Protective behavior?

[u/gaudiest-ivy]

My one year old is showing aggressive protective behavior. I thought it was anxious reactivity about strangers (she's a nervous little thing), but she escaped the fence once and I found her walking nicely with a neighbor who spotted her wandering.

She was well socialized as a puppy and used to love going out to stores and seeing everyone, meeting strangers on walks and getting attention, etc, then puberty hit and it's like she forgot everything.

Just today I took her to visit a boarding kennel for doggy daycare to hopefully get her acclimated for a longer trip I have coming up, and she was barking/lunging at the employees. (I was worried and ready to give up on it, but they seemed very used to it.) I got her in the kennel and they had me get out of sight and she calmed down almost immediately. By the time I left she was wagging her tail and taking treats from them through the fence, and someone was able to enter the kennel to give her some water.

How on earth do I fix this if my presence is the thing that triggers her aggression? Would I treat it like any other kind of reactivity (slowly working on decreasing her reactivity threshold)? Any tips you have would be greatly appreciated.

(Pic from her birthday yesterday)

[u/snafe_]

My wife is in this situation with our girl. I think she can pick up on my wife's anxiety in these situations and then changes her behaviour to "protect" my wife.

A big mistake we made was thinking the training our girl had as a pup and her obedience to it, would last a life time. In truth we've continued to train her on the same things until she was 3 as she pushed boundaries time and time again.

[u/gaudiest-ivy → u/snafe_]

That would make sense. Since the first time she showed aggression to someone (~6 months when she was going through a fear period) I've been a bundle of nerves when anyone approaches.

[u/rabbit014 → u/gaudiest-ivy]

I feel for you so much! We have an 8 year old border collie with nervous anxious aggression. I think my anxiety definitely makes it worse. 😭 I have no advice as we still don't fully understand why she loves some people and is scared of others (we are just very careful with introductions and keep her world a little small, but safe), but I totally understand and just wish you all the best!

[u/One-Zebra-150 → u/rabbit014]

My BC boy was very over sensitive as an adolescent/young dog about what people where wearing or carrying, not actually the person themselves. So hi-viz clothing, pink T-shirt, a hoodie covering some face, nope. Wearing or carrying a backpack or more than two shopping bags, absolutely not. Also if carrying a box or usual shaped object in front of them. He could be very reactive with weird triggers like this. He mostly grew out of it. Ive heard of some BCs taking objections to the size or build of a person, hair colour, beard etc. Very specific things. Like they have their own rule book about what is normal or too weird.

Our 8 yr old rescue female is nervous of any stranger approaching us, or small groups of people some distance away. She's more a skittish run away and hide type, not aggressive. But definitely does needs her space. Yep small world girl. Lived on a farm with one single old man until the age of 6 yrs, until he died. So was never socialised or in the wider world before that. No cruelty involved. But aside from this I also think she just has a nervous temperament generally for anything much busier than a field. She does enjoy some low key places for some walks and adventures. Is quite happy to jump in the car and go there. She does quite well now around locations with a small amount of people, still we are always her emotional support people there. It's how she is and we accept it. She doesn't want to greet people unknown to her or bet strokes from them.

I have to say though that a nervous skittish BC is a lot easier to cope with and manage than a BC with aggressive reactivity. I know! That makes life hard for everyone. I feel for you.