Category: Top Dog

I have a 11 month nearly 1 year old male corgi, who previously loved other dogs and didn’t show signs of aggression. But over the last week, what feels like overnight, he has changed completely. Almost all dogs we have met over the last week has caused him to react negatively. Either barking at the other dog, showing teeth or growling.

I understand as dogs mature into adulthood they become less playful and maybe more selective on dogs they want to interact with, but this felt really quick. He has no health issues, there’s no environmental/routine change and he was castrated at 9 months and didn’t show any signs of aggression before or after until now.

In terms of his confidence he’s always been a bit more on the skittish side, but this wasn’t a huge hurdle. He would acclimatize to new dogs and situations quickly and seemed happy/relaxed. I can see now that maybe this nervous or excitable energy is playing a role, but I’m not sure how it can happen so quick.

I would love to hear some opinions on dog behaviour and why this could happen so quickly. And if any tips or tricks on how I can correct this reactivity I’m all ears.

Side note I’m already in talks with a trainer and plan to do some sessions, but wanted to know if there’s been similar situations and how it was fixed as well.

My dog is an extremely aggressive chewer, and everytime he gots a new toy, he just tears through it within two days. Does anyone have toys that won’t break easily?

I rescued my pup almost 2 months ago. we haven’t done a DNA test but believe her to be an 8mo shepherd/malinois/lab mix. she’s a bit fear reactive with other dogs, not all the time. any tips to help my girl? we’ve socialized a bit with other dogs and she does well when off leash.

I have a 5 month mini goldendoodle and I’m scared she doesn’t like me. We play fetch, I take her for walks, snuggle on the couch, give her all the treats and belly rubs and scratches but I I feel like we haven’t bonded. She gets really excited to see friends/family we don’t see all the time but I don’t feel like she gets that excited to see me.

I need help. How do I strengthen the bond with my puppy.

We just brought home a puppy for the first time in 6 years. He's a mini bernedoodle/goldendoodle mix, 10 weeks old. It's not the best start. The breeders fed him right before we picked him up, so he was car sick on the way back (puked 4 times.) They didn't give us anything from his mother to take, so the transition made him anxious and unwilling to warm up to us. Now that he's home, he's marking & pooping, teething on stuff, and freaking out when we go upstairs.

We had a quiet, easygoing Bassett Hound, so as a puppy he wasn't anxious or stressed.

Anyone have tips on how to train an anxious puppy? Please, any advice is appreciated 👏👏👏👏

I'm 30 and doing this with my folks and I'm kinda freaking out and wondering if I chose the breed or should've went to a shelter where I could get to know the dog instead of going on a 3hr drive to get a dog that doesn't even know us…😨😰😨😰

We just adopted a dog after his owner died last week. He was found alone in the house with the owner, and he was taken to a shelter for a few days before we were able to retrieve him. It's been a lot of trauma for him — his owner's death, time in a shelter, travel, and now adjusting to a new home with strangers and another dog. It seems like he's showing signs of anxiety that we're going to abandon him. How can we help him adjust to the death of his owner and his new environment?

I adopted a male Alaskan husky today. he’s beautiful and I really love him but he’s so anxious and it’s making me think he doesn’t like me or he’s never gonna change. At the shelter they said he should break out of his shell soon but I’m just very afraid. I really thought having a dog would motivate me and would really bring love I needed into my apartment but I’m truly terrified now that he’s home and I will literally take any advice or any words of encouragement.

I just had a puppy fall into my lap today. I want to keep him but I haven’t had a puppy in almost TEN years. My dog passed back in October and I really think she sent me this little guy to get me out of my funk because she got me out of a bad depressive episode when I got her almost ten years ago. Gimme all the training advice you have, I barely remember anything about training her because it was so long ago. Info on him: he seems to be possibly some kind of Pyrenees or Retriever mix, he’s going to be a big boy. Massive paws. Probably around 6 or 7 weeks. So far he’s slept a ton, peed once(outside and I gave him praise), I gave him some puppy food and he ate it. No poops yet. He does have some fleas, I washed him with dawn dish soap and will be calling the vet Monday to set up an appointment.
I also have 5 cats and a geriatric dachshund. Advice on introductions and socialization would be greatly appreciated, right now I’m keeping him separate from them. TIA!

I knew this would be hard, I knew I couldn’t have expectations, I KNOW puppies can’t help it and they’re quite literally like babies and everything is normal developmentally but I feel like I’m going crazy.

I grew up with dogs, and have had 3 dogs of my own that I’ve rescued as an adult (youngest was 1.5 year). They were all rescues and one wasn’t trained at all, but we got through it. I know being that old of course my dog was at a different stage developmentally.

Let me tell you though, nothing, and I mean nothing could have prepared me for this puppy. I read 2 books, read multiple blogs, it’s almost laughable that I thought I’d be prepared.

My pup has zero chill, definitely does not nap thaw 18-20 hours I’ve read. If she’s awake, absolute land shark, I play with her, I do training to give mental stimulation, make sure she goes for walks. Giving her tons of toys and chews and bones.

It’s constant getting into things, taking her outside multiple times just to have her shit in the house right when I bring her back in after 25 min. I give treats after she goes out, I give her treats for training, I’m doing just about anything you can google.

Yes she’s just being a puppy, I know that, but I’m struggling so hard. I’m starting to wonder how I thought I could ever handle this 😭. I’m usually not a dramatic person but I feel like my head is going to blow off I’m so stressed out. Even cried last night because I feel like I literally don’t have a minute to breathe. Even with my husbands being completely hands on as well, we also have another dog, 2 cats and a kid to take care of. We specifically waited to get a puppy until our child was older, until we had a house with enough room for another animal. We did it all as “right” as we could.

Again, I know this is normal so please don’t comment just to make me feel worse and say it’s not the puppies fault. I KNOW THAT!!!!!!

This is just hard, and I feel like there’s no light at the end of the tunnel after reading some of these posts saying their puppies still act this way at 13 plus weeks. Like what ?! 😭

I’m going to do it, keep doing my best, but I feel like I might cry myself to sleep in the process lol.

If anyone is truly going through it like I am with their puppy, please share. Anyone who went through this and it got better, please share. I’m just so tired.

Hey guys, we are considering getting a family dog. Currently, it’s just my wife, my 2 year old, and myself. Don’t want anything too big, maybe a dog that isn’t high maintenance and not a whoa lot of hair shedding. Other than that I appreciate any and all recommendations 🙏

Disclaimer: Apologies if this isn’t the right place to post. Long time lurker, first time poster.