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why is my husky like this?

so i have a husky and a shitzhu, my shitzu is not the problem lol, it's my husky. she likes playing with my shitzu all the time. but when i take her to the dog park to be around other dogs she is very "bi-polar" with dogs. she cries because she wants to go into the dog park, but she is very shy and scared when it comes to play with dogs. she stays in one side of the dog park barking and like whining at the other dogs (im guessing she wants them to come to her) but she doesnt go to them. also, when dogs get close to her, she shows her teeth and semi- tries to bite the dog that gets close to her. she wants dogs to play with her but gets defensive i guess when dogs get close to her. i dont want her biting or trying to bite other dogs, i want her to play and get use to being with other dogs. but to get her to play with dogs, i need to have her around dogs. so what do i do? and i tried taking her to the dog park with my shitzu that she plays with, but she gets all protective and defensive when other dogs try to play with him like if only she could play with my other dog.

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Why do you assume that she whines because she wants to go to the park? From your description, it sounds like she's fearful and anxious when she is at the park. Whining, like a lot of noises dogs make, can have a lot of meanings, but whatever the goal of the whining, it nearly always indicates a level of anxiety/anticipation. Sometimes it's anticipation of a good thing (one of my girls starts to whine if I don't release her to eat her food after I've put it down as quickly as she'd like), and sometimes it's anticipation of a bad thing (some dogs whine when their owners put on their shoes and grab their coat because they know it means they are leaving). Either way, it signals the dog knows something will happen next and it's causing them anxiety.

In your case, when you take your husky to the park, she shows lots of signs of anxiety and distress. She avoids other dogs, whines (anticipating other dogs will approach anyway), and shows she clearly doesn't want to be approached (baring teeth, snapping, etc). Stop taking her to the park. It's not safe for her or the other dogs there, and it's not helping her overcome her fears. Dog parks are terrible for socialization because you have so little control over the environment, and they're overwhelming for a fearful dog. If you want your dog to become comfortable around other dogs, you have to work to ensure that all her interactions are good ones; the caveat is that your dog has to be the one to decide the interactions are good. You may think it's a good experience when a friendly dog approaches her because you know there's nothing to worry about, but if she is whining, growling, or snapping, your dog clearly does not agree. She is still afraid, and she isn't having a good experience with that dog.

Instead, you want to teach her that other dogs mean good things. Try the Watch the World game with her. You want her to change how she perceives the appearance of other dogs. She may never be a dog park dog, and that's alright. Dog parks are often a risky choice for exercise anyway, because so many dogs who go are understimulated, overexcited and out of their owner's control. Instead, when your husky is ready, try introducing her to friendly dogs one on one. If she takes to them, arrange private play time where she can be comfortable and not overwhelmed by the energy and activity at the park.

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ok. thanks. oh and when she whines around dog parks she goes to the gate and try clawing it the way when they want to go in. that is why. but yes she does try to bite the big dogs and plays with the small ones. but i never heard of the game. i will try it with her. thank you for your input.

Hey Laura - Does this work for over-excited dogs? I'm trying to find something to do with my adolescent who gets wayyy to hyped up when she sees new people or dogs.

Yeah - they key is to find a position far enough away from the trigger that your pup can notice the trigger but not go over threshold (this could be VERY far away!), and over the course of many sessions you should find that you can get closer and closer to the trigger without eliciting the reaction. If you find him getting too amped up, you've pushed him too far, too soon and need to take a step back. Remember different conditions will effect his boundary for reaction, so if you're at a more exciting place, or if it's busier than usual, or he's had less exercise, etc, you may need to start farther back than you're used to.