7 mo old puppy showing ball aggression

[Hunter_Princess1]

So I have a wonderful, very adorable Beagle/Collie cross puppy, who is almost 7 months old. Normal happy puppy, we live in an apartment so she goes out to the dog park to play every evening, where she has absolutely fallen in love with the game of fetch and squeaky balls.

This is where the problem lays; she gets SO into the game that if any other dog, friend or not, tries to come near “her” ball, she snaps/growls, and the other night, she actually grabbed at another dog and got a little aggressive. I was not there, because I was out of town for the weekend, however the person dog sitting her pulled her off, gave her a time out and then no more fetch for the evening.

I try to use fetch as a reward, however I absolutely don’t tolerate any aggression to other dogs. She tried it again last night but I was standing right there and grabbed her collar before she could really do anything, and was able to back her up and stop it.

What else can I do, besides going back to reinforcing the “leave it”? Is fetch going to be a no go for a while?

[Big_Grey_hunter]

Toys and dog parks don’t mix. Every time another dog tries or succeeds to ‘steal’ her toy, it confirms in her mind that she has to protect her toys, basically increasing aggression.

[ezduzit]

We eliminated the triggers for our pup’s guarding. Which is what your pup is doing. And our guarding was the same…things he REALLY got in to.

In your case, I would cut down on the fetch at the dog park. Keep it light and simple. Don’t repeat it so much that she gets “that in to it”.

[2tempe]

Agree that toys and dog parks can be problematic. Its a two way thing - some other dog could also go after your pup for the same thing.

[scruffy_the_cat]

Agreed- no toys at the dog park. It’s like bringing 1 cupcake to Kindergarten- someone is going to cry. Actually, Fetch at a dog park unless you are alone is not a great idea. The other dogs cannot possibly understand that you are throwing for your dog only, so there is bound to be competition for who “wins” the stick/toy/ball. It will not end well.

Yes, of COURSE reinforce “leave it” and don’t forget that you need to reinforce things like that for the dog’s entire life. One doesn’t teach a toddler to say “please” once and hope that it sticks forever- you have to remind them for years (forever, says the mother of teenagers! lol).

Finally- the wonderful Patricia McConnell had a great blog post about resource guarding a few weeks ago. Maybe some of her words can help.
http://www.patriciamcconnell.com/theotherendoftheleash/resource-guarding-revisited

[Hunter_Princess1]

Thank you so much for all the insight. We’ve gone back to the basics, in and out of the dog park, and that combined with some spot corrections, she’s not shown that since. We also now only play fetch when it’s only her out there, and we have a limit of 5 tosses, and then it’s done. No if’s, ands or buts. Then we go back to doing some recall exercises to get her mind off of it.

Scruffy, I just saw the link, and it looks quite interesting. Thanks!

[Calamber]

Squeaky balls and toy tend to bring out the aggressive instincts in most any dog as it sounds like a little anima. My Jack Russell goes crazy until he tears the toy apart to get the squeaker out.