Odd behavior change with guests

Behavioral Issues
Log in to reply
  • JazzysMomJ

    We have had Jazzy since she was a puppy. We have a semi-large family, and have had a houseful of people on a regular basis since she moved in.
    She has never had problem with visitors, and has always been ready to greet everyone as they enter, and usually is able to sucker guests into letting her curl up in their laps for a cozy nap.

    Lately, however, she seems to be uncomfortable with visitors. She seems to prefer having just her family home {with the exception of a few neighborhood kids, whom she also views as belonging to her "pack"}. When visitors come over, she wanders about with her tail uncurled, looking uncomfortable. She does not try to get into laps, etc. and Saturday gave a little "I'm not comfortable with this" growl when a friend rubbed her tummy – usually a favorite.

    Any ideas on why this is going on? I am aware of nothing happening to affect a change like this.

    0
  • nala121498N

    Hi JazzysMom,
    Nala has gotten a little odd around people coming to our house recently too. We have a large family too and lots of visitors. I'm not sure how old Jazzy is, but Nala will be 8 and I noticed her behavior changed in the last year. Her hackles (sp.?) are up and she's very stiff around people and doesn't like it if they reach down until SHE's ready to let them. She makes "ugly" noises at my best friend and her husband (never kids, thank goodness) but she knows them and loves them. I'm not sure if it's just a "crotchity" phase or what. All I can say is you are not alone! I know my friend's husband just says, "You have to know how to handle her, just don't let her be the boss." He picks her up and just lets her make those noises and pats her on the bottom. She hasn't snapped or bitten him (yet) so maybe that's the way to handle it.
    Let me know what works for you!
    Sharon

    0
  • QuercusQ

    <>
    Is she coming into heat soon? Our girls get grumpy about things that normally wouldn't set them off when they are about two weeks from coming into heat. She also approaching two years old, right? Sometimes they start to act more like adults...as in letting you know what they don't really like around that age.
    I would definitely talk to Brian about it, and see what he thinks.

    Andrea Walters

    Quercus Basenjis

    NW Ohio

    0
  • QuercusQ

    <_>

    Uh, well, that's not how I would handle it. A dog growls as a warning…if the warning is ignored, a lot of dogs will bite. I don't know if Nala is one of those dogs...but why force her to interact with people that she feels uncomfortable around?

    Chances are her behavior is escalating around those people, because she suspects this man will force her to interact in a way that makes her uncomfortable. What is wrong with letting her decide when she is comfortable with an approach?

    I would suggest to these people that they simply ignore her when they come into the house...eventually she may seek out their attention, or she may not....her choice._

    Andrea Walters

    Quercus Basenjis

    NW Ohio

    0
  • nala121498N

    I guess I should have wrote LOL after that, Andrea. I also should have added that I DO warn people when they come to my house to ignore her and let her approach them. They only problem that I find with that is that it creates fear in some people and then she can sense it. I do believe that you know your dog individually and you might handle each differently. That is why I said, "Let me know what works for you".

    0
  • QuercusQ

    @nala121498:

    I guess I should have wrote LOL after that, Andrea. I also should have added that I DO warn people when they come to my house to ignore her and let her approach them. They only problem that I find with that is that it creates fear in some people and then she can sense it. I do believe that you know your dog individually and you might handle each differently. That is why I said, "Let me know what works for you".

    Sorry, I didn't know you were being sarcastic :) Absolutely, each dog is an individual, and you might handle situations differently. I didn't realize that you weren't looking for advice. I am just really tired of the whole "you have to let them know who's in charge" advice…sorry if I overreacted :x

    Andrea Walters

    Quercus Basenjis

    NW Ohio

    0
  • nala121498N

    No, you didn't Andrea, I think I did! Sorry. I didn't mean to seem ungrateful. I know you are one of the people who has a wealth of great information on this forum and I didn't mean to offend you. I really respect your advice.
    Nala has been much better since we had a few large parties and I gave those instructions to people upon approaching her. I think she was getting more territorial for whatever reason.
    The other thing I do is tell her (however weird this sounds)…"Jean is coming!" a few times before guest arrrive and she starts to look out the window and get excited. Maybe it prepares her for company arriving...

    0
  • QuercusQ

    <>
    Cute! Good idea too!
    I am truly not offended :) I think I just misread the post. Nothing worse than giving advice when it wasn't wanted...and I felt bad that I might have stepped on your toes :)

    Andrea Walters

    Quercus Basenjis

    NW Ohio

    0

Suggested Topics

  • KembeK

    New Behavior

    Moved Behavioral Issues
    10
    0 Votes
    10 Posts
    3k Views
    KembeK
    @tanza I laughed @ “the close enough”! I know my dog is getting old - her face is white and her eyes are getting cloudy - but she will always be my baby. I have a hard time accepting the fact that she is getting older. I am going to have to remind and help her to go outside more often. I thank everyone on this forum for their kind words and comments.🙏🐕❤️🐾 BASENJI STRONG 💪
  • C

    strange behavior

    Behavioral Issues
    2
    0 Votes
    2 Posts
    2k Views
    DebraDownSouthD
    First, yeah they do the flip and butt in face. I see it as invitation to play/chase mostly. Kind of shaking my head here over the rest. You already have a breed known for dominance and protectiveness of property/family with the Boerboel. Basenjis (I assume you mean 6.5 not 65 years old :) ) are not known for tolerating same sex. Sometimes they do, but not a sure bet. Plus, your Boerboel is still a puppy. By age 2 or 3, that compliance with the Basenji being alpha can go down the drain at a drop of a hat. That happens, and he hasn't killed the basenji... you have to keep 2 packs running, ensuring they never have contact. Then you bring in a mixed breed... which is all a Mastador is. No way on earth to know how much it will take after the lab side or the Mastiff. AND it's another male. So now you have potentially 3 dog aggressive male dogs, with 2 of them large enough to inhale the basenji. I am not sure about the breeders who placed the Boerboel, certainly not the owners letting you bring in the Mastador. I want my male dogs to have a chance of a peaceful, unstressful life. I think the chances in your home are already approaching really low numbers, and the Mastador is going to bring that closer to zero. The safety of that poor basenji is beyond precarious. I wouldn't want those 3 males in the most experienced of homes, one already fully ready to and experienced in running separate packs. I sincerely hope you reconsider the Mastador. And no, getting a female won't help. Until the Boerboel is fully mature and you have a handle on what your pack is, adding any dog is going to up the risk of issues.
  • agilebasenjiA

