A couple have started walking a young Great Dane here, and to my horror my spaniel and terrier started barking at it very aggressively. Luckily they were on the lead. The owners said it happens all the time. I then remembered a similar thing happening with one of my dogs years ago. Like my spaniel and terrier, he loved meeting other dogs but went berserk when he saw a young Newfoundland. Has anyone else experienced this, or is it just mine that have some kind of size complex!
Most small dogs go mental when they see Ivan my Leonberger, even as a puppy, he did tower over most small dogs even as a baby!!! Can't blame there really it must be very intimidating though but I always feel sorry for him. He would just love to say hello!
There's a couple who live nearby who have Newfies and a St Bernard and Gelert is a bit unnerved by their size - he acts very submissive around them. I remember meeting two of their current bunch when they were about four or five months old (the two adults Gelert was first acquainted with sadly died young) and they were already as tall as Gel and a great deal wider. Don't think he knew quite what to make of the giant babies
My Bo goes all giddy and submissive around giant breeds. She does the puppy thing and tries to lick their chops and starts running around them. We regularly see a Great Dane, Newfie and two Great Pyrenees and she love them. Unfortunately they don't feel the same way about her!
I`m not sure I`d be spending time wondering why. It may be big but it`s a puppy and your dogs shouldn`t be frightening him. I would be turning round, walking my dogs away from the pup until they were quiet, then rewarding them. Decrease the distance as your dogs become less reactive to him.
That's just what I did do ClaireandDaisy - the next time I saw him in the distance I started distracting them with treats and managed to walk past without them swearing at him. They are not at all bothered by adult giants - it's just youngsters. Yesterday we met an adult neopolitan mastiff and there was just some polite sniffing of bottoms and then they walked on, but I wonder if he'd been a juvenile they would have reacted.
Maybe they know they are giant puppies and as such more likely to be bouncy and accidentally squash them??? Just a thought. Could be the big fully coat and wide body and so the dog misreads body language? Who knows, sounds like your doing the work and they should overcome it with enough practice.
