My dog is MEAN!!!

[nanahas3]

Originally Posted by nanahas3

I will try to post for you a picture of my daughters silky and one of our yorkie so you can see the difference and its really not all that drastic. The first one is daughters registered silky second of course our registered yorkie. the main difference to me is in the nose and length of body. of course hair texture also.

As for him maybe being a Silky I wanted to add that her little furbaby is around her children all the time and both are very hyper but that is the gentlest dog I have ever seen with children so dont think the breed has anything to do with it even if yours turns out to be Silky instead of Yorkie. Good luck and just give him lots of love

[Akbritt]

Originally Posted by nanahas3

As for him maybe being a Silky I wanted to add that her little furbaby is around her children all the time and both are very hyper but that is the gentlest dog I have ever seen with children so dont think the breed has anything to do with it even if yours turns out to be Silky instead of Yorkie. Good luck and just give him lots of love

I don't like the idea of blaming the breed or the terrier being child aggressive. I think any dog or breed can be this way if they had a bad experiences with small children. Or even if they have had no experience with children. My daughter was bit by a rat terrier when she was three, (my daughter wasn't even interacting with the dog at the time, she was standing still with her back turned to the dog) who had no experiences with children younger then 12. Some dogs just don't like children. And they are some mothers here on YT with small children and they get along well with their yorkies. A very important thing to remember, children and dogs should be supervised while together ALWAYS. Children will be children, so if your dog isnt used to screaming, running and playing rough it is best to keep the 2 apart until the dog has had more socialization and positive training associating children as good things. Socialization at a young age for both the child and the dog is the best way for the 2 to coexist together...and with dogs who have snapped or bitten children should still be socializated in the safest way possible to help get pass the "children are scary". ignoring it, will do nothing, but start with older and calmer children playing at a safe distances while praising the dog having good behavior and slowly get closer as long as your dog is comfortable. If the dog starts to react negatively, take the dog away and then bring him back again, continuing the trainning.

But really it depends on what you are comforable with, if you dont have many children in your life its not too big of an issue, but always have him on a leash.

He sounds like Yorkie to me, can't wait to see your pictures! Congratulations on your new furbaby!!

[geekygirl]

Thanks to a kind member's help, I finally learned how to properly upload pix without having to resize them. Sorry for the hiatus, I've been sick.

The first picture is Einstein's most recent pix, taken when he was 7 months old at a yorkie/shih tzu meetup. He's clearly bigger and longer than the other already fully grown yorkies.

In the second two pictures, he was around 5 to 6 months old and you can better see his face (which hasn't really changed much).

Either way, I do love him, but I was told that he really needs a behaviorist. I took him to the humane society as I was hoping to adopt a companion for him. But it appears that I need to correct Einstein's behavior first before I bring another dog home, a dog that may pick up Einstein's bad habit. By the way, would it be better to get a male or female companion for a dominant male dog?

Thanks for all of your help with the behavior and poop eating issues. I will try to implement those advice before seeking a behaviorist.

http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/pic...ictureid=46469

http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/pic...ictureid=46470

http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/pic...ictureid=46471

[bcrass2]

He looks like a yorkie to me

[Baileyrosemomma]

I am by no means an expert but he looks like a yorkie to me. He is soooo cute!!!

[MyFairLacy]

he looks nothing like a silky. He is definitely a yorkie. Pet quality yorkues can have a variety of sizes and appearances but he looks much more like a yorkie than a silky.

Is he neutered? If not that should help. It sounds like his behavioral issues are due to that two year old hurting him and lack of proper training

[Amanda7]

I agree that he resembles a yorkie much more than a silky. He is really adorable.

[geekygirl]

thanks for the confirmation (not that it matters by this point)! when i took him to the dog park last weekend, 2 women approached me and insisted that he's a silky. they both own silkies. so that got me thinking...that's all. i guess i truly cannot tell them apart at all. at first (when he was younger), he looked all yorkie to me and now i keep on thinking that i have a silky. so when people ask me what kind of dog he is, i'm totally confused as to what to tell them. they think i'm crazy for being so inconsistent in my answers. =)

he has been neutered. i have tried to socialize him, but i also baby him greatly. so maybe that's why he's so mean towards everyone else (including my boyfriend sometimes)?

either way, i am looking into a behaviorist this weekend. thanks again for all of your help! it is much appreciated.

