socialization

I need some advice regarding my dog. Strider is 5 years old and he
is a Labrador mix. I do not know what he is be mixed with but he looks
just like a lab (I know that one of his parents was a lab), only smaller
and slimmer with some white on his chest and his paws. He has been with
me since he was six weeks old.
Unfortunately he was not socialized very well. This was my fault
of course, but part of the problem is that I was new to the area and
didn’t have anyone to really introduce him to. I should have made a
better effort but I did not. I did have him in puppy training for about
6 weekends when he was 8 months old with a trainer and another dog
owner. He was fine with them.
The problem is that he has never been around anyone except for me
and some family members for the most part. The only time that he has
been around others was when I would board him when I went on vacation.
He was always fine with the kennel workers and other dogs from what I
have been told, but he has always had trouble when it came time to meet
new people at the house. He would bark at them and act aggressive, but
to be honest there have not been many opportunities for him.
I know that this is a problem that I should have addressed some
time ago, but I didn’t. The current situation is that I need to move
soon and my best option financially would be to move in with a
roommate(s). I may be able to afford my own place, but it would be
financially better if I was able to share expenses.
This leads me to my question. Is it too late to have the problem
of an un-socialized dog addressed at 5 years old? I do not know how he
will react around others that he does not know, but if a behaviorist
will help then I will try that. Of course I DO need to do that
regardless, but I am wondering if anyone thinks that Strider is beyond
help. A dog trainer offered an opinion that his behavior shows that he
is insecure, but I do not know if this is true.
I do want to add that Strider is smart and he continues to learn.
When I first moved to my current place we had construction workers on
both sides of the property and he used to bark at them when I had him
out, but over time he realized they were not a threat and he began to
ignore them.
Any advice would be appreciated. I know that this is my fault and
I hope that I can remedy it. Thank you.

1. I have read in dog training books that you *can* teach an old dog new
tricks. No big deal.

2. I assure you your dog would do just fine around me. I've been around many
dogs where the owners say their dogs "don't like anyone", "don't like men",
or whatever. Me and the dog become best friends. The owners are amazed.

I don't know what I do, but I do respect the independence of the dog. Let it
sniff my hand first while looking it in the eyes. Then I guess depending on
the response of the dog, I will back off or pet it on the head. I guess I am
letting the dog inform me after smelling my hand how it wants to proceed
with the "relationship" after this initial meeting.

So I guess you have "dog people" and those who are not dog people. Might
want to let the dog help you pick your roommate.

Then I would try taking the dog around people more in the mean time. Go to
parks. Take dog for walks. See if there are any dog shows at parks and take
your dog to these.

Most people I encounter when I take my dog for a walk are pretty cool. They
will not just go up to my dog and pet her. They will first ask "Does the dog
bite?" or "My I pet your dog?". If this happens, might want to explain the
situation and let them proceed at their own risk. If person wants to help
you, maybe let dog approach stranger. Let dog just sniff them at first -
maybe no petting to begin with.

If dog does anything nasty, pull on leash and say NO!

I would stay away from small children. They tend to put their hands/faces
right in front of the dogs face and seem to TRY to get the dog to bite them.
So when my dog is around small children, I need to watch the dog and the
children. Tell dog no don't do that. Tell kid no don't do that. (Every 5
seconds!)

Have fun! (This is a fun thing...)


"terry b." wrote in message
> I need some advice regarding my dog. Strider is 5 years old and he is
> a Labrador mix. I do not know what he is be mixed with but he looks just
> like a lab (I know that one of his parents was a lab), only smaller and
> slimmer with some white on his chest and his paws. He has been with me
> since he was six weeks old.
> Unfortunately he was not socialized very well. This was my fault of
> course, but part of the problem is that I was new to the area and didn’t
> have anyone to really introduce him to. I should have made a better effort
> but I did not. I did have him in puppy training for about 6 weekends when
> he was 8 months old with a trainer and another dog owner. He was fine with
> them.
> The problem is that he has never been around anyone except for me and
> some family members for the most part. The only time that he has been
> around others was when I would board him when I went on vacation. He was
> always fine with the kennel workers and other dogs from what I have been
> told, but he has always had trouble when it came time to meet new people
> at the house. He would bark at them and act aggressive, but to be honest
> there have not been many opportunities for him.
> I know that this is a problem that I should have addressed some time
> ago, but I didn’t. The current situation is that I need to move soon and
> my best option financially would be to move in with a roommate(s). I may
> be able to afford my own place, but it would be financially better if I
> was able to share expenses.
> This leads me to my question. Is it too late to have the problem of
> an un-socialized dog addressed at 5 years old? I do not know how he will
> react around others that he does not know, but if a behaviorist will help
> then I will try that. Of course I DO need to do that regardless, but I am
> wondering if anyone thinks that Strider is beyond help. A dog trainer
> offered an opinion that his behavior shows that he is insecure, but I do
> not know if this is true.
> I do want to add that Strider is smart and he continues to learn.
> When I first moved to my current place we had construction workers on both
> sides of the property and he used to bark at them when I had him out, but
> over time he realized they were not a threat and he began to ignore them.
> Any advice would be appreciated. I know that this is my fault and I
> hope that I can remedy it. Thank you.