Help! My Sweet Foster has turned on me...

[magoo]

I just posted on 2 or more dogs. About a fight that occured between my dog and my foster... (Magoo and Heineken...)
My foster now seems very angry with me - snarling a bit and barky at me - he's had all of his shots and is fed well, was walked etc...
Here's what's different in the last week or so...
He was neutered 2 weeks ago. (has gotten slightly spunkier each day - I was surprised - but he may as well have been a stuffed toy prior - so I think it's an improvement)
My sister (his main love) left on Sunday for 3 weeks, but of course the dog doesn't know it's only for 3 weeks - He gets as much attention as he did when she was here -
We got a heat wave about the time my sis left - it's 90 on the scale and 110 on the heat index.
My question is.
He's snapping at me - a trait I wouldn't allow with Magoo, who is in training - the foster is not - not really - he became a foster because he followed my sis (who is 15 years younger than me - I'm more like her mom) home one day and I realized I don't have the energy or commitment to find him a good home on my own- so I got a rescue organization to help - I'm trying to train him here and there - but the truth is I only have energy to do one dog at a time - He's on NILIF as much as I can do... (my dog - Magoo - is a rescue with issues - and I have a very open apartment (hard to separate them) and two jobs(hard to find the time necessary for real training for both...Magoo has to take precedent - although I've taught H to walk politely and sit before fed - that's all I can handle at the moment - Magoo gets in the way...)
So - do I just leave him alone for a little while? Is he just cranky because of the heat? Could it be his hormones changing due to his recent neutering? He's been the sweetest thing in the WORLD up until today...
I should also mention this - it is SO hot! so, I put some ice cubes on Magoo's (my dog) paws to cool him off - I tried this on Heineken as well - that's when he started snapping at me - he HATES having his nails trimmed - I thought I was helping him out a bit - by cooling him off...Magoo resisted at first but then LOVED IT - so, I thought I was doing a good thing. - Apparently not - should I just leave him alone for a while?
On another note - he used to sleep with my sis and has been locked out of her room for 3 nights - should I allow him to sleep in there? Maybe he's having separation anxiety... In the 3 months he's lived with us he's NEVER destroyed ANYTHING (Bless his soul...) it would be safe to let him in - does anyone think that might help?
We're supposed to get a HUGE storm tonight - hopefully it will cool down... I'm thinking that's the cause!
Thanks everyone for reading such a long post!
Julie, Magoo and Heineken.

[Lesly Stevens]

Julie,

This is new behavior, so a vet check would be where I would start. Something may be wrong.

However, since Heiniken is a rescue, the honeymoon period may now be over, and you may be seeing the true nature of this dog. I've fostered rescues who were sweet lambs the first three months or so, and then wham! Turn out to be dog-to-dog aggressive, and/or have other behavioral issues.

Could the heat be making Heiniken cranky? I suppose, it certainly makes me feel cranky! But, snapping at you like that is a bit overreactive behavior for being uncomfortable with the heat. Is he panting fast and hard, or labored? If the dogs are hot, cool them off with water on their bellies, inner thighs, and paw pads, and please do provide them with a fan if you don't have air conditioning. Witch Hazel or alcohol is also effective on the belly and inner thigh. You can work on his aversion to having his feet touched, but I wouldn't subject him to force. It appears Heiniken has let you know he does not like the ice cubes on his feet, so yes, I'd leave him alone.

Good luck!

Lesly, Maddy, & Bo

[Daniela Jantzen]

Julie,

I really think highly of you and everything you are doing for Heineken. I wish more owners would try to understand their dogs like you are trying to understand and interprete his behaviour correctly. :)

I think you were right with all your assumptions: it is the changes in his environment, the heat, the surgery etc.
Stress can play a big role in our dogs' lives. And stress can be a lot of things......
Usually, dogs need about 0,5-6 days (!) to recover from stress. If they get no chance to do so, things can escalate. Let me paint a picture which might explain it a bit better.
Think of a dog as a kettle of water. If the dog is under a high level of stress (like a surgery), the water is boiling. The best thing would be if you allowed the water (dog) to calm down completely before adding another stress factor in its life (turn on the heat again). Unfortunately, from what you have described, it seems as if Heineken was not allowed to calm down and relax again completely. So in other words: he was constantly pushed close to the boiling temperature again. In such cases, many dogs can become very reactive to many things.
It would be best if you provided Heineken with safe zone where he can retreat to and relax again whenever he feels like it- if it was your sister's bedroom, open the door for him.

About the paw incident: dogs are quite hesitant when it comes to people touching their paws. Understandable, this is an innate instinct: in the wild, a bite to the stomach or neck area does not have to kill you. But a bite into the paws leaves you helpless - you can't go hunting anymore and are doomed to die. So it is only natural for dogs to avoid touches on their legs and paws. However, it is quite easy to desensitize them.
But for Heinekens sake (and yours): wait until everything calmed down again.
For now, offer them lots of water to drink, wet blankets to lay on, maybe a garden shower. But never push yourself up on him.

For the next few days, establish a thorough routine for the dogs (if you have not done so already). Keep up with NILIF. Don't worry, even just a little bit of it (a sit before feeding and a sit before going out of the door) can be enough for now. And doesn't take much time. ;)

Danny