Snapping?

SheltieChe

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Well, it is not really snapping... but Mr Leo has a new habit now- wordlessly opening and shutting his mouth as a sign of frustration and occasional demanding bark follows if I do not comply... like in the recent obedience class I noticed that all rest of the 25 dogs were happy to be excited, bored, sleepy during the instructor talk... not Mr Leo... he was determined to wheedle that cheese and liver out of me.... I am sitting and listening to the instructor but Mr Leo has other ideas... offering one behavior after another, getting frustrated by me not paying attention to him and cursing me under his breath...
I know I should not but I find it very funny when my little demanding monkey is working me that way... am I growing a mini monster?:lol:
 
Ah yes, the smart, impatient type! A certain brown labrador fits that category:rolleyes2: And yes, it is very funny, but I did have to teach him to lie down and be patient because it was becoming disruptive.
 
That sounds a lot like Lexi (at least the in-class behavior). When we started agility and were taking turns to do short sequences..she was a terror! She would offer every behavior you could think of, bark, jump, etc...Anything that she thought might get my attention!

I started off treating her for laying down and being calm, but that turned into "I'm laying down now..GIVE ME A COOKIE"...."Now I'm laying down MORE..Cookie?" "Nudge...I'm laying down...cookie now?"

So I started just totally ignoring her. She still barks, but now she's at least barking at the other dogs running instead of me. I also crate her when the breaks in between dogs are long enough.
 
Mine do the mouth moving bit too - am sure its their way of saying to me "seeing the mouth moving and nothing sensible coming out"!:lol:
 
Indy does something similar.....I've heard that, like yawning, it can be a sign of stress.

Perhaps the class is stressing him out a little?
 
naah, no stress there for sure. It is clear and demanding, sometimes frustrating " GIMME what I need and do it NOW"
Che is more likely have soft whine and be anxious but not MR Leo, this one firmly knows what is due to him:yes:
 
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