If he’s lying down, Chester may growl when they touch him. He attacked their other greyhound when he suddenly disturbed him. This makes their owners very worried and unhappy.

Yesterday they arrived home from work to find three open wounds on Conor’s neck and back.

Chester is a stunning 6-year-old greyhound. They rescued him from the world of racing a couple of years ago when he broke his leg. What a reprieve! He lives in a lovely house with a couple who adore him and another dog he gets on with most of the time.

From the start he was scared by certain things about the real world, particularly out on walks. So they got him a pal – Conor, 5.

Dignified and somewhat aloof

A dignified and somewhat aloof dog, there is a lot more going on inside Chester than appears on the outside.

He is precious about his personal space. If woken suddenly he man growl and snap.

When he’s asleep or dozing and someone comes near, his automatic instinctive reaction on waking suddenly is to ‘protect himself’.

Sadly poor Conor has been his main victim. He has come too near Chester when he’s been asleep or relaxed and Chester has flown at him. Conor has received injuries three times over the past year. Twice while they were out and once during the night.

This doesn’t make Chester a bad dog. It’s an instinctive reaction with some dogs, particularly those who may not have been bred carefully or not had the best puppyhood – used to touch, handling and cuddles. The first few months of a puppy’s life are so important. Very possibly one of his parents had the same tendencies. 

Do Not Touch!

Because Chester is defensive when approached and most particularly to touch in certain situations, the first and most important thing is for everyone to stop touching him for now. A dog will only guard something, whether his own self or a resource, if he feels there is a threat of it being challenged. It seems to be human nature to keep trying.

‘No touch’ and he should relax.

To prevent proximity or any unwanted touch from Conor when Chester is lying down, they now have installed a gate. They will keep the dogs apart while they are at work. Chester, like all racing greyhounds, is used to wearing a muzzle which can give safety at other times if necessary.

Changing how Chester feels

The next step after physical control and management  is, over time, to begin getting Chester to associate a person approaching him while he’s resting or in his bed with good things. He should learn to welcome their nearness and, confident they won’t touch him, relax.

They will use clicker and food. Clicker to alert him. Food to make him feel good. (Here is a nice little article about teaching your dog to wake up gently).

Hopefully this will spill over onto Chester’s reaction to Conor unwittingly touching him too.

Neither dog is very responsive to his humans. They take little notice of requests to either come or to go out. They don’t respond readily to their names and may ignore their owners who then put in a lot of effort and cajoling. In a way this attention reinforces ignoring them.

Diffusing trouble

If the dogs were much more alert to their names and motivated to coming when called, the couple would have them on remote control. They would no longer need to physically manhandle or move them. If they could see Conor climbing into bed with Chester, all they need do is to call him to them, or call Chester to get him to look at them. Trouble diffused.

Both dogs will dogs learn to do as asked, well motivated by food rewards. Chester, in particular, will respect and pay more notice of them. With this kind of relationship, Chester may be more inclined to welcome their proximity. This is about working on a slightly different relationship between owners and dogs.

They will book a thorough vet check of Chester to eliminate any discomfort that could be making him more reactive to touch.

NB. For the sake of the story and for confidentiality also, this isn’t a complete report. If you listen to ‘other people’ or find instructions on the internet or TV that are not tailored to your own dog, you can do more harm than good. Click here for help