
Has he actually bitten other dogs, or does he just get very excited trying to get to them, and you think he wants to bite them?
How much has he mixed with other dogs, as generally borders are among the most sociable of the terrier clan?
What you need is to take him to some classes where he can meet other dogs in a controlled way. Ringcraft classes in some ways are better for this than some Obedience classes, but classes aimed at training the family pet dog will help enormously.
You also need to be careful how you act when he does this. When you tighten the leqad, or try to reasssure him, he will beleive there is something to9 worry about. If you shout, he may think you are joining in/backing him up in hios behaviour.
By LAINEY
Date 08.10.02 20:54 UTC
He hasnt actually bitten other dogs, he tries to get to them if he gets near he snaps at them even though they are friendly.We got him from a gamekeeper in scotland and he was in a very large pen with his parents and two other borders and another working dog so he has been with other dogs.We have had him for 5 months now this only started about 2 months ago.
By Depudidawg
Date 09.10.02 19:51 UTC
It sounds as though your dog is suffering from fear aggression. He has been supplanted from the safety of his normal 'pack', where he had no responsibility for pack defence( because presumably there were older and more dominant dogs) to a smaller pack ,at roughly a time when he is becoming more aware of his own potential to be, or at least try to be, pack leader.
In practical terms you have to practice both prevention and cure.
1) Prevention: Unfortunately you may have to resort to a muzzle. This would strictly be a temporary measure and serves two purposes, firstly it means he can't actually bite other dogs and secondly, you won't be anxious about him biting another dog, which means you'll be more relaxed when approaching and meeting other dogs and you won't convey anxiety to your dog. If your dog thinks your scared of another dog approaching this is going to make him more anxious and fearful of other dogs and therefore more aggressive and likely to attack.
2) Cure: You should talk gently to your dog, and distract his attention from the oncoming dog by offering him a tasty treat. If he pays less attention, or even better, ignores the other dog, reward him with lavish praise and the aforementioned treat. If you can you should try to walk with someone who has an older, calmer, more laid back dog or better still a group of such dogs. What will happen in practical terms is that if your dog is aggressive to these dogs they, generally speaking, will just ignore your dog and go about their normal business, sniffing, exploring, etc. He can't hurt them, because he is muzzled, and will very quickly learn he gains nothing by trying to attack them. What he then learns, is that he can be in the company of another dog, or group of dogs, and all that happens is that they all just go and seek out interesting smells, run, play, explore, etc with no-one attacking him, which is primarily what he is scared of in the first place. I must stress though that the group should concentrate on MOVING through the park/woods etc rather than standing around in one place talking. The more you move, the more opportunities for your dog to be distracted, by his surroundings, from thinking about, and being scared of, the dogs he is with.