    Poopy behaviors

    Behavioral Issues
    7
    0 Votes
    7 Posts
    4k Views
    TimesthemythT
    This is an interesting thread. Any afghan owners notice this in their dogs as well? When Beo was younger, back when I was using the crate with him, when he would have a 'poop' accident he would take a blanket and use his nose to encircle said accident, didn't do the same thing with pee accidents….I don't know if it's the same thing or not, honestly I think he just wanted it as far away from him as possible. He still does this mounding behavior with like bones and the like; he'll use his nose and push a blanket or something on top of it, and then further us his nose to bunch it up into a relatively good looking circle shape. He won't have anything to do with dog feces now though ....he prefers to go in the bushiest/covered area he can find, and then wants absolutely nothing to do with it afterwards (I have to literally drag him through public areas where there's a lot of dog poop lying around).... It is kind of funny to see his "wide-eyed, EW! ICK!" reaction when he accidentally steps in some. Seems like it's more common for basenjis to half halfheartedly attempt to bury it, as opposed to take the time to cover it up with their noses?
  • sabaS

    Weird Behavior ???

    Behavioral Issues
    17
    0 Votes
    17 Posts
    5k Views
    KipawaK
    @DebraDownSouth: Fran, there are times when I might mean to be condescending, but I assure you that it won't be "a little" or usually any question. That you could take my comment above as condescending… I can only suggest you may simply want to block my posts because it is entirely unlikely I will write 100 words to say what I said in under 20 because SOMEONE might see my observation as insulting. Now if I had said it condescending, such as: How could you THINK it could be that? Don't you think any dog living with females would already have reacted? How silly! The person threw out the idea of periods, which sometimes could be it .. and btw, pregnancy hormones set some dogs off… but it hit me he had lived with them too long for that to be probably. It wasn't an insult to the OP, just a response. People contradict my ideas daily on here, doesn't make them condescending or insulting. THEN, I could see it. I simply tossed out a quick response addressing that logically it probably wasn't that. If you read that as condescending instead of my own view, I am sorry. One helpful rule for forums is that you look at any post and see if there is another TONE than the one you ascribed. If there is, take the other. Like your post. I COULD think you are a jerk, not at all "friendly," addressing this here and hijacking the thread instead of sending me a private message. Instead, because I see you post a lot and like you :), I took it exactly at face value... you simply are expressing your view and trying to be helpful. So please remove any tones you might ascribe to the answer. The tone in my head is simply factual, that I am not responsible for your taking that as condescending and probably won't be able to stop you seeing other posts that way. Now if I actually say something you cannot take any way than as an insult, feel free to let me know. But the above... sorry, Fran, it was simply a logical observation. LOL, and in fact, let me now be "condescending" to my post. (I am joking while making a point.) SOMEONE (but it will be me, since it just hit me where I could easily be wrong...) could have responded to my post and said: Yeah, but dds, you are wrong because maybe she has an infection or urinary tract infection also with a period, that might do it. See? Debra, not a problem. Thank you.
  • N

    Eating behaviors..

    Behavioral Issues
    16
    0 Votes
    16 Posts
    6k Views
    N
    Hello, I just wanted to send a quick update on Nulla. She is doing so well! We started a dog training course where my boyfriend and I are the alpha dogs. There is not treats involved and it has shown amazing results. Nulla has been in the course for about a month now. We have had no eating problems from her (no barfing, no not eating what we set our for her), no behavioral problems (no chewing my shoes, etc). She seems so happy and I am sure she is gaining weight (although I have not weighed her). I think dog training is completely necessary and we've seen HUGE results in Nulla. Everything I posted about before is no longer a concern. Thanks for all the input though. Take Care :)
  • J

    Guest Dog - HELP!

    Behavioral Issues
    23
    0 Votes
    23 Posts
    9k Views
    J
    Thanks everyone. I am so very appreciative of your advice. Housesitting is a great idea, but not an option for me as I have 5 teenagers and a husband to "watch". I tried Apolo in his home for the day and when I picked him up at night (I just couldn't leave him there by himself overnight) he went bonkers from being alone all day. I took him to a kennel out in the country as the accomodations at his vet would have meant that he had to be crated all the time which IMO is especially not an option for a big dog!! I worry about Apolo stressing out and have called the kennel to see how he is doing. I will visit as well. I'm really not certain that the kennel would let me know if he was stressing. I don't really know as this is the first time I had to use one. I think I will start another thread on what to look for in a kennel. Once again, learning on the fly!!! I am doing my best and asking as many questions as I can. I also think I may start a thread on how Bs react to Bordatella (I always say, Bortadella, isn't that sausage :D) since I know someday I will have to take Joey to a kennel. I am also going to look at kennels now so that I can choose the best one. So far I have been fortunate and the breeder has been able to board Joey. I think it's like going to Disney World for him!!! He isn't all wigged out to see me when I pick him up!