High Strung Personality

[cali baker]

Are some dogs just born with what I observe to be a "high strung" personality? I'm referring to my boy Finn. He's not at all like laid back, fun-loving Tate. Instead, Finn is on the intense side: territorial, barks at passers-by, starts fights with Tate, and on occasion, can be a PITA. On the other hand, he is also my sweetheart and love bug who cuddles with me and loves to give me lots of kisses.

Tate and Finn share the same father and they obviously are being brought up in the same environment. So, it must be nature vs. nurture? I'm just curious. Finn baffles me at times and I just want him to be a happy bulldog. Sometimes I wonder what it is I'm not doing right, to make Finn "act out" like he does. This weekend he got into 3 fights with Tate. On Halloween night we only had 3 groups of trick or treaters come by before I had to shut the door b/c the boys would fight whenever someone came over.

I always make sure to treat both boys equally. Whenever I give Tate a hug, I do the same to Finn. I never want either bully to feel left out.

Thank you for reading my rambling...i'm not really sure what to do; behavioral training is not a one size fits all so i know i need to find a behaviorist who "understands" Finn. I'm not trying to change Finn's personality but i do want to be able to work with him and "manage" his indosyncracies better than I have been.

 

[ddnene]

Henny, after having a total of 4 bulldogs over the years it seems to me that some are definitely more high strung than others. Bella and Wally have more hyper personalities where as Winston was super laid back… and of course all of them have been raised in the same environment. I think it comes down to nature, which of course makes it more difficult to change. It also has to do w/your relationship w/the dog… our dogs pull more stuff w/the hubby then they EVER do w/me. He's not around as much, and I often wonder if they just respect me more than him… Lol Maybe you need to get a behaviorist to come in and help you to get better control over Finn. You may need to shop around for somebody, my trainer Leah is so amazing w/bulldogs… I just knew that she was the right fit for our babies. I have noticed that some trainers/vets/etc… don't seem to understand the stubbornness of bullies, and they don't appreciate them for their good traits.

I wish you luck, I'm sure that you will be able to get Finn under control soon…

 

[cali baker]

thanks Tracey. I went thru training w/Finn a couple yrs ago; we did some private lessons but looking back now, i would not use the same techniques the trainer used then. She had a prong collar on him and that is something I don't want to do again. I would love someone like your trainer, Leah! I asked for some referrals from my neighbors some months back so i'm going to look at that list again and check them out.

Finn is so strong-willed and displays this "tough" exterior but deep down i know he is a little sweetie who just wants to be understood. Ideally i want a trainer who will see how i interact w/Finn and when Finn gets out of hand, observes how I handle it. I'm sure he/she will tell me i'm doing everything wrong!

 

[dolphin]

Mickey our Frenchy definitely had a high strung personality.

 

[ddnene]

thanks Tracey. I went thru training w/Finn a couple yrs ago; we did some private lessons but looking back now, i would not use the same techniques the trainer used then. She had a prong collar on him and that is something I don't want to do again. I would love someone like your trainer, Leah! I asked for some referrals from my neighbors some months back so i'm going to look at that list again and check them out.

Finn is so strong-willed and displays this "tough" exterior but deep down i know he is a little sweetie who just wants to be understood. Ideally i want a trainer who will see how i interact w/Finn and when Finn gets out of hand, observes how I handle it. I'm sure he/she will tell me i'm doing everything wrong!

I HATE the prong collar, I know that its necessary sometimes but it's not something you just leave them wearing all the time. I would check on Angie's List or what about asking the rescue's that are in your area? I bet they have names of some great trainers. I found Leah on FB, I just did a shout-out to people in my area and several friends told me that they just loved her. We all know that Finn is a sweetheart, he just needs to understand that when mom says NO or STOP he needs to listen… Lol It may not be that you are doing it wrong, it could be your body language or if you display ANY anxiety about it. Dogs pick up on that in a heartbeat… I've seen Leah handle dog fights as cool as a cucumber. I guess that's why she's the expert… Lol

 

[g8erjackie]

I think it's a personality thing and happens with all dogs. My parents have two Great Pyrenes. The male who is the younger one is a laid back goof ball. The female can be sweet and I've found her and Ruckus cuddled up by the door waiting for all the humans to get home when we visit, but when she wants to be let me tell you about the little (ok, giant, ~100 lbs) primadona....she will lay at my stepmom's feet in the kitchen and bark at anyone who come close to her because she's jealous. She used to (broke her of that...) used to growl at my dad if he came to bed after the dog and my stepmom because she wanted his spot. But on the other hand she is super gentle with the grand kids and I think the only person she would bite would be someone who broke in and was an actual threat. Bottom line is that if she senses even a little hesitation or fear, she'll try to walk all over you.

 

[2BullyMama]

You nailed it Henny.... Some are just naturally high strung. Banks and Nitchske could not have been more opposite. Banks is high stung and always on alert or at the ready to pounce and training that worked with one did not work for the other. Banks did anything for food, but when she is in her 'zone' not even food pulls her out of it.

as you said, you need to find someone to teach you how to read him and direct him from that read.

Best of luck in your search for the right person to help

 

[Libra926]

Orion and Finn are from the same stock. Everything you said about him could easily be used to describe her.