Here is a link to our story;

http://itsahuskything.forumotion.net/t2128-let-me-introduce-you-to-taylor-blue

I am pretty sure she was abused in the years before we got her. The reasons are as follows;

She is very skiddish, and if she is excited she will "squirt" urine. I found her laying on the couch, and she refused to get down, I raised my voice, she jumped down, but left a small amount of urine on the couch. She will also do this when being let out of her crate. Also her "moods", or "demeaner" will change VERY quickly. She can go from laying peacefully on the floor, to boucing off of the cieling, for no apparent reason. Any sudden movements in her vicinity are met with a quick recoil, on her part.

These items are not deal breakers for us. Even the occasional "present" left on the basement floor is not even a deal breaker. (She always does it just outside of the cat litter box? It's like she's saying "If he (the cat) can poop here, why can't I?") The losing of the gaurd coat? I must admit, I'm struggling with that one, I have brushed enough fur out of her to make (2) other dogs, and it is still coming out!!

Last night is the first time she came down the hallway, to my bedroom, when I went to bed. Up until then, she always slept in the same spot on the family room floor. It is as if she is begining to believe she is going to be with us for awhile, and is allowing herself to form an attachment to us. Outward displays of affection have begun within the last week also. She will lick my hands and face, and put her paw on my hand if I stop petting her too soon (in her mind).

No none of the above are "deal breakers". But the one that is? Is when she snaps at my grand kids. She has not bit anyone yet, but has scared them quite a bit. And made my heart stop! The problem is, there is no predicting when she is going to do it. They will be petting her, all will be fine, then I hear a loud bark, and one of my grand kids is recoiling in fear! Not cool. I do not believe in striking a dog, as a form of correction. When she does this, I use her collar to pull to the floor, and repeat "bad Girl" to her. The opposite of when I am praiseing her. Our standard communication with her is "Who's a good girl?" We use that to reinforce desired behavior. But I do not have much confidence I can train her out of this behavior.

One occasion I believe she thought she was protecting me? I was laying on the floor with her, my daughter in law was leaving with two of my grand kids. My grand daughter came running in to give me, my good by kiss. As she approached, she dropped to the floor just in front of me, Taylor jumped in, and snapped at her!! needless to say, I do not believe my grand daughter will do that again :-(

Now, I know one option is to crate her, when the kids visit, but that is almost like having a loaded gun around. There is no garrenty one of the kids wouldn't open her crate to pet her, and get bitten or mauled.

I am looking for advise on how to stop this behavior, I can not tolerate too many more close calls, before I explore more permenet solutions, ones that do not involve her living with us :-( That would be a last resort, we have become quite attached to her, and I fear the damage it may do to her, being relocated again, she has been bounced around enough.

Of all the possible problems I was concerned about, prior to taking her in, this was the least of them. I guess I may have been very wrong.

Sorry for the long post, any input is greatly appreciated!

ok has she done this "snapping" with you or any adult? is it only with the kids?

How old are your grandchildren? You said Taylor can be unpredictable at times:

taylor blue wrote:

She has not bit anyone yet, but has scared them quite a bit. And made my heart stop! The problem is, there is no predicting when she is going to do it. They will be petting her, all will be fine, then I hear a loud bark, and one of my grand kids is recoiling in fear!

In this instance, were you able to witness the entire interaction between dog and child? Is it possible he/she was being too rough with Taylor or petting her in a way she did not like? (i.e., actually "patting" the dog on top of the head instead of gently petting or scratching). This seems to be a common way for children to "pet" dogs and some just don't like it. If she was never socialized with children at a young age, it could only exasperate a situation like this.

On the flip-side, maybe she was socialized with children as a puppy but they didn't treat her properly. Very young children need TONS of guidance when it comes to interacting with animals. They fail to understand that animals don't enjoy having their ears and tails tugged, being chased incessantly, being cornered and teased, etc. Maybe her previous family had a flock of children and she's learned to associate all small people with a negative experience. If that's the case, you'll have to help her understand that not all children are "bad." First and foremost, make sure your grandchildren understand how to properly approach a dog and how to behave around one, especially one that is uneasy. No sudden movements or loud noises, slow and gentle petting, etc etc. Maybe try allowing them to give her treats? She'll learn that children bring good things.

taylor blue wrote:

One occasion I believe she thought she was protecting me? I was laying on the floor with her, my daughter in law was leaving with two of my grand kids. My grand daughter came running in to give me, my good by kiss. As she approached, she dropped to the floor just in front of me, Taylor jumped in, and snapped at her!! needless to say, I do not believe my grand daughter will do that again :-(

You said you were laying on the floor with Taylor, then your granddaughter starts running towards you to give you a kiss (so I'm assuming, from the dog's perspective, your granddaughter was running at her as well). She could have easily taken this as a threatening or scary gesture, hence the snap.