[lil fu fu girl]

Just saw the pics,,, he looks yorkie to me! And I won't be the first I am sure to tell you he is a cutie-pie. Work out the rest of the hormones and with behavioral help he will be just fine! Best of luck , and please keep us posted.

[Wabbit]

awww he's adorable!!!

Sometimes Owners might be a bit fearful and not realize it...and that transfers to the dog...if he's even slightly dominant he might take responsibility for protecting you....And that could definately make him more aggresive...
Make sure that YOUR the pack leader..taking him on walks is the best way to establish that...just make sure that YOU lead him...and also make him walk right beside you..not ahead of you...or he's leading you.. By regularly doing that...and setting boundries and limitations in your house you will make him see you as pack leader...and then his other issues will work themselves out.

My sister had a dog that did the EXACT thing...we worked on establishing her role as pack leader..now that dog is AMAZING...and balanced and happy.

Take each day one at a time...and hopefully with a trainers help..and you learning how to be pack leader...that might get his issues under control.

[geekygirl]

thanks for your advice!

i typed a long message, and it just did not go through. so i'll make this one more brief.

i spoke to my vet.

she feels that all of the social places that i've been taking einstein to (dog park and doggie day camp) are the cause of his aggression. it may be that he is extremely fearful in these settings as he is overwhelmed by the presence and sheer number of these other dogs. thus, when i walk him in setting outside of the dogpark/day camp, he is displacing his fear through aggression and lashing out in this setting. i have to say that it is true that he is afraid of other dogs. he wasn't well socialize when i first got him.

she suggested that i stop taking him to all of these social settings and crate him all day until he knows that i'm alpha. i am allowed to walk him around my neighborhood, though.

this seems so counterintuitive. i feel as the he has gotten much better at the dog park when it comes to socializing. when i first took him to the dog park, he would constantly try to climb upon anyone's leg to escape the dogs. now, he's still shy and needs to be near me, but he's willing to venture away from me briefly to interact with other dogs. if he finds a dog he really likes (which is rare but is occuring more often), he's willing to forget that i'm there to play with the dog.

i don't know if her advice is legitimate, but she is the expert. my boyfried wants to try her approach before we get a behaviorist, but this seems too extreme for me. thus, i want to know what you guys think before i consider proceeding with this drastic change in einstein's young life.

thanks, once again.

[Britster]

I have to disagree with the vet. I think dogs NEED that socialization. If he's crated all day for no reason (other than potty training) I think he will become worse. Dogs crave and need that sense of being in a pack and he just needs to re-learn how to act around other dogs. You're doing the right thing by taking him to these places. Maybe you should just do it in a slower way? He seems like he's making progress since he will play with certain dogs now. Maybe first introduce him to another dog by holding him and letting him sniff the other dog. He probably just gets intimidated by the other dogs since he's not used to it.

I just don't see how crating him all day will make him establish you as the pack leader? There's many other things you can do to create that relationship. Little things... always be sure you walk out the door before he does, he's only allowed to jump on the couch or bed if he was invited by you, things like that. You're his leader, he listens to you.

[Lexismom09]

I agree with Britster. The socialization is good. You just need to be the alpha at the dog park. If other dogs are picking on him, you need to step in for him. So he always knows you will be his protector, takes the pressure off him.

