# Wolfie's Reaction Scared Even Me Should I Be Concerned?



## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

I am going to tell you what happened here last night. Wolfie's reaction to the situation scared the daylights out of me., and has been on my mind since. I am wondering if I should be concerned or feel secure over his reaction. To tell the truth, right now, I am a little of both. Last night, while hubby and son were at work, I put Wolfie in his crate, while I ate my supper. There was no tv or anything on, just the lights over the kitchen island, and Wolfie's light downstairs. Wolfie started barking like a maniac after being in his crate for 10 minutes. Sometimes he does this as a way to get attention when he wants out of the crate. Figuring that's what it was, I continued dinner, cleaned it up, and went down to let Wolfie out of his crate. I barely got the second latch undone, when he came bursting through the crate door, hackles and tail up high, and barking ferociously. He headed for the outside door, which is about 20 feet away like a freight train and with such tunnel vision like he wanted to kill whatever was on the other side of the door. He didn't even slow down when getting close to the steel door. He went full speed jumping into the door, barking, snarling, growling, and clawing at the door knob like he was possessed. Then he raced up the stairs, with not a look at me, and went to all the doors trying to get out, still going nuts. I turned the floodlights on in the yard, and called hubby,who was about 20 minutes away. Seeing nothing at all outside, I got the big police flashlight, and took Wolfie outside. There were fresh footprints in the snow where no one walks, but nothing else around. All the other footprints were iced over, but these were fresh. I shined the light in the woods, saw nothing, hubby came home and looked around, still nothing. What we think is that someone came through the back yard, tried the cellar door, heard Wolfie and left. While I am glad that he is protective at 1 year old, I was taken aback at the intensity of his reaction. I have never seen a dog go absolutely out of his head like that. His trainer said that she could see strong protective traits in him when he was 9 months old.


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## gsdraven (Jul 8, 2009)

How scary for you.

I think that as long as you don't see him reacting to normal every day things like that or "protecting" you when there is no real threat then you can be ok with his reaction.

What kind of advanced obedience do you plan to do with him? I think that if I had a dog that reacted like that, I would want to make sure I could make him stop on a dime and had complete control of him at all times.


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## MaggieRoseLee (Aug 17, 2001)

gsdraven said:


> How scary for you.
> 
> I think that as long as you don't see him reacting to normal every day things like that or "protecting" you when there is no real threat then you can be ok with his reaction.
> 
> *What kind of advanced obedience do you plan to do with him? I think that if I had a dog that reacted like that, I would want to make sure I could make him stop on a dime and had complete control of him at all times. *


I agree with that. How much TRAINING are you doing? And regular socialization outside the home (and why is he still crated when you are home and he's a year old?).

Protection is useless without training cause it can end up inappropriate (uh, surprise visit from inlaws gets your mother-in-law with a trip to the Emergency Room?). 

It's all well and good that he reacted. It is NOT well and good that you were completely ignored and not given any type of leadership role in this event.

There is a reason we go to dog classes.


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

Agreed - I would ensure that you can call him off, get his reaction under control. But personally speaking I want my dogs to react like that if someone is in the yard.


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

MaggieRoseLee said:


> I agree with that. How much TRAINING are you doing? And regular socialization outside the home (and why is he still crated when you are home and he's a year old?).
> 
> Protection is useless without training cause it can end up inappropriate (uh, surprise visit from inlaws gets your mother-in-law with a trip to the Emergency Room?).
> 
> ...


Wolfie has been through intermediate obedience. His trainer recommended personal protection classes for him. I just have to wait until I can afford more classes. In the meantime, his trainer gave me some obedience exercises to work on with him on my own, that we do regularly. 

He was in his crate because we have an open floor plan in the main living area, and we don't like dogs around when we are having dinner. Even though I was alone, I don't want him to think that the rules are not enforced just because it's only Mom at home. 

He is regularly socialized. Trips to the pet store, lots of company at home, dog park in the summer. I live in a very populated area, so even on our walks we interact with lots of people and street vendors as well. 

I wasn't all that concerned with him ignoring me, since I didn't make an attempt to call him off. I was just watching in shock at the intensity of his reaction. He looked at me when I said what is it, but I don't really know what he would do if I called him off.


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

I also want to add that both hubby and I had childhood GSD's and my mother grew up with GSD's as well. Even though, they know Wolfie well, we all live within 4 miles of each other, and Wolfie knows they are family, neither my parents nor my in laws would walk in without knocking first. They have too much respect for the breed. Remember, way back when, your average GSD owner didn't go to classes like we do now. No one that I know would just walk in to my house.


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## MaggieRoseLee (Aug 17, 2001)

> He was in his crate because we have an open floor plan in the main living area, and we don't like dogs around when we are having dinner. Even though I was alone, I don't want him to think that the rules are not enforced just because it's only Mom at home.


Since you have an older dog that you say is trained. I think it's a great idea to not have him bothering you at mealtimes, but would TRAIN this.

