My 4yr old puli whom I got from rescue 4 weeks ago bit the man who came to mend the washing machine today.  I knew he would bark so him and my daughter went into the garden with thekitchen door and conservatory door shut - the man was in the conservatory and Louis could see him - barked a bit then stopped and played with daughter.  the man then moved from conservatory to kitchen to wash his hands - I hadnt realised that the dog flap in the wall of the kitchen wasnt blocked off - the dog rushed in and bit him - my daughter got hold of him and I told him no go and sit down and stay! he went sat down and stayed for 45 minutes while the man carried on with the repair in full view of the dog.  albeit a pane of glass between them! My fault for not realising the flap wasnt blocked off but I'm in shock!  If he really wanted to I'm sure he could have gone back to the man - he could easily have got away from my daughter and ignored me!  Is this the sign of fear agression (and I know it is a sign of a stupid owner).....   I am taking him to vet tonight because of problem with his eye from last week so will talk to vet..

Sounds like guarding to me.  To be honest not surprising given that he has been with you such a short time and you had an 'intruder' wandering around your house.

You would be better to either introduce your dog to visitors in a controlled fashion or ensure they are safely shut away.

In this case your dog would not have been aware the intruder was in fact a visitor.

thank you - when we have friends coming I do introduce him slowly and he calms down but I didnt think a repair man would go for that so thought I would keep him in the garden.  It's so easy with hindsight to see what I should have done and now I could kick myself !  Still now I have calmed down I can see what I need to do to manage these situations - I'm sure it's nothing tht cant be dealt with.  Luckily the man didnt make a fuss, no skin puncture - and he must have been about 5 feet 11 and 25 stone - so quite a tough man.  come to think of it maybe that was quite scary.....

Have you got a crate that way if you shut him in that when such people come, then there is no way he can bite anyone, and you don't have to worry about him getting in from the garden or out of the room you have put him in when someone opens a door.

A crate would be a good thing to have for so many other reasons, but especially with a  new and unpredictable dog it is somewhere he can be safely put.

He could easily escape out of the door etc etc.

The fact his skin wasn't punctured is a good sign, but you need to do more work getting him to accept strangers in your house.  What happens if your daughter has friends round to play, you have a dinner party and so on....

yes all these things concern me -  You are right if I had a crate that wouldnt have been an issue.....thanks again.  Off to the vet tonight to check on his sight now - he had a grass dart removed from the back of his eyeball last week and has been on drops and tablets since - hopefully the vet will say all has healed well.   Poor thing I love him so much and dont want him to be scared or nervous just want him to behappy and content.  Time, patience and cuddles for him!  Education for me!!

Agree entirely with Brainless it is very probably a protection instinct from the dog, they learn from our mannerisms whether a stranger is ok or something to worry about, after 4 weeks he has not learnt your body language or voice techniques yet.

The other thing to also perhaps think of is with him being 4 years old and only just having him for 4 weeks, maybe the man simply reminded him of someone else whom he did fear in the past.  There could be many reasons, you will learn from each other a great deal during the next few months. Most dogs will bark a warning to a stranger in the home, unfortunately yours went a little further a crate or dog gate would definitely be a good idea until he is used to visitors etc. :-)

Just wanted to say well done for recognising your mistakes and taking steps to rectify them and to help your dog. It's quite refreshing and i'm sure you will have many happy years with your dog. :)

Thank you for your kind comments.  I did talk to my vet and he agreed with you all that he would have been protecting and guarding me.  He said it was a natural instict for the dog and that I would soon learn what/who makes the dog fearful/protective and would be able to take the necessary precautions.  And the ulcer in the dogs eye has healed which is great.  So as the washing machine man comes back on Monday morning I'm off to buy a crate over the weekend. 

The crate will be useful for people who don't want to meet the dog, or you don't want meeting the dog, but if willing I would always prefer to introduce callers to the dog to establish that they are welcome in YOUR home, you are in charge and decide who is allowed in not the dog.

This might take a little while longer though until your dog and you have built up a relationship of mutual trust.

The crate will be great for the car visiting relatives or freinds etc.

You only need the easy to find size 30 inches long x 24 inches high x 21 inches wide.  that size will fit anywhere aroudn the house without taking too much room, and fit in a small hatchback too.  If you can get one with doors in the long and short side as that gies more scope for placing it.  In the car the door on long side works best for example, if it is in the boot.

Hi,
Sorry! I had to have a little
The dog didn't do any wrong. Probly you should have thought a little quicker.
He is doing his job, if he stopped, when you said, that is good.
Just tell him a little sooner, it's O.K.

