issues w/ men

[KNTonka]

My 15 month old male has an issue w/ men. He will bark at them, and he looks very leerily at them.

He is wonderful with other dogs, children, and women.

However, if he is with a play group, and there are men there, he is fine with them. If a man enters our home w/ a dog, he is accepted. If he is alone, he is barked at repeatedly (we do correct him).

Any suggestions on how to curb his problem with men?

[Imre0538]

My male also seems to have a big problem with men, in addition to his problem with GSD's.
He has gone so far as to actually sit there and look a grown standing man in the eye.....trying to pull his cards if you will.
Um, to curb this I put him back on a choke chain, because an unfounded aggression towards anything is uncalled for and unwanted. The choke chain puts more pressure on him, and if he lunges he chokes. I have had men to give him treats and pats on the left shoulder (shows you respect them). This has helped, he is better; but still wary of them, like give them a 'what do you want' look. and since I have no husband and live alone it's kinda hard. But like I said he's done well...........he's to the point where it only upsets him if they talk in a loud voice, or are using their hands to talk while talking in a loud voice. then he gets peturbed. but other than that he has become accepting of men.

[brunie's mom]

The best way to get him to accept men is to socialize him around men. Take him to the park and sit down on a bench not too close to foot traffic and let him observe. If he is quiet and shows not reaction..give him a treat.

Have you got your dog in obedience classes? If not, sign up...this will get him exposed to men also. Your instuctor will be able to show you what to do with him when he acts up.

My female came to me as a rescue very frightened of men. She growled at my poor husband for probably 4-5 months everytime he entered the same room. He just fed her treats each and everytime.
Almost 5 years later...she LOVES my husband...and is not frightened of men anymore. She does not rush up to strange men to be patted...just kind of hangs back....but she no longer growls or looks like she may bite.

It always best if the dog greets the men....don't let men come to the dog...or pat the dog.

Gina

[KNTonka]

Thank you for your comments about my dog's issues w/ men. He is currently in his 5th obedience class, called Robility 2. He has no issues w/ people when they have dogs - I guess I should have mentioned that. I have been taking him to my local pet stores once a week, and I let him walk around and get comfortable. I will slowly let strangers approach him as time goes on. For now, I want him to be comfortable around strangers w/o being approached by anyone.

He lives with a man, and he adores my father, so it's not like he doesn't have exposure to them.

The last time a new male friend came to our home, it took him about 10 minutes to settle down and accept him. That is a huge improvement!

I never knew about the left shoulder pat. I will try that, too.

Thank you again!

Kristen

[StephanieandToby]

Toby did not like any men who were visible minorities. Strange, because my husband at the time WAS one...
Toby grew out of it....don't know what he was thinking. I had a black man visiting the home once and Toby tried to corner him. They ended up excellent friends. Silly dog.

[2rotties2luv]

Another suggestion is to be sure to speak to male strangers in a happy cheerful voice. This goes for classes, in the petstore, in your living room, and also for strangers you pass on the street - greet them with a happy "Hi! How are you today" When you have a male visit you in your home, put the dog in a sit-stay. Keep the dog on a leash, but ignore him unless he growls or barks, then give a correction. The dog needs to realize that you are the one in charge and that there is no threat unless you say so.

A word of warning about pats on the shoulder: in all of the years I've been training, observing and studying about dog behavior I've never heard of a pat on the left shoulder showing respect to a dog. In fact the opposite is the case, this is a direct insult to the dog (from the dog's point of view).

In dog behavior, a touch on or across the shoulder by another dog is a rather rude statement of dominance and is a direct insult to the dog being touched. If a strange male human were to do this to your dog, he might well respond to the insult and challenge with a snap or bite. Please see several recent threads discussing hugging dogs for more information - and please note that the shoulder contact does not have to be a hug in order to be perceived as an insult or threat.

My advice would be to limit any physical contact between unfamiliar men and your dog until the dog is entirely comfortable with them. Continue with social contact and happy voices but do not allow any physical contact until the dog is more comfortable.

[Imre0538]

Originally Posted by StephanieandToby

Toby did not like any men who were visible minorities. Strange, because my husband at the time WAS one...
Toby grew out of it....don't know what he was thinking. I had a black man visiting the home once and Toby tried to corner him. They ended up excellent friends. Silly dog.