Just put a dog bed in the other room to have him stay there during meal times. Or just have him 'go lay down' if he's a bother. The older my dogs, the higher my expectation and more training I do, less crate time.

I love the crate to 'manage' my dogs when I am not able to train. But if there is a way to train, then that's always my first choice. 

The fact you titled this post '*Wolfie's Reaction Scared Even Me Should I Be Concerned?* ' gave me the impression you were scared and didn't feel Wolfie was letting you take control and be the leader once you were alerted to the possible threat. Sorry I mis read that.


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## CassandGunnar (Jan 3, 2011)

gsdraven said:


> How scary for you.
> 
> I think that as long as you don't see him reacting to normal every day things like that or "protecting" you when there is no real threat then you can be ok with his reaction.
> 
> ...


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## wildo (Jul 27, 2006)

One thing to consider, and this is obviously just an opinion I thought of while reading your story- If the "intruder" was able to look through any windows, they might well have seen Wolfie crated. So while they would _almost certainly_ decide your house wasn't worth the risk, they might decide that it's an easy target because the dog is crated. I dunno...

If I was a burglar (I'm not! :hammer I'd think the noise alone, regardless of a crated dog, would be deterrent enough. But that might not be true for someone dumb enough to try to burglarize someone. I still strongly hold the opinion that pretty much *any* barking dog that sounds big is a seriously good deterrent!


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

MaggieRoseLee said:


> Since you have an older dog that you say is trained. I think it's a great idea to not have him bothering you at mealtimes, but would TRAIN this.
> 
> Just put a dog bed in the other room to have him stay there during meal times. Or just have him 'go lay down' if he's a bother. The older my dogs, the higher my expectation and more training I do, less crate time.
> 
> ...


I was concerned at the intensity of the reaction. It just seemed so primal and scared me. My older dog, though I talk about him a lot, passed away 10 years ago, so while I grew up with a GSD, and had one of my own, it's been so long that I sometimes feel like a newbie. We are working on "place" as a command to go to his place and stay there. I bought him a bed for Christmas that we keep in the other room


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## ZebsMommy (Dec 4, 2010)

I would definately continue the training but would be grateful that he let you know something was wrong and wanted to protect. The big thing, as said, if being able to call him off and have him snap out of it, so to say.
I know that Zeb is good with his ability to tell friend from foe, even with strangers. We had a maintenance guy come around the house and he did nothing but watch him, while one time a burgler did prowl our yard and he went nuts similar to wolfie. Just keep working with him!


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

wildo said:


> One thing to consider, and this is obviously just an opinion I thought of while reading your story- If the "intruder" was able to look through any windows, they might well have seen Wolfie crated. So while they would _almost certainly_ decide your house wasn't worth the risk, they might decide that it's an easy target because the dog is crated. I dunno...
> 
> If I was a burglar (I'm not! :hammer I'd think the noise alone, regardless of a crated dog, would be deterrent enough. But that might not be true for someone dumb enough to try to burglarize someone. I still strongly hold the opinion that pretty much *any* barking dog that sounds big is a seriously good deterrent!


I have his crate downstairs in the playroom and keep all the blinds closed on the windows. Even hubby remarked last night, good thing the no one could see that he's in a crate.


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

ZebsMommy said:


> I would definately continue the training but would be grateful that he let you know something was wrong and wanted to protect. The big thing, as said, if being able to call him off and have him snap out of it, so to say.
> I know that Zeb is good with his ability to tell friend from foe, even with strangers. We had a maintenance guy come around the house and he did nothing but watch him, while one time a burgler did prowl our yard and he went nuts similar to wolfie. Just keep working with him!


Yes, Wolfie will bark when someone comes in our yard or in the street in front of the yard. I did notice a significant change in the intensity when he perceived a threat. I plan to continue working with him. He doesn't have great recall as of yet, but we are working on it.


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## MaggieRoseLee (Aug 17, 2001)

His initial reaction was fine.

It was your posting (that would also have scared and worried me) of



> He went full speed jumping into the door, barking, snarling, growling, and clawing at the door knob like he was possessed. *Then he raced up the stairs, with not a look at me, and went to all the doors trying to get out, still going nuts*.


that I was addressing as something that you SHOULD be worried about.

I'm not quite clear why my dog being out of controlled and crazy, totally ignoring me, wouldn't concern others? 

The BEST TRAINED protection dogs are still supposed to be working WITH their handlers. Not scaring them and ignoring them.

So I'm not sure why everyone else aren't taking this a bit more seriously as a heads up for upping the training immediately.


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

My fault, I should have made myself more clear. When Wolfie goes to do anything, even if it's just go in the other room, he usually stops and looks at me first, sort of like an acknowledgment. He didn't do that last night. That's the first time he didn't stop to look at me. I didn't call out to him, and I agree with you 100 % that if I had he shouldn't have ignored me.


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## gsdraven (Jul 8, 2009)

MaggieRoseLee said:


> I'm not quite clear why my dog being out of controlled and crazy, totally ignoring me, wouldn't concern others?


