Behaviour on leash question

[tangorover]

Hey guys, This is my first post on here :-D. So Bourbon my Fawn Boxer is an angle with strangers. At the dog park he will go up to anyone that is friendly and will paw them. I never have issues with guests because everyone instantly falls in love with him. However On leash its a different story. For most people he will completely ignore them (unless he already knows them) However he will randomly pick people to harass. Once he zeros in on someone he doesn't like he will bark at them and not let them approach me.
While this is not a bad behavior Im just wondering is its normal to have a different behavior on leash and off leash. Same when he meets other dogs. If he is off his leash He is an angle will approach them and try and engage them to play but never bark of growl. But on leash if he sees another dog its a bark fest.

Just checking if this is normal.

PS I love his not letting some people come near me... He barks when people approach but won't ever be aggressive. If they are close enough he will try and play with them But it looks aggressive enough to be a good deterrent. Is there a way I can train him to not allow me to pick someone not approach me.
Bourbon is a very good judge character and will always be alert around shady characters.

 

[jacquim]

I don't have any advice on how to resolve the behavior at times, but it is normal for dogs to act different on leash versus off. On leash they are confined so it can often change how they react to people/dogs approaching as they feel less in control of the situation. My boxer is great on leash but my border collie gets aggressive if another dog approaches her while on leash. She is usually very good at the dog park but with the leash I have to just keep walking if we approach another dog so that she doesn't get into a fight. The odd time if I leash her before Raiden and he gets too close she snarls at him as well (but once they are both on leash they walk wonderfully together).