Puppy aggression towards younger puppies

[persephone]

38 minutes ago, Papillon Kisses said:

 

 

Excellent!

 

CREATURE TEACHER
Dr. Melissa Starling aka @corvus

http://www.creatureteacher.com.au

Perfect !! She knows her spitz breeds well, too

[RuralPug]

3 hours ago, channysworld said:

 

We actually got him from a friend of a friend.  

 

I live in Sydney area and don't mind travelling a bit for a good behaviourist. 

 

Thanks, i really want to try and nip it in the bud, before it gets any worse. 

 

Actually, the more i was thinking about it and where it could be stemming from... 

My parents have a small dog and she's really scared of him because he's so big and playful. She used to just snap at him when she had enough to put him in his place, but I noticed she's started going out of her way to snap at him even when he's doing his own thing away from her. Do you think he could have picked up this behaviour from her?

Thank you for your response.

The reason I asked about how old he was when you got him was that I wondered if he had been sold too early - puppies that leave the nest before 8 weeks old don't learn dog to dog socialisation properly and it can be difficult for them to find the correct way to socialise with other dogs. Not knowing the breeder means there is one less avenue of help for you.

I doubt that your parent's dog has "taught" him to be like this. It is more likely that she is trying to teach him manners but is not having much success.

I am so glad you now have a recommendation for a behaviourist! 

[corvus]

I'm in southern Sydney, or you can catch up with me at USyd in Camperdown on occasion. I have had some Japanese Spitz clients, actually. All different. I think while you're deciding on a behaviourist, try to stay calm if you miss getting him on leash in time and he snaps. Get him in hand as quickly as possible, apologise to the puppy's owner, move him away from the puppy, block the puppy if it keeps trying to come back. Once the puppy is gone, take a few moments to take some deep breaths yourself and give your dog a rub to help him calm down. It's already too late for him to learn much about how he should handle these situations, so you may as well concentrate on reconnecting with him and ensuring you are both calm enough to continue your walk. The inconsistency in his responses suggests that maybe he is not exactly sure of himself. I usually treat this kind of thing by teaching them a coping behaviour or three they can fall back on when they have suddenly decided they don't want to engage. The trick is to get them to tell you when they are not in the mood. The Look At That game from Leslie McDevitt is my favourite, but others can be useful as well. My anxious dude comes and walks between my ankles when he's not keen on interacting with another dog. He can be quite fickle and some days he is friendly and some days he just wants to avoid it all. So, if he pops himself between my ankles, I know he'd probably rather not engage, and I can help him achieve that without him snapping.

[juice]

Perhaps good advice would be not to let him off till they get help! why should other dog owners have to deal with it in the meantime ,and the dog to keep doing the behavior and getting away with it.!