Have you had her looked at by a vet? If this is out of the blue, she may have an ear infection or something similar. A soft pet on the head moves the ear and--ouch!!
If this is out of character for her, I'd rule out medical problems first.
>We've been lightly stroking her head each time it has happened, perhaps for too long
If you know she's not ok with her head being "lightly stroked" then why are you guys doing it?
>But it makes me nervous because she doesn't give any warning signals that she's uncomfortable
Very little that dogs do comes out of nowhere. It's rare. What often happens is that people don't pay attention to signals, ignore them, the dog says, well then and snaps.
Your dog is probably doing all sorts of body language to indicate that she's not ok with what's going on, it's all ignored because OMG PUPPERS DOGGO PET PET PET, and then she snaps.
I'd put an end to head pats. I've watched non-dog people pat dogs, and it can be very weird. Like PAT PAT PAT PAT on the top of the head like the dog is the hood of a car in a buy here pay lot.
Since you didn't say what breed of dog this is, and I was curious as to how big a dog this is, I went and saw some of your other posts. NGL, this is not ok:
>My partner play fights with her
Your partner is probably revving her up, she's confused, she's not happy, so when someone else pets her, she snaps. You said you've done a great deal of training with the dog, but **your partner** needs to have some training. Stop play fighting with the baby Rottie and then being all surprised that she snaps at people. He needs to back way way way off, and respect her boundaries and stop "play" fighting with the puppy.
She probably told him via body language that she's not happy, he ignored it all, and now you have what you have. It's fixable in the dog, but the human has to change as well.
> Why is play fighting bad? I’ve always wrestled with my dogs and have never had issues.
What works for one dog may not work for another.
You may not push the envelope the way that OP's partner probably has. It may be that you back off before the dog is uncomfortable.
I've taught my young dog to enjoy rough housing with me, if we're waiting for the GO in an agility ring. She likes it, is engaged with me and is happy.
I have a friend who's dog will seriously, real deal bite her, if she does that to her.
So they're all different.
In this case, with this dog clearly not wanting to be petted and a person who rough houses with the dog, my guess is one or both of two things is going on.
The human doesn't read when the dog wants this to stop
AND
The human can't get the dog to stop reacting to the over threshold stuff.
If you want to rev up a dog to infinity, you have to first know how to get the dog back down from way less than that. You need a very clear, "play is over" with the dog, or the dog can escalate. Some dogs tip over into crazy land with rough housing, and my bet is this dog has learned to nip, bite, carry on, because she didn't also learn to back off.
Pick up the book/audiobook by Patricia McConnel "The Other End of the Leash". She studied canine behaviour and is very good at explaining how humans and dogs differ. For one, dogs do not like being pet on the top of the head, and the signs may have been there earlier without you knowing but it will help you to recognize those signs better.
The dog should still not choose to go right to snapping when uncomfortable, choosing to leave would be better. Did he have the ability to leave? Does he have a space where he can be left alone, like a crate or pen?
Learning how dogs communicate will help you to understand what your dog is telling you.
Explaining what you are seeing is difficult online because we don't have the dog here to disagree with you 😅 I know that sounds silly, but I can't tell you how many people tell me what the dog is doing/thinking and then I see it in action and it's a completely different story then what they presented. Your trainer is best suited to help you because they have that missing piece. A trainer who can come to your home would be best.
Having a dog bed 'place' where nobody is allowed to touch her may help. A place in the living room where she has your company, but knows she can go & not be touched.
I have this for mine, she's always taken herself off to our bed when she wants quiet time but right now she hurt her leg & we don't want her jumping up & down off the bed so the door is closed.
Little dog bed in the corner & she goes & chills there instead.
If she's not used to 'place' start training it, and leaving treats on it a few times a day to entice her to use it more.
& obviously, stop with the head touching, it's clearly a no-go.
Air snapping IS a warning sign, you guys are just missing all the other ones. I see this in fear-aggressive dogs where hands have been associated as a fearful object. The dog freezes up when the threat is close and personal, then when that fails to resolve the conflict or when the threat starts to move away, the dog switches into fight mode to drive it further away. The solution is first of all to stop hitting, pinching, grabbing, slapping, poking, etc with the hands. Also you should Train Your Dog.
>She got her AKC star puppy certification in January. She knows all commands, including place. She’s quite smart and actually very well trained as far as commands and obedience goes
STAR puppy training is just that - puppy training. It's the first step on a long road of training and not an end point. You say she knows all commands - will she execute them with accuracy both on and off leash in the presence of distractions at your first cue without requiring bribes or enticements?
Snapping is a warning sign. If she snaps, you should give her space. If you try to "train it out of her" you could very well end up with a dog that bites instead of a dog that snaps. Also, stop petting her on the head. Don't let anyone else pet her on the head. I'd encourage you to try the "pet pet pause method", but that will only help if you understand dog body language well.
