CockersOnline Forum
Cocker Specific Discussion => Behaviour & Training => Topic started by: tritonx on November 13, 2014, 06:55:41 AM
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Fraser is now 5 and, of course, a lot of puppy excitement has died away. He gets extremely excited when people come to the door, barking and squealing, but otherwise is quite quiet. He's scared of big dogs and will bark and growl at them unleash whereas with small dogs, he does the usual routines of greeting. However, he is showing a variety of scared behaviours. He loves to greet people and scans passersby to see if they will make eye contact so he can go over and greet. Or at least, he used to. He still wants to greet, but will go over, tail wagging, then back off as if he's scared, sometimes yelping. This came on over time. He still really wants to greet, but panics at the last moment. When he gets his carrot at mealtimes, he used to take it out of my hand, but at some point recently, he got scared to take it out of my hand and wants me to throw it. I experimented tonight and just stood quietly with the carrot drooping down from my hand so he could approach and take it, but he came forward and then backed away. He's done the same with his food dish. He'll be milling about, waiting for me to assemble the meal and then when I put it down, he yelps, cringes before he comes forward. I've started telling him to sit and wait while I put the dish down carefully, making sure not to clatter it in case that's what happened to startle him. So, at five he's developed an assortment of cringe, fear, yelp behaviours for a variety of occasions. Otherwise, he seem reasonably confident. Enjoys his walks and trots along with his tail cocked midway. Does perimeter patrol of the garden with his tail cocked up as it's his territory. Still loves people and wants to say hello, but has a quick cringe before he settles into putting his paws on them and licking them if they will let him. Even with me he will occasionally cringe at a sudden movement. Does any of this seem familiar to other owners? Dogs that seems a bit neurotic though basically okay? Onset of such behaviours when you'd think they'd be fully settled into adult confidence?
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Henry's certainly more fearful of other dogs, especially bigger ones and,strangely, cockerpoos. he still loves people though! If he was a person Imwould say he was highly strung, :005:, although at 4 he is more relaxed in the mornings...
Fraser couldn't have problems with his teeth could he, he just seems fearful round food.......
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Have you had his eyes checked? Wondered if he may have a problem with his peripheral vision. Hope Fraser doesn't mind a cyber hug :bigarmhug:
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I think a vet check might be a good idea and hopefully will eliminate any physical problems. But reading through your post my first thought was that he might be experiencing some neck or back pain that occurs when he stretches forward, or jumps up or has to put his head down to eat. Maybe there was a one off pain at some point and it frightened him, so what he's exhibiting now is remembered pain and fear that it will happen again. Or perhaps he has some kind of niggling problem?
I hope he doesn't, but if he was mine that's one thing that I'd be asking the vet to check.
Hope he's OK :D
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I'll mention it to the vet next time I'm in. The thing is, physically he seems okay. Teeth are nice and white, gums good, he chews lamb crunchies and carrots happily. He's athletic in the sense that he leaps from furniture (the other night he heard someone at the door when he was sitting beside me on the sofa, he leapt across my body and cleared the sofa arm straight onto the floor before he raced to the door) over low fences and races around the garden after his frisbee. I'm pretty sure it doesn't have a physical source. It seems if he has a startle about something, clang of a dish going down, he bumps his carrot on the door as he's going out, not sure what the change in greeting people, even people he knows and loves, is about. Maybe it comes down to cockers being odd little creatures in their own way. Maybe he's highly strung--well, I'm pretty sure he is. Compared to other low key, bomb proof dogs I see, my boy is a bit of a dithery princess crossed with lager lout on occasion. At the same time, I think I'm seeing a growing list of things where he shies off/crouches/yelps even when it's things he likes. I guess I just hope he doesn't become a quivering mess in the future. There's a woman in a small town 30 minutes away who I think does Ttouch. Maybe I should do a consultation with her. I also was wondering if anyone else has a cocker that has similar behaviours.
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Sigh (though it's a bit funny). Apparently my boy was bested by a carrot lying on the floor. I was busy and had put his dinner out which means dry food and glop of pumpkin, then a half carrot. Since I was on the phone, while he was eating his kibble I put his carrot on the kitchen floor so he could find it, then went into the dining room. Less than a minute later, I heard a shriek from the kitchen. I don't know what happened, but I guess he got freaked out by the stationary carrot. He wouldn't take it from me, so I had to open the back door and toss it onto the lawn. What on earth goes on in his beady little brain. He's suffering from carrotophobia.