It definitely concerns me too which is why I said that if I had a dog that reacted that way that I would be making sure I had excellent obedience on them and could stop them on a dime. I'd be concerned about the liability of not being able to stop him.

My dogs don't react that way or at least have never had the opportunity to. I also don't subscribe to my dogs being a protector of the home theory. I want friends and family to be able to walk in the house with no problem even if I am not right there.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

I would definitely get him in a higher level obedience. Maybe even Schutzhund or PP. You have a highly intelligent dog that knew something was wrong. His initial reaction wouldn't cause me alarm at his behavior. The fact that he didn't respond to you immediately would give me some concern though. It must have taken place in just a matter of seconds so I'm sure you didn't have alot of time to respond before he raced past you. When did he calm down and let you take control back?


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

If she had made an effort to get him under control and he didn't stop, I would see more of an issue.

I don't see an issue with his reaction, and as stated as long as this doesn't occur when every tom, ****, and harry walk onto the property then I would not be alarmed at his behavior. He's alerted to the problem and when let out of his crate proceeded to head straight for the source of his concern, then check other exits to try to get outside. It's not as though he blew through a window to get outdoors. He was a smart thinking dog that knew someone was outside on the property when and where they weren't expected or welcome and he wanted to check all the exits to see if he could get ouside to check it out.

The issue for me is not the intensity of the reaction. The issue is - could you have called him off. If not, then THAT is the only problem I see.


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

I should be more careful how I word things. I seem to have left the impression that I was trying to call him off. I wasn't. I was alone, the doors were locked, as they always are, and I wasn't going to call him off if there was a possibility of an intruder still on the other side of that door. We have had a lot of house breaks in our town and a few home invasions in near by cities and towns. After he had gone to every door and window, I did call him, and he came right to me. He was definitely going crazy, but I never tried to actually stop him.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

Then the only issue is to get your incredibly intelligent dog into training. 

My father used to go away overnight and leave myself, 16, and my brother, 11, alone. I woke up one night to our collie going nuts at the bottom of the stairs. Growling and barking. I had never seen him act like that. He did NOT come when I called. He was guarding the bottom of the stairs and growling at the back door. I have NO doubt he did exactly what he was supposed to do that night.


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

Wolfiesmom said:


> I should be more careful how I word things. I seem to have left the impression that I was trying to call him off. I wasn't. I was alone, the doors were locked, as they always are, and I wasn't going to call him off if there was a possibility of an intruder still on the other side of that door. We have had a lot of house breaks in our town and a few home invasions in near by cities and towns. After he had gone to every door and window, I did call him, and he came right to me. He was definitely going crazy, but I never tried to actually stop him.


You didn't leave that impression with me at all, which is why I said I didn't see an issue with his reaction.  I thought your post was very clear.


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## Samba (Apr 23, 2001)

I bet he will be a trainable kind of dog from what you have said about him. The key will be to dedicate yourself to that way of life with him. I have a highly protective female like that, but fortunately her natural obedience is off the charts and she did not need "training" to respond to me even when intense. With my more independent male, it will take training and reinforcement for control. 

My friend has a protective female from a breeder on this board. I really admire that bitch. One night, she flew down the hall making noises never heard before and hit the door out to the garage full force. People had broken into the garage. Not too many minutes later, the police found the meth addicts still on their crime spree through the neighborhood. It is not a bad thing at all to have a dog devoted to his own.


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

Jax08 said:


> He was guarding the bottom of the stairs and growling at the back door. I have NO doubt he did exactly what he was supposed to do that night.


Exactly.

What I don't understand is why people (not you wolfiesmom) say they think a dog needs more training when the dog does exactly as it should. Wolfie is straight DDR and is by nature going to be more protective than the average pet. Someone was clearly in the yard that didn't belong there, and all this nonsense about "I should protect my dog, not the other way around" is laughable. 99% of the time a dog barking will send someone that doesn't belong on their way. The other 1% of the time you better hope your dog meets them at the door or you have a loaded gun and are ready to meet them at the door yourself.

This is reality. Not a training exercise that means the dog needs to practice his sit/stays a little more, or socialize more. That dog did EXACTLY what he should have done.


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

It was the intensity of his reaction that scared me. I have never seen a dog go that ballistic! My other GSD barked when he perceived a threat, but never tried to get out and go after whatever it was. The most I ever got out of my other dog was that he growled and bared his teeth at some guy that walked up to us and grabbed my shoulder.


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

Rerun said:


> Exactly.
> 
> What I don't understand is why people (not you wolfiesmom) say they think a dog needs more training when the dog does exactly as it should. Wolfie is straight DDR and is by nature going to be more protective than the average pet. Someone was clearly in the yard that didn't belong there, and all this nonsense about "I should protect my dog, not the other way around" is laughable. 99% of the time a dog barking will send someone that doesn't belong on their way. The other 1% of the time you better hope your dog meets them at the door or you have a loaded gun and are ready to meet them at the door yourself.
> 
> This is reality. Not a training exercise that means the dog needs to practice his sit/stays a little more, or socialize more. That dog did EXACTLY what he should have done.


