we 'adopted' a 3 year old lab/collie x in may. we were not planning on getting another dog yet (our weimy died 2 years ago) as we have 2 young children but she was a friends dog who have looked after b4 and didnt wanna see her put in a dog home. we knew the dog pretty well and she has been round our house on quite a few occasions. anyway, we have been walking her in the fields around where we live. from day 1 we noticed that she was not interested in other dogs and played on her own. she never runs over to another dog (its almost as though they don't exist) and when they run to her she generally has a sniff then runs off. a few times she has had a little grumble or bark at a dog when it hasnt left her alone. she does not seem to know how to play with other dogs at all. BUT my husband was walking her last week with our daughter in the pushchair (dog is used to this) and my husband saw a lady with her dog from my sons pre-school. our dog went over to this dog (which she very rarely does) and had a sniff then really went for the dog with no provocation. my husband put her on the lead and tried to continue his chat but our dog continued to bark and growl at this dog.
we are very upset this and do not want to have a dog which can only be walked on a lead.
she was very loved in her old home but i do not think she was walked a great deal and i say she seems to really lack in doggy socialisation. how can i improve our situation? i do not want to put her in a situation again where this could happen but if i avoid dogs it will only get worse. our weimy was not good with other dogs after being attacked so i am probably a little nervous when dogs approach her which i know she will pick up on. aaggghh help!! i am willing to put in lots of work. we love her very much and she is soooo perfect in every other way.

Hi Weezie,

I've been there and done that (one of mine is a re-home that arrived unsocialised) so you have my empathy and sympathy but also my reassurance that this can be turned around :)

Personally, I have her to the Vet in the first instance for a check-up and to establish that the cause is behavioral rather than a physical/ neurological root cause (for example) Discuss this instance with your Vet and if she has an all clear health wise you can discuss having a referral letter for a behaviorist.

Using an accredited Behaviorist The Association of Pet Behavior Counsellors has pretty much all the regions of the UK covered.

It doesn't cost an awful lot, although I see a fair few Charlatans charging in the hundreds. :(
  I paid about £22 for an hour session (of which my trainer never looked at her watch and we often had well over the hour) included in that was access to her via the phone anytime we wanted, and an abundance of articles and handouts and homework, and a period of time where she would accompany us on our walks.
   3-4 years on she still keeps in touch although we have no need for her, as we now have a dog that for the past 3 years now has consistently behaved calmly and happily :)

Aside from the handling tips you receive the main benefit to me was having an objective pair of eyes with me, that could see things that perhaps I was missing/not seeing during my dogs interaction (with other dogs, with me, with other handlers)

Hope this helps? really believe from personal experience there is no substitute for a good trainer with you :)
Best of luck.

thanks huskygal. i was gonna ring the vets in the morning so i'll make sure i do that. they normally see them the same day.
i hope we can sort it out. she is such a lovely girl.
thanks again

on the first instance about you dog ignoring other dogs or telling them to go away, i have a schnauzer like that but to be honest doing this is better than attacking other dogs.
a behaviourist is a good idea and also a good training class would really help so your dog can learn to be around other dogs and not feel threatened by them,it will also build up a better relationship and teach your dog to listen to you. i can call out ' leave it' to my nervous dog and she will ignore other dogs and come running to me if i feel she is going to get a bit silly.
if your dog feels that your in charge then they are less likely to go rushing off and attack another dog and will look to you for what to do.
some dogs will always have a problem with other dogs but as long as you are in control it shouldn't be to much of a problem.
i don't know if your dog loves treats or has a best toy but would be worth taking both out with you to use as distraction when you see other dogs coming etc. by making your dog do something else or asking it to sit calmly for a treat then this will help a lot.
do you know anyone else with a dog that you could walk with,don't let the dogs touch but walk near each other so you dog gets used to another dog around.        

I agree with the training class. I have seen quite a few dog aggressive dogs come to our training class that have been turned around. Sometimes they have been attacked and have never forgotten and feel they have to get the first bite in. Training around other dogs gives them their confidence back. Lack of socialisation is always a hard one but yet again training classes gets them used to other dogs around them and yet not bothering them.