Recently, we were called to help a 2 year old Lab named Remmie. The submission read that they needed help because he was pulling on the leash and they felt that they could not trust him with visitors in the house. This turned out to be a very interesting case for several reasons.
Upon my arrival, Remmie barked and barked at me which is normal. When dogs are not sure, they will use a combination of distance and verbalization until they settle down, however Remmie did not settle down. At one time, he came up to me and I attempted to put on the Immediate Correction Lead at which time he snapped at me. Over the next 15 minutes or so Mom and her teenage daughter tried every trick in the book to put not just the ICL but any collar on him. They talked nice, they talked stern, they tried to use treats, peanut butter, you name it. It reminded me of someone trying to snare a stray. Poor Remmie was a bundle of nerves, beyond anxiety. After looking defeated and saying she was sorry for wasting my time, Mom opened the garage door like she was going to take him for a ride. She finally got his collar on before she was able to place the ICL. She handed the traffic lead to me and I got him to relax.
When I had pulled up to the house, there were two old Beagle mixes outside. Both well into their teens. Mom explained to me that she had to keep one of them separated at all times because he constantly attacked Remmie. As with most Beagles, he is also a barker. The Beagle also wears a bark collar that you can hear beep when he barks. The collar does not seem to phase him.
From this information, I surmised that Remmie’s extreme anxiety was due to this dog. One of the most common things we run into is families that have dogs that do not get along so they keep them separated like the Crips and the Bloods. It is usually an older and younger dog. This idea may work for people, but not for dogs. Here’s why- regardless of being kept out of sight they still smell each other. To Remmie that is like a woman being triggered by the smell of her attacker. Remember, I said the dog attacked Remmie, not that they fought. That is an important distinction.
Within a few minutes, I was able to take Remmie on a nice Silent Loose Leash Walk. Then Mom and daughter did the same. Then we did a Focus Drill in the front yard with all kinds of distractions. Remmie loved it to the point where he laid down, rolled over on one hip, and put his chin flat on the ground. This is the most relaxed position a dog can be in. His tension was gone. After we all did it, I had the daughter walk him up to the house. I went to my bike to get something. When I walked to the back of the house and up to the daughter, Remmie tried to attack me. And by attack me, I mean attempting full mouth bites not nips but the daughter was able to hold him. I had her walk him for a bit until he calmed down, or so I thought. She handed me the lead and I began to walk him. He was on a loose leash when the dog inside barked and the collar beeped. When I went to correct him, he turned around and went for a full mouth bite on my stomach. Luckily I was able to extend my arm to the point where just his canines, spread all the way apart pinched my wash board abs (a guy can dream can’t he). The result was basically a huge pinch. This was not even misdirected aggression. He was trying to get away. The smell of expressed anal glands wafted in the air. Poor Remmie was in fight or flight, and flight is definitely what he prefers.
So, let’s look at it through Remmie’s eyes. There is a dog in the house who attacks him whenever he gets the chance. In the house, he cannot see the dog but can smell him all the time. Whenever that dog barks, the collar goes off but it is usually a false alarm except for when it’s not. His natural fight or flight response keeps him in a heightened state of arousal at all times. His defense to an attack he has no idea when or where it will come from is to constantly move giving him the best chance to get away to protect himself. Then I come in, the dog is barking and the collar is beeping at this stranger. He is on high(er) alert. Mom and daughter chase him around trying to talk him into a collar that he knows will restrict his movement. Once he thought he was going bye bye thus removing him from the environment he relaxed a bit. He was put into a bedroom while the other dogs were brought in to avoid contact. But they are still barking and beeping. I take him out of the house, removing him from all the stimuli related to his arousal and make him concentrate on something new. He is outside, can see all around him and focusing on the task at hand. He begins to relax. Then we go to the lower yard for a Focus Drill, free of all the stimuli he relaxes and melts to the ground. I was able to walk away and then re approach him over to the point where he would give me his belly.
When I had someone else walk him to the back patio of the door as I stepped away, the dogs began again and so did the beeping. Within the minute, he was back to his nervous self. When I reached in, he respond with misdirected aggression. At that minute I represented the dog he could smell, and hear, but not see. As far as he was concerned, he was tied to a post. Then I began to walk him and the dog barked, he pulled and tried to get away, when I stopped him I was nothing more than a trap. A trap holding him in place that would prevent him from using the open space to get away if the other dog got out. We all know that dogs will break teeth trying to get away from something. It was like I was standing in the emergency exit of a building during a fire and he was trying to get out. Add to this the anxiety of the people have based on having dogs that don’t get along and you can see how volatile the situation can become.
The wind up is that Remmie is a sweet, sweet boy and he broke my heart. The plan is to remove the bark collars and I will continue to work with Remmie to see what we can do.
It is because of cases like this that I come to your house to work with your dogs. Had this not been the case here I would have never been able to put the pieces of the puzzle together in reference to all Remmie’s triggers. They are just like us, anxiety sucks with a capital S and nobody wants to live that way. Pray for my friend Remmi.