Scared of my rescue dog

magickid

Apologies this isn't about money saving....

2 weeks ago my partner and I adopted a 5 year old rescue Collie X girl. We already have a male Border Collie who is 9. She had been in the rescue centre for 6 months.

Her notes say that she was fearful of strangers and didn't like men too much but was fine with other dogs. My partner works from home so is there all day to be with her whereas I go out to work all day.

The main problem is that due to her behaviour I am scared of her.

1. On the first Saturday (4 days after getting her) she bared her teeth at me so I walked away, but a little later when she was sitting next to me I went to pet her and she went for me. I ignored her but when I looked back at her about 20 minutes later she just bared her teeth at me.

2. On Tuesday evening, she was sleeping next to my bed (on my side with the other dog on the other side) and she just appeared to go mental. She was there with gums baring, heavy growling and just generally being incredibly scary - so much so that I couldn't get out of bed. I went back to sleep and when I rolled over again, there she was again, teeth bared. We had given her a rawhide treat that evening and thought that perhaps that was a problem since she was known to be food possessive, even though I was making no attempt to take it.

3. The next night we didn't give her a treat and she seemed a little more settled but later on in the night (I wasn't well) I had to get up and she began her growling and teeth baring at me. My partner got up and shut her out of the bedroom.

4. The next night we shut her out of the bedroom through the use of a baby gate, so she could still see us but so I could sleep without fear of being attacked.

The problem is because of this I feel like I will never be able to completely trust her. I am being calm, letting her come to me, rarely petting her (incase she goes). On two other occasions I have just been petting her and she has snapped for no reason - i.e. things were fine and all of a sudden wham! she went. Last night my partner was petting her and I was next to him and also petted her - she was enjoying it, and then all of sudden the teeth were bared.

I don't know what to do. We have decided to give her a month, but really don't want to send her back. She was given up as the owners changed their working hours, was rehomed for 3 days and then sent back (due to asthma) and now we have her. We don't want to be her 3rd strike. She is very affectionate and is so good with my partner but how I can get her to trust me and not snap. I am feeding her by hand, walking her when I can, playing with her ball and spending as much time as possible as I can.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Ruffles_2

Have you been in touch with the rescue? If it is a decent rescue, they should be able to advise and point you in the direction of a reputable trainer/behaviourist.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

The reasons people give for handing in dogs can differ from the actual reason they are being rehomed. It might be that she was disposed of due to aggression rather than anything else, and they just didn't want to think she could be put down or that they were at fault, especially after 3 days the second time round 'I'm allergic' sounds so much better than 'she went psycho on me and I was too scared to come out of my bedroom until my husband came home', for example.

Collies can be a bit nippy and most of the ones I have met that aren't being worked or have 24/7 access to walks, agility, flyball and puzzles are borderline psychotic. Think of a scientific genius being locked in a darkened room and being made to categorise a collection of two items.

Whilst you are obviously a good owner to your own dog, have you ever experienced the mess that other useless owners leave their dogs in before? (this is excluding the possibility of something medical causing the problem - has she been properly examined by a vet?)

Perhaps some earnest words need to be exchanged with the rescue. Then they can help or you can make your decision as to what you want to do next.

Beckyy

I would ask either the rescue or your vet for a recommendation for a reputable behaviourist. They should be able to give you professional advice.

Sagz_2

Please contact the rescue OP - if you are only willing to give the new dog a month to settle then it's really important that you get good, professional, advice ASAP.

There could be 101 reasons that she is behaving this way and I don't think anyone can really give sound advice on how to address her problems without meeting her.

Good luck xx I really hope things work out for you all

tankgirl1

I would like to second JoJo's suggestion to contact the rescue. Any rescue worth their salt will have procedures in place to deal with this kind of situation IMHO

They will probably recommend a vet exam first, presuming she hasn't shown aggression whilst in the rescue, followed by behavioural advice or a good behaviourist you can take her to. Most rescues will also take back dogs that aren't settling, but obviously it would be better for pooch if you could find a solution to this, and hopefully better for you in the long run, as there is the potential for a much loved nutty collie family member if you can sort this out

Although I would ALWAYS recommend calling the rescue you got her from, I'd just like to add that Wiccaweys Border Collie Rescue may be worth a call for some behavioural advice. Let your rescue know that you are doing this though, as it would be awful to create anamosity between organisations who have the same goal!

Jen151

Hi sorry to hear about your probs with your new dog. Can i suggest also don't let her sleep in your bedroom. Just a small thing but may help in the bigger picture

Stephb1986_2

Hmm I have a rescue border collie x, shes a lovely little thing even when i try to play fight with her she wont bite me but she will bite my h2b and fil2b no problem not a nasty bite but a playful bite

Once we took our labrador to kennels and when we come back she bared her teeth at my mum she had never ever been like that before she's a sweet dog. We sort of figured out that the woman at the kennels had the same colour hair as my mum and maybe she had not been so nice to her. We never took her back to that kennels after that. And she's never bared her teeth since.

Do you know if she has been beaten by a previous owner or anything like that? Maybe if she has she might think that your that person.

When she bares her teeth at you you could tell her no bad dog she might get the message

Steph xx

EmptyPockets

Have you arranged pet insurance for this dog? It may be worth checking to see if a behaviourist would be covered in the 'what we will pay' section.

We used to have a Collie Cross, and we now have a Border Collie. Since having this new girl, I can deffinitely agree that Collie's can be a bit nippy, but it sounds like your girl has a more serious issue than just the odd herding-instinct nip. Please speak to the staff at the rescue where you got her from. They should want to help all they can.

I would perhaps think about using things like a crate, a basket muzzle, and clicker training, to deal with the problem - I understand that you are scared of her behaviour, but please try to remember that for her to be behaving in this way, she must be even more scared and confused than you are.

Also, I think one month is such a short amount of time to allow her to 'settle in'. We've had our rescue Border for a month now, and she is still very skitty and nervous. Although we are seeing her put weight on nicely and she seems to trust us a lot more, she still won't let us pet her on her head or down her back. Any sudden movements like standing up, and her ears will flatten to her head - when we first brought her home she would cower and back off into a corner.

It is taking time with her. Rescue dogs are not the easy option and it takes work. I really hope you can find a way to deal with this behaviour so she can stay in her new home.

Lirin

It'll take her months to settle. Rescue dogs can be hard, mainly because ou have no idea how they were treated beforehand.
I know of one that does similar to me- he was mistreated by a female, and every time I pat him (not mine, my car sprayer's dog) he wags his tail like mad, obviously wants patted- but bares his teeth and growls as well.
I'd suggest not going close to her eyes or jaw when you pat her- this can make some dogs very nervy. Treat the dog with respect, and be firm as well. I would take her out of the bedroom, as it poses a danger to you at the moment, but also will give her space if she's in a separate rooom.

Juneno

I agree, one month is a very short time to be able to overcome these problems and assess what your new dog is really like. We had a border collie from a rescue centre who had 'issues' and he took about 6 months to really settle and start to trust us. He turned into great dog in the end.
Is your dog spayed? If not, it may be worth getting it done. Not a miracle cure by any means but it may help take away the hormonal part of the behaviour. And a behaviourist is a must as these people can assess your dog in your home and tell you how to react to situations like the teeth baring.
Good luck!
June x