Shocked! Chloe keeps going for the kids!

[SkyeSue]

Good luck at the vets Adelle; I really hope you get to the bottom of this situation. I've followed the thread with much interest, but refrained from getting involved as I didn't have any advice to offer, but I felt I just wanted to get in now and wish you all the very best. I can only imagine what a worry it must be for you.  Do let us know how you get on.

Sue

[BabyB]

Just a thought - could she have had pain from her operation when playing and then associated it with the kids?

Now that is a possibility. which is why I suggested the kids hand feed her.

Only just read this thread, I'm sorry Chloe isn't feeling her usual self.  But this is the first thing I thought of too.
Especially if she's been dancing with your daughter since the op?

Morgan has bad eyesight when you're close up to him, but his reaction is to whine and move backwards if you're too close too quick (plus he always thinks you're going to feed him, piglet and he wants to see what you're giving him ).

[*Adele*]

Just a thought - could she have had pain from her operation when playing and then associated it with the kids?

Now that is a possibility. which is why I suggested the kids hand feed her.

Only just read this thread, I'm sorry Chloe isn't feeling her usual self.  But this is the first thing I thought of too.
Especially if she's been dancing with your daughter since the op?

Morgan has bad eyesight when you're close up to him, but his reaction is to whine and move backwards if you're too close too quick (plus he always thinks you're going to feed him, piglet and he wants to see what you're giving him ).

She has danced with my daughter since the op, this kind of play happens between them once a month maybe tops! It's not a common occurrence and one I ask my daughter not to do as I've been trying to stop her jumping up when she's excited. This week is the first time since the op that I've allowed the kids to play with her at all. She's not a playful dog although has become more interested in playing with other dogs and playing with balls since her op strangely enough! But not with the kids.

[BabyB]

I'm sorry if some of my comments come across as disrespectful but I get fed up with picking up the pieces when people are given bad advice on forum's or in the pub, or from the vet.
If people don't like my oppinions  then fine, not really bothered to be honest, all I can do is comment as I see fit.
I do wear my heart on my sleeve sometimes which can be weakness but it is done with the best of intention at all times.
I nearly stopped posting on here a while back due to the attitude of some but thought better of it and I'll continue to put my two penneth in in the future.

Can I just say thank you for continuing to post.  I always look for your advice when I see something that might be of interest for me and mine

[BabyB]

Just a thought - could she have had pain from her operation when playing and then associated it with the kids?

Now that is a possibility. which is why I suggested the kids hand feed her.

Only just read this thread, I'm sorry Chloe isn't feeling her usual self.  But this is the first thing I thought of too.
Especially if she's been dancing with your daughter since the op?

Morgan has bad eyesight when you're close up to him, but his reaction is to whine and move backwards if you're too close too quick (plus he always thinks you're going to feed him, piglet and he wants to see what you're giving him ).

She has danced with my daughter since the op, this kind of play happens between them once a month maybe tops! It's not a common occurrence and one I ask my daughter not to do as I've been trying to stop her jumping up when she's excited. This week is the first time since the op that I've allowed the kids to play with her at all. She's not a playful dog although has become more interested in playing with other dogs and playing with balls since her op strangely enough! But not with the kids.

Perhaps she's still in a little pain, and if her eyesight is annoying her too this may be a reason???  I'm sure your vet will be able to get to the bottom of it - hugs to you, Chloe and your daughter 

[Cob-Web]

Adele - I too hope you get to the bottom of things; one thing that I noticed in your recent post is that you say that Chloe and your children rarely have that much to do with each other...?

Obviously, every household/dog/child is different, but in my experience, dogs tend to get more stressed by unusual, or infrequently occurring situations than they do by ones that they are totally familiar with and which are proven to be non-threatening. You refer to Chloe as your dog, which suggests that her relationship with you is very different to other members of the household - which will undoubtedly influence her behaviour towards them.