[livingdustmops]

“Pack Leader” Myths
Daniel Estep, Ph.D. and Suzanne Hetts, Ph.D.
Animal Behavior Associates, Inc. - Pet Behavior Wellness Experts
Copyright ABA, Inc.
The “pack leader” idea has been misinterpreted and over-used. Objective data relevant to this concept have been obtained by two animal behaviorists in New York City, Drs. Peter Borchelt and Linda Goodloe. They distributed a survey to over 2,000 dog owners which asked detailed questions about the behavior of their dogs, including what kinds of social interactions owners permitted and the frequency of occurrence of various forms of aggressive behavior. It is commonly believed that playing tug-of-war games with dogs and allowing them to sleep on their owners’ beds will cause them to challenge and be aggressive toward their owners. The survey results did not support these beliefs. Instead, there was no correlation between whether or not tug-of-war and other competitive interactions were encouraged and the likelihood of dominance aggression. Allowing a dog to sleep on the bed was not correlated with the occurrence of dominance aggression. These results support the idea that there is nothing inherently wrong with allowing dogs to sleep on the bed and playing tug-of-war with them.
Another common belief is that feeding the dog before the family eats leads to the dog achieving a dominant position because he is allowed to eat first. Not only is there no evidence to support this belief, but careful analysis reveals the faultiness of this logic. The major way that animals express dominance is by competing over scarce resources such as food. Since owners typically are not competing with their dogs to get to the dog’s food first, a competitive interaction does not occur. The important point is not when the dog eats but rather, from the dog’s perspective, whether the person and dog are contesting for the same food.
Dogs can be aggressive over food, toys, a favorite resting place or when people try to move them. When a dog shows threatening behavior such as growling, lunging or snapping or outright aggression in these circumstances, dominance may be one of the potential causes. Fear or defensive behavior is also a common motivation for aggressive behavior. Any time a dog shows threats or aggression professional help should be sought immediately.

Edited version first published in the Rocky Mountain News, Denver, CO.
Any use of this article must cite the authors and the Rocky Mountain News

[Britster]

Originally Posted by livingdustmops

“Pack Leader” Myths
Daniel Estep, Ph.D. and Suzanne Hetts, Ph.D.
Animal Behavior Associates, Inc. - Pet Behavior Wellness Experts
Copyright ABA, Inc.
The “pack leader” idea has been misinterpreted and over-used. Objective data relevant to this concept have been obtained by two animal behaviorists in New York City, Drs. Peter Borchelt and Linda Goodloe. They distributed a survey to over 2,000 dog owners which asked detailed questions about the behavior of their dogs, including what kinds of social interactions owners permitted and the frequency of occurrence of various forms of aggressive behavior. It is commonly believed that playing tug-of-war games with dogs and allowing them to sleep on their owners’ beds will cause them to challenge and be aggressive toward their owners. The survey results did not support these beliefs. Instead, there was no correlation between whether or not tug-of-war and other competitive interactions were encouraged and the likelihood of dominance aggression. Allowing a dog to sleep on the bed was not correlated with the occurrence of dominance aggression. These results support the idea that there is nothing inherently wrong with allowing dogs to sleep on the bed and playing tug-of-war with them.
Another common belief is that feeding the dog before the family eats leads to the dog achieving a dominant position because he is allowed to eat first. Not only is there no evidence to support this belief, but careful analysis reveals the faultiness of this logic. The major way that animals express dominance is by competing over scarce resources such as food. Since owners typically are not competing with their dogs to get to the dog’s food first, a competitive interaction does not occur. The important point is not when the dog eats but rather, from the dog’s perspective, whether the person and dog are contesting for the same food.
Dogs can be aggressive over food, toys, a favorite resting place or when people try to move them. When a dog shows threatening behavior such as growling, lunging or snapping or outright aggression in these circumstances, dominance may be one of the potential causes. Fear or defensive behavior is also a common motivation for aggressive behavior. Any time a dog shows threats or aggression professional help should be sought immediately.

Edited version first published in the Rocky Mountain News, Denver, CO.
Any use of this article must cite the authors and the Rocky Mountain News

I agree that playing tug of war or letting your dog sleep on your bed does not mean that the dog is dominating you. I think it's all how you go about playing it and how you react, feel, etc while doing such things. I let Jackson sleep on my bed and have played tug of war with him. But I only try to allow him on my bed when I invite him up. He's not the ruler of the bed. He has to share it with ME, not the other way around.

I fully believe in the pack leader mentality as it really does work with my dog.