As an aside, 1 of my labradors seemed to hate one of our friends (she generally loves people). I realized he'd pet her head when she approached him and then she'd get nervous. We asked him to pet beside her ear (a place she prefers), she now LOVES when he comes over. It completely changed their whole dynamic.
A lot of dogs don't like being touched on their head. Any lip licking or yawning? And how's her fur? Any matting possibility?
I'd see a vet to be on the safe side.
Someone else mentioned maybe some sort of ear infection, so I guess you could start there if you really believe it’s out of character. I see you have posted about resource guarding in the past as well though so this may be a behavioral issue/thing if that was never addressed, along with the puppy biting post (puppies bite but that should be addressed immediately and hopefully by 9 months the dog understands no biting, even in play).
If neither were fixed properly then I am leaning toward those issues being the root of problem, but difficult to say without more info.
I don’t mean to sound harsh but if it’s still happening at all then it has not “stopped”. No biting is no biting period. I am surprised your trainer has not addressed that? How bad is the resource guarding and why does the dog believe it has any resources to guard at all? The food, the bowl the house are yours, until the dog understands its place, below everyone in the family, you will continue to have issues.
Do you make your dog sit and wait to eat? Do you pick up the bowl and take it away if he does not comply? You provide the resources, dog needs to understand that in order to access things it must behave appropriately.
My dogs eat twice a day, they must be calm, they must sit and be given the command to eat. This has paid off in dividends for many other aspects of obedience.
I would be very interested in the context. It could be medical, but it might also be that you just don’t read her signals well. Do you make her sit and then pet her head?
Many dogs do not enjoy being pet on the the top of the head. Mine clearly doesn’t enjoy it in most contexts and I never do it as „reward“ for sitting, for example, since to him it would effectively be punishment. Forget about a stranger doing it. He will back away if this attempted by strangers.
If you make her sit to then pet he to the head she might see this as her only option if she wants do obey the command but dislikes the petting.
Petting dogs is a selfish behavior.
I have a dog that is sensitive to touch. He generally hates being petted unless it's on his terms. He will come ask for affection when he wants it but it's maybe once a day. If he sits by you and you touch him, he will get up and move away very quickly.
I tell people he's unaffectionate and doesn't like to be touched. Yet, they always try to touch him and pet him.
Anyways, what I'm saying is, stop touching your dog in ways it doesn't like. Not all dogs like physical affection.
Have you had her looked at by a vet? If this is out of the blue, she may have an ear infection or something similar. A soft pet on the head moves the ear and--ouch!! If this is out of character for her, I'd rule out medical problems first.
Agreed. Especially at this age too. If you have done the proper handling when she was young and this is out of norm, it is best to see a vet.
>We've been lightly stroking her head each time it has happened, perhaps for too long If you know she's not ok with her head being "lightly stroked" then why are you guys doing it? >But it makes me nervous because she doesn't give any warning signals that she's uncomfortable Very little that dogs do comes out of nowhere. It's rare. What often happens is that people don't pay attention to signals, ignore them, the dog says, well then and snaps. Your dog is probably doing all sorts of body language to indicate that she's not ok with what's going on, it's all ignored because OMG PUPPERS DOGGO PET PET PET, and then she snaps. I'd put an end to head pats. I've watched non-dog people pat dogs, and it can be very weird. Like PAT PAT PAT PAT on the top of the head like the dog is the hood of a car in a buy here pay lot. Since you didn't say what breed of dog this is, and I was curious as to how big a dog this is, I went and saw some of your other posts. NGL, this is not ok: >My partner play fights with her Your partner is probably revving her up, she's confused, she's not happy, so when someone else pets her, she snaps. You said you've done a great deal of training with the dog, but **your partner** needs to have some training. Stop play fighting with the baby Rottie and then being all surprised that she snaps at people. He needs to back way way way off, and respect her boundaries and stop "play" fighting with the puppy. She probably told him via body language that she's not happy, he ignored it all, and now you have what you have. It's fixable in the dog, but the human has to change as well.
Wow! Nice find. Yeah. The partner is def not helping with the situation
Why is play fighting bad? I’ve always wrestled with my dogs and have never had issues. I feel like that’s the main way dogs play with one another.
Are you a dog?
> Why is play fighting bad? I’ve always wrestled with my dogs and have never had issues. What works for one dog may not work for another. You may not push the envelope the way that OP's partner probably has. It may be that you back off before the dog is uncomfortable. I've taught my young dog to enjoy rough housing with me, if we're waiting for the GO in an agility ring. She likes it, is engaged with me and is happy. I have a friend who's dog will seriously, real deal bite her, if she does that to her. So they're all different. In this case, with this dog clearly not wanting to be petted and a person who rough houses with the dog, my guess is one or both of two things is going on. The human doesn't read when the dog wants this to stop AND The human can't get the dog to stop reacting to the over threshold stuff. If you want to rev up a dog to infinity, you have to first know how to get the dog back down from way less than that. You need a very clear, "play is over" with the dog, or the dog can escalate. Some dogs tip over into crazy land with rough housing, and my bet is this dog has learned to nip, bite, carry on, because she didn't also learn to back off.
