Let me just start by saying this. I am the biggest animal lover ever, as I have 2 dogs of my own and 1 cat, and have been around animals ever since I was young. It takes a lot for me to dislike an animal, but my boyfriend’s dog may be the anomaly. I love her, but she has major behavioral issues. First of all, if my boyfriend even touches me or tries to kiss me, his dog jumps all over us and will literally wedge her head in between us. Also, when we are cuddling, she’ll do this really annoying thing where she literally tries to walk over my face (yes my fucking face) just to get to my boyfriend. Also, the one thing that really pisses me off is that she chews up my underwear… my underwear! I’ve made a mistake leaving two pairs in her sight, but I shouldn’t have to worry about this! My boyfriend knows she has horrible behavior issues, but we obviously don’t want to get rid of her. I’m not sure how to tell my boyfriend about how I feel about her without him being upset, but I feel like I need to? Any advice is appreciated!
9 comments
Have you said anything to him about it?
This could also be a territorial thing. When you started going into her “domain”, was it slow and steady, and she was able to get used to you, or did you just come in, introduce yourself, and start inserting yourself into where she feels most comfortable?
Not saying it’s right, but it takes time for dogs to get used to new situations, especially if they have anxiety, so if her life is suddenly changed and there’s another female trying to be the alpha, she’ll react this way.
I think a serious talk with your boyfriend should be first, and it shouldn’t be a blaming thing where you come in accusing her of behavioral issues, maybe more observations that you’ve noticed, and think of ways to help combat this.
I know someone who went through this exact thing and that was their issue, so it may be the case here too.
Cockblocking doggie
How big is the dog?
To explain the underwear, this means she cares about the home. She is destroying evidence of scents to protect the home from attracting predators. You can retrain if you catch her IN the act but can’t really punish her for that, especially not after the fact.
As the other person said, offer to train the dog. But your bf should be an equal partner in this. It’s both of your responsibility (him bc it’s his dog and you bc you need to set an example if you want the dog to view you as an equal of your bf). Make sure this is positive reinforcement (treats for good behavior) and not negative like yelling or punishments otherwise you could create more behavioral issues.
We have a rule with pets… they are secondary to people unless something is seriously wrong with one
Unless we’re going to the vet, people come first.
Dog hanging out in the couch normally? Sure. But when we are watching something and cuddling it’s not acceptable. There has to be time for us
Tell him to train his f’n dog. It takes 2 minutes to stop these behaviors.
What is he doing about training her?
Have tried bonding more with the dog? Spending time walking her, brushing her things like that without him?