My dog, a Skye Terrier, sits and watches me when I have visitors and whenever I move he tries to bit me?

Question

He also tries to bite my husband or my daughter whenever they leave the house.

Answer 1

the problem is pack order is out of whack, he sees all of your as his dogs :) what you need to do is show him the order in the house, take the role of a leader, bite back and correct him, watch dog whsiperer, use your hand and bite his neck, hold him dog to his side or back into a submissive position, he might not be happy and whine , but until he's totally relaxed, you can release him. practice a few times, and your family will also need to do the same. be firm and consistent.

Answer 2

It sounds like a dominance issue. As far as he is concerned he is the alpha over everyone and he bites you as a way of saying "hey i didnt tell you you could go yet" You and the others in your house need to establish dominance over him. They best way to do this is when he tries to bite you you grab him, flip him on his back, gently grab his muzzle (so he cant snap at you or turn his head away) and stare directly into his eyes and say no. Continue staring until HE looks away. If you look away first he will think he has won. So you must make him look away. Also you might think about dog training classes, but the sumbissive training I just mentioned is an easy way to do it at home. Everyone in the family will need to do this and be consistent. EVERY time he bites you need to do this so he learns it is not acceptable. He will probably put up a major fight the first few times because he wont want to be on his back (the ultimate submissive sign) or look away from you so be ready for a fight. But you CAN NOT let him go when he struggles because again he thinks he has won and is still dominant in his mind. If you have any other questions email me. Hope this helps. Good luck

Answer 3

this is a total dominance issue ie. your dog thinks he is the alpha male and the leader of your "pack". dogs are like most pack animals and will look for a leadership behaviour in others and if they do not see it then they will make themselves leader. i had similar problems with my dog and we had a dog shrink to help out. he pointed out to us that we had made the dog like that and the dog would only change when we did. we had to totally change the pecking order of the house and it took a lot of time and effort and a few tears. now our dog is not allowed upstairs or on the sofa and he goes through doors after us and eats his meals after us. we felt so cruel at first but now he is so much calmer and less stressed because he knows his place and he can just chill out and get on with being a dog. i can now take him out on walks and let him off his lead but still have him under control and thankfully the biting has stopped. your vet will be able to help you if you want to use a behaviourist but don't expect a quick fix. i wish you all the best

Answer 4

Go with Sam T's answer. No matter what a dog will still always have the natural instincts of being in a pack. In the wild their mother is the pack leader & grabs their neck to make them listen. In this case you are the pack leader. It is true that the dog whisperer uses this often. You will have to do this several times before your dog will catch on . And don't worry it's not being mean it's taking charge..

Answer 5

Dogs are pack animals & yours thinks that the family are his pack. He obviously thinks he is the alpha dog in the pack.
Try not to pet him every time he wants you to.
Do not make eye contact with him or pet him when you first enter the room.
To start with when you have visitors put him on his leash. It will immediately let him know that you are in charge.
Once he realises that you are the boss things will get better.
If not, speak to your vet & ask for the number of an Animal Behaviouralist.

Answer 6

He believes he is in charge and feels you need protecting that is why he keeps his eye on you while visitors are in, and everyone else he is attempting to dominate. He needs correcting immediately and everyone must be consistent in giving him commands. I think maybe someone in the family is treating him as a baby sometimes. He needs to know who is boss, he is a dog and that is how they function, they need to know someone is a good pack leader or he will feel the need to take on the roll of leader for the sake of the survival of your pack. Knock him back down the pecking order, he needs to know his place and he will feel more secure.

Answer 7

Weird!!
If a person was in your home and tryed the same behaviour, over & over, how would you deal with the person? Certainly being stared at is uncomfortable but being attacked/bitten is unacceptable. Its bullying you! Dont let it.
Dont feed the dog, when this senario begins have some treats ready/hidden fr dog. As it begins its nastyness, just speak directly to the dog & ask it, (use its name.. ) to come & sit next to you. If he/she does reward it.

Answer 8

He does it because you have let him believe he's the alpha over you and the family. You DO NOT reverse this by dominating the dog with aggressive actions. Enrol in a dog trainig class. It's not about training the dog - it's about training you that you've got it all wrong.

Answer 9

Dogs often exhibit strange behavior when guest come over.
Our dogs attempt to show dominance over each other by mounting each other, which is kind of embarrasing. When the guest leave they return to normal.
I would suggest disciplining your dog through a stern oral command or a firm spank to his rear, to show that you do not approve of him biting you.

Answer 10

Sounds like he's trying to keep you where HE wants you to be. You need to show him that your not afraid of him, and that he isn't the leader, you are! When he tries to bit you, don't jerk your hand away. Grab him and put him down to the floor. You don't have to slam him, or jerk him around. He's a small dog, so it won't take much effort. What will take effort is trying to keep him on the floor. Hold him by the neck until he stops trying to get up.

When you put him on the floor, you're putting him in the most submissive position for an animal, on their back/side. Chances are, he's going to growl, and screech, and try to bite, like your killing him. Don't give in, no matter what happens. Keep holding him, until he stops squirming. When he stops, that means that he's accepting the fact that you're more powerful then he is, and he's not the boss of you anymore. It'll take some time for him to get used to it, but I wouldn't give up! Have everyone he tries to bite do it. That way, he'll know that he's at the bottom of the chain. Make sure you give him love and attention. That way he'll know that he's loved and welcome in the pack as well.

It sounds like he's got seperation anxiety also. This is totally common for alot of dogs. Biting is only one problem to this issue. There's so many problems with this issue. My dog used to chew my stuff, and crap all over the living room floor. He'd leave it in the middle of the floor, so that when I walk in, I'd see it.

I don't normally suggest crates, but you have a small dog, so get a large crate, and get him used to it. put some treats in the back to entice him in, then give him losts of praise when he goes in. Close the door for just a few minutes a day, a few times a day. Then put him in it at night, and when you leave. Make sure it's nice and cozy for him, otherwise he won't want to be in it. Take his bed and put it in there, then take his fav toy, and tie it to the inside of the crate, to let him know that it's ok to be in there.

Then before you get ready to leave, ignore the dog for at least 15 minutes prior to walking out the door. When you give him alot of attention, you're telling him that you're leaving him, and don't know if you'll be back. When a dog has seperation anxiety, and he does something while you're gone, or trying to leave, he's saying "don't leave me, or you'll regret it! I'll do whatever I can, and have to, in order to keep you in this house with me!"

Dogs aren't really spiteful, not like people, but they will do things to get our attention, keep our attention, and to get what they want. So by you showing that you're afraid of him biting you, is showing him that you're afraid of him, which is giving him the power to become the pack leader. So once again, dominate him. When you take him for a walk, make sure he's on a leash, and walking at your side, or behind you. Never in front. When it's dinner time, you eat, then you give him his food. In the wild, the pack leaders eat first, then the rest of the pack.

Don't let him do anything that would show dominance. Some people will say don't let the dog play tug of war, some will say it won't hurt anything. I say, if the dog is showing more dominace then he needs to when he plays, don't play it with him until he's learned to be submissive. Don't do anything that is on his terms. If he nudges your hand with his head, move you hand away. You pet him when YOU think he deserves it. Not when he wants it.

Obedience training, and basic training wouldn't be such a bad idea either.

Watch an episode of "the dog whisperer". People will say that he's retarded, or he's fake, and all kinds of other stuff. Just watch an episode, then decide for yourself. I've been watching his show for some time now, and I've learned quite a bit, and mot of it works. The only that doesn't work, is trying to get my dog on the floor. But that's only because he's to strong for me. Good thing he's already submissive to me! LOL

Good luck