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Humbug is scared of everything and nothing. He hates change. I got rid of a sofa and he spent a day making deep rrrr noises to register his disgust. He can be scared of things in the distance tgat I can't see scared of carrier bags one day excited to see if they have good the next. I went to stroke him and he jumped away one daycare next he can't get enough. Not sure he'd say boo to a goose. Easier to list things he's not spooked out by! :005:
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That's reassuring. Glad to hear there are other cockers that are as...hmm, charmingly odd as Fraser is. This morning, he didn't want to take the carrot from my hand, so I threw it out the back door. It landed short on the cement of the patio and he stared at me beseechingly until I picked it up and threw it on the grass. I guess like living with a somewhat senile old folk, I just have to work around his list of peculiarities. No doubt my behaviour seems sometimes just as odd to him.
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Brodie has.... oddities... that I've learnt just to live around. She can be a very strange little girl at times! Her latest thing is running downstairs yowling her head off at bedtime. No idea why she gets so upset, but five minutes later she will be in her bed in my room fast asleep :dunno:
She doesn't like change, and will also spook at the strangest things. Usually she just gives whatever she's spotted an extra glance before deciding it's ok, but other times it takes me a bit of work to make her see there's nothing to be scared of. She is thankfully a lot, lot better than she used to be as a puppy in this regard.
As has been said, I would suggest having the vet check him, especially his eyes and ears, just in case. I know Brodie can be sometimes very wary of anyone going near her head if she has an infection (and they aren't always easy to detect if they are deep in the ear).
That's reassuring. Glad to hear there are other cockers that are as...hmm, charmingly odd as Fraser is. This morning, he didn't want to take the carrot from my hand, so I threw it out the back door. It landed short on the cement of the patio and he stared at me beseechingly until I picked it up and threw it on the grass. I guess like living with a somewhat senile old folk, I just have to work around his list of peculiarities. No doubt my behaviour seems sometimes just as odd to him.
Isn't it funny though, how good we get at knowing what they want with just with a beseeching stare :005:
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My Amber is scared of nearly everything especially change , she always has been ,she's five now too but is much better than she used to be although the other day I had to go out into the garden to see why she was barking like mad on the lawn,my peg bag had blown off the line,she wasn't happy . She also has taken to disliking night time walks at the moment and barks at anything that moves like a leaf ! :huh: if we bring anything different into the house she backs off and barks at it but we are sort of used to it (it's just Amber)!
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It's so funny to read the things other cockers are scared of. I wonder if other breeds have these kinds of quirks. In Fraser's ever evolving relationship to his daily carrots, tonight I followed all the rules (I do try to get along) and tossed it onto the grass and went back inside. A few seconds later there was a yelp. Went out to see him sitting neatly in front of the carrot giving me beseech look. Went over and picked it up and stood there with it dangling from my hand in case I looked like I was going to use it as a weapon if I offered it directly to him. After a moment, he nipped it out of my fingers and took it away to eat. I think he's toying with me.
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Oh Fraser I'm sorry but you do make me laugh with carrotgate....you sound like a little sweetheart :005:
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he got you under his thumb, or is it under the carrot ;)
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:005: ph34r :005:
Hope carrot gate is going well. Is he playing a game? Hope you can move back inside soon.
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Well, tonight I dangled the carrot invitingly, but no, he wanted me to throw it and rushed to stand on guard on the grass. Tossed the carrot out and he circled it and then started eating. I really wonder if he's playing me. Those good looking guys think they can get away with anything. I wonder what tomorrow will bring.
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What's he like :005:
Maybe he would like it cut up for him? Brodie is like that, she won't eat her carrot unless it's 'prepared' for her :shades:.
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Well, tonight I laid it on the floor near his food dish as I was making dinner and had to get on with it quickly, but he wouldn't take it. I had discussed his behaviour with a dog trainer when I picked him up from doggie daycare today (she's a TTouch trainer) and suggested just waiting him out to see if his love of carrots eventually overcame his...thing about them. So I waited and he whimpered and whined and obviously wanted it, but also wanted me to come up with th magic delivery system. After some time of whining, (his) I put it on his dish and left him to make up his mind. No go. He approached and backed away, rinse and repeat, more whining. Finally, I picked it up and dangled it in from of his nose. Nope. Wouldn't do. Last ditch, my son offered him the carrot and the little bu :huh: :huh:er took it from his hand. And yet, through all this, he takes his lamb crunchies happily from my hand. No problem with them. Ah well, tomorrow is another day.
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:005: bless. How many ways can you hand over a carrot?
On a fishing rod?
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I've probably posted enough on this issue, so unless there is some new and interesting behaviour, I'll let it go. This morning I was at the patio door, just about to slide it open with the carrot in my other hand. I had been planning to throw it out on the grass, but bold boy nipped it from my fingers and bolted through the door with it. Loved the fishing rod idea though :005:
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why not give him a parsnip and see what happens :rofl1: no responsibility taken if you get bit on the bum :005:
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why not give him a parsnip and see what happens :rofl1: no responsibility taken if you get bit on the bum :005:
Oh I would love to be a fly on the wall if you tried that :005: :005: