Sundance afraid of shih tzu

[calessi]

My boxer, Sundance, is 13 months old and plays daily with a shih tzu, Gizzy. This has been a daily routine since Sundance was 4 months old. Gizzy is approximately 3 years old. When they play indoors, they run around with Sundance chasing Gizzy, who runs under the table or behind other objects where Sundance can't get to him. This all takes place at Gizzy's house. They play great together. However, recently, when they both play in the back yard, Gizzy becomes very aggressive and starts growling and chasing Sundance. Yesterday, while Sundance was chewing on a toy, Gizzy walked very slowly in a circle around Sundance, growling softly the entire time. Sundance laid back his ears, got up and slinked over to me like he was afraid of this dog!

Why is Gizzy doing this and do dogs know their size differences? It's almost embarrassing to see my 75 pound boxer be intimated by a 15 pound shih tzu.

 

[Seminolefan]

LOL

I am sorry to laugh but we have a 18 year old Shit-zu/Poodle that is totally in charge of our house. I wrote a thread earlier this month because EVERY time we go out....Pee-Wee pees on King and Queen. They are both still pups and they dig holes in the yard, anyway they dug one pretty deep and poor Pee-Wee who is almost completely blind and deaf, fell head first into it! :eek:
Someone suggested maybe Pee-Wee pees on them for revenge! King & Queen bite his tail while he's eating and drag him across the tile..........it's really funny but poor old man Pee-Wee can't see them to chase them.
Anyway, King & Queen are also afraid of Pee-Wee when he starts growling or barking. I think Pee-Wee thinks of the pups as his responsibility.................he licks their ears EVERY night and when they got out and ran down the road, Pee-Wee stood in the yard and barked as if to tell them to come back NOW.........it worked and they came home! Pee-Wee also steals the toys and bones from the pups and sticks them in a corner and then sits there and growls at the pups if they come near him!
Maybe Gizzy is trying to make sure that Sundance knows who is in charge!???

Good Luck!!

Heidi

 

[boxer-newbie]

That's funny because my 5 month old has been kind of the same way with a few dogs. We were at the dog park last weekend and there was a Jack Russel there playing fetch with his owners. Whenever the owner threw the tennis ball a few bigger dogs, mine included, would run after it also. The bigger dogs would get near the Jack Russel and the ball and the little thing would let out a nasty growl and bark then would try to snip at them. All the other dogs in the park would retreat and eventually stopped chasing the ball. It's amazing how a little thing like that can intimidate logs 5 times its size. :confused:

 

[bustermom]

I really think dogs have absolutely no concept of size. My beloved little chihuahua (bless his soul!) ruled our house for all 14 years of his life. There wasn't a dog around that would stand up to him. Everything about his body language said "I am alpha of the house dogs, you will bow before me" and he was just so incredibly confident in himself, that every other dog just gave him a wide berth.

It's all about body language and presence. Maggie, our 19 lb. Boston Terrier rules our 62 lb. Buster with an iron paw. One warning look is all it takes for him to back away from whatever it is she's decided she wants. They adore each other, but it can be kind of funny to watch Maggie stand in the open doorway (we leave the patio sliders open when we're home and it's nice out) and not let Buster outside until SHE decides that he's allowed out.
He'll sit there and whine and whimper and beg, she'll give him a queenly glare, and eventually step aside so that he can go through. :rolleyes:

 

[calessi]

I 'm glad to read other small dogs do the same thing. They seem to make up for their small size by having a big attitude. I was beginning to wonder if Sundance is a "chicken"! (Not really)

 

[Russell]

Well don't feel bad I think all our babies are afraid of small dogs at some point in there life my Zoey is deathly afraid of Jack Russell Terriers when she spots one she heads for high ground:D

Heidi

Mommy to Zeke and Zoey