[Jonas77]

I am the proud owner of Jonas, the goofy handsome dog in my profile pic but need some help with his behavior with other dogs. A lil background: I got him at the county pound and they believed him to be about two years old(vet agreed), he was a stray. He knew basic commands and has a great temperament with adults and children, very docile and obedient. Add another dog in the mix and he is a different dog. With my girlfriend's dog, a 30 pound energetic pup, they just play rough. He will pin her down, nip at each other, if either dog yelps in pain, they stop immediately. They are best buds(we got them the same day from the pound). The problem I have and when I get nervous is when he meets a new dog. He immediately gets a very serious look about him and positions his face right behind the other dogs neck, basically waiting for the dog to react. He has been a few scuffles with other dogs, but they end quickly when I get involved.

Sorry for the long winded message, but I would really appreciate some advice to stop his behavior around new dogs. Other than that, he is the best $40 investment I have ever made

 

[Adara]

Just my two cents, but it sounds to me like he's not really a great candidate to meet strange dogs, go to dog parks, etc. and that is extremely normal/common with many many many male Dobermans. They aren't really a great "dog park breed" and males moreso than females.

 

[Audrey1]

My 2 cents also is: his placing his head over the neck of the other dog is asking for trouble especially if you don't know how the other dog is going to react. Your dog sounds like my dog - also from the pound and not having good social skills with other dogs.
Safer to have your dog go on a walk with one other dog (maybe both on leashes w/two people) and see if they get along...then let them interact more. Don't let him continue to interact and get into scuffles where you have to break it up. My opinion is that it is better to have it go slower and in a positive direction rather than take the chance of a fight and then have to deal with the consequences. And the consequences could be one or both dogs getting injured or your dog becoming more reactive/aggressive.

 

[Beaumont67]

I am the proud owner of Jonas, the goofy handsome dog in my profile pic but need some help with his behavior with other dogs. A lil background: I got him at the county pound and they believed him to be about two years old(vet agreed), he was a stray. He knew basic commands and has a great temperament with adults and children, very docile and obedient. Add another dog in the mix and he is a different dog. With my girlfriend's dog, a 30 pound energetic pup, they just play rough. He will pin her down, nip at each other, if either dog yelps in pain, they stop immediately. They are best buds(we got them the same day from the pound). The problem I have and when I get nervous is when he meets a new dog. He immediately gets a very serious look about him and positions his face right behind the other dogs neck, basically waiting for the dog to react. He has been a few scuffles with other dogs, but they end quickly when I get involved..........

If your this in charge, then sometimes YOUR not getting involved quick enough.
- not setting up a win-win and building a solid dobe foundation

 

[MeadowCat]

Lots and lots of dobermans aren't dog park material, nor social with other dogs that they don't know. My Simon cannot be around other males (neutered or not), nor all females (he's picky). Shanoa is picky about all other dogs and generally prefers males, though likes some females. Neither can go to dog parks and I'm very, very picky about which dogs they meet and am super careful until I'm sure everyone is getting along.

For me, it's a downside to the breed, but I love them anyway. Sometimes you just have to accept that your dog isn't dog social. I'm grateful Simon and Shanoa have each other.

 

[VZ-Doberman]

Why do people think that they have to have a dog that is a social butterfly? If "meeting strange dogs" is a problem then limit his interaction with other dogs, ones that he knows and gets along with. If you're not doing activities that require your dog to be neutral around strange dogs then don't put your dog in that situation. If you're walking your dog on leash and a person comes up to you with their leashed dog, why do you feel the need to allow the two dogs to physically interact? It's one thing to have a dog that gets along with anything but you know your dog doesn't so don't put him in that situation. Bacchus hates water.......knowing that, I don't enter him in dock diving.

 

[stryker2]

For one when a dog puts its head on the back of another dogs neck that is a dominant behavior. When he starts to do that call him to you have him sit or down then treat him. The idea of the treat is he got the treat for sitting or down. Don't yell, scream or get overly excited. This can raise the dogs to over react.
You can read your dog (you know about the serious look he gets) and you can catch him before he puts his head on the back of the other dogs neck. Also his body probably stiffens up and tail is straight up in the air.