Letting Sleeping Dogs Lie

The particular problem of violence when awakened unexpectedly is not unique to dogs. Some people will take a swing at you if you waken them suddenly also. I do not think much can be done about the startle from a dead sleep problem other than not startling the sleeping dog. Making it sleep in a crate would protect all concerned. The problem of snapping when startled but awake may be be handled by a behaviour modification technique called, I believe, habituation - in which low level startle stimulus is applied from a distance. if the dog startles nothing is said but the startle stimulus is applied again a bit later and at a low level. Eventually the dog will not startle - then it is praised. The distance from which the stimulis is applied is then gradually decreased the level of the stimulus is gradually increased - again praise when no startle occurs

An example from our own training group. An adult male Borzoi was owned by a couple who had had the dog since puppyhood. They decided to have a baby (human). The dog was rather prone to startling- sometimes with a scream or a snap but not a connect and bite.

The owners obtained a soft doll the size of a actual child ( a Cabbage Patch ® Doll in this case). When the dog was awake but lying down they might drop the doll on the floor at the other side of the room. At first the dog would jump and startle. Gradually the dog started ignoring the doll when it was dropped. They would then praise it and give it a treat after dropping the doll if there was no reaction. They then moved the doll closer to the dog and repeated the cycle. Since the purpose of the training was to make the dog safe if a child happened to trip and fall on or close to the dog the doll was dropped closer and closer over a period of time. Eventually the dog would not startle even if the doll was dropped on him. The dog delt fairly well with the infant after it came although it still was basically a jumpy dog. Unfortunately when the child was 3 years old the couple experienced an incident where the dog snapped at another dog when the child was between the two animals and the child received a minor bite on the face. Subsequently the dog was placed in childless home where he also has less competition from other animals. He is doing fine.

In another instance, I owned a really strange male Borzoi named Crazy Rockie who had a lot of unique ways of reacting to the world. He taught me a lot about training and behavior. One of Rocky's problems was that he would startle out of a deep sleep and growl and bite. I discovered this when he tried climbing into my bed after I was asleep and sleeping on top of me. When I moved he awoke with a horrifying growl and tried to bite. There really is no training I could think of to stop this but having Rocky sleep in the kitchen rather then the bedroom solved the dilemma. I must comment that the experience of having a 90 pound Borzoi who has crept onto your bed suddenly wake up growling and snapping because you moved in your sleep is memorable!

The point of this is that different individual dogs (not just breeds) have different inherent ways of interacting with the world and not all dogs are suited to all environments or circumstances. Jumpy dogs need to be desensitized without being thrown into a panic. Dogs that bite out of dominance will usually need strong negative reinforcement but jumpy dogs need calm but firm discipline. For example a dog that panics will only panic worse if you really yell at it but if it can be held immobile until it calms down and then be rewarded for calming down you can often shape the response behaviour away from panic. However the dog will still have to be thought of as a dog that panics if the startle stimulus is intense enough.

Sighthounds such as greyhounds, borzoi, whippets, Afghan hounds and salukis are hunting dogs and have very quick reflexes. In general successful sighthound ownership needs to take this into account. Just because a sighthound has the delicacy and grace of a deer doesn't mean that it is a delicate passive animal.