprotective and tend to get away with things a larger dog never would, so before long, they become a little unstable in their behavior, tending to assume some alpha rolls in the relationship. A well-mannered dog that knows its place in the family hierarchy would see its owner as the family or pack leader and never strike out on its own like that! It would trust her to deal with everything and only step over those leadership bounds if it saw she was literally physically in trouble and/or being threated in some way by another person or animal.
__________________  Jeanie and Tibbe One must do the best one can. You may get some marks for a very imperfect answer: you will certainly get none for leaving the question alone. C. S. Lewis |