When we do something a dominant dog doesn't like, the first line of defense is usually a growl. Next is either barring of teeth/snapping followed by an actual bite. I'm touching on this because there's a possibility this could be an issue of dominance. If a dominant dog is unhappy with how a subordinate pack member is acting, they will usually act in this manner. Taylor might be viewing your grandchildren as subordinate members of your "pack." This is a common hierarchy placement for children; they are small, easy to knock over and easy to take advantage of. If that's the case, try getting your grandchildren to work on giving Taylor basic commands and treating her when she performs them. This is best done on a leash so you have control of the situation. If one of your grandchildren asks Taylor to sit and she does not comply, step in and get her to sit then allow your grandchild to treat her. Drogo will sit, lie down, stay and shake for my boyfriend's youngest child who is 6.

Another thing you could try is to allow Taylor free roam of the house with both her collar and leash attached. Cut the loop from the end of the leash so it can't get caught on anything and monitor her interactions with your grandchildren. If you see any signs of aggression, grab the leash, offer a correction and have your grandchild attempt to get Taylor to perform some type of command (usually sit or lie down). If she complies, try to get her to stay in that position for a few minutes and only allow her to move once your grandchild gives the okay. "Good girl" then offer a treat would work, unless she knows a release command (not sure if she's been through formal training). If she tries to get up before your grandchild allows her to, get her to sit/lie down again and repeat the process.

Hope some of this information helps. I completely understand your concern and hope the relationship between Taylor and your grandchildren improve. I believe she can be corrected but it will take time, diligence and some trial and error to figure out which one of the above scenarios, if any of them, are causing her to act the way she is.

I don't ever feel comfortable giving advice in the case of possible aggression as it is a sensitive issue and something I feel is best addressed by a professional or at the very least observed by a behaviorist in person.

I do have some ideas for how to deal with such instances but I just don't feel comfortable giving that kind of advice out without knowing first hand what you're dealing with. Even the slightest thing can make a big difference in how to handle such a situation.

taylor blue wrote:

Now, I know one option is to crate her, when the kids visit, but that is almost like having a loaded gun around. There is no garrenty one of the kids wouldn't open her crate to pet her, and get bitten or mauled.

The best I can offer right now would be to keep her crated with the grandchildren around and if you still think that someone might let her out you could go one extra step and put a muzzle on her. Or leave her uncrated but with a muzzle on is also an option to prevent those teeth from making contact with skin. I really think, based on what you've said so far about her unpredictability, that it would be in everyone's best interest if she were kept away from the kids. If you want her crated without a muzzle you could put a lock on the crate so that you wouldn't have to worry about the kids opening it. I think that if the kids understand that they need to leave her alone and they are supervised then you should be fine just crating her in another room.

I don't have time for a full response right now but I want to echo Val's advice. For now, a muzzle I think would be best, but I highly advise getting a professional in your home to evaluate her.

Personally... I don't think this is aggression or dominance. I think this is a VERY scared and insecure dog that needs constant reassurance. I can provide some tips for working on this when I get back, but the truth is that ALL dogs, but dogs with this sort of a past especially, are unpredictable. So safety should be your primary concern and then working with her slowly will help make her and you feel more secure.

I have to agree with Val. I know what I did with my dogs, but couldn't offer that advice on the computer. I worked closely with a trainer for Frankie, but he wasn't snapping just more of an annoying nipping when my son wasn't wasn't listening.
When I moved in with my parents about a year ago, their dog Bruiser snapped at my son a few times. But I handled it again with the help of the same trainer. Bruiser is a very fearful skittish dog. He will climb on top of you to cuddle and has no concept of personal space. However if my son got in his face the wrong way, touched him the wrong, etc he would snap. Just a a quick snap. He and my son have a much better understanding of each other and with the help of the trainer, Bruiser can tolerate a lot more.

You could definitely have the children assist you in training with sit, down, etc. Also have them participate in the dog's feeding time. But ALWAYS with you present and right there.

So defintely seek professional help. This is not an issue to take lightly. NEVER leave the children alone with the dog, not even in the other room. If you need to walk into the other room, either the dog or the children come with you. Even if the dog is muzzled, do NOT leave them alone together