Author Topic: The curious incident of the Bo-dog  (Read 2520 times)

Offline CalistogaPyr

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The curious incident of the Bo-dog
« on: November 03, 2005, 02:11:35 pm »
I have a scenario that I'd like to put up for suggestion/feedback.
It might take a while to explain, so bear with me! =)  I also posted this on the Yahoo group, so those of you that read this twice, that's why!

My 2 year old female Pyr, Bo, was acting VERY strange last night.
To preface this story, it should be said that we purchased a home in
September and moved from the ranch where Bo was born and was one of
three Pyrs, including her dog-mom. The new neighborhood has LOTS of
dogs that are allowed to roam freely (arrgh), and sometimes they
have been known to let themselves onto our porch.
So, back to the story... My best friend (who has known Bo since she
was six weeks old and has been Bo's nanny when we go out of town)
came to our house last night and arrived before I did. She let
herself in, as I had instructed her to, and made herself
comfortable. I arrived about 10 minutes later. When I arrived, Bo
was out on the deck whining. She didn't greet me as she usually
does, and was acting nervous. She then went into our bathroom and
wouldn't come out. When my husband arrived home, she was finally
enticed out of the bathroom and laid down in the living room. Every
time my friend made an excited noise (she & my husband were playing
a video game), Bo would bark. After a while, my friend was sitting
with Bo and petting her. Bo suddenly barked at her (not a growl,
but more of a fear/warning bark), and then jumped up on the couch
where I was sitting and hid behind me. For the rest of the night,
she was restless and barked quite a bit more than usual, often
sounding the "Hound of the Baskerville" bark as though someone were
coming through the front door!
My question is: do you think that my friend letting herself into the
house without me or my husband being present triggered something for
Bo? We have not trained her to be a guard dog, per se, but I know
that the instinct is very deeply ingrained in the breed. I wondered
if she got confused that someone who is her friend was in the house
without me? Or perhaps did one of the neighborhood dogs come into
our house wtihout our knowledge? We leave the slider open for Bo to
come in since it's been raining and we don't have an adequate dog
house built for her yet. I also wondered if she was getting
harassed by a nasty neighbor up the street who has decided that Bo
is the cause of all dog noise in the neighborhood (mostly because
she's the loudest).
I am a first-time Pyr owner, and although I consider myself educated
about the breed, this situation has stumped me. So far, she seems
fine today...no nervousness that I can tell, although she's pretty
tired from staying up all night! =)
Thanks for any suggestions or feedback about this situation. Also,
feel free to let me konw if I'm just being a nervous Nellie and if
this can be attributed to the move and the adjustment period that
she's (we're) going through. I try very hard to be a good Pyr mom
and want to make sure that I'm not setting up situations that might
be difficult for Bo to understand/handle.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH!!!!
Jenn & Bo
"Be the change you wish to see in the world"-Gandhi

Kiahpyr

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Re: The curious incident of the Bo-dog
« Reply #1 on: November 03, 2005, 03:49:59 pm »
I'm sorry I can't be of much help to you has to why she acted that way. Maybe she was nervous with the whole moving thing, new dogs and she's not used to anyone in the house without you. She could have been confused on what she should do and feel. Kiah gets that way in new situations. Tell Bo everything is ok and stay calm. They can feel your nervousness. I also want to say that Bo is very beautiful. I have an 8 month old pyr named Kiah. She's just starting to become leary of strangers.

Offline Good Hope

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Re: The curious incident of the Bo-dog
« Reply #2 on: November 03, 2005, 03:52:58 pm »
Hi,

You asked if "triggered" something, did Bo ever act fearful or show signs of fear aggression as a puppy?

I believe that info would be helpful in assisting you.

Deena

Offline kildeskennel

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Re: The curious incident of the Bo-dog
« Reply #3 on: November 03, 2005, 04:27:18 pm »
We do not ever allow anyone to enter our home when we are not here, even close friends that our dogs are very familiar with.  When we are here everyone acts fine, but one incident a few summers back occured with one of my husbands good friends who Beauty does like very much happened that was a very big eye opener. 
We live ina  very small town in Northern Minnesota called Tenstrike, population of 138, not much trouble with crime, and most people leave doors unlocked, knock and walk in, it is a very open type of area.  (we do have large town 20 miles south of us LOL!)  Our good friend did just that, knocked and when we did not answer, walked in looking for us, I was upstairs napping and was awakened to him calling out for me to help him.  Beauty had sat him down literally ina corner by the front door and would not allow him to get up.  When I came down she was giving him a low warning growl when he tried to stand up.  This is her job, to protect her home and her family.  Despite the fact that  she has been around Dean since a pup and is very comfortable around him, he was not invited in by her masters.  She was doing her job.  I called her back and assured her it was ok, and reminded Dean that just walking in as he was used to was not an option any longer, we also posted a sign on our door and use the lock when home now.  We no longer have trouble with the neighbors just walking in. It is a possibility that witht he move, your not being home, Bo may have been feeling confused as to what was going on.  I am not sure just a guess.  Shana
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Offline CalistogaPyr

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Re: The curious incident of the Bo-dog
« Reply #4 on: November 03, 2005, 06:15:02 pm »
You'll have to excuse my language GoodHope...I'm a psychotherapis t and "triggered" for me usually means bringing up of a fear or other negative feeling.  SHe's not had any aggression towards any person, although recently developed some on-leash argumentativen ess (I won't go so far as to say aggression, as it's limited to puppies and her desire to correct inappropriate puppy beahvior). 
I appreciate the feedback, kildeskennel, about your experience with friends coming in without your "permission".  I think that makes a lot of sense in Bo's case, especially given the big move, etc.  I will watch for patterns forming and hopefully this was a one-time thing!
Lesson learned, however, not to have people enter my hosue without me! =)  That is one of the unique aspects of the guardian dog as household pet, I guess.
Thanks, again!
Jenn
P.S. Thanks Tajsa for the lovely compliment...I think Bo's quite fetching myself!
"Be the change you wish to see in the world"-Gandhi