amcwilson
Member
My husband and I have a 7 month mastiff mix named Bernie. We have done our very best to socialize him, having gotten him when he was round 5 months old. We had new people over to the house every day the 1[SUP]st[/SUP] 2 weeks we had him – including a small child. He actually lived with children and another dog in his foster home.
A few days after we got him, I was home alone with him and my father came over to see him. He
did a lot of growling at my father. My father kept giving him treats until he calmed down. Flash forward 2 months and for the 2nd time a male came over while I was home alone – a repair guy. Bernie would not stop growling at him, the guy even gave him some treats. Bernie wouldn’t let him walk past the entryway and kept growling so I put him in the back yard. I figure he is very protective of me, doesn’t like strange males coming in the house when my husband isn’t home – not that bad of a thing.
This past weekend we brought him up to my parents cabin – there were 17 of us total and 4 additional dogs. Bernie did great with everyone there – and all of the other dogs. He greeted each couple that arrived at the driveway, no problem. Then he was in the front (lakeside) with all of the dogs running around when he noticed one of the neighbors out a few houses down. He ran over there as fast as he could, stopped 2 ft short of the guy and started barking ferociously. The neighbor guy just froze – I think Bernie would have bit him if I didn’t get there to grab him. He did this 2 other times – once to the guys wife – and once to a group of children! At that point I tied him up. The rope came loose when a neighbor kid was walking through the yard and Bernie charged him as well – stopping 2 ft short and barking ferociously once again. He would bark like crazy anytime the children would pass through our yard and anytime he saw some of the neighbors in their own yards. My husband even brought him over to meet the children on leash and he would not let his guard down. He has met children before and done just fine.
My thought was he doesn’t like the people he saw lakeside from afar and feels protective and the need to guard. I tested this theory when my cousin arrived on our 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] day there and brought him and his girlfriend lakeside where Bernie was tied up from the driveway and Bernie was fine with them.
We need to know what we can do about the neighbors – we don’t want him biting anyone and want to find a way to stop the behavior rather than avoiding the circumstance by keeping him chained up all the time. I know this is a very sensitive issue – and if we correct him at the wrong time he will simply stop growling and barking before he bites. My thought is to have them come over from the driveway – or I’m hoping it’s just random strange puppy behavior but would love any advice anyone on here can give. It’s not normal aggression because he only does it in very selective situations.
A few days after we got him, I was home alone with him and my father came over to see him. He
did a lot of growling at my father. My father kept giving him treats until he calmed down. Flash forward 2 months and for the 2nd time a male came over while I was home alone – a repair guy. Bernie would not stop growling at him, the guy even gave him some treats. Bernie wouldn’t let him walk past the entryway and kept growling so I put him in the back yard. I figure he is very protective of me, doesn’t like strange males coming in the house when my husband isn’t home – not that bad of a thing.
This past weekend we brought him up to my parents cabin – there were 17 of us total and 4 additional dogs. Bernie did great with everyone there – and all of the other dogs. He greeted each couple that arrived at the driveway, no problem. Then he was in the front (lakeside) with all of the dogs running around when he noticed one of the neighbors out a few houses down. He ran over there as fast as he could, stopped 2 ft short of the guy and started barking ferociously. The neighbor guy just froze – I think Bernie would have bit him if I didn’t get there to grab him. He did this 2 other times – once to the guys wife – and once to a group of children! At that point I tied him up. The rope came loose when a neighbor kid was walking through the yard and Bernie charged him as well – stopping 2 ft short and barking ferociously once again. He would bark like crazy anytime the children would pass through our yard and anytime he saw some of the neighbors in their own yards. My husband even brought him over to meet the children on leash and he would not let his guard down. He has met children before and done just fine.
My thought was he doesn’t like the people he saw lakeside from afar and feels protective and the need to guard. I tested this theory when my cousin arrived on our 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] day there and brought him and his girlfriend lakeside where Bernie was tied up from the driveway and Bernie was fine with them.
We need to know what we can do about the neighbors – we don’t want him biting anyone and want to find a way to stop the behavior rather than avoiding the circumstance by keeping him chained up all the time. I know this is a very sensitive issue – and if we correct him at the wrong time he will simply stop growling and barking before he bites. My thought is to have them come over from the driveway – or I’m hoping it’s just random strange puppy behavior but would love any advice anyone on here can give. It’s not normal aggression because he only does it in very selective situations.