Thank you Rerun, for the reassurance.


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## gsdraven (Jul 8, 2009)

Rerun said:


> What I don't understand is why people (not you wolfiesmom) say they think a dog needs more training when the dog does exactly as it should. Wolfie is straight DDR and is by nature going to be more protective than the average pet. Someone was clearly in the yard that didn't belong there, and all this nonsense about "I should protect my dog, not the other way around" is laughable. 99% of the time a dog barking will send someone that doesn't belong on their way.


As long as he was able to be controlled he did exactly as he should have. That part wasn't clear from the beginning. If he couldn't be controlled then, yes, more training. 

I don't expect my dogs to do what Wolfie did. They are pet dogs and absolutely do not have it in them and that is ok with me because they are perfect for what I like to do. 

However, if you own the kind of dog that is naturally suspicious and protective then you have a responsibility to make sure that natural instinct and drive is controllable.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

Rerun said:


> Exactly.
> 
> *What I don't understand is why people (not you wolfiesmom) say they think a dog needs more training when the dog does exactly as it should. *Wolfie is straight DDR and is by nature going to be more protective than the average pet. Someone was clearly in the yard that didn't belong there, and all this nonsense about "I should protect my dog, not the other way around" is laughable. 99% of the time a dog barking will send someone that doesn't belong on their way. The other 1% of the time you better hope your dog meets them at the door or you have a loaded gun and are ready to meet them at the door yourself.
> 
> This is reality. Not a training exercise that means the dog needs to practice his sit/stays a little more, or socialize more. That dog did EXACTLY what he should have done.


My opinion is more training so that in the future Wolfiesmom can be confident that she can call Wolfie off if need be. Not more training because he did anything wrong. 

Nobody said anything close to his reaction being out of line and that she should protect her dog, not the other way around. Everyone was only concerned that he didn't respond when she called him off, which we now know she didn't try to do. So, please don't put words in people's mouth that weren't even implied here.


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

My reason for getting Wolfie in the first place is because my hubby and son both work nights, and my other two kids have married and moved away. this leaves me home alone at night. The woman 2 doors down from me, started dating a convicted rapist, out on parole. She moved him into her house, and he was seen staring at houses on our street for long periods of time. The gas station across the street was robbed by an armed robber, and the pizza store a few doors down on the main road was burnt to the ground by arsonists. There have been many house breaks, and breaks into cars in driveways. My hubby is a cop, and his cruiser sits right out in front of the house when he's not working. But when he is working, hubby and I felt that I am vulnerable. We got Wolfie for my protection. So in that sense I am glad he reacted the way he did. I guess I was taken aback and scared because I never actually saw a dog do that in reality.


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## Whiteshepherds (Aug 21, 2010)

Wolfiesmom said:


> It was the intensity of his reaction that scared me. I have never seen a dog go that ballistic!


The intensity makes sense, he was stuck in a crate and sensed something was wrong. It's like holding a dog back before you to do a flyball run. When you finally release them, they explode. (there's probably a really good Schutzhund analogy, but we don't do Sch.)

I agree with what Rerun said. As long as you know that if you had asked him to stop, he would have, he was doing his job. 

I have to say, if my guys reacted that strongly to something unknown, especially if I was home alone, I wouldn't be telling them it's okay and I wouldn't be asking them to sit. I'd let them bark their fool heads off, but I wouldn't let them outside....and I know I wouldn't be going out there to investigate either. Not a brave bone in my body.


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

Whiteshepherds said:


> The intensity makes sense, he was stuck in a crate and sensed something was wrong. It's like holding a dog back before you to do a flyball run. When you finally release them, they explode. (there's probably a really good Schutzhund analogy, but we don't do Sch.)
> 
> I agree with what Rerun said. As long as you know that if you had asked him to stop, he would have, he was doing his job.
> 
> I have to say, if my guys reacted that strongly to something unknown, especially if I was home alone, I wouldn't be telling them it's okay and I wouldn't be asking them to sit. I'd let them bark their fool heads off, but I wouldn't let them outside....and I know I wouldn't be going out there to investigate either. Not a brave bone in my body.


HAHA! I only went outside after I had all the floodlights on and saw nothing out there, and after I knew hubby, who is the police, was on his way and would arrive momentarily. I'm a chicken too.


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

Jax08 said:


> My opinion is more training so that in the future Wolfiesmom can be confident that she can call Wolfie off if need be. Not more training because he did anything wrong.
> 
> 
> Jax08 said:
> ...


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

Wolfiesmom said:


> HAHA! I only went outside after I had all the floodlights on and saw nothing out there, and after I knew hubby, who is the police, was on his way and would arrive momentarily. I'm a chicken too.


I hope you were armed. Otherwise there is nothing worth going outside for in that kind of situation.


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

Wolfiesmom said:


> My hubby is a cop, and his cruiser sits right out in front of the house when he's not working. But when he is working, hubby and I felt that I am vulnerable.


