[music playing]
[dog barking]
JULIE: Frankie is a Chinese Crested
purebred who's ferocious.
Frankie!
Come here, Frankie.
Within the first week of bringing Frankie home--
Walk.
--I noticed some aggression.
If he sees another dog across the street, he'll go crazy.
[frankie barking]
I can't control him.
[frankie barking]
No.
Before Frankie, I had never been bitten by a dog before.
This was a full-on bite.
I had to pry my hand out.
That was scary.
[frankie barking]
If he bites somebody, I can't control what happens to him.
I'm really hoping that Matt can help me with Frankie, because I
don't know where else to go.
[doorbell rings]
MATT BEISNER: Your guy's here. - Nice to meet you.
Thanks for coming.
[frankie barking]
Thank you for having me in.
[frankie barking]
Because of Frankie's tendency to bite,
we're starting with him safely contained.
That's a normal reaction?
JULIE: Yeah.
MATT BEISNER: Immediately I can see and hear
that though he is a rad looking dog,
he is beyond anxious at my arrival.
Don't engage with Frankie at all.
In fact-- JULIE: I won't even look at him.
MATT BEISNER: Oh, who's that?
That's Clover.
MATT BEISNER: Oh, that's Clover. - Yeah.
MATT BEISNER: Hi, Clover.
Is she your first Chinese Crested?
Uh-huh.
MATT BEISNER: Pretty amazing dogs, huh?
So amazing. MATT BEISNER: Yeah.
JULIE: He came from the shelter, so I don't
know what his back story is.
He was already kind of--
MATT BEISNER: Off? - Off.
Yeah.
He didn't know how to walk on a leash.
He was underweight.
MATT BEISNER: He's bit-- he's bit you.
He bit me, and he broke skin on me.
I still have a little scab.
It's from a couple weeks ago.
He's not bit anybody else, because you just--
I don't let him. MATT BEISNER: Yeah.
But he has-- sure would have.
He goes so nuts sometimes and I don't know what to do for him.
Clover, I took to dog-training class and she did great.
Frankie got kicked out of obedience class
because he was making a ruckus.
He wouldn't calm down.
He was lunging at other dogs.
Who gets kicked out of puppy obedience one?
Plenty of dogs that come to us.
I love Frankie and want him to succeed in life.
Yeah.
Everything that you're describing is fear-based.
What I'd like to do is have you put a leash on him
and hand the leash to me.
OK.
[music playing]
You know, look at this.
I'm getting a lot of play over here
because somebody is getting some attention from mom.
You're barking over the wrong sucker.
No, you're going to come over here.
Go ahead.
Let go.
Go ahead and sit down.
I'm just going to see what's what.
You're welcome to smell.
We're not there yet, Frankie.
JULIE: Yeah.
We're not there yet, either. JULIE: Oh.
A snap.
MATT BEISNER: Well, that was sassy.
What you have here is a dog that is addicted to attention.
He's not secure.
He's not having an independent, healthy experience.
If they're both sleeping in the bed, you have a problem.
OK.
Say what?
I mean, who doesn't want to cuddle with a puppy?
Why have a dog if you're not going to cuddle all night.
If I don't sleep with them, I don't
have anyone else to cuddle.
MATT BEISNER: Yes.
I can't tell you how many people have said
almost the same thing to me.
You're not alone in that.
What I see more than anything else in my work with people
is that they have an emotional need that they are
expecting the dog to fulfill.
It's why we keep dogs in the bed.
Ideally, neither dog is on the bed again.
Oh, my gosh.
MATT BEISNER: This is about relationship.
When you have a dog that vacillates from fear aggression
to obsessive neediness, letting that dog in the bed
will almost certainly exacerbate its anxiety and fear.
The owners that get the dogs off the bed
see a difference in the dog's ability
to calm themselves down.
OK.
Come here, Frankie.
You hang onto the leash, but don't pet him.
No.
MATT BEISNER: And just gently scooch him off your lap.
So we're going to encourage him to be
next to you, but not on you.
Scooch her gently off of your lap.
No. You just stay over here.
[music playing]
OK.
Good.
They both have landed in a place where they are
comfortable, self-induced calm.
You didn't have to tell them to do anything.
All you did was set up a boundary which was,
don't come into my space without permission.
You have a stunning, unique dog, and people come into his space
without permission, and part of the generalized lesson
there is that Frankie goes into people's space
without permission.
Going at someone or at a dog is often about getting space.
Yes, Frankie, I was talking about you.
What I can do is help him feel like his space is
more respected.
I'd like that.
MATT BEISNER: Frankie needs to gain
some independence and security.
Until we see each other again, I want you to get the dogs out
of the bed and do not give Frankie affection
unless he's called.
You don't think it's too late for him?
No.
Great question.
No, not at all.
I've never seen a dog for whom it's too late.
OK.
That's good.
[music playing]