Change in dogs behaviour since being in kennel.

rev229

We have a 4 year old collie x we rescues back in June. She came with a very good history ie good with kids, good recall, good with other dogs. We had to put her in kennels while we where on holidays as she could not stay in the cottage we rented. She was in kennels near where we where so we collected her each day and returned her in the evening. She was apparently fine at the kennels, which were rather basic but served the purpose.
However since she has been home she has been going up to boarder collis and nipping them. These are dogs we meet frequently while out walking and she has been fine with them before. She also has taken a dislike to strange men, young ones, old men are ok! We have been walking her at lunchtime as the place we take her to is dog free by then although she has been fine with any other type of dog. She is allowed of her lead but put back on if there are any other dogs. Today while out walking she went mad when someone jogging came out of nowhere, neither the dog or I heard the jogger, she barked but thankfully did not bite him I apologised and then kept her on the lead. We have met several joggers this week and she has been fine. She really does not like anyone coming to close to me, again only men and growls initially before sitting down. She has always barked at anyone coming to the door but will now carry on if they come into the house, I do keep her on a short lead when visitors arrive and she soon quitens down once she realises they are ok. Any advice welcome, she is very placid when with the family and females and kids are not problem but she is a dog so unpredictable.

orlao

Could the rescue you got her from help with advice and/or a behaviourist? Most of the well known charities have advice freely available throughout the dogs life.

TBH, she sounds like a typical border collie in a lot of ways.....the jogger incident was probably because she was startled and felt she had to protect you, she has obviously bonded very strongly with you.Most BCs nip as they try to round up other animals, it's not normally malicious or aggressive but that doesn't mean that it's acceptable!

It's really difficult to recommend solutions without having the dog checked out by a professional beforehand as the reason for the behaviour determines the solution IYSWIM

rev229

We did speak to the rescue centre she came from, in fsct she had a follow up visit just after we came back from holidays. They suggested a rattle bottle but did feel that her behaviour may have been a result of something that may have happened while she was in kennels on holidays! They also felt that it may be part of the settling in phase as initially she welcomed every one now this is her territory hence the growling. I did think about a rattle bottle but looked online and it had mixed reveiws. She had an anti barking collar because eveytime she heard a noise she barked. Our neighbour at the back of us complained that she was always barking at him when he was outside, his garden path runs along our fence. I did not have a problem with that as she is not a persistant barker, just letting us know someone is about. Anyway she stops barking once the collar is activated and grunts! We then bring her staight in just to keep the neighbour happy!. She is very protected of us which for me is a good thing as I walk her late evening on my own and also through the woods on my own and feel fairly safe as she is with me however I don,t want her barking at everyone who walks pass me as most people are ok.

Optimisticpair

rev229 wrote: »

We did speak to the rescue centre she came from, in fsct she had a follow up visit just after we came back from holidays. They suggested a rattle bottle but did feel that her behaviour may have been a result of something that may have happened while she was in kennels on holidays! They also felt that it may be part of the settling in phase as initially she welcomed every one now this is her territory hence the growling. I did think about a rattle bottle but looked online and it had mixed reveiws. She had an anti barking collar because eveytime she heard a noise she barked. Our neighbour at the back of us complained that she was always barking at him when he was outside, his garden path runs along our fence. I did not have a problem with that as she is not a persistant barker, just letting us know someone is about. Anyway she stops barking once the collar is activated and grunts! We then bring her staight in just to keep the neighbour happy!. She is very protected of us which for me is a good thing as I walk her late evening on my own and also through the woods on my own and feel fairly safe as she is with me however I don,t want her barking at everyone who walks pass me as most people are ok.

I've dealt successfully with a rescued collie who was a growler with visitors. She felt insecure if there was sudden change. Collies are sensitive to noise and movement and very active, which is a good thing for a working dog, but there is no 'off switch' and they can easily get bored if there's nothing to do or think about..

I gave mine lots of exercise, and toys and obedience training and gave her lavish but calm attention for good behaviour and made very little fuss when she didn't react appropriately. I found it worked to distract her before she could act up. Mine much preferred to eat a bit of chicken than leer at strangers but toys are a good distraction if yours isn't an old greedy guts. A kong is a more modern toy which keeps the dog occupied and gives it something to think about which really suits collies.

Treats and toys are positive tools but the rattle bottle plays on the nasty sound for effect. As a negative tool it distracts attention away from the stimulus that upsets the dog but doesn't reward inappropriate behaviour.

I'd think the rescue centre must be more than able to help but perhaps you could supplement it with reading from a specialist Border Collie website like Border Collie world dot co dot uk?

It's nice that she is protective of you but perhaps if you are taking her to dog classes and she learns to look to you the consistent, calm (top dog protecting her) for guidance she should soon settler. Don't get me wrong I love the breed, but they are hard work. Kudos to you for giving her a loving home and doing your best for her.

MrsTinks

I definitely don't think a rattle bottle etc is the way to go - you really need to know what you're doing to use that or you'll make the problem much worse - especially with a BC.
As for the kennels - she might have had an "incidence" there or she might not - but what WON'T help is constant cooing and telling her it'll be ok... all you do then is re-inforce that "oh my you're right! That person is terribly scary and possibly might harm us!" - so when she does have a moment try to stay calm and instead tell her to "LEAVE" in a firm voice but without shouting and then "sit" in a very postive voice and give her a treat. This is how we're tackling Kira's dog aggressiveness (although we're using water too at the "leave" it point - but we're a bit more serious than a nip with other dogs...)
I would recommend you get a professional dog trainer in - we have and I think it's a good way to go