You have a PM about this


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

Rerun said:


> You have a PM about this


I didn't get it.


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

Rerun said:


> I hope you were armed. Otherwise there is nothing worth going outside for in that kind of situation.


I can't say on the grounds that I might incriminate myself. I do live in the peoples republic of massachusetts


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

Wolfiesmom said:


> I didn't get it.


check your messages


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

I didn't take any post as insinuating that Wolfie did anything other than react normally to a potential threat. Yes, there are many threads on there where ppl say we should protect our dogs and not the other way around but I didn't see this in this particular thread.

But not all "threats" are actually threats. DD is home alone all summer while we work. Jax was growling at the window. It was the telephone company that was outside because a straight line wind storm dropped a section of a 150 year old maple on their line. Was I happy that my dog was protecting my daughter? Absolutely!

The important thing here is that Wolfie can be called off if the humans deem the situation not a threat.

And...If my dogs went nuts like that, and I found foot prints outside my home, I would call the police. Not a brave bone in my body either.


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

Jax08 said:


> I didn't take any post as insinuating that Wolfie did anything other than react normally to a potential threat. Yes, there are many threads on there where ppl say we should protect our dogs and not the other way around but I didn't see this in this particular thread.
> 
> But not all "threats" are actually threats. DD is home alone all summer while we work. Jax was growling at the window. It was the telephone company that was outside because a straight line wind storm dropped a section of a 150 year old maple on their line. Was I happy that my dog was protecting my daughter? Absolutely!
> 
> ...


I did call the police aka hubby


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

Didn't you have something else happen while your husband was at work not to long ago?


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

Jax08 said:


> Didn't you have something else happen while your husband was at work not to long ago?


Yeah there was the gas station armed robbery a month or so ago. He called me from work and told me to stay inside because they had the K9's out in the wooded area behind my house and were looking for the suspect. Wolfie was barking then too.


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## Lilie (Feb 3, 2010)

I wish every member who ever posted "How do I make my GSD more protective?" would read this thread. If you have a loyal, well socialized, healthy GSD, they are going to do what Wolfie did. Maybe not with such intensity, but they are going to react. 

Great job Wolfie! I hope your family gave him extra hugs for keeping you safe! However, I do wish you had some sort of security camera so you could be sharing the look on the perps face when Wolfie reacted. That would have been priceless! Hugs to Wolfie!


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

Thank you Lilie! You are right, that would have been priceless to have video of that!


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## Wilhoit (May 17, 2010)

Hi Wolfiesmom! Good advice here (and from more experienced folks than me). I just want to second one of the ways to make sure that Wolfie continues to always defer to your commands. The idea of keeping him out of the crate, but away from your dining area is one I used with Wilhoit, another "for real" protective dog. Instead of having him stay in a particular place, I just told him "out of the dining room," which meant that he could lie outside of the dining room doorway or in his crate (which was in the dining room). I don't know if this is better or worse than having him stay in a particular place, it just gave him the opportunity to make himself more comfortable by moving around outside of the dining room. Having him be more comfortable might be helpful. I am not an accomplished dog trainer and only offer this as a possible suggestion. 

I think you already do an excellent job of making sure he defers to you in everything. I did this with Wilhoit and it never squelched his ability to use his own judgement. It just enabled me to bring him down from full attack mode and heel him quietly away. He knew I had the "override button." Maybe it would be helpful for you and Wolfie to do what I think the training folk here call "proofing"--training him in more and more distracting situations, so that you build up his ability to stay in control of himself and therefore under your control.

You are already a more accomplished trainer than I am and Wolfie is a great dog!

Cecilia


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## EchoGSD (Mar 12, 2010)

Perhaps part of the intensity of his reaction was based on the fact that he knew someone was out there, but as he was crated he couldn't investigate/protect/react normally -- the being "trapped" element may have added to his level of reaction.


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## CassandGunnar (Jan 3, 2011)

Rerun said:


> Jax08 said:
> 
> 
> > I think there is a difference of thinking (which isn't right or wrong, don't mistake me) between one section of dog owners who feel their dog is a pet 100%. Mine are pets 99%. The other 1% is the reason why we have german shepherds, a malinois, and a very large black puppy who will probably be 100+ lbs. They are there for some level of protection, a warning if that's all they choose to do. A wake up call at 3am that someone's walking around outside that shouldn't be there. If my dogs went nuts (which they would), I'd be thrilled. That shouldn't cause anyone to assume the dog is unsocialized, untrained, or out of control.
> ...


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## Samba (Apr 23, 2001)

Yes, that is true. My most protective girl is naturally that way and naturally obedient. It did not take training per se as it is who she is genetically. Nice to have such German Shepherds. She is most like what I conceived in my head that owning one would be like.


