Bad Dog Behavior

Dog bad behavior?

Well, my 2 year old Miniature Australian Shepherd mix doesnt “enjoy” strangers. When I introduce someone new to her i can see it in her eyes that she is very unsure about them, and with little ones as well, my little cousin was over that is 1 year old and she was walking around and started playing with my dogs food bowl and my dog started to grab her dress. I adore my dog and she is my buddy but i don’t want people to be afraid of her because I know she is really sweet to be but for some reason not strangers out of the family and she is afraid of babys and little ones what should i do to help her?

This dog clearly needs a lot of socializing. She would definitely benefit from obedience classes, both to be around a wide variety of people, but more importantly, dogs gain confidence through success. When she succeeds at obedience (and gets lots of praise from you) her confidence will go up, she will be more sure of herself, hence start to get over her fears.

You also have no business letting a toddler near your dog’s food bowl!! Especially a dog who’s not used to little kids around – you’re just asking for trouble with that one. You’re very lucky that your dog is part herding dog and therefore grabbed the dress, rather than the kid, to “herd” her away from her food bowl. You should know better than that – it’s your responsibility to look out for your dog.

Most dog bad behavior based in fear