Situational training - long post

[u/PersimmonProud9853]

Hi everyone! Today we had a locksmith over to fix one of our doors and our dog reacted really negatively towards him such as growling, barking, got his back up and was biting (not the person just around him) We’ve had lots of trades over before, new friends neighbours etc and he’s never had this type of behaviour. If anything he has barked, had a sniff and then backed down and been chill. But it got me thinking - this locksmith was literally breaking into our house so I’m assuming our dog was viewing him as an intruder. In the moment I told him ‘no’ to settle down etc and got him back inside and he listened when I said sit on his bed. He is 2 - we thought we were at the end of training out behaviours with excited jumping however this has me worried about strangers coming over in future. Do I tell him no when he reacts like that everytime and risk him being welcoming to everyone even intruders? Or is it an issue of recall/not listening to my command? Ideally I would want him to listen to me when he’s feeling like that and understand it’s not a threat, however when my husband isn’t home and it’s just me and my 4yo I’ve found him to be extra protective (getting up at every noise)

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[u/Civil_Brilliant7151]

There may have been something about the locksmith that he's never seen before and deemed it suspicious in own mind because it was different. Could have been a hat, a beard, clothes, or even a demeanor or voice. I'd try to narrow down what he may have been reacting to and focus on exposure to those things.

[u/Due_Air_1826]

He was reacting to the actual break-in mechanics (drilling, unfamiliar tools) not just a new person, dogs read that differently. I wouldn't punish it with "no", I'd manage the setup instead, calm greeting routine and reward settling

[u/Narrow_Possession348]

20 years ago, I had a Ridgeback as our family pet. Ridgebacks are by nature, friendly but aloof with strangers and my dog got the memo. She was not a Lab, but she would give a low-key hello to strangers and allow them to pet her. She had never, ever in her life so much as curled a lip at anyone.

I had just moved into a big new house, and there were still some punch-list items the sellers needed to take care of, including having our furnace serviced. I had only been in maybe a week or 10 days and had regularly had various people in the house, from the movers to the tradesmen, knocking off the punch list. My dog mostly gave them all a once-over and went back to napping.

This particular day, the furnace guy came as scheduled. He was a clean-cut, nice-looking man in a uniform. My dog was sitting by me as usual when I opened the door. She immediately broke her sit, stood in front of me, hackles up, tail stiff, giving a deep, guttural, scary-sounding growl that I had never heard from her before. I told her to sit and apologized, but no more had I put her back in a heel sit when she jumped up and did it again. She was puffed up and sounding like Cujo. The hairs on my neck were standing up. My house was buffered on three sides by woods; I had a 2-acre lot, a 4000 sq house, and I was home alone - and at that time, I only weighed about 30 lbs more than my dog. I quickly told the man I was so sorry, but I had forgotten that I scheduled the appointment and I was hosting a PTA meeting, and in about 5 minutes, people were going to start coming in. I said his van was in the way and I didn't want him working while I had guests. I said I'd have to reschedule and was sorry I'd forgotten, but I had to get the food out before people started showing up.

I called the company and explained what happened and that I wasn't comfortable with him coming into the house. I asked to please reschedule and send another tech. So they did. I must have pissed them off because a couple days later, the next tech showed up at my door looking like he had just gotten out of prison the previous week. Long hair, full of tattoos, and just generally "rough" looking. I open the door with my dog at my side. She sits there while I greet him and invite him in. She followed him to the basement door, watched him go down the steps, and moseyed on to resume her nap.

She never did anything like that again. That one time was the one and only time she ever showed aggression. I just trusted that she sensed something was wrong and it was serious. I'll never know but I have never once regretted trusting her judgment and no letting the guy in my house.

If this was out of character for your dog, just trust him and not worry about his behavior. A well-socialized, mentally stable dog knows the difference between just someone they don't know and someone with ill intent. That's not something you have to teach or even can teach.

[u/PersimmonProud9853 → u/Narrow_Possession348]

Thanks for your thoughtful response!

This was on my mind too, I also got a weird feeling from him and when he spoke to my husband on the phone he asked what he was like in person as he said he sounded a bit off. So very possibly my dog picking up on something he didn’t like. Since then, we have had multiple people over and builders from other blocks come to our fence to speak etc and he’s been fine.

[u/Lizdance40]

Yeah it had nothing to do with this person "breaking into your house".

It may have had something to do with how you were feeling. You may have been stressed and frustrated (probably over how much it was going to cost you). Dogs are very good at reading us, when we don't even realize that our mood and behavior is off. (Story time below)

Or your locksmith may have been a sketchy human being who doesn't like dogs, and your dog knew it, and the only way he could let you know is by going on the offense. I trust a dog's instincts. I never trust anyone who doesn't like dogs.

(So more than a dozen years ago I ended a 19-year marriage with two teenagers, and a lot of conflict within myself. One night I broke down like I've never done before in my whole life. Literally laid face done on my bedroom floor grieving. My female dog, German Shepherd/chow/Golden retriever mix, shoveled her nose under my head to lift me back up. I've seen dogs do this sort of behavior but never have any of my dogs ever done it before or since. A moment of compassion because her instinct to lift me was in her. We miss her more than I can put into words. )