Well I have ordered a crate but wont have it in time for the washing machine mans second visit which is tomorow morning.  Still a closed back door, closed dog flap and the tall pet gate should be enough to keep him in his place.  I wont be here though tomorrow it will be my mother I will be safely at work!  We were having a lot of trouble on walks with him barking at other dogs but we took the advice and bought a Halti and it has made such a difference - he is such a lovely little thing though I find it hard to believe he went for the washing machine man! Thanks for everybodys views - I am seeing that this although a serious issue that needs to be dealt with is not something that cant be resolved - I'm such a panicker - its bringing it all back to me how I used to panic when the kids were toddlers!  (still do sometimes truth be told now they are 13 and 8)...

Everyone has replied with great advice,but just to let you know your not on your own,my two rescue dogs guard madly,better now,but have bitten a plumber,my boss, and tried very hard to get the man who came to read the meter,firstly I told the plumber not to go near them,but he did,secondly because I didn't know they knew how to open the kitchen door,and lastly because I just wasnt quick enough to stop the situation,talk about learn the hard way.
I now take every precaution, but over time,thank god,they seem to have got the message that If i let somone in the house,its ok.
Ash

Thanks Ash glad to know I'm not the only one and that time will make some difference.  We had a second visit from the washing machine man - Louis barked but when he was told to stop he stopped and all went well.  Then came a situation in the afternoon - my childminder was going in to the house in the afternoon to keep Louis company for a couple of hours - he knows her well and is fine - she though nothing of it and took her husband in who Louis hasnt seen before!  It wasnt long before her husband had a dog holding on to his trouser leg - but no nipping or biting so somewhat of an improvement, she also had her daughter collect her and let her in the house - Louis was behind the gate this time and wasnt happy she was there.  Barked very loudly and angrily - the childminder sent her back out and he stopped barking and wagged his tail!  So definitely a guarding/protection issue from strangers - he was absolutely fine with the childminder but then he is used to her coming through the door on a daily basis because she goes home with my son after school and it only took two visits before he accepted her fully so hopefully when we are introducing our friends carefully we will be fine.  Thanks everyone - Max  

Could it be men that Louis dislikes more than women?  Perhaps you should try some remedial socialisation with men.  Give them a treat to give him, when you're out on walks and especially when they enter the house?

Hi 123,

how would an owner overcome a dog's fear of a particular gender (or individual) if using treats were not an option?  For eg in my own breed if they are at all wary of something then they wont touch food, no matter how high value, even from their owner.

regards, Teri

Hi Teri - That would mean that the thing they were afraid of was too close.  If a dog is too afraid to eat, you're not going to make any progress with desensitisation, in fact may only make things worse.  The idea behind desensitisation is to work at a level below what the dog finds frightening.  So, if the dog won't take food from you or from a man when the man is 4 metres away, tell the man to go and stand 20 metres away and face the other direction.  If the dog is still not happy, even further away.  When you find the point where the dog is comfortable and will eat food and shows no sign of fear, then you would ask the person to approach slightly closer, and repeat.

Thanks for expanding on that but TBH I don't understand how most people and their dogs could set up a sufficient number of situations over a protracted period where they can control the environment to the extent required (using a fear of men say as an example).   Even in OPs case where it was a random service call it would be difficult and, I suspect, if meeting men in the street were a problem it would be verging on impossible .....

Are there more routinely achievable (maybe, "user friendly" is a better description) alternatives to overcome these sort of problems?

I am going to try that with men coming to the house and have put a treat box next to the fron door to remind me if I'm letting someone in - not that I'm likely to forget really  .  Outside of the house he doesnt seem too bad - Last night when walking I purposely tried him - had the dog between me and the house/wall side of the pavement and a man walked past us between me and the kerb - Louis didnt react at all, and we have talked to men over the park who are out walking the dogs and he shows no interest.  Only once outside did he react and that was when I was on my forecourt with him late at night and a man walked towards us as if he was going to come and speak to me - I certainly thought he was - but the dog barked and he completely changed direction - I think the dog was right that time!  Interesting about the food thing though because treats took him away from the childminders husband whose trousers he had in his mouth but when he was just behind the gate and the daughter was in the hallway he took no notice of the treat whatsoever!   I never realised it would all be so involved and complex - I dont regret for a minute getting him but do want to do the right thing by him - obviously I am learning breed characteristics and rescue hang ups at the same time as learning to be an owner!