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## 48496 (Sep 1, 2010)

Dakota did that one day when I was home alone, but she wasn't crated. She never is when I'm home. This day the yard guy came to the door (I think I've posted about this before) and was hanging the invoice on the doorknob. Dakota will usually bark when a stranger comes to the door, but not go completely insane. I guess this day she thought he was trying to get in the door because he was messing with the doorknob. She went completely insane like Wolfie. I really thought she was going to go through the window on the side of the door. I had never seen her like that and wondered if she would really protect me if the need arose. I haven't wondered since that day and I actually liked her reaction. Now if I tried to call her off and she ignored me, that would be another story, but I didn't. 

Living out in the country and being at home alone a lot during the day, I love that her bark alone is a deterrent. I've never seen so many grown men knock on the front door and back up quickly at least twenty feet when they see her barking. It makes me feel safe. 

I say great job Wolfie!!!!!


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## KZoppa (Aug 14, 2010)

okay i'm not going to read through the entire thread right now but i'll say that i would LOVE to have one of my dogs react like that but still be under control. Thats how i would describe Zena. She ALWAYS made a racket when she felt it was necessary but she also always made sure to put herself between me and whatever was threatening. Definitely not a dog i would want to mess with. But i could always call her off. I think Wolfie did a good job and i also agree that further training would benefit greatly, even if you just practice recall.


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## elisabeth_00117 (May 17, 2009)

I recently had someone "break into my apartment", I put that in quotations because the drunk man who entered my apartment in the wee hours of the morning had a key...

Here is a copied version of what happened:

*At around 2:30AM this morning I was woken by some serious barking. Stark who is confined to my bedroom at night with a babygate was pacing and barking up a storm. I woke up, told him to "pipe down" and tried to roll over and fall back asleep. I thought maybe he had heard some kids outside or someone in the hall but ignored it and tried to go back to sleep. About two seconds after I told him to "hush" he JUMPED on my bed, feet on both sides of my body and was barking mere inches from my face.

THAT got my attention. I pushed him off and got up and Stark RAN to the doorway where he was sealed in by the gate.

I opened the gate to see what he was so upset about (cats playing maybe?) and he tore off towards our front door, he was STILL barking like a mad man.

As I rounded the corner in the dark I saw the lock on my front door pop open, heard the jingle of keys and litterally saw my front door open wide.

Stark started barking hysterically and actually started jumping up and down as he does when he is guarding in the opened front door.

I finally got to the door and see this drunk guy, about 30 years old, keys in my door, trying to get into my apartment. He looked at Stark, jumped back against the door across the hallway and was screaming "wrong door! wrong door!".

At this point I grabbed Stark's scruff, threw on a collar that was hanging on the hook by the door and held him in place. I asked the guy, "can WE help you?!" but he tore off running down the hall.

I told Stark to platz and he listened on the first command. I stood there with Stark to make sure the guy left and then called our security who came up to get details.

What a scary thing to get woken up too in the middle of the night.

Scarier thought is that someone has keys to my door!!!

They are changing the locks and security is keeping a close eye tonight just incase until the locks can be changed tomorrow.

What a good boy Stark is, not sure if this guy really just was so drunk he didn't know where he was or if he knew his keys worked in my door and was there for something else, but boy did I not get any sleep last night. Stark didn't leave our doorways threshold, he didn't try to leave at all, not one paw! He stood his ground without being paniced, he looked calm and definitely p'd off but he was so mature and did so well, I am so proud of him. He didn't even try to leave our home.. amazing.

I let Stark loose in the house after that and he planted himself at the front door and didn't move until this morning when I made him get into bed with me for an hour before I left for work.

I seriously love my dog more and more each day.*

The thing I would like to point out is that I could call my dog off immediately. 

Stark is naturally suspicious and I can honestly say that in the wrong hands, could be a liability. He is very serious and does not easily accept people into his circle. He is content around strangers and will venture over to say hello (a sniff and MAYBE a nose bump on the hand) but he is not a dog that I would consider overly friendly with strangers. I like that quality, it's like super aloof, some people are thrown off by that because they want to interact with him while he is content to sit by my side or go sniff over there.

I don't think that with regular obedience classes I would have had enough control over Stark if a situation like mine happened again. There just isn't enough pressure on the dog to really work on situations like this, at least not in the ones I have been too or seen.

We have been training in schutzhund since he was about 11.5-12 months old and I strongly believe that THIS is the reason alone I was able to call my dog off such a chaotic stituation. By working under chaotic situations all the time (protection as well as obedience) Stark has been able to learn that even in the chaos, he is to look to me for direction. 

Stark reacted to the situation and was able to clearheadily (is that word? Haha) make a decision to 'hold' the bad guy there without charging him or biting him - which could have been bad for all three of us (Stark, bad guy and I). He used his training to help him in this situation and was able to "hear" me when things were not in control.

I also think that if *I* had not had this type of training behind me, *I* would have acted as you did and not known what to do in that situation and sat back and let it happen (not on purpose). Working under conditions that are high stress, seeing what your dog is capable of and knowing that YOU can control it gives you a confidence I can't even begin to explain. 

I would suggest taking Wolfie to a schH club or somewhere that does PP work or even an obedience club that works in different situations and not jsut a classroom with their largest distractions being other dogs and people. Really put the pressure on him (when he is ready of course) and work through it.


