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Permalink Reply by Anna Morelli on February 20, 2013 at 5:48pm

What you describe is normally associated with aggression or simply dominance.  There are many levels of body language, from the subtle to the unmistakable full attack  .From the lowest levels you start with the direct stare, stiff posturing, standing over, putting the muzzle over the other dog's neck or back, even trying to hump the other dog.  Raising of the fur along the back is another one of those signs in dogs and this one sometimes occurs in conjunction with fear, as you describe in her interaction with strangers, where the animal may prefer to flee.  If cornered you risk a bite. .  Escalations are curling of the lips, growling, baring teeth, barking if associated with some of the other behaviors, nipping with intent to harm or warn and the full fledged bite.

In your profile I read you got her at 5 months of age and that she was afraid of everything.  My guess is that she lacked proper early socialization. Socialization gets harder to work on as the months pass. You may benefit from help from an experienced trainer, if you find someone that, for starters, can make her feel comfortable with them.

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Permalink Reply by Jennifer Markley on February 20, 2013 at 6:09pm

This is the natural attempt to look "bigger".  Normally it happens when angry, but my Aussie does it too when excited and playing with the other dogs.  My guess is it's just a big rush of hormones that they have no control over....

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Permalink Reply by Gromit, Sparkle, and Doug on February 20, 2013 at 7:00pm

The fur rising on the back is known as "getting their hackles up" and is usually associated with anger or aggression.  But I know Gromit does this when he's just excited and wanted to play, I see it happen all the time when he and Sparkle are wrestling.

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Permalink Reply by Heather & Ellie on February 20, 2013 at 7:02pm

Thanks for that information, Anna.  Ellie has never shown any sign of aggression to anyone, so I think it might be a dominance thing or just excitement like Jennifer said.  I'll definitely keep an eye on her just in case.  I'm sure you're right about the socialization, and I've been working on it.  I wrote that in my profile right after I brought her home.  Ellie's made huge progress since she's been here.

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Permalink Reply by Anna Morelli on February 20, 2013 at 11:23pm

Be aware that dogs can be dominant to other dogs (which cn escalate to aggression in some ) while being submissive to people.  The fear you describe toward people needs to be worked on because you don't want a fear biter either and it's also extremely stressful for her....   Be especially careful of children who will sometimes run up to a dog without asking anything.  I'm glad she's made a lot of progress since you got her, that is encouraging. 

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Permalink Reply by Beth on February 21, 2013 at 12:08pm

Think of it as a sign of extreme arousal and that will cover all your bases. The arousal can be fear-based, dominance-based, aggression-based, prey-drive based, etc. So yes, just like a wagging tail, it can mean many things and you have to look at the big picture.

Context is also important; my Maddie honestly is not really good at speaking dog despite having lived with other dogs her whole life. She frequently will stare directly and get up on her toes, which is typically seen as a sign of dominance, but as soon as another dog engages in anyway she retreats. She is excited and slightly unsure of herself around other dogs, and tries to play the tough guy when she's not. She seems to think it's a protective mechanism, but in fact it backfires and so we manage her initial greetings with other dogs carefully.

Jack, on the other hand, is actually in the dominant 20% or so in his dog-dog interactions, but typically approaches greetings in what is usually seen as a submissive posture (makes himself lower, ears back, etc). HE is very concerned with making friends and meeting and greeting; it's one of his biggest joys in life. He's learned an approach that lets him meet the most dogs with the least grief, and he only asserts his dominance outside the home if other dogs are behaving badly (inside the home is another matter).

So to really know what is going on you have to take a measure of the entire series of interactions and also factor in the dog's primary motivation.

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Permalink Reply by John Wolff on February 22, 2013 at 4:06am

Your description of Jack meting dogs is Al's way of meeting people, especially me -- eager to please.  Oh I wish he knew how to do that with dogs.  I think he's insecure with bigger dogs.  He doesn't know how to say "Back Off!" gracefully, so he uses the "I'm too mean and nasty to mess with!" approach.  Embarrassing.

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