Time for NILIF???

[AmyJo27]

Today I was leashing Bola getting ready for a walk (Capone was still loose) and my 3 year old daughter opened the door. Capone ran outside which usually isnt too big of a problem because he is not a runner. But this time a woman was walking on the sidewalk in front of our house.
He ran at her with his hackles raised and was barking and growling. (this part I found strange) he then got in front of the woman, she stopped walking, and stood there growling. :/ I've NEVER seen him act like this.

I ran and grabbed his collar and tried settling him. He continued looking in the direction of the way the woman walked away and would let out a low growl every once in awhile. I didnt or baby him. I didnt really know what to do.

I socialize like crazy, he goes everywhere with me and greets people with a wagging tail. But only the same few people come to our house so could he be getting protective or insecure here???

He doesnt act funny to us at all so do i start NILIF or not in this case. ???

Hes approaching 6 months old.


(......sorry for any wierd typos, laptop broke....im on my phone)

[suziriot]

Hmm. Without having been there to observe the incident, my first inclination is that he was being protective of what he perceives to be "his" territory. As he matures this type of behavior will only get worse. My GSD mix Barley was an incredibly friendly dog and loved meeting new people. But he was very protective of us and the other dogs, and of his "territory." If we had visitors and let them in, he would greet them with kisses and try to smother them by sitting in their lap. But if a stranger walked in front of the house, came to the door, came up to the fence... he became really aggressive and acted like he was going to rip their throat out. I was terrified that one day he would jump the fence and hurt someone.

My suggestion is to start with positive conditioning in the front yard. As long as you feel safe and have plenty of room, you can set up some chairs or even sit on the front lawn if you have one. Keep him leashed or tethered so you have COMPLETE control of him. Make him feel like someone walking by is okay, no big deal. Give treats and praise for him staying in a calm sit/down position. Don't push it too much, and take him inside immediately if he starts getting worked up. Of course, if you are concerned about off-leash dogs running around your neighborhood then this wouldn't be a good idea.

[loverocksalot]

Yeah its hard to say. Rocky had done something similar when we were not even on our property we were at a soccer game near our car and there was a woman with a baby carriage at top of hill. For some reason he freaked about it. Very unusual and only time he did it to a human. He has raised his hackles at a few humans that have approached him and they are just weird people and I guess he senses it. It seems that if people are any bit afraid of him he senses this as being quite strange. At the age Capone is Rocky had barked and growled at new objects around the yard and house. Not humans but things like flower pots and candles especially if they were dark in color. It was a stage. He will still do it at times if the wind blows a dark color flower pot or something like that but once he gets closer he is like oh DUH. I dont want to call it NILIF but will call it regular daily training. Before the door is opened he should go to his spot. A spot that gives enough time for the door to be closed before he can get the chance to run out. And NILIF is a way of life for us. Not strict but just have to do something to get something. And a pup that young in my opinion should not have couch time or on the bed time. I dont know if he is allowed to do couch and beds but I did not allow Rocky onto the couch until he was about 2 and he often lost the privilege. He still has to ask permission and is only suppose to be up there when his blanket is there. He is not allowed all day while we are home. Now for the doors make him sit wait at a distance until you allow him out even with leash on. Bring him out front and from a distance when people walk past reward him for his good behavior. If he freaks about it you are too close. Might be better to stand in door way with him on leash and if he does not react he gets rewarded if he starts to perk up or hackles raise move him away before he freaks. I dont know how often people walk down your street but here it is so rare if I had this situation I would have to get someone to walk by for me. Rocky would probably go nuts if some strange person walked down the street. For example he has learned to bark like crazy at ups guy cause ups guy throws me a cookie when I bark at him. He never barked at the guy and the guy gave him no attention so Rocky tried barking. Now if UPS guy does not pay attention to him Rocky barks his butt off and UPS guy goes right to the fence and gives him a cookie. UPS guy knows Rocky barks for a cookie. Amazing animals they are they really learn from association. And doing what Suzi said is exactly that. Really good treats and he will learn that people walking by brings good things and not negative so therefore it was good that you did not or leash pop him as sometimes this will just make the situation worse. Considering his age this may be just a stage and he may never do it again or it could get worse but if you keep up with his training he will probably get much better. Are you clicker training him? If not I think you should consider giving it a try. Last I want to say your 3 year old daughter should not be allowed to open the door either. She too could use a bit of NILIF it works with kids too. As does the positive reactions for catching good things. I realize she is mature for a 3 year old but still she is only 3. you are doing any thing wrong parenting wise so please dont take that the wrong way. I know I have been there and can easily be offending when someone suggest what to do with your kids, and I was much more relaxed with my older son. Letting him have some Independence at 2 that at this stage in life I would never do nor did I do with my younger son. Now my younger son gets more freedom then my older one did to some degree. I also did not have a dog at the time but if I did have a child of your kids age I suppose the dog would get out way too often. Maybe you can have your daughter sit on her spot and Capone sit at his. Tell your daughter she is helping to train capone. Then leash up bola throw treats to capone for staying at his spot and praise and treats for your daughter. then allow your daughter to open the door if you wish or open yourself is better with you going first then her then dog. With capone staying at his spot or crated.