Shyne also has this exact same issue, I didn't want to offend (didn't want anyone to think i wanted him like that) so I didn't specifically say that, but he especially doesn't like latinos, and white men and black men are lower on the hate scale, but they still register pretty high. It's just a different scale reaction to each of them, like a latino man can't even walk up on him, while a white, and black man can, although when they try to touch him all bets are off. and then there is the whole GSD thing. I don't know the race of his previous owner, but I know for sure he was a man...........he must have done something horrible to him. It's hard to get the men to come up to him because of his initial reactions, but were working on it. we'll get through, somehow.
How is it going for you KNtonka?? Any progress to report?

[Imre0538]

Originally Posted by 2rotties2luv

A word of warning about pats on the shoulder: in all of the years I've been training, observing and studying about dog behavior I've never heard of a pat on the left shoulder showing respect to a dog. In fact the opposite is the case, this is a direct insult to the dog (from the dog's point of view).

Well 2rotties2luv, you learn something new every day.....

"He should approach from the side not head on and hold his hand palm up for the dog to sniff. He should pat the dog on the shoulder or side, not directly on top of the head, and should never try to hug or kiss a dog that does not belong to him."

This QUOTE is courtesy of 'Canine University. com' Polite greetings for dogs.
-and since the dog is on your left side, because they should be in a heel position, ergo, his left shoulder.....
Please do some research, or ask the person that made the statement before you make a comment that not only do you disagree, but the statement that was made is untrue.
I would appreciate this, I wouldn't spout out some information that I know nothing of.
Please don't get discouraged from using my suggestion because of this KNtonka.

[debbiej]

many times people write with problems that stem from the dog not having enough positive encounters with different situations. when I adopted my girl at about 8 months, she didn't like anything new. people, situations, objects. she was way undersocialized and had very few experiences in her short life. now, over two years later, nothing bothers her. Although every dog and person is different, there are a few basic things that don't change.

make sure you are in charge. the dog should be trained; enrolled in classes for sure, but there are many ways you can show the dog you are a safe leader and it doesn't have to worry about deciding who is a threat. a dog who learns this will not bark at people.

take the dog out a lot, but keep it under control. DON'T let a situation arise where the dog isn't under control, and is allowed to bark at someone. If the dog starts, tell it firmly to knock it off. don't become nervous about how the dog will act, they may think you are nervous about the person. let that dog know you won't tolerate it's going off at people.

the more positive experiences the dog has with the things/people they are afraid of, the better. give treats to men to give your dog. make the dog sit for the treats. some dogs respond to a friendly stranger who is offering to play a game with it's favorite toy.

my girl finally, just recently abandoned her last really bad habit. she used to bark aggressivly at anyone who "popped" out of the bushes on our walks. we live in a very rural subdivision with a lot of big desert bushes along the road. people coming to check the mail or get the paper seemed to appear suddenly to her, and she would go embarassingly balistic. by this time, she knew better, so got a correction and a "stoppit". Just a couple of months ago she barely glanced at a neighbor coming out to check his mail.

[KNTonka]

Wow! I can't believe all the responses! Thank you everyone! This will be a work in progress. We will continue to take him to pet stores and let him interact with strange men. Last night at doggy day care, he allowed a man to pet him, and he did not bark or back away. I could see he was still a bit leery, so I made the interaction brief. As for working w/ treats - my dog won't take treats from strangers. Most people know to approach him w/ their hand out or under his chin. I stop people if I see them going over his head. No dog likes that.

Looking back now, we definitely made the situation worse. We would get nervous approaching a stranger, knowing he was going to bark, so he would. After talking to our trainers, we learned to relax, make the dog focus on us more, and things have gotten better.

I will keep you all updated. Thank you again!

[2rotties2luv]

KNTonka: I ran across something which may be of interest to you for your work in progress. Jean Donaldson, who is a well-known canine behavior expert, has a book out called "Dogs Are From Neptune" - the first chapter of the book discusses how to help a dog overcome fear of strangers.

[dragonlover]

Perhaps he is territorial and does not wish to have another testosterone creature around while you are not there. My rottie does this with my friends when I briefly walk out of the room.

It becomes more chalenging when they get older and become more territorial. It's best to consult a good trainer

[KNTonka]

Thanks - I will check out the book. I've been consulting with trainers, and I think we are on the right track. I already see a vast improvement in his interactions with new people.

Thank you!!