Don't hesitate to call anthropomorphism on me if you think it fits.

When my husband is out of town on business, I am positive Niko acts differently. For instance, this morning after breakfast he sat at our sliding glass door and growled at something outside. I looked and saw nothing at all. It took a few verbal cues to make him leave the window and go back to laying down. Then when we went outside for his morning run, he ran out into the yard alert barking and doing a perimeter run at the edge of the woods. I called him back to me (and kicked myself for not leashing him, but we do this every other morning without incident) and we went on our way as usual.

So could he be behaving in a more alert (and reactive) manner because Don is not home? Does that imply a level of imagination that is beyond a dog? Because it seems to me it involves quite a complex though process: "Dad is not home, Mom is home alone, therefore we are all more vulnerable and I must be more vigilant and make sure that I scare off anything that MIGHT be lurking about, even if I can't see or smell it."

Now before anyone says that I am projecting some kind of nervous energy because I am home alone, let me assure you that I am not at all nervous being alone. I have zero fear of a break in or unexpected visitors.

And now that Niko is 2 and a half years old, is it possible that he is becoming protective, or is this just still his fear reactivity? Will I ever be able to tell when he is being protective? He was quite bold this morning on his barking patrol of the yard, but it might just be wishful thinking on my part that he was trying to protect me (from whatever, still saw no sign of anything in the yard).

IMHO it isn't unusual for a dog to act differently when his normal routine is upset (in this case your DH not being there). How they do it may be different from dog to dog, but I don't see anything unusual about it. The fact that he seems to be more alert, atuned to what's going on around him, would be a plus.

He probably senses that he's the male of the family for right now and like most males they need to feel like they have an important role in protecting the crew. At our house we have the same ritual each night. I go to bed and Shiloh goes to the front window and barks. I yell 'Shiloh be quiet' and he barks one more time (he just has to get that last bark in), after that he's fine. I think thats just his way of letting the world know he's on duty.

I'm thinking your boy is doing just the same....letting the world know he's on duty!

So maybe I'm not crazy? Well, at least not about this.

My hubby is out of town this week too and Yes Havoc is acting like his stuff does not stink this week. I am the the main dog caretaker and trainer but he still seems to feel the need to strut his stuff. I hate it when he pushes like that. He is more protective and alert, he has actually gotten up to patrol the house which he does not do when Joe is at home.

The cats are acting out too. Nacho knocked the food bowls on the floor last night as she was po'd I did not get her fed fast enough (I think!). Justin is chapped because he alwasy gets on papa's lap for TV watching at night. No papa, and mom was watching Westminister and had the nerve to be working on a quilt and did not want lap time. He yowled in the kitchen til I told him to "SHUT UP!"

The only animals that were minding thier own busiess were Kayos and Sweetie Pie (cat)

I think dogs sense and pick up on our vibes. When we feel a bit unsettled, hyper-aware, and a wee bit more on edge, they do too. Especially breeds who crave strong leadership. They may become more tense, barky, or even act out to some extent too.

Yep, I figure that is why Havoc is hyper vigilant. I may not even realize I am more vigilant but he does. He is very in tune with me.

He even barked at a lady last night while we were out walking. He has NEVER barked at a lady. Some men but never women, and he has not barked at anyone in a year. But I was pushing on our walk. I wanted to get home and get a few things done before Westminster started, so I was rushed and stressing a bit and it went right to him. So he became one vigilant and barked.

Chama and Massie were both like this (not Basu and Kai who barked indiscriminately). I would characterize it as instinct and a deep bond (as others have said) rather than imagination though. I remember two incidents in particular:

Once I was getting off work very late at night. Massie was with me (this was 20 years ago and she came to work with me when I worked second or third shifts). We stepped outside and the street was deserted except for one man who kept walking up to us and trying to talk to me. Massie kept shifting her position so that she was in between this guy and I and then she started to growl (something she never did). Needless to say, he left.

Then, another time my ex and I were walking the dogs at night and I looked up and saw a guy walking down the sidewalk towards us. Chama, who was not a reactive dog, started growling and barking and I looked more closely and saw that the guy was carrying a broken beer bottle in his hand. She did a similar thing once in a playground at a night when a very drunk man came up to us and wanted to pet the dogs and another time when we were in a park at night and a man exited the Portopotty just as we were passing it.

Rafi is much more protective when Kailor is here and they are home alone than when it is just him. Same goes for when people are here. When he is alone he is not protective but when others are here, be they 2 or 4 legged, he is appropriately protective.

Well, last night ROSA was the one growling at the window. I guess she must have a protective streak too. And Niko was SURE there was danger in the woods when I took him out for the last potty of the night. It's a good thing I don't put too much stock in the reactions of my dogs, I'd be holed up in a closet with the shotgun.

I kind of feel like the reactiveness is still a bad thing though. Like they don't think that I can protect them when Don is not home, so they have to step up. It shouldn't be like that though, right? Shouldn't I be able to project an attitude and behave in a way that makes them feel safe?

I honestly don't feel any different when Don isn't home. It's actually kind of nice to be alone, I can eat like a teenager and surf the Internet all day. I'm not the least bit nervous or jittery.

Oh, I don't think so. Was it fear barking or protective barking? I think all dogs have that protectiveness, and they are displaying theirs now because the routine/schedule has been altered. You are still the leader, but they think they have a job too.

If it's fear barking, I think you might have some work to do. Otherwise, I'd let them go. JMO.