Results 1 to 10 of 10
  1. #1
    Senior Dog
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    Williamsburg, Virginia
    Posts
    2,610
    Thanked: 2964

    Growling at other dogs- and pica????

    We were so excited for Stormy's sutures to be removed yesterday so she could romp and play again. She has always loved other dogs, and has never shown anything but joy. But yesterday, when we took her to play with a neighbor dog, she started possessive growling when the other dog went for a stick she had- a keepaway game they've always played with no issue. And this morning, she growled and her hackles went up when our next door neighbor labs were in their backyard. Before, she has shown nothing but urgency to go play with them.

    I'm hoping she's just not feeling 100% after being cooped up, but I'd love some strategies for setting her up for success with other dogs again.

    And the other- well- I figured she needed a good walk on leash. As soon as we got to the road, her head went down and she started frantically eating anything that was small and loose: gravel, wood chips, worms. She was ignoring my attempt to give her treats, and I fished so much out of her mouth- but seriously, she was bloodhound-like in her insistence on nose/mouth to the ground, where she hoovered up debris. I dragged her home and not unexpectedly, she yerked up her ill-gotten gain an hour later. So far she's eliminating fine but that's just an obstruction waiting to happen. She's never done anything like that on a walk before. So thoughts in that direction are appreciated too!
    Stormageddon, Princess of Darkness, aka "Stormy"
    Birthday 9-13-18, Gotcha Day 11-11-18
    Hidden Content

    Miss Kimber, CGC, 6/15/2005-1/27/2018 forever in our hearts



  2. #2
    Senior Dog
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    Ellicott City, MD
    Posts
    6,626
    Thanked: 3641
    Her hormones are on a see-saw...she needs to get used to what's now coursing through her body. She's probably feeling a bit anxious. I had a mild, transient, behavior change in my yellow girl (6 month spay).

    That said, Sunnie was ballpark six/seven when we had her spayed and her existing anxiety skyrocketed and never came back down. Too many years of hormones and then she was all of a sudden like a menopausal human.

    The stuff-eating might have something to do with having been cooped up and now all of a sudden "free"....like a younger pup's introduction to the wide world outside. Gentle corrections and fast fingers.

    Hope everything evens out.

  3. The Following User Says Thank You to SunDance For This Useful Post:

    Beth C (03-22-2019)

  4. #3
    Senior Dog
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    Williamsburg, Virginia
    Posts
    2,610
    Thanked: 2964
    Thanks for the quick reply! I'm hopeful it's just temporary. Kimber became dog reactive at about 2 years old and it was so sad. She used to love to play with other dogs. I really want Stormy to remain at least friendly with humans and canines.
    Stormageddon, Princess of Darkness, aka "Stormy"
    Birthday 9-13-18, Gotcha Day 11-11-18
    Hidden Content

    Miss Kimber, CGC, 6/15/2005-1/27/2018 forever in our hearts



  5. #4
    Best Friend Retriever silverfz's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2016
    Location
    Land of Holes
    Posts
    618
    Thanked: 182
    Gigi was fixed at 8 month and she did go bananas for a while. She has always been territorial about our house. She looks menacing when other dogs or people walk by the house. Yet goes to day care or boarding and plays all day.
    some days i take her to the dog park. Very rare now that i see more injuries and she is fine. Yet her house she is very protective.

  6. #5
    Senior Dog Labradorks's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2014
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    3,947
    Thanked: 2421
    Eating stuff: She could be hungry. She could feel nauseous. Could be nerves, too, perhaps as a result of hormone changes?

    Reactivity: Could be hormonal or not feeling well. Studies show that spaying a female before a year old can increase aggression issues. Here is one study. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/b...ed-or-neutered

  7. #6
    Senior Dog bmathers's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2017
    Location
    Boston
    Posts
    1,135
    Thanked: 713
    I bet she is just all messed up from surgery, being cooped up, having her routine altered, and maybe still feeling a little sore. I bet she’ll be back to normal after her routine goes back to normal and she has some good interactions with other dogs.


    Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

  8. The Following User Says Thank You to bmathers For This Useful Post:

    kimbersmom (03-19-2019)

  9. #7
    Senior Dog
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    Williamsburg, Virginia
    Posts
    2,610
    Thanked: 2964
    We just got back from obedience class where she met a whole bunch of new dogs. Good news: she showed appropriate, positive play behavior with all that she met. Challenge: it’s outside under oak trees. I spent a lot of time distracting her from acorn bits!
    Stormageddon, Princess of Darkness, aka "Stormy"
    Birthday 9-13-18, Gotcha Day 11-11-18
    Hidden Content

    Miss Kimber, CGC, 6/15/2005-1/27/2018 forever in our hearts



  10. #8
    Senior Dog bmathers's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2017
    Location
    Boston
    Posts
    1,135
    Thanked: 713
    Quote Originally Posted by kimbersmom View Post
    We just got back from obedience class where she met a whole bunch of new dogs. Good news: she showed appropriate, positive play behavior with all that she met. Challenge: it’s outside under oak trees. I spent a lot of time distracting her from acorn bits!
    Diggity still loves acorns and tree branches. Pretty soon, once the ground is not frozen, I am going to put up some fencing around my little apple trees as well as my hydrangea bushes. He is quite fond of both! He knows better though. As soon as he snags an apple tree branch and I yell “Hey! Noooooo!” he stops and then runs off and does zoomies all around the yard. He knows he’s in trouble.


    Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

  11. The Following User Says Thank You to bmathers For This Useful Post:

    Beth C (03-22-2019)

  12. #9
    Senior Dog Snowshoe's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    Ontario, Canada
    Posts
    8,136
    Thanked: 5108
    Probably just a rite of passage and she'll get over it, but I'd keep up with the training. LAT might be good at this time, show her you see what bothers her but YOU've got it. Not for the eating stuff, you just have to prevent that. Not sure if you have winter like we do but Oban was a fall puppy too and as the huge amount of snow we had his first winter began to melt he too felt he had to inspect newly discovered gravel with his mouth.
    Hidden Content

    Castilleja's Dubhgall Oban, the Black Stranger of The Little Bay
    Oct. 15, 2007 - June 13, 2021
    Oxtongue Rapids Park. Oct. 2019 Hidden Content

  13. #10
    House Broken Amelia's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2019
    Location
    North Carolina
    Posts
    242
    Thanked: 116
    I always thought our 2nd lab Sophie got aggressive towards other dogs after she was spayed at around 6 months. She was around our older lab Ginger from day one and they got along fine. As for the eating of everything on the ground our Amber is still doing that but mostly in our own yard. We took her to a enclosed ball field yesterday and she didn't try picking up anything out of the grass. Just found out the "come' command didn't work well in a big area like that. Funny because I've always ask her if she was hungry right before I feed her, so I tried that in the field and that got her attention and she ran towards me looking for her treat. I also said come as she started towards me.

 



Not a Member of the Labrador Retriever Chat Forums Yet?
Register for Free and Share Your Labrador Retriever Photos

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •