Hi guys

I have a 2 & 1/2 yr old St Bernard who's behaviour is worrying us.

Sometimes, and this is random odd occasions, he will lunge and mouth people when on a lead. Today he lunged at a woman who had her back to us on the pavement and nipped her bottom. She thought it was hilarious but I was mortified. His gums have grown over most of his front teeth so he cannot really do much damage and he never does this in an aggressive manner but this is not something I want him doing. It has happened twice before with no warning and I am now getting hesitant to walk him with our other two dogs (Newf & Rottie).

On his walks he does jump towards people sometimes. It is always when they are not paying him any attention but I can usually tell when this is going to happen as his ears prick up and he just focuses on them 100% as they are getting closer and you cannot get his attention. Usually I get him to sit and wait for them to pass but recently someone advised I should slacken the lead and walk faster instead?

He is fine at home with people he knows or friends of ours. He has been a bit funny with a couple of builders who have been round recently trying to mouth their arms but it honestly looks like he is trying to get attention rather than be aggressive.

99% of the time on a walk he is fine, he is great with children and most people. I think this is because he is getting lots of attention and fuss from most people being a big Saint. I am going to try and contact a local trainer to see if they can help but in the meantime any thoughts?

I also meant to say he was neutered 1 month ago

what do you walk him on? i would use a head collar until you get some training or advice, will give you better control of his head, and when you see him getting interested you can try to distract him but will be in control of him. problem is if he does this to someone who is scared of dogs or someone small or frail, could hurt or badly frighten them!

One thing that might be worth doing - for the shorter term - is getting him used to wearing a muzzle. The baskerville type are best - those are the ones where they can open their mouths and pant - and they do design different shapes for different dog breeds. You would need to start by putting treats in it for him to eat out of it, so he gets used to putting his nose in it, then clipping it on, immediately unclipping and treating, and progressing to feeding treats with it on for gradually longer periods (few seconds at first) - you can put treats through it. The reason I suggest that is, with his size in particular, you run the risk of him hurting someone when he nips, or the risk of someone being scared and reporting him under the DDA, which you don't want. The muzzle will also make you feel more relaxed, as you will KNOW he can't nip, and the more relaxed you are, the more it will relax him - and you are right, a slack lead is better. :-)

I'll leave the behaviour advice for someone more experienced - like Lindsay - to come along, but I just thought that was worth a mention. :-)

Thanks. He is currently being walked on a canny collar. We used to have a halti but I find the canny collar is better as the control is on top of the head rather than under the chin. Am going to try some home made liver cake on his walk tonight and see if that does the trick!

Why don't you find a local training class and start adult dog training with him. it will build your confidence up again and give you cance to correct his behaviour with a other people and dogs around but with a trainer present..You will also learn ways to control your dog in different situations and commands for the same.
i still go with my dogs and really enjoy it and the dogs are really tired after it.

> his ears prick up and he just focuses on them 100% as they are getting closer and you cannot get his attention. Usually I get him to sit and wait for them to pass but recently someone advised I should slacken the lead and walk faster instead?
>

By the sounds of it he is seeing some people as fair game with lunging at them, with the look you describe he is looking at them as prey! eek  I would correct him for that and walk faster as someone said to you before, maybe squeak a toy at him to re direct his attention away from people he wants to do that to. Then when he is good (no lunging) give him a treat. You were very lucky the lady in question found it funny...because if she had a child with her or was nervous around dogs anyway you would have the police at your door. He might also be nervous as he is being walked on his own? if before you did take him out with your other dogs, my dog is the same very into eyeballing everyone. Or on the other hand if he is with the gang might feel frustrated not being able to interact with people on his walks.
Do you walk all 3 on lead...a rottie,newf & saint! crikey that must be over 20 stone of dog your holding onto! even I would cross the road lol :-)

I get that when I walk my 3 but I only have 2 huskies and a mal and geez the looks I get are insane! lol

Thanks for all the helpful advice. I walk the dogs with my husband at the mo as I need to keep my full attention on Mike but as you can imagine I've heard them all and more! The Rottweiller is going back to my brother in law soon, we have been fostering her while he has been sorting out some personal problems so we will be back to having two dogs again. I'm hoping we can then get into a routine with Mike.

We are getting in contact with our local dog training club, we've also started clicker training to get more focus on us during our walks and we're gonna call the vets on Monday to see if they can recommend a trainer/behaviourist. I really want to nip this in the bud asap as he is such a loving, gentle dog 99% of the time but due to his size (75 Kilos!) we cannot afford to have him any less than 100%.

I'll keep you posted.

my Leo used to do this. he thought people were there for all his attention and would lunge to get to them, he never nipped tho.

a dogmatic helps. the canny collar, i found was too long on the back of the neck for any control. you need to teach him to ignore all distractions and liver cake will help but start giving this as soon as he spots someone and continue doing this until you pass. it keeps his attention on you. it does take time but it does work.