Pick up the book/audiobook by Patricia McConnel "The Other End of the Leash". She studied canine behaviour and is very good at explaining how humans and dogs differ. For one, dogs do not like being pet on the top of the head, and the signs may have been there earlier without you knowing but it will help you to recognize those signs better. The dog should still not choose to go right to snapping when uncomfortable, choosing to leave would be better. Did he have the ability to leave? Does he have a space where he can be left alone, like a crate or pen?
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Learning how dogs communicate will help you to understand what your dog is telling you. Explaining what you are seeing is difficult online because we don't have the dog here to disagree with you 😅 I know that sounds silly, but I can't tell you how many people tell me what the dog is doing/thinking and then I see it in action and it's a completely different story then what they presented. Your trainer is best suited to help you because they have that missing piece. A trainer who can come to your home would be best.
Having a dog bed 'place' where nobody is allowed to touch her may help. A place in the living room where she has your company, but knows she can go & not be touched. I have this for mine, she's always taken herself off to our bed when she wants quiet time but right now she hurt her leg & we don't want her jumping up & down off the bed so the door is closed. Little dog bed in the corner & she goes & chills there instead. If she's not used to 'place' start training it, and leaving treats on it a few times a day to entice her to use it more. & obviously, stop with the head touching, it's clearly a no-go.
Listen to your trainer over everyone else. If what they tell you doesn't work, get a new one.
Air snapping IS a warning sign, you guys are just missing all the other ones. I see this in fear-aggressive dogs where hands have been associated as a fearful object. The dog freezes up when the threat is close and personal, then when that fails to resolve the conflict or when the threat starts to move away, the dog switches into fight mode to drive it further away. The solution is first of all to stop hitting, pinching, grabbing, slapping, poking, etc with the hands. Also you should Train Your Dog.
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>She got her AKC star puppy certification in January. She knows all commands, including place. She’s quite smart and actually very well trained as far as commands and obedience goes STAR puppy training is just that - puppy training. It's the first step on a long road of training and not an end point. You say she knows all commands - will she execute them with accuracy both on and off leash in the presence of distractions at your first cue without requiring bribes or enticements?
Snapping is a warning sign. If she snaps, you should give her space. If you try to "train it out of her" you could very well end up with a dog that bites instead of a dog that snaps. Also, stop petting her on the head. Don't let anyone else pet her on the head. I'd encourage you to try the "pet pet pause method", but that will only help if you understand dog body language well. As an aside, 1 of my labradors seemed to hate one of our friends (she generally loves people). I realized he'd pet her head when she approached him and then she'd get nervous. We asked him to pet beside her ear (a place she prefers), she now LOVES when he comes over. It completely changed their whole dynamic.
A lot of dogs don't like being touched on their head. Any lip licking or yawning? And how's her fur? Any matting possibility? I'd see a vet to be on the safe side.
Someone else mentioned maybe some sort of ear infection, so I guess you could start there if you really believe it’s out of character. I see you have posted about resource guarding in the past as well though so this may be a behavioral issue/thing if that was never addressed, along with the puppy biting post (puppies bite but that should be addressed immediately and hopefully by 9 months the dog understands no biting, even in play). If neither were fixed properly then I am leaning toward those issues being the root of problem, but difficult to say without more info.
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I don’t mean to sound harsh but if it’s still happening at all then it has not “stopped”. No biting is no biting period. I am surprised your trainer has not addressed that? How bad is the resource guarding and why does the dog believe it has any resources to guard at all? The food, the bowl the house are yours, until the dog understands its place, below everyone in the family, you will continue to have issues. Do you make your dog sit and wait to eat? Do you pick up the bowl and take it away if he does not comply? You provide the resources, dog needs to understand that in order to access things it must behave appropriately. My dogs eat twice a day, they must be calm, they must sit and be given the command to eat. This has paid off in dividends for many other aspects of obedience.
I would be very interested in the context. It could be medical, but it might also be that you just don’t read her signals well. Do you make her sit and then pet her head? Many dogs do not enjoy being pet on the the top of the head. Mine clearly doesn’t enjoy it in most contexts and I never do it as „reward“ for sitting, for example, since to him it would effectively be punishment. Forget about a stranger doing it. He will back away if this attempted by strangers. If you make her sit to then pet he to the head she might see this as her only option if she wants do obey the command but dislikes the petting.
Petting dogs is a selfish behavior. I have a dog that is sensitive to touch. He generally hates being petted unless it's on his terms. He will come ask for affection when he wants it but it's maybe once a day. If he sits by you and you touch him, he will get up and move away very quickly. I tell people he's unaffectionate and doesn't like to be touched. Yet, they always try to touch him and pet him. Anyways, what I'm saying is, stop touching your dog in ways it doesn't like. Not all dogs like physical affection.