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

Wow, what a good job by Stark! He must really make you feel safe, and knowing that all that training actually worked in a real life situation is fantastic. It is in my plans to take Wolfie to a PP class and have him evaluated. As of now he has had personal one on one training in a more real life setting. He trained at the local lake, on the grass where there are people jogging and walking, kids playing, cars driving by, other dogs, street vendors, etc.. Life was happening around us, and he was able to tune it out and focus on me.


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## elisabeth_00117 (May 17, 2009)

Life happening is great distraction training but not the type of streesors I was really talking about.

I think your situation, if you feel scared of your dogs reactions and your dog isn't looking to you for direction needs more of a 'life is happening all around us' type training.

I would really look into schutzhund, the cost is quite a bit lower than training classes (at least it works out cheaper in the long run out here) and PP work, because PP work you need a lot of private classes/sessions, again, the ones out here in this area are like that... it might be more finacially feesible (since this is an issue you expressed) to try this until you can get into PP? Just a though, also some clubs offer so many evalutations/sessions free to see if you like it, then ask for membership.. just a thought.


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## bocron (Mar 15, 2009)

Wolfie's reaction is pretty much what I would hope for and expect. The fact that he settled when you relaxed and called him back to you is good. The unknown here is how he would have reacted had you given him a command when he was totally up in drive and intent on the events around him. Of course you can't hit rewind and go back and test it out. This is why I participate in Schutzhund, it is a controlled environment where I can learn how to work with my dog when he is in drive. It's also fun . 
I have only had one instance where I had a dog get defensive and I had no idea if it were a real threat or just the dog being wacky. When I found out the next morning that 4 of my neighbors had cars broken into, and one actually had the guy break into their house and show up in their bedroom I felt good that my dog had gone ballistic and that when I called her back in the house, she came in. That was the first dog I'd ever done Schutzhund with, and we were only a few months into training, but already I felt good that she responded to my commands at that moment. I have not had a dog since that didn't get Schutzhund work, some titled, some not, but all go and learn as much as possible.
Anyway, hopefully you can find a good club near you, it is much cheaper than paying for "protection lessons". If you decide to go that route, there are many threads here about finding a club and deciding if it is the club for you and your dog and a club that you are comfortable with their training methods and style.


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## CassandGunnar (Jan 3, 2011)

elisabeth_00117 said:


> Life happening is great distraction training but not the type of streesors I was really talking about.
> 
> I think your situation, if you feel scared of your dogs reactions and your dog isn't looking to you for direction needs more of a 'life is happening all around us' type training.
> 
> I would really look into schutzhund, the cost is quite a bit lower than training classes (at least it works out cheaper in the long run out here) and PP work, because PP work you need a lot of private classes/sessions, again, the ones out here in this area are like that... it might be more finacially feesible (since this is an issue you expressed) to try this until you can get into PP? Just a though, also some clubs offer so many evalutations/sessions free to see if you like it, then ask for membership.. just a thought.


IMO, with the schutzhund, Wolfie gets more opportunity to use the training. With PP, it's much harder to use what's been learned in a more "realistic" situation. K9 handlers will tell you that it's hard to keep their dogs "fresh" on bite work because it doesn't take the dogs too long to figure out what the sleeve is and that it's more training. They do the work, but it's not the same as an actual apprehension.


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## elisabeth_00117 (May 17, 2009)

CassandGunnar said:


> IMO, with the schutzhund, Wolfie gets more opportunity to use the training. With PP, it's much harder to use what's been learned in a more "realistic" situation. K9 handlers will tell you that it's hard to keep their dogs "fresh" on bite work because it doesn't take the dogs too long to figure out what the sleeve is and that it's more training. They do the work, but it's not the same as an actual apprehension.


I think it also gives the handler a better understanding of their dog as well as allows YOU, the handler to understand and know how to handle a situation better too.


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## CaseysGSD (Oct 15, 2010)

I say thank god for Wolfie! Who know what could have happened if not for his reaction!


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## jkscandi50 (Nov 17, 2010)

WooHoo Wolfie - Way to go!! Seriously - years ago when I lived in a bad party of town - some bad folks banged on my door 11 at night - my Dobie - normally sweetness personified - almost went through the door to try to get them - I really believe dogs can sense menace. I praised him and called the cops. The "nogoodnicks" took off.


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## AgileGSD (Jan 17, 2006)

GSDs have gained many fans because of their devoted and protective nature. It may not be PC any more but it's traits that I like about the breed. Someone was sneaking around your house, maybe even trying to get into your house. Wolfie acted the way a GSD is supposed to, the way many people hope their GSD will. As long as he doesn't act like this with friendly strangers in every day life, I don't see it as a problem. Protection work would probably be good for him, as it will give you more confidence about properly handling him and will be a good way to channel his protective nature into training you can use (although you hopefully will never have to IRL).


