Hi everyone, this is my first post on this website as I'm starting to get rather worried about my dog.
My dog is a 5 year old Lhasa Apso named Izzie. She lives at home with me (20 y.o.) and my mum and dad. We've had her since she was a tiny pup, and from the word go, she has spent the weekdays with my grandparents who live next door, as we were at school or work. She then returns to us in the evenings and stays with us over the weekend. (This "dog-sitting" was at my grandmother's insistence and interference, not ours.) However, my grandfather passed away just over two years ago and she's been acting strangely ever since. When we go to collect her to bring her home in the evening, she behaves very aggressively, snapping and growling at us, as well as snapping at my grandmother (whose lap she is usually sat on). But as soon as she is out of the house and on the way back to ours, she's fine.
As well as this, she shakes from time to time while at home with us. She has problems with her anal glands and needs to visit the vet every six weeks or so to have them emptied, and this shaking usually occurred as a warning sign that she needed one of these visits, but it has became more frequent over the Christmas period. We've tried taking her outside to do her business more often, taking her for more walks, but it doesn't work. Sometimes it would happen if one of us three are not at home, if she hears wind or loud noises, or if she simply wants to over to my grandmother's. Due to this last reason, we're not sure if it's genuine anxiety or simply a ploy to get to my grandmother's house to be spoiled.
Has anyone else ever had any issues like these, or have any advice? It's very distressing to see her like this, because even when aggressive, sometimes it comes across as fear rather than simply being territorial. I worry she'll either do harm to herself or someone else if this doesn't stop soon.
Thanks in advance.
Aggressive behaviour and shaking
Moderators: emmabeth, BoardHost
Re: Aggressive behaviour and shaking
Hi and welcome to the forums!
This does sound like fear, in all honesty most aggressive behaviour has its roots in fear, and it is safest to treat it as if it is fear. ('Territorial' aggression... is about fear of having ones space encroached on or taken! It's about insecurity ie... fear!)
What is the routine when you collect her, can you describe exactly what happens - where is she, who goes in to get her, how do they interact wtih Grandma, really give us a detailed picture of what that experience is like for her.
Her fear may be of something real and obvious or it may be a misunderstanding that happened long ago or one that is recurring every day.
Is there any reason she couldn't just live at Grandmas with people popping in to walk her?
This does sound like fear, in all honesty most aggressive behaviour has its roots in fear, and it is safest to treat it as if it is fear. ('Territorial' aggression... is about fear of having ones space encroached on or taken! It's about insecurity ie... fear!)
What is the routine when you collect her, can you describe exactly what happens - where is she, who goes in to get her, how do they interact wtih Grandma, really give us a detailed picture of what that experience is like for her.
Her fear may be of something real and obvious or it may be a misunderstanding that happened long ago or one that is recurring every day.
Is there any reason she couldn't just live at Grandmas with people popping in to walk her?
West Midlands based 1-2-1 Training & Behaviour Canine Consultant
Re: Aggressive behaviour and shaking
Thanks for replying!
Well, initially, it could vary which of us went to collect her. We would walk into the room, and she is normally sat on the armchair with my grandmother. She would immediately tense and start to growl. When we approached her to either lift her or put on her lead, she would begin to snap when we began to get close to her. When my grandmother starts to encourage her to get down from the seat, she began to snap at her too. Eventually, it evolved into Izzie snapping at whoever she could get to quickest.
But this has been happening for around two years now. It's eventually ended up with my uncle (who lives with my grandmother) bringing the dog over to us once we're home. The same happens for him. The dog snaps at him and my grandmother in the same way. When I collected her, I avoided raising my voice to her in response to the snapping, but my uncle does, which I'm convinced doesn't help the problem much, but from experience, avoiding shouting didn't seem to keep her calm either.
Normally, she is a very sweet tempered dog. Very friendly and affectionate, and she usually greets all of us (in both houses) with excitement and affection. It's only when she is taken from my grandmothers (and once recently in our own house when I lifted her off my Dad's lap to take her for a walk) that she snaps.
As for leaving her at my grandmother's, she's been left for sleepovers before on some occasions when we've all been away overnight, or out late, but she looks to get back home, according to my grandmother. As well as that, my grandmother doesn't seem to want her full time, just as a companion during the day as she is on her own mostly now while my uncle is at work.
Perhaps she's started to associate the "going home" routine with being reprimanded, but that doesn't necessarily explain why it started in the first place, as there was never any problem with coming home before my grandfather died.
Well, initially, it could vary which of us went to collect her. We would walk into the room, and she is normally sat on the armchair with my grandmother. She would immediately tense and start to growl. When we approached her to either lift her or put on her lead, she would begin to snap when we began to get close to her. When my grandmother starts to encourage her to get down from the seat, she began to snap at her too. Eventually, it evolved into Izzie snapping at whoever she could get to quickest.
But this has been happening for around two years now. It's eventually ended up with my uncle (who lives with my grandmother) bringing the dog over to us once we're home. The same happens for him. The dog snaps at him and my grandmother in the same way. When I collected her, I avoided raising my voice to her in response to the snapping, but my uncle does, which I'm convinced doesn't help the problem much, but from experience, avoiding shouting didn't seem to keep her calm either.
Normally, she is a very sweet tempered dog. Very friendly and affectionate, and she usually greets all of us (in both houses) with excitement and affection. It's only when she is taken from my grandmothers (and once recently in our own house when I lifted her off my Dad's lap to take her for a walk) that she snaps.
As for leaving her at my grandmother's, she's been left for sleepovers before on some occasions when we've all been away overnight, or out late, but she looks to get back home, according to my grandmother. As well as that, my grandmother doesn't seem to want her full time, just as a companion during the day as she is on her own mostly now while my uncle is at work.
Perhaps she's started to associate the "going home" routine with being reprimanded, but that doesn't necessarily explain why it started in the first place, as there was never any problem with coming home before my grandfather died.
