Got a situation.....need opinions.

Crate aggression or "fence fighting" is very often just a reaction to protecting "their" area.  It's really too early to be concerned.  A professional trainer would be your best resource at this point.

agreed. I also know of plenty of otherwise dog aggro (as in they do NOT play well with others) dogs that do agility/formal OB, flyball etc. The trick is to keep the dog focused solely on YOU in about any sport...that can make it possible to "do stuff" with your dog even if it is not overtly friendly with other animals. Find a good class and a good instructor and tell them you are working with a potentially leash reactive or possessive dog...they should know some things to help you out. But the main thing is getting her to FOCUS on you alone...

rwbeagles

agreed. I also know of plenty of otherwise dog aggro (as in they do NOT play well with others) dogs that do agility/formal OB, flyball etc. The trick is to keep the dog focused solely on YOU in about any sport...that can make it possible to "do stuff" with your dog even if it is not overtly friendly with other animals. Find a good class and a good instructor and tell them you are working with a potentially leash reactive or possessive dog...they should know some things to help you out. But the main thing is getting her to FOCUS on you alone...

Agree, I was going to reply something along these lines.  The issue here is not her reaction to dogs or fence fighting (I have one dog that would love to fence fight all day if I let him and he's titled up the wazoo), but that she's new to you and you need to have a good working relationship and mutual trust in order to succeed doing performance events.

 Thank you for your words.........my daughter is wanting to be a trainer and do agility and she was very worried that she wouldn't be able to if Ruby was like that. So thanks for the encouraging words.

I can tell you it can be done.  My Finn is very reactive with other dogs and doesn't do well with strangers (he doesn't try to hurt them, but will bark at them and become upset if they try to touch him).  However, we do rally obedience.  I have had to take a lot of time around a lot of different distractions to show him that the most rewarding thing is to keep his focus on ME.  He is in love with me so he did make it easy on me, but when we are in close quarters, like a rally trial, I will up his reinforcements and does fabulous.  We have collected various ribbons and no one besides me and my trainer ever knew he was dog aggressive at the trials.

It's all in the training.  And since she is so new to you, don't jump to any conclusions just yet.  She may still be adjusting and it could just be that the other dogs got her going.  When she meets a calm quiet dog, she may react completely different.

 Thank you...............what kind of training would you recommend that we do? She is a quick learner and very much stays by us and is always watching us. Just not sure what to do.

 Thanks

 Thank you for the links. Will look into those. We were not going to get her in agility right away...........it's something for down the road. We know we need to get her used to our family first. We were just concerned to put her in an obedience class if she was aggressive with dogs.

 The instructor of the class should have a one on one with Ruby, if you feel she might be DA. Congrats again and enjoy living with a herder. Their special!

Rally Obedience is something you can do with her before agility and after a bit of basic and advanced classes.  Rally obedience is fun and easy and it will help her begin to understand commands.  By the time you are ready to do agility, she will be really ahead of everyone else in terms of communicating with you.  When I did agility with my pom he was having some difficulty.  I added in a rally class and it really helped us work together much better.

joyfullmom2

 Thank you for the links. Will look into those. We were not going to get her in agility right away...........it's something for down the road. We know we need to get her used to our family first. We were just concerned to put her in an obedience class if she was aggressive with dogs.

As long as you can manage her, it shouldn't be a problem.  Just make sure to keep your distance from other dogs and keep her focused on you.  If it is a good trainer, they will work with you.  You just wouldn't be able to participate in any off leash playtimes (if that is part of the class).  My Finn is dog aggressive and after two years of classes, including basic, advanced and CGC, and numerous rally classes he comfortably works off leash with me inn class.  I still manage him by placing his leash back on him if I am not giving him my FULL attention, but he can work with and stay with me for an entire class (he is also very food motivated, so that helps a lot).

And remember, she may not even be DA, it could have just been something about those other dogs that set her off.  Have a private consultation with the trainer first and see what he/she thinks.

 Thank you.........we have noticed that Ruby is food motivated so I know that will help us. We now just need to find a trainer that's not so expensive. Got any suggestions where to look?

Not sure where you are located, but I pay $150 for an 8 week class with my trainer.  I like her methods (all positive reinforcement, shaping, etc) and the fact that she keeps very up to date on new methods from top trainers.  I think private lessons may be around $80/hour...not sure though.

I think you just need to do a google search and see if you can watch some classes to make sure you are comfortable with their methods.  Finding more inexpensive trainers can be difficult though.  All of the ones I have seen are more pricey and the ones who aren't (like Petsmart and Petco) I just wasn't very impressed with.

I'm sure someone will come along soon with some advice on finding a good trainer.

Good Luck!

joyfullmom2

We now just need to find a trainer that's not so expensive. Got any suggestions where to look?

Contact your vet and ask if they know of any classes.  Also, you might contact an Aussie rescue in your area and ask for recommendations.  Local shelters usually have information on classes and trainers.