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## Zoeys mom (Jan 23, 2010)

I agree way to go Wolfie. If he isn't acting like that with guests than he is able to discern a threat from a friend which is what you want....my girl thinks anyone in the home is a threat which is a problem. I think you should be proud of his reaction!!


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## Wilhoit (May 17, 2010)

In case you decide to investigate schutzhund, you might find that Wolfie would enjoy the tracking and obedience, too. He is so smart! I wanted to train Wilhoit in schutzhund, but couldn't because he did not have the play drive which they said made the protection training safe for him, but your Wolfie sounds like he has much more well rounded drives.


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## PupperLove (Apr 10, 2010)

So were the footprints all the way up to your house? Because if they were, I am sure that whoever it was, was up to no good and that Wolfie's reaction was because he was sensing _true_ danger. Especially if he has never done this before, maybe because this is the first time there was actually a real threat? Good job Wolfie! Especially if you are home alone...that is really scary! And if your husband was gone and his car was not out front, that makes a GREAT time for a burglar to break in, in their opinion.


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

why are you concerned that Wolfie detected something
and reacted? you made a very bad move by going outside with Wolfie.
if that happens again stay in your home, call the police (before calling
your husband) and arm yourself.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

Her husband IS the police


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## DharmasMom (Jul 4, 2010)

Good for Wolfie!! This time he may have REALLY saved his family from a very real danger. You should be very proud of him!


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

PupperLove said:


> So were the footprints all the way up to your house? Because if they were, I am sure that whoever it was, was up to no good and that Wolfie's reaction was because he was sensing _true_ danger. Especially if he has never done this before, maybe because this is the first time there was actually a real threat? Good job Wolfie! Especially if you are home alone...that is really scary! And if your husband was gone and his car was not out front, that makes a GREAT time for a burglar to break in, in their opinion.


The footprints came from behind the neighbors house, through the edge of the property line to the iced over path that leads to our door. I can't tell if the person walked on the path or not. I am assuming yes, since the footprints disappeared at that point.


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

doggiedad said:


> why are you concerned that Wolfie detected something
> and reacted? you made a very bad move by going outside with Wolfie.
> if that happens again stay in your home, call the police (before calling
> your husband) and arm yourself.


Well, if I called our local police and then hubby, hubby would still make it here first. Our local police are so slow in responding it's not even funny.


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## PaddyD (Jul 22, 2010)

DharmasMom said:


> Good for Wolfie!! This time he may have REALLY saved his family from a very real danger. You should be very proud of him!


Agreed. Also agree that you should not have ventured outside until Wolfie calmed down.


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## Lesley1905 (Aug 25, 2010)

High five to Wolfie! God only knows what could of happened!!


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## CaliBoy (Jun 22, 2010)

Wolfiesmom:

I was visiting with a buddy whose female GSD is DDR lines. Those dogs do not mess around. With my friend's case, a burglar had quietly opened a window at the back of the house while we were visiting in the living room. That girl went from zero to bitch in 2 seconds.

It was positively frightening to see her leap to her feet, every head on the back of her neck standing up like a porcupine, and going into full attack mode. She did not run down the hallway. She _was flying down the hallway._ The burglar barely, and I mean barely, shut the window in time. He didn't even shut it all the way, because her teeth landed on the edge of the window a split second after he pulled away and went himself flying out the backyard.

My adrenaline and heartbeat did not calm down for the rest of the evening. I was so shaken up at her level of viciousness and rage as she was protecting her master. All I had to say was good for her. A glass window separated a burglar from meeting his Creator that night, and that is the way it should be with these dogs. To this day, she always has the full run of her house.


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## crackem (Mar 29, 2006)

I think you need to work with your dog some more, not only for control, but also to learn to read him.

In every dog i've ever had there is always a definite difference between barks. "hey I want my ball" is different than "hey let me out" and different than "hey someone is at the door" and "hey, there is something seriously wrong and I need to get it".

You need to be able to recognize those differences too


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## 48496 (Sep 1, 2010)

CaliBoy said:


> Wolfiesmom:
> 
> I was visiting with a buddy whose female GSD is DDR lines. Those dogs do not mess around. With my friend's case, a burglar had quietly opened a window at the back of the house while we were visiting in the living room. That girl went from zero to bitch in 2 seconds.
> 
> ...


 
Dakota has the run of our house too and always will. Jackie will once she's older and can behave.


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## JakodaCD OA (May 14, 2000)

how scarey! I don't think I would have ventured outside either, I'm a big chicken in the dark ! 

That Wolfie, now all you need to do is teach him to talk or maybe he'll start on his own


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

CaliBoy said:


> Wolfiesmom:
> 
> I was visiting with a buddy whose female GSD is DDR lines. Those dogs do not mess around. With my friend's case, a burglar had quietly opened a window at the back of the house while we were visiting in the living room. That girl went from zero to bitch in 2 seconds.
> 
> ...


This describes Wolfie's reaction to a tee! I'm glad someone else can understand the intensity that I was talking about, that makes your heart pound. I have never seen anything like it before.


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