Hello peeps!

My Scottie (8 months) is currently in season and consequently getting shortish late night walks at about 11pm.  During the day she usually sits at the window watching the world go by while I work - doing this has become a fascination with her which she insists on.  On Wednesday afternoon, she suddenly started growling and barking at everyone who walked past.  Previously, she growls at noises she hears when she is in the hallway but not at the window because she can see whats going on, but she started grownling and barking at everyone going past the window.

On Wednesday night during her walk she saw someone down the street and started barking - I didn't take much notice of this.

Yesterday afternoon she was at the window whining desperately to go out so I tried putting her on a long line in the front garden (she sometimes watches the world go by happily from this vantage point) but was whining desperately to get out of the gate so I eventually relented and talk her for a quickie around the block (she never asks for a walk usually so it was unusual), even though she is in season - its a quiet local area so we never see dogs so I didn't mind chancing it just this one time, as she's getting a bit stir crazy.

Twice we passed women (both carrying umbrellas incidentally) and as they approached she suddenly started barking and growling really loudly and warning them off - she has never done this before as she is a real 'people puppy' - everyone is a potential best friend. I put it down to the umbrellas and later walked around my own back garden with an umbrella and let her sniff it etc to see umbrellas are a normal thing.

However later that evening we went out again and as soon as she saw a couple further down the road come out of their house to get in their car she started barking and growling furiously (at 11.15pm!) in the street.  Neither had an umbrella, so now I was of course beginning to see a pattern that any person she encounters in the outside world (except those coming into the house) is getting a sharp telling off.  Round the corner we went and a car started moving up the street towards us - that also got barked and growled at even though it was quite a long way away. 

We had to go to the airport last night to pick someone up and I waited in the quiet car park with her - she was sat on the seat whilst I stood next to her with the door open.  The only people to pass by were two men who also got barked and growled at as they approached.

Now I'm guessing her being in season has something to do with this although I can't think why.  But I am totally unprepared for it as she is usually such a friendly dog that a person only has to be in the same street as her and her tail wags, ears go back and she's as happy as can be.

Will this behaviour end when her season does or do we have a potential future problem on our hands?  Its really rather embarrasing when people are walking out into the road to get past this angry growling terrier puppy!  And what tips do you have for what to do when she does this.  There was one man she walked past last night who she gave one small bark to then stopped so I told her many times what a good girl she was (didn't have any treats with me), but if 99% of the time she's going to react then there's not many opportunties for praise to show her the correct behaviour.

I did wonder if its due to these late night walks.  The streets are empty when we walk round so she hasn't properly encountered people for nearly two weeks but then she has encountered SOME people and hasn't reacted like this until the past two days when its EVERY person she sees, including those at the window.  I'm going to have to stop her sitting at the window now because of the amount of noise she is making during the day, but even sitting on the floor she's barking and howling at every single noise, even those we can't hear rather than just people right outside the house like she usually did.

Hmmm, I can see now from typing this that she's being over-protective towards her territory, probably due to her season but I can't really understand why she's barking at strangers in the street away from her house.

Tips and thoughts appreciated please!

Just thought, a couple of times in the car last night she was barking and growling/howling at 'nothing' as we drove along in the dark for no apparent reason which she has never done before (she goes in the car regularly and enjoys it).

So it seems to be that everything that moves is now getting told off severely.  Please tell me this is going to stop when her season does!

It will be a number of factors that on their own wouldn't matter but all heaped together are causing the change in her.  Being in season, socialising a lot less, walks not being as enjoyable and anything else that may have changed because of her season.  My advice would be to be careful not to let her practice doing it for the short time that remains before life can get back to normal so that it doesn't become a habit.  If you do get into a situation you can either jolly her along or try not react, pretend you haven't noticed.  One thing that I will mention is on the odd occasion that she doesn't do it and you naturally want to really praise and reward her for not reacting, just consider what she might be thinking when you do suddenly lavish loads of praise on her for literally doing nothing.  If I tell you not to think about a red balloon what is the first thing that comes into your mind?  So perhaps a quiet 'good girl' would be more appropriate.

Ha ha, good point.

Excellent advice there, thanks Sally. :-D

I think I was being a bit too over cautious with the walks - there aren't many dogs in the close vicinity and I know all those that are around - either neutered males or rottweilers that are kept indoors and not walked locally.  Her evening walk is probably about a 10-15 minute lap but I have been paranoid about going out with her on my own without OH. 

But thinking about it, I can get round the immediate 'block' in about 5-7 minutes and realistically she's a Scottie puppy that I can scoop up in my arms in the event of approaching potential horny male ;-) which really is unlikely anyway, so what I might do is start taking her round the short block several times a day.  If I do that three times a day, then a 10-15 walk with OH late at night, she would be getting at least 30 minutes of walking albeit broken up - but better than just ten minutes in total. Plus she would be getting to see people more regularly again. 

I don't think I have been over-cautious about 'accidents' - more a case of bumping into someone with an entire male who starts going loopy and then getting a backlash from the owner.  But I'm going to brazen it out for my dog's sanity!  Plus at the start I was embarrased at the thought of any 'dripping' whilst she was walking past someone - I would have been mortified, ha ha I'm such a wuss!

Please, please, please, if your bitch is in season, don't tether her in the garden on a long line! Never, never leave her unattended outside - it's just begging for trouble.

oh no, I don't tether her, I hold it!

Usually she sits in the front (its not even a garden - just about 3 foot between the gate and the front door and I sit at the window of the room next to the front door holding the line - the window is a big large ground level window that I could jump through and have hold of her collar within 4 seconds - but anyway yesterday because of her being in season, I just stood at the door (in the warm) watching while she was on the path.

Panic over! ;-)