I have an 11 month old lab and border collie mix that is a service animal. Recently, over Christmas break, she was allowed to leave the trainer and come home with me. One evening she started growling at one of the 8 yo guests. The growling at strangers, barking at unexpected movements, etc has increased and her trainer is concerned as am I. Does anyone have help to offer?? I love this dog and really don't want to loose her as my service animal. She has an appointment with the vet to see if there is something physical but I don't believe that is what is wrong. She was found as a dump at about six months of age but up to this point has appeared to socialize well with the exception of being cautious around unknown men. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.
I'm really sorry to hear this, how stressful for you. It's a good idea to make sure that there isn't an underlying physical cause. I would also highly recommend getting a positive reinforcement trained canine behaviorist to come and assess her for you. They will be able to let you know the possible causes and solutions. Your local vet will hopefully have details for someone in your area. Obviously make sure no one is allowed to punish her for growling (you don't want to remove the early warning signal that she's unhappy, or to make her feel that there really is something to be scared of) and that you keep her away from situations which could exacerbate things in the meantime. Do let us know how you get along.
