Learning Manners with other Dogs
 

I have tried to search through previous threads so that I don't make everyone repeat everything while rolling their eyes!! :rolleyes: But I couldn't locate what I was looking for.....

I am looking for how everyone teaches "manners" especially when meeting or playing with other dogs. Coby is whoa-high energy unless he's asleep. He does great with sit,stay,down,etc. He pays attention to me most of the time. The problem is with other dogs (or people, but not as bad) even our own other dog.

He jumps in their faces, bites at them, climbs on their backs, barks at them, and generally just annoys both them and their owners. Reggie is 10 years old and can get grumpy. You guys have mixed opinions on whether puppies know when an older dog thinks enough is enough. With Coby, I really think he doesn't get it and I have to separate them because I'm afraid someone will get hurt. I know a part of it is just puppy-exuberance and part is trying out his dominance. But how have you corrected that? I try the "no", put him in a sit/down, etc. With a treat and command, I can distract him and get him in line easily. But when treat and praise is over, he's right back in his face. It's the same at the pet store but without so much of the dominance thing - mostly just annoying puppy behavior.

We haven't been able to attend puppy classes yet because we're getting ready to send our daughter to college. But hopefully nearer the end of the month... Coby's also being neutered in a couple of weeks.

Any good tips?? I'm sure that he'll outgrown some of it, but I prefer some manners when we're meeting someone OR when he's playing with his brother. He's just so darling that I want to make sure that EVERYONE sees that in him!!

Thanks!

HI!

Good post! I can't wait to see all of the responses. Mickey is the same way. How old is Coby? Mickey is 7 months. He has calmed down a lot over the past few months. He never barks at other dogs, or really bites them, he just kinda jumps on their faces and mouths at them a little bit. He gets very excited! I live in the city, so he encounters at least 5 dogs a walk... you think he would be used to it by now, but he just loves to play.

I do think that he is learning though, that the other, older dogs arent interested in his games. So now... what he will do is lay down on the ground as soon as he sees the other dog and wait for the other dog to approach him. As soon as that other dog approaches he will jump right up from laying down and start jumping and trying to play. He usually calms down after about a minute or so and will sit and just hang out. Also, I have noticed that he is muchhh better off of the leash! When we bring him to the dog park he very rarely will jump up on the other dogs... he just follows them.

I think Coby will grow out of it, but trust me I hear what you are saying about the manners- especially when the owners of the other dogs dont appreciate our dogs lack-of manners!

Very interested in hearing what others have to say!

Good Luck! :thumbup: :animal36 :animal-pa

Thanks - and thanks for the clarification - "biting" is not the right word - your word "mouthing" is the right word. It's all in good play for him at least (although oh so rude). Coby is only 5 months old. So did you work with Mickey on it in particular, or did he just sort of naturally outgrow much of it? If he will outgrow it, I can be really patient. But if there is something else that I should be "specifically" doing that I'm not already doing, I wanna get on it! I love puppies, but growing out of the puppy stage has it's relief, I mean rewards too. ;)

I'm so glad to read this post! That's exactly what Zoe does to our older collie. She jumps in her face and doesn't really bite but just generally annoys her. I can't really blame sasha when she growls and shows her teeth - she never bites her though! - but I yell at that both and make them stop. I wish I knew what it means and what the best way to handle it is. :confused:

LOL - So, now on this post we have one person who's pup might have outgrown it and two people who don't know how best to address it. Where are all our ANSWERERS!!??!! :D

To tjdmom and MickNMal, today, I started using the water bottle. I hate "yelling" because it's just negative energy and usually either frightens them or stimulates them (neither being very productive). I use the water bottle for barking (working s-l-o-w-l-y) and today tried it on the fighting. Working like a CHARM. So I think this might be the trick. But now my question is.... do I have to carry a freaking water bottle to the pet store or do you think I can build some good habits that will carry over...??.... :confused:

When my kids were little although I seldom spanked - or had any reason to - I carried what we called the "travel paddle" that my husband made. Never used it, but it was just to pull barely out of my bag as a visual reminder. I'm thinking maybe I need a little water pistol and holster when I'm out as a visual cue for my furkids. :D

I did pet training at petsmart, and I don't really know with what they taught us helped Aubrey be polite, or if he was already that way. I would try pet training though. Good luck.

I guess I better try the pet training, because Penny always attacks, and now she has Piper doing it, and he's never done it before.

Good questions! Trixie is generally really good with other dogs, except for when she is on-leash. When I take her out and there is a dog across the street she starts pulling the leash and starts barking like crazy - it sounds violent. Most of the time when I bring her over to the dog, she's fine, but some times she sniffs and then again starts violently barking. Then I remove her from the situation.

She only does this on a leash, when I take her to the dog park or she plays with other dogs inside off-leash (even dogs she hasn't met before), she is totally fine, no peep.

When she barks like that, I usually make her sit down, or I hold her laying down on the ground until she's calmed down. I'm going to have to try the water pistol though, that looks like a great idea.

Lucy (18 weeks) does the same thing, she barks and mouths at my mom's 7 year-old Yorkie Mazie and then mazie just barks and shows her teeth back, but all Lucy really wants to do is run around and play with Mazie, but she wants nothign to do with it.

We are already enrolled in a puppy headstart training class, we've been twice, and even during class, Lucy will bark at the other dogs to play when the instructer is teaching, and if the instructor uses another dog for a demonstration, Lucy becomes jealous and starts to whine/cry/and then bark. It's really embarassing, and I don't know how to control it.

As soon as I take my daughter to college and things slow down around here, we'll be going to training. I just hope he doesn't embarrass me. All my other dogs (and kids) have luckily been star pupils. But Coby...... well.... we'll see....... :scratchhe

I have heard others say that. Coby's not been off leash around other dogs (other than the older one), so I don't know if he's like that. But there must some good explanation for that.

That sounds just like us. I never know who to discipline - the puppy for being obnoxious or the older one for being impatient. But the water bottle is helping. And it seems like MAYBE Reggie is more patient because he knows that Coby will get squirted. (Heck, maybe that just makes Reggie's day!)

Pixie who I have had for 7 months and is 1 1/2 years old jumps on Cali who is 2 years old and bigger and I have had her for 2 years, she bites at her, pulls her leg out from under her, pulls her topknot. At first I tried to stop her but Cali would go right back for more. So I figured that's how they are playing. Pixie loves my 10 year old cranky 10 lb pom and always sits by her. She has never tried to play the same way as she does with Cali. But she will bark at her when Maya starts barking and Maya either ignores her or will chase after her, but is too slow to catch her. Pixie is afraid of other dogs so I don't have a problem with that. I just think they are playing the way dogs do.

Pixie seems to know which dog "understands" what she's doing. I wish I knew if Coby knew - or I wish that "I" knew. Once in a while, Reggie does that - goes back after him. But most of the time he just stands in one place and waits looking sort of like Eeyore, from Winnie the Pooh, being annoyed.