Originally Posted by
bemental
Wanted to let everyone know how myself and my service dog have been doing over the past two weeks on the trail.
Encountered some odd behavior, my dog is getting territorial while at camp. He growls under his breath at certain individuals, and just recently snipped at a woman's face who he previously growled at (I was completely exhausted and had my back turned and wasn't paying attention when it happened - and feel absolutely horrible about it).
Obviously, this is behavior that I've never seen before from him. I immediately went off trail and called my trainer, who didn't necessarily consider the behavior negative, but informed me that he's basically 'alerting' to all the numerous smells, and sites that he encounters in the wild.
The behavior increases at night, and her explanation for this is because it is probably when most of the animals start coming out and getting closer to the humans on the trail. And, as a dog, he can sense and smell all of these animals and even though we can't see them as humans, he knows they're out there.
That being said, the behavior is not necessarily negative. If the alerts are happening and are unwarranted, then a correction is necessary. But if the alerts are not necessarily unwarranted, perhaps there is a shady individual around, then the behavior neither be reinforced or corrected. Perhaps the dog may need to be removed from the situation, and there will be more camping in our future than shelters, but until The behavior becomes a Radick or overly aggressive, she suggested that there be nothing to worry about at this time.
In summary, the behavior is natural - he is alerting to apparent dangers.
My two cents on the matter, is that when I returned to town today and was walking around and visiting various establishments with him, he was absolutely fine. He still responds to commands appropriately, does what he's supposed to when indoors and outside, and is following his training as if nothing is happened.
The snipping at the woman really rattled me at first, but I don't know who she was, what her background is, or what her intentions were. It was absolutely inappropriate for my dog, but I can't knock him for doing what he thought was best. It was my fault for not being more aware of the situation, something I must absolutely be aware of from now on.
Happy Hiking.