Well it may not be new it happened once before (when food was near - she has been a food guarder) but the reason is unclear unless it is guarding her bed.  I had taken my dog's blanket away earlier today because she has taken to shredding again.  I put it back for tonight and patted it for her to sit on.  I continued making a fuss of her as she lay down and then she just turned and snapped!!!  I was surprised and pulled back.  I turned away from her and walked away.  I then called her to me made her sit and then sent her back to her bed - just felt I had to get her to interact with me normally.    Any thoughts on this please?  And how should I have reacted?  I can normally stroke her when she is lying in her bed.

Could she be in pain? Perhaps when she was lying down she was sore or you touch somewhere uncomfortable for her (not on purpose of course). I would treat it similar to food guarding. Ie when ever you move past give something nice and over time cut down the distance from you to her. I do think that a dogs bed when they are asleep is a place that isn't disturbed. I remember reading an article a while back about pets nowadays not getting enough sleep due to the buzz of today's life and being disturbed when they get to sleep (cos they do look so cute).

I am by no means an expert. Others will be along soon I guess.

Hope you sort it
Anna

I'd get her checked out, if this is something she doesn't normally do.

It took a similar thing for me to get Soli checked out - she guards beds and sofas, but she snapped at me once when she was lying on the floor, somewhere she doesn't guard.  I went to stroke her side - slowly, and she watched the whole movement - and she snapped.  I got her checked, her right hip was sore; the chiropractor found a wonky pelvis and vertebrae out of whack and she's been much better ever since, including with the bed guarding and other dogs.

Also keep an eye on her signals - Sol is a difficult dog to read sometimes, so the snaps sh ehas given have been my fault for not responding porperly (i.e. backing off).  Look for stillness, sideways looks at you, licking lips, lip lifts (may be very small), anything like that.  What makes Soli difficult is that she'll go still if she wants me to back off a bit, but also if she wants a fuss - with her I have to look for a very, very small lift of her head towards me to let me know it's okay.

Yes Nikita being a collie she is often doing her still silent look - difficult to interpret.  She is not in any pain though - she is perfectly happy to be stroked all over - it was something to do with the situation and my behaviour and what I said.  Looking at other times when she has snapped (besides the food guarding thing) it has been over fear of being restricted in anyway.   Sudden moves to grab her collar are seen as a threat if something is frightening - towelling her down too fast - she can be touchy about being handled - fine with slow sure movements and plenty of praise.   When she has been shut behind the dog gate and someone puts a hand back down to stoke her.  Shutting her in the car - she dislikes the door coming down too close - so any petting results in a snap.   I will just have to be careful not to replicate the situation.  She sounds a real snappy dog but it doesn't happen very often.  It is funny because my son plays roughly with her - plenty of fast movements and holding her down.  Somehow she always knows that he is playing and treats him differently to everyone else.

> it has been over fear of being restricted in anyway.

In that case, were you leaning over her when stroking, or was she likely to feel trapped - maybe in a corner on the bed with where you were sitting blocking the route out?

Yes I was leaning over her and her bed had got pushed into the corner with another chair in front of her.  I had just told her to go to 'bed' which I used to say when shutting her into the utility room where she has been frightened.  I normally say 'into your box' when I want her to go to the basket.  When I came down in the morning she lifted her back leg and asked to be stroked so she didn't feel trapped then.  She also settles there between us when we sit down for food.  I suppose because I have been in a position of shutting her into a restricted space - ie back of car (she actually enjoys travelling and is quite happy to get into the car) or into the utility room (not a small room by anymeans) she does not entirely trust me - I might put her into a position where she has been afraid.

It might just be that she's a dog that gets particularly worried by feeling 'trapped' rather than not trusting you. It's the sort of thing that can seem threatening to a dog even if it's not meant that way, which is why I wondered if that was what had happened when you said that's the situation she usually gets anxious in. There are probably ways to make her feel more confident\ relaxed in that situation, but I don't know them I'm afraid. Someone else might. :)

Thanks Terry - I have just come back from a very wet and soggy agility class.  Meg is flat out in her basket now - she is quite happy there most of the time.  I will just have to try not to replicate my actions that night - she is so sensitive. Just when I am relaxing thinking I know this dog now, she is 2 and a half years old now - she comes out with something to keep me on my toes.