Well, we have a problem.
A few weeks ago, we were all sitting and watching TV, surprise, while Moose was playing on the floor. The dogs were trying to sleep at our feet. Moose was trying to play with the dogs.
Do you see where this is going?
Moose was climbing all over Sophie, our 70 lb. Weimereiner, and she was dealing with it, like several of you have seen her do. All of a sudden she leaned over towards where he was laying/hugging her, and growled and snapped her teeth, like a warning bite in the air, right by his sweet little fat arm.
Both Cory and I sprung into action, me grabbing Moose and Cory spanking Sophie. She squealed and ran off to hide in our bedroom.
We just sat there in stunned silence for a few moments and tried to discuss it rationally. She was just having a bad day, Moose always plays with her, it was no big deal right? She did not bite him, she only snapped at him.
I was not really okay with it, but we decided to wait and see if anything else happened. We would keep an eye on them, and make sure that Moose didn't climb on them anymore.
About two weeks ago, I was home alone with the girls and Moose, Cory was at work. Sophie was laying at my feet, and Moose came up to me at the couch, and stepped up on her to get on the couch with me. I didn't move fast enough to get him off of her, and she growled and snapped towards him again. I yelled and pulled Moose up on the couch, and shoved her away with all my might and she turned and snapped at ME. (I think she thought I was still Moose, she was turned away) It all happened so fast.
I yelled and shoved her out into the hallway towards the bedroom, swearing and yelling at her.
So currently, we are keeping them separated. When Moose is up and awake, we typically block off the kitchen and living room, making a L-shaped baby zone. We just keep the girls in the hallway. I hate leaving them out of the action where we are, but I can't take any more chances. I can't be there every second, I have to be able to trust that Moose will be okay if I am not there, and I can't when the girls are in there.
This is absolutely killing me, because Sophie has "chosen" me as her favorite, and I hate seeing her out in the hallway, but I don't know what else to do. I really don't want to give her away, though we did check with anther friend of ours who has another Weimereiner, but he didn't want Sophie because she was fixed.
When Moose is napping or asleep for the night, we take the gates down, and they have free reign to follow me around and such. I figure we only have about a year or so before Moose understands not to mess with the dogs like he does now, right?
I am really pretty sure that Sophie did not mean to bite either of us, I think it was just a warning snap. So I think we would be fine in the future when Moose learns how to treat the dogs.
I am sure everyone's warning bells are going off, what does everyone think? Is this a good plan? Does anyone have any good advice?
4 comments:
Since I'm the "dog lady" you know I will have a comment. My first impression is that, since this is a brand new phenomenon, maybe there's a deeper reason, or more to this than meets the eye. You mentioned Moose climbing on Sophie and then her snapping. I assume he has always climbed on her with no problem in the past. If this is the case, then the question is "why is Sophie suddenly snapping?" Well, maybe there's a problem with Sophie that you don't realize. Maybe she's sore. Maybe she has arthritis. Maybe she's got a pain or a problem somewhere in her body and she can't tell you about. Maybe being climbed on is painful. I suggest a visit to the vet and a thorough exam to make sure nothing is wrong with her. If she gets a clean bill of health, then consider a muzzle until the time comes that Moose can be trusted to handle the dogs properly. She can be unmuzzled when she's outside and away from him or after he goes to bed. But when the three of them are together, use the muzzle. They have a kind of "snout cage" muzzle that will allow her to drink water and still be comfortable while wearing it, but she can't bite. Of course, if Moose sticks his finger in her muzzle cage, she would be able to nip him so he must learn to not touch her mouth area. Very few breeds are as tolerant of small children as Goldens and Labs. I don't know much about Weimeraners, so don't know what their reputation is for being around children. Hopefully, you can resolve this. I'd sure hate to see Sophie lose her home because she doesn't want to be walked on. On the other hand, I'd surely hate to see Moose get hurt in any way. It's a rough situation all around. Hopefully, the check-up for Sophie, the results, and a muzzle will resolve the problem. Hope this is helpful.
I think only you can decide how to handle this because only you truly know the dog and how she interacts with Wes. Ebony has always allowed my neices and nephews to torture her but will not let Carter touch her. She growls and has snapped(she could of bitten but didn't). I think she is jealous but at the same time I know she would never ever hurt Carter. It's Ebonys way of saying leave me alone I am laying next to my Mom.
Grit gave some big warning barks to my niece Taylor once. She is very territorial about her bed and it was being invaded. Once Taylor learned that she can't be near Grit's bed unless Grandpa or Aunt Emily is with her, she was fine. Grit has never done it again. So, Sophie may have just been saying "leave me alone." I'm sure that Wes will soon learn that he can't climb on the dogs. He's not much younger than Taylor was when it happened to her. Good luck!
I appreciate everyones comments on the situation. Sophies nip was soley a warning nip. If I was her I would have done the same thing. Wes is entirely too rough with her, and I know that having a 2 year old using your ribs as a playground doesnt feel that pleasant. We are going to keep them seperated until Wes can learn to respect her and scout. I am not worried that the dogs will ever hurt Wes. They are both as sweet tempered as they can get, but lets face it we all have our limits.
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