I have a (nearly) 2 yr old blue roan and tan Cocker Spaniel Dog (not entire) who has recently started snapping at other dogs (regardless of their sex). It is usually ones he hasnt met before, and luckily none have turned aggresive towards him. I would say it is probably with about 30% of dogs he meets for the first time. He never bites just snaps, and only after the dog has approached him, sometimes he even ends up playing with them! At first I thought it just happend with entire males but today he has proved that theory wrong. At the moment I have taken to putting him on the lead when new dogs are approaching, letting them sniff if they want and praising verbally and with treats if he gives the desired response,ie no grumpy behaviour. This is my first dog and I would appreciate any advice.

HI Guest

It can be difficult to give advice over the board without actually seeing what is happening, and what the dog's bodly language is and also what you are doing.

One thing I always try to mention is that to solve a problem you need to find the cause. Otherwise any training is basically covering up the problem which in many cases won't matter, but in some will.

Did anything happen to make your dog behave like this? It could be something obvious like another dog playing too roughly, or it could also be something not very obvious like your dog feeling a bit off colour.

Has he had any vet treatment lately? Does anybody else wallk your dog? I found i t interesting that you say that he has "recently" started snapping at other dogs, so it sounds as if something has triggered it. I take it he was oK before.

If you feel that putting him on the lead makes you feel more confident that's fine, but make sure that your dog doesn't sense that YOU are worried! otherwise hewill believe that, hey, mum's really nervous when other dogs come over, so I'd better see them off! So try to be casual about it. Rewarding the desired behaviour is the right thing to do.

As you do say that he tends to snap only at dogs he meets for the first time, and thenmay end up playing with them, to be honest I wouldn#t worry too much. He is probably behaving fairly naturally, just a bit defensively maybe, but doesn't sound as if he will hurt the other dogs. If he wasa my dog I would infact keep him off the lead (because from what you sayhe doens't attack or bite as such)and be very matter of fact.

When he snaps I would ignore, maybe just carry on walking brisklly, and when he is friendly I would praise and tell him he's a good boy.

You sound sensible and IMHO you are doing fine; have a think about whether you need to put th elead on when other dogs approach. You could be telling him that you are worried about them and so it may not be a good thing. On th eohte rhand the best thing for him is to have a confidnet owner so it's up to you. He will take his cue from you.

Perhaps he would benefit from some reward-based training classes, and also interacting with you more on the walk if he doesn't already - say a feew sits and stays, maybe throwing a kong or a toy, so that you are more important than the othter dogs.

Sorry this post has turned out rather long, I always do this early in the morning!! :)

Lindsay
Thanks for your advice. You suggested that maybe something had happend to trigger this behavour,and although I have thought about this I cant actually pin point anything. His body language is always showing a confident dog (as apposed to a frightend one), and I always try to appear 'in control'. He has had no recent vet treatment. My partner occasionally walks him,or we walk as a family with our 9 year old son. I say this behaviour started recently because up until about 18 months he 'loved' everybody and wanted every dog to play. Could it be he is now just more socially mature as he is also more wary of strange people.
sorry if this post is a bit garbled I am on my way out shopping!
Thanks again

Welcome to the forum Nicki :-) Leigh

Thanks Leigh.
This forum is the best I have found on the web.....I will certainly be using it again in the future.

This may be what is happening. As a question, do you really take charge? Is it possible your dog is thinking he has to "Look After" you? This happens more often than you might think. To take charge does not mean being hard on your dog, rather being firm. Expecting a reaction to every command not just when your dog thinks it will. There are a whole load of "Dominance exercises" which can make a world of difference to a dog who is maybe a little confused as to the home pecking order.

Regards, John

hI

If it started to happen when he was about 18 months old then it could indeed be that he is now socially mature and generally trying to find out where he stands in the world.

You did say he seemed confidenet but spaniels are sometimes hard to read, (because of their ears!!) and a wagging tail may indicate conflict as much as confidence. HOwever, you know your dog and I feel John has made a good point too in that maybe your dog needs to be confident in your leadership.

If you are able try getting "Think Dog" by John fisher (try crosskeysbooks.com) which will give you a good idea of some of the things I expect John will have in mind.:)

Dont know if this helps ... really backs up what has been said before. I rescued my dog when he was about 2 ... he had been very badly treated. His reaction to other dogs was awful .. being a SBT cross this was worrying. He would run straight in there growling and snapping ... now he is tiny and could not hurt the other dogs ... I used to shout him back, panic etc. Then I realised my behaviour was far from discouraging his behaviour. Like Lindsay said, he thought I was upset by the other dogs and needed to protect me. So I did start to ignore his signals and where possible approached the other dog first to talk to it. When he seen me talking to the dog or the owner he was fine. When he was fine I praised him, when he was naughty he was put on the lead and the owners of the other dog apologised to and I always explained I was aware of the problem and trying to overcome it. Now 5 years on he only occassionaly bristles at other dogs and then usually because they are too forward with him. It was, I must admit a long, and often stressful battle but in the end it worked to persevere!!!

Always good to hear of s uccess stories, you must have worked hard with your little dog Caitlin. :)