New dog doesn't like neighbor

[deere755]

We got a new dog from the pound back in January of this year. He is a 3 year old golden retriever. He has been the best behaved dog I have ever owned. In a couple of days he learned the boundries of our place I trained him to ride in the back of the truck, he will not get out unless he is told to, he will shake, just seems to be very smart. One problem we have had is he does chase our cat (not a problem for me since I don't much like cats ). Yesterday my neighbor came over to tell me that when we are gone our dog comes over to his place and growls and shows his teeth at him. He said as soon as the sees him out he comes over and growls at him. Ken says he is afraid some day he will be bitten by the dog. He doesn't back down from him but he says Red (our dog) is not backing down as fast anymore as he used to. Ken has been a great neighbor and I don't want any problems between us. We would also like to resolve this with out getting rid of the dog but we will if need be to keep on good terms with our neighbors. Any ideas on what to do to keep him away from our neighbor short of chaining him up. I really don't want to do that. I was thinking about a shock collar or something along that line. Any help would be appreciated wife and kids are really upset at the thought of giving up the dog.

 

[YanmarFever]

Good neighbors are harder to find than another good dog.

I would either put up a fence to keep Red in your yard, or find a new dog.

Lawsuits can be tough on the wallet.

just my .02

 

[PBinWA]

Buy a bunch of dog treats and get your neighbor to give the dog a treat every day (or more often). It can work wonders. Get the dog to know your neighbor and it will be friendlier to him. Often dogs just need to know their pecking order - also if you ever see the dog growling at the neighbor then you need to punish it and let it know that the behavior is unacceptable.

 

[texbaylea]

We got a new dog from the pound back in January of this year. He is a 3 year old golden retriever. He has been the best behaved dog I have ever owned. In a couple of days he learned the boundries of our place I trained him to ride in the back of the truck, he will not get out unless he is told to, he will shake, just seems to be very smart. One problem we have had is he does chase our cat (not a problem for me since I don't much like cats ). Yesterday my neighbor came over to tell me that when we are gone our dog comes over to his place and growls and shows his teeth at him. He said as soon as the sees him out he comes over and growls at him. Ken says he is afraid some day he will be bitten by the dog. He doesn't back down from him but he says Red (our dog) is not backing down as fast anymore as he used to. Ken has been a great neighbor and I don't want any problems between us. We would also like to resolve this with out getting rid of the dog but we will if need be to keep on good terms with our neighbors. Any ideas on what to do to keep him away from our neighbor short of chaining him up. I really don't want to do that. I was thinking about a shock collar or something along that line. Any help would be appreciated wife and kids are really upset at the thought of giving up the dog.

Does the dog growl at the neighbor from the boundaries of your yard? If so he has become protective of his "pack" and territory. I believe that this is a trainable problem. If he does go into the neighbor's yard then you have a more serious problem and a fence is probably the only solution other than getting rid of the dog. I would be sure that the dog is actually leaving your yard.

Your neighbor may also have a deep seated fear of dogs or maybe certain types of dogs. He is probably exuding a fear reaction that is getting stronger with each encounter. Has your neighbor been in your house since this has started and if so how did the dog react? Why not invite your neighbor over and try to "introduce" the two where you can control the situation. The dog needs to understand that this person is valuable to you and must be accepted. This won't work unless your neighbor is very willing to try.

Vernon

 

[zzvyb6]

80% of dog communication is with smell. Your neighbor has a smell that's bringing back a bad experience reaction from the dog. Best to introduce the dog and have them know that your neighbor is part of your 'pack'.

Play, feed, walk on leash and meeting with another dog from the neighbor will help. You as pack leader must explain to the dog that his conduct is wrong and must change.

 

[silverking]

Containment of your animals within the established boundaries is the only way to be respectful to any neighbors. And if you dont like the cat why not give it to someone who will atleast protect it from what is sure to be a violent end of a animal that is just trying to live.

 

[RonMar]

Your letting your dog run free unattended? That is a recipe for a disaster of one form or another. I grew up in central Oregon, and free roaming domestic dogs were nothing but trouble(lost our collie to neighbors dogs that started running with coyotes). I love dogs, but based on my experiences then, I formed 2 rules when it came to stray dogs.
1. If the dog will come to me, or can be coaxed in with treats, and is friendly, I will do everything in my power to see that it gets home.I know all my neighbors dogs and if I recognize it, but it runs off, I will inform them. I have walked my neighbors lab home a few times when he found the weak spot in their invisible fence.
2. If the dog is not friendly or shows the slightest bit of agression, it gets a bullet and a dirt nap(this is of course on my property)...

Your neighbor has every right to enjoy his property without feeling threatened by your dog, so you need to keep your dog on your land and under your positive control. Most laws are pretty specific about this.

Now about your dogs behavior. Does he act this way when your neighbor comes over and you are around, or you go over there with the dog? If not, you could perhaps start taking him to visit, or plan an activity with your neighbor and the dog, and let the dog know that your neighbor is part of the extended family. This will require occasional visits to the neighbor to re-enforce this relationship. But, are you going to be able to induct ALL the people he might meet without you around into the extended family plan? Or Is he going to tag the kid walking up the street one day because he feels that HIS domane is being invaded by a stranger?

Oh, and if the neighbor is the ONLY one he acts this way around, even with you present, trust the dog, keep them separated, and keep an eye on your neighbor...

For both of your well beings and peace of mind, please don't let your dog roam free.

 

[riptides]

I'd start with a simple dog run in the yard. If your dog is engaging your neighbor, no telling what it is doing to others and things you don't know about.

Once you observe the dog's behaviour in a confined space, train it to respect your property lines. Then introduce it to your neighbor. By what you describe, it sounds like the dog feels it owns a bigger parcel than it thinks.

-Mike Z.

 

[SLOBuds]

Well, I'm one of those dog huggers like other people are tree huggers. If you like the dog I think you should not give up on it until you are certain that the animal is unable to be trained. But regardless of how much you love that dog, he/she may not be allowed into any situation where damage or injury are possible.

My dogs are city dogs who go out to the country every other week or so. As city dogs, we are more or less 'trained' to watch them all the time. Country dogs are expected to behave WITHOUT supervision. If they cause damage or injury, then if I am lucky I only have to pay for the damage or injury. If I'm unlucky, one of my neighbors could shoot them.

So anyway. Keep him under immediate and close supervision for now until you trust him completely. The rest of the process is what others are saying here. A combination of rewards and punishments should do it.

There is probably something about your neighbor that is setting the dog off. My own country neighbor wore some yellow slickers once that set off my male Shephard. That seemed to cause bad relations for quite a while. But over a period of time the barking reduced more and more until last weekend my neighbor came over and Sammy was glad to see him. Neighbor and I didn't have any one thing to attribute that change. But I'm just theorizing that my dog generally observed a friendly interaction between me and my neighbor, consistently.

Good luck. Hope it works out.

 

[Champy]

Whatever you do...do not punish the dog by giving it a licking or some other physical approach. this will only reinforce the negative experience imprinted in the dog with the neighbor. I'd recommend you and the neighbor try playing catch with the dog or some other fun interaction to create a positive Pavlovian response / memory.