Once you have got to the bottom of her current behaviour (whether medical or behavioural) and have a clear plan for the future; perhaps Chloe could begin to play a bigger role in the childrens lives?   There are so many reasons why this is to be encouraged, and ultimately, it can only improve their relationship and help you rebuild your trust in her 

[MrsMac]

As a mum and dog owner I can understand how awful you must be feeling right now and I just wanted to say that I was thinking of you   I can't offer any advice but really hope you can get to the bottom of Chloes outburst and that its something that can be worked on, keep us informed how she gets on won't you, take care 

What Emma said - I hope you get on ok at the vet today 

[Mudmagnets]

Just to add: I hope things went as well as they could

[Karma]

Hope all went well at the vets.

Thinking of you!

[LisaB]

I'm sorry if some of my comments come across as disrespectful

Thankyou for the apology.

Adele, any news from the vets yet?

[cazza]

Behaviour - what can I say? I'm no expert but I know my dog better than anybody else and this is so much out of character for her it really did shock me and I'm pretty unshockable in all aspects of life!

I know how you feel here Adele  It took me a while to even convince my OH over a change in Jock

We've had our usual walk this morning and I've just been going over and over in my head everything, I will wait to see what the vet says but at this moment in time I just don't want Chloe around to be completely honest, my kids mean the world to me and this incident has really shook me up.

I can also apreciate how you feel here too - you love chloe but this change has shocked and upset you and you HAVE to think of your children

I just hope the vet finds something that is the cause of this change in behaviour and it can be rectifyed easily and you can have both your lovely Chloe as well as keep your children safe too 

Hope you post to update soon  {{Hugs}}

[PennyB]

Hormones - this is the only real thing that I can see being the problem and I will clearly be asking the vet for medical advice, the behaviourist last night said that it could be months before her hormones settle but she's not a vet so I won't rely on that until it's been backed up.

Also ask about thyroid problems as well --- I believe a low-normal result can produce a change. Another dog trainer I know here had her mum's springer tested and while it was low-normal and no need for supplementation her vet decided to give it a go and treat the dog as if he did have thyroid problems and it worked (he had also had sudden aggression problems). Some suggest its even better to get a woman in the US to check the blood test results out as she's the best.

Am not saying this will be your solution but needs trying as some vets will often just check a dog physically and then say nothing's wrong with them.

Plus even if you think your dog can see your daughter clearly you don't really know --- Ruby still looks at me with her missing eye

Good luck.

[Colin]

Not necessarily related to Chloe but as an example of how medical problems can cause dogs to start behaving differently... a few months back Jimmy became intolerant of me stroking him when he was crashed out in the evening, also if the other dogs got too close to him he'd grumble at them until they backed off. He didn't snap or bite but did growl (which he'd never done before in such situations, previously he'd have rolled onto his back to have his tummy tickled) and made it obvious he wasn't happy about things. I didn't think much of it and thought maybe he was getting older and just wanted to be left alone when he was asleep... let sleeping dogs lie and all that. It turned out he had a couple of abcesses and needed some teeth removed. Once this was done he went back to how he'd been previously - the poor thing must have been in real pain but had no way of letting me know... or had let me know in the only way he knew how but I'd not realised. 

As I say this isn't necessarily related to Chloe's sudden change in behaviour but it goes to show it's always best to rule out any kind of medical problem in such situations.

[ali]

only just caught up with all of this... any news from the vet, adele?

i can completely imagine your shock, especially as it is so out of character! i don't have kids but i now how upset i was the first time barkley snapped at me. you do feel differently about your dog when it acts in such a surprising manner.

i really hope the vet, and any behaviourists you consult, can help you pin point the reason for chloe's behaviour. there must be some reason for it...

i live with a dog that i know is capable of snapping. i can't say to people 'he wouldn't hurt a fly' and i can't trust him around other dogs without watching him closely for a minute or two at each encounter. i'd like to think i could trust him around people (and particularly children) as he has never shown any snappiness towards any people but me and my OH when we have mishandled him, but i will never be completely certain of him and therefore will always be aware of his interactions with any children who may come along. it must be much harder for anyone who suddenly has to adapt to such a situation at a later stage.

best of luck with everything.

[michelle123]

Hi Adele,  just wondering how you got on at the vets with Chloe

Hope you are ok