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Advice Please


Dame Aussie
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I can't believe im even writing this :(

As some of you know we have an Anatolian x Maremma I adopted from the pound as a pup. He is now almost 8 years old and we are having issues with him since our daughter started crawling.

He has been great with her up until the last couple of days, where he has been growling at her if she comes near him. Obviously we don't let her bother him and they are always supervised, but even when she is on the other side of a baby gate he has growled at her. It has been when she has approached where he is (seperated by a gate) and also when she has been still but near him and looking at him. When I say near him I mean say a metre or so away with us. It has been both a low warning growl and a sharp barky growl as he got up to move away from her. They are seperated and obviously never left alone.

He has always been great with people and other dogs and normally loves little kids, and we're so upset that this is happening. I don't believe he would bite her but I'm just so worried he could and he is a big boy (50kg).

I get the feeling he is disturbed by the fact she is mobile now and he may just get used to it, but how will I know when and if he is safe for her to be around?

I am going to contact a trainer as soon as possible, but money is tight with me at home and I'm wondering if anyone has any advice/insight?

:(:(

Thanks guys

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So sorry Aussie, it's a very distressing situation to be in :(

Just one small thing that I found helped when J started crawling, was that I heavily rewarded the dogs for moving away when he came toward/ too close to them. Gave them an acceptable behaviour they could easily implement to be in control of the situation, as long as I made sure they had an escape route. Otherwise just everything you're already doing. Hugs :(

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It would be a very stressful situation..... Agree with Weasels' advice.

I would obviously keep them separated; to me, being supervised means at least 2 adults, one supervising the dog, the other the baby. If anyone needs to keep their eyes off their charges for even a second, separate first.

Maybe you could try rewarding him very heavily when your daughter is around? I.e. She's around crawling, or looking at him on the other side of the gate and cabanossi is raining down (or whatever is the most special treat to him). The instant she disappears from his sight, the treats stop pouring.

I don't know what your house layout is like, but it would be worth having 2 baby gates in between them (I.e. Dog is gated in the kitchen, and baby gated in living room accross the hallway) to create some distance between them.

He might be really spooked by this weird little creature, moving around like nothing he's ever seen before, making high pitched noises and staring rudely at him?

I had a friend years ago who had a Pyrenean mountain dog who was excellent with their flock of hens, and accepted say new adult gens with no issues. However, young chicks had to be penned away until they acquired their adult feathering and voices. Anything fluffy and peeping was perceived as an intruder and met an untimely demise....

ETA I would strongly recommend talking to a veterinary behaviourist and have your dog checked, and get them to recommend a trainer they feel is equipped and qualified to help you work on the issue.

Edited by fbaudry
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Thanks guys, our house is open plan so very hard to completely seperate them at all times with more than one gate. Unless we put him in a room with the door closed.

Plus its just me home with the baby during the day so only I can supervise.

We're seriously considering rehoming him which absolutely breaks my heart. It's what my husband wants to do :(

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I found the crawling/starting to walk phase the toughest with managing kids and dogs - the Kelpies weren't comfortable in this phase either. Diesel was fine, but he isn't phased by much. I didn't have Nitro at the time mine were that young. I suspect he wouldn't be worried by them but would have been too rough lol

If he is normally good with kids, maybe you can just tough this stage out with management and not have them together until the kids get a bit older and start acting more like 'normal' people.

Edited by Kavik
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I'm so sorry you're going through such a tough time; that would be a very difficult call to make.

Just one thought, could you have a (obviously empty!) playpen set up in front of the baby gate to create a buffer zone? I would really try to create a positive association around the baby. When your daughter is around, keep on tossing tiny tidbits at him. When she disappears, party is over.

Obviously, don't reprimand him for growling...

Is there a family member who could mind him for a while until you can get professional help?

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I was thinking of just managing it till she is a bit older but my husband would prefer rehoming.

We do have a friend who is happy to take him for a while but she has kids (he has met them and likes them) and I'm just terrified he might decide he's not a fan and have a go.

This dog has been pretty much bulletproof so we're really thrown by this.

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Stressful!! If he's generally good with kids he's probably just nervous/freaked out by this weird little creature that is moving towards him jerkily and staring at him. If you get through this stage he'll probably be fine.

Is he crate trained? Crating him when not able to directly supervised will go a long way to keeping him/your baby safe. I like the idea also of great stuff happening whenever she's moving around - stuffing him full of treats etc. Also like the idea of rewarding him for moving away. If he's generally a stable dog I have a hunch that he'll get used to her and be fine, but of course that requires lots of careful management in the meantime.

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+1 melzawelza

I didn't want to say it, and I'm not qualified to give advice, but the impression I get is that he's really thrown by this weird little animal. His perception might change once she starts behaving like a human. If he hasn't been socialised with crawling babies / toddlers, his reaction is quite understandable (not trying to say it should be that way).

Lots of management for now; I'd really want to make sure she can't get close to the baby gate.

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ACK. :(

Pls breathe- stop , & get in touch with one of excellent DOL professionals in vic.

Cosmo , & Nekhbet are both excellent , as is kelpie i There may be more . A professional assessment will help you see things from a different perspective - you're too close at the moment .

:hug:

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Thanks guys, our house is open plan so very hard to completely seperate them at all times with more than one gate. Unless we put him in a room with the door closed.

Plus its just me home with the baby during the day so only I can supervise.

We're seriously considering rehoming him which absolutely breaks my heart. It's what my husband wants to do :(

No real advice here, only random thoughts.

(Obviously - and you mentioned this - see a VB) but ...

Coming into summer would he be happy to hang out in the yard more often? That'll buy you 4-ish months of time to get on things and maybe he'll grow out of it too?

Can you contain the baby more easily? - temp fix as she's only going to get more mobile.

Good luck - it's hard when you're at odds with your partner regarding the welfare of your dog - and I imagine a million times more stressful when there's a baby involved too.

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Babies grab... simple fact... and the dog probably knows this. Being of older years, he may be feeling a little more fragile himself, and is pre-empting what may come?

Training for both dog and baby is in order if the vet check says he's in good health for his age...

T.

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He was checked fairly recently and 8s healthy. I can take him for another check up though, that's no problem.

I agree he probably just finds her weird and confronting now she's moving. I'm happy to manage it and get advice, I just worry it won't get better and I don't want to risk a bite. The OH has agreed to work on it before rehoming

Thanks for all the advice guys much appreciated

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Good with kids and good with babies are two very different things .

My dogs s how in the ring with kids but there not exposed or comfy with babies .

I think when you get to comfy in thinking any dog is bullet proof you often over see the simple basics of a world this dog hasn't lived it before or been exposed too 24/7.

Your dog has shown great tolerance in walking away warning you it doesn't mean it hates your baby just has no clue what it is so getting someone to help assess and assist would be great.

What sort of training did you do before baby to get it use to it

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I'd be putting him outside while baby is awake and active. Crating wouldn't be any good unless you can 100% make sure baby doesn't get close enough to put a hand through the bars. Crawling babies are very different to young children but I know that I couldn't rehome a dog to a house with kids now he has shown this behaviour.

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He'll be spending more time outside yeah, only problem is that with his breeds he's a real barker.

Showdog the main stuff we did before baby arrived was getting them used to the baby gates and being sectioned off in the house (they had free run before).

Edited by Dame Aussie
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