Can an extremely possessive dog be helped?

I have two Dachshunds, The first one we have had since a puppy. Great dog, male, five years of age. The second one we retrieved from a shelter app. a year ago. Age 5-6? He was found running the streets with a German Sheppard. When we got him home he was skin and bones, but, as sweet as could be. This little dog has so much personality and so loveable, but he has turned into Dr. Jykle and Mr. Hide. The last several months he has become increasingly worse. When tired or cozily comfortable and asked to get out of his comfort zone he becomes vicious, also he will pick a person be cozy with, or to just lye around with. If any one comes near him it is attack city. He has bitten my 21 year old daughter when she was home for a visit. He has bitten my 25 year old son and my wife. He will attack me when I return home from work and he is with my wife or the other way around and my wife comes home after me. He will take a liking to a friend over to watch a movie and attack my wife or myself. Help!!

Can an extremely possessive dog be helped?
Good luck, Dachshunds are notorious biters (ours, as kids, were VERY sweet)... or so I heard my vet explaining to a new puppy owner recently, to my surprise. I would visit yahoo groups and look up "campnaughtydog", they are mostly English Mastiff folks there, but all breeds in need are welcome. That site has some of the BEST dog trainers in the country who are more than willing to give lots of advice, support and even help you locate a specialist in your area if necessary. Hope this helps, and all works out with the dog. God bless you for trying.
Reply:Obedience training for him, and watch TONS of The Dog Whisperer, because he deals with this kind of behavior ALOT. We've learned tons from that, its an excellent show.





My dachshund puppy is somewhat like this to and I've been getting very strict with her on that, because I don't need her to be aggressive. So far she will snap at my cousins if she's comfy somewhere and they try to pick her up (especially off of me) Once she was sleeping on a blanket (just fell asleep) on a foot stool and if it hadn't been me who touched her she would've taken a chunk outta my hand (she stopped when she realized it was me).
Reply:It sounds like your dog thinks he is the dominant one of the household, thats why he picks and chooses what he does and who he does it with. He SHOULD be grateful for your familys attention at any time. Firstly, kick him off the couch! Remind him that he is the dog in the family and not human. At any sign of tempermental behaviour put him outside or in a punishment room for a few minutes. This behaviour can be very common and my best advice for you is to check out some dog whisperer dvds, they will help you enough without needing to use a trainer, but follow the techniques properly.
Reply:Yes. Have you ever watched the show on TV "The Dog Whisperer"? It's on the National Geographic Channel. I recently watched an episode that was very similar to your problem, and he resolved it very quickly. They say, even though it looks easy, don't try it yourself. I would suggest contacting him. Looks like a case he may take on. I would guess, contact the network. He's amazing. Or, you could try a local trainer.
Reply:You've got a resource guarder that may also have fear issues. You need to find a trainer that uses positive reinforcement techniques to work with you.This is not going to be an easy journey with this dog, but understanding the dog a bit and how dogs learn will help you. There are good books on this site





www.fearfuldogs.com/books.html





You need to understand triggers and thresholds to keep everyone safe. When behaviors like this are not worked with appropriately (and punishment is often inappropriate) you end up with it getting worse. You really need to find a class and someone with experience to help you. There is a website apdt.com that lists certified trainers.

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