My 6 month old border collie has been acting strangely today and I cant think of anything that could have triggered it. I'm always home with him so I think I would have noticed if anything obvious has bothered him.

Hes been sat next to me growling and quietly barking (as in not full on barking) at nothing. Hes also been pretty inactive and just found that hes chewed the paint and wood off the doorframe which hes never ever done before. Hes always been good at not chewing furniture, even when we first got him.

Anyone got any ideas? Hes not been like this before.

Thanks

He'll be getting his second set of teeth....which are a whole lot worse an experience than the first set. Chewing will probably increase, he may get pain/discomfort so provide him with plenty of things he can chew on. It's a tough time as you have adolescence kicking in too with hormones so it all goes a bit haywire for a few months.

To avoid chewing on things he isn't supposed to; keep him physically and mentally engaged a fair bit during the day. A tired dog is a happy dog and when they make their own amusement it becomes frustrating for you too

At least being home a lot of the time (like myself) you can monitor the unwanted behaviour and stop it asap

If not pain/discomfort or similar.....I'm not sure if the growling/barking is warning? , guarding or attention seeking? Others can probably give you more help on this.

Thanks, his second set came in about a month or 2 ago, and weve checked and they are all there now so not teething.

Dont think hes attention seeking as he wasnt looking at me when he does it. He will just be laying there. Although at the moment hes sat growling at me...

Another thing I forgot to mention is a couple of days ago he was sat up on the couch and started weeing all over it but while he was sat? Was very strange.

are you sure hes GROWLIING at you? does he bare his teeth are you going toward him when he is growling,does he chew or eat excessive grass or greenery when he is outside?

hmm then maybe that's a different issue....if it's not hormones (boundaries/dominance testing) then maybe there's an underlying health problem?

I'm not sure but it does sound a bit odd to me, but others with more knowledge on behaviors should be able to advise better.

p.s inactive border collie?? wow!! how inactive? how long is his exercise routine?

He wont bear his teeth when he growls but hes deffinately growling and barking at me. I will be sat on the sofa and he will be on the other side of the room just staring at me while barking and growling. It has gone on for about 10 minutes just with me sat, Im not going towards him or even staring back. He doesnt eat or chew greenery or grass.

I know! Although hes always pretty chilled out, today hes not playing or anything. The most hes doing is getting up now and again to sniff things. He gets 2 walks a day about 1-2 hours long each with training.

Hmm Strange!

Might be worth taking him to the vets maybe he's not feeling very well and is in a funny mood.

Have you tried getting a favourite toy and see if that makes any difference?

Just sounds like an off day see how he goes is all I can offer.

Not sure how many other members take this stance or whether I'm just a worrier but if any of my animals are not themselves or behaving strangely I take them to the vets to be on the safe side. I think behavioural changes should be taken just as seriously as physical symptoms.

I don't know how badly the door frame is but maybe he's swallowed some splinters/ got one stuck somewhere and is in discomfort? Can you think of anything else he might have eaten?

My BC went through a phase of just barking at mid air when she was bored or was attention seeking. She didn't look at me when she did it either, maybe that could explain one of the behaviours?