I have a 3 year old retired racer. She is very laid back, and been home for 9 months now. She's great with other dogs if they have good manners. Any puppish or overexcited behaviour from a stranger gets a growl, which I'm ok with.
My grey is very growly when chasing and playing which I know is normal rough grey play, however I have never seen her nip or purposefully lunge into another dog. Just growls as she blasts past. I think it raises a few eyebrows with other owners and I can see how they would this disconcerting. She’ll happily mix around dogs and owners when they return back and it only seems to be on the chase.
This evening we went to a booked enclosed dog run with one other grey we have met and know well, but in addition a friend with a large white german shepherd we hadnt met. We did introductions on the lead, the new gal was a little nervous but generally good behaviours all round and no surprises for us.
When the german shepherds confidence was up and they started running around to play, my girl would give chase with her usual growls. I think the GS was worried by this, and maybe started to show nervous body language? Because this is where things started to escalate where they never have done in the past.
My grey started barking at her full force, circling round after her sprint and nipping and barking again. When the otber grey seen this happening, they also came to bark and growl and essentially this poor GS is being tagteamed by two barky growly greys. It happened vice versa also, if the other grey started it, mine would run up to get involved in much the same way.
However, when there was no running/ chase involved and dogs are sniffing around the humans, both greys were perfectly calm and friendly with the GS even after the above had happened, which makes me think prey or chase drive is also involved to some extent?
The whole thing has made me really anxious, would it possibly be because my grey is reading off the GS's nervous behaviour and its escalting in that way? I feel embarrassed and really annoyed at myself. I thought I knew my girl well enough at this point,and had taken all the right precautions
Just wondering if anyone else has experience of this, and has any words of wisdom?
