5 Reasons Why Australian Shepherds Get Jealous + 4 Tips

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Whenever you play with another dog or give them any sort of attention your australian shepherd always seems to act out. Is this a sign of jealousy? Can australian shepherds even get jealous?

Do Australian Shepherds Get Jealous:

Australian shepherds are loyal dogs that grow increasingly attached to their owners. If they don’t socialize enough while they’re young it’s not unusual to see them develop strong feelings of jealousy. Also, some owners unintentionally reward their dog’s jealous behavior which makes them do it more.

In this post you’ll discover:

5 real reasons why australian shepherds get jealous
5 signs your australian shepherd is behaving overly jealous
4 tips to help your aussie stop being so jealous (Tip #4 can help the quickest!)
And much, much more

Let’s jump right in.

Table of Contents

5 Reasons Why Australian Shepherds Get Jealous

1) They Don’t Like Competition

If your australian shepherd hasn’t had much competition for your attention most of their life, they’ll have a hard time sharing you with others.

This means whenever you pay attention to other dogs, people or animals in general, your aussie will act out and behave jealously.

If they spent most of their puppyhood with you and only you, anyone else will be seen as a potential threat.

Not necessarily a potential threat in terms of you being harmed by them, but a potential threat to their relationship with you.

They think that getting your attention means you love them and your aussie doesn’t want to share that love and affection.

Which means if your pup sees any sign of competition it will almost always result in your aussie acting out because of their feelings of jealousy.

2) Accidentally Encouraged The Behavior

One of the reasons why your australian shepherd may get jealous is because you inadvertently have encouraged the behavior in the past.

How do you do this?

By petting or paying attention to them when they’re being bad and behaving jealously.

For example, if your aussie jumps on you and barks at you when around others, many people will pet them or cater to them in an attempt to calm them down.

However, this only rewards the bad behavior and makes it more likely that your pup will behave jealously again in the future.

So remember, if your pup is misbehaving due to their feelings of jealousy, don’t give them any attention until they are calm and have stopped the bad behavior.

Only then should you provide them with affection.

Doing this will help to discourage the jealous behavior and make it less likely that they will repeat it in the future.

3) Big Environment/Life Changes

If there have been big changes to your australian shepherd’s environment or life, it can lead to them feeling jealous and insecure.

For example, if you’ve recently moved to a new house or got a new job, your dog may feel like they’re not the center of your attention anymore.

This can often result in them behaving jealously in an attempt to get your attention and feel loved.

Other big changes that can lead to jealousy in dogs include the birth of a baby, getting married or having another pet join your family.

Related Reading: Top 8 Best Beds For Australian Shepherds

4) Not Enough Experiences

If your australian shepherd doesn’t have enough experiences when they’re young, it can lead to them feeling isolated and jealous when they get older.

This is because they won’t have the proper understanding of how the world works and will become very protective over you as their only source of love and attention.

Since they haven’t experienced much, they’ll see anyone else as a potential threat to their relationship with you and will act out in order to keep you all to themselves.

This is why socializing an australian shepherd is so important when they’re young as it can help avoid many overly jealous behaviors.

5) High Levels Of Anxiety

Some of the most extreme jealous behaviors come from a dog experiencing high levels of anxiety.

If your aussie had any traumatic experiences as a puppy, once they trust and love you it can cause them to become very protective of you and see any other dogs/people as threats.

This is because it was difficult for them to trust anyone again after their terrible experience(s) but now that they trust you, their love for you is very strong.

Unfortunately, too strong.

Being apart from you or seeing you interact with anyone else gives them high levels of anxiety and makes them extremely jealous.

Which can also bring on aggressive behavior.

5 Signs Your Australian Shepherd Is Jealous

1) Excessively Vocal

If your australian shepherd is excessively vocal when you’re around other people or animals, it’s often a sign that they’re feeling jealous.

This may include excessive barking, whining or howling and is usually their way of trying to get your attention.

If your pup is normally quiet but starts making a lot of noise when someone else comes over, it’s likely that they’re feeling jealous and are trying to get you to pay attention to them.

You may also notice that their vocalizations increase in intensity the longer you’re around the other person or animal.

2) Inability To Settle

Another sign that your aussie is feeling jealous is if they’re unable to settle down when you’re around others.

This may include pacing back and forth, panting, or being restless and fidgety.

If you notice them only being unable to settle when around others, this is likely a sign they’re feeling jealous.

3) Pawing At You

Pawing at you is another way your aussie may try to get your attention and is often a sign of jealousy.

My childhood pup was notorious for doing this whenever a baby would visit our house.

My mom would pay attention to the baby and play with them and our pup would paw at her constantly to try and get her to play with them instead.

While it can be cute at first, it gets old pretty darn quick!

4) Jumping On You When Around Others

Jumping on you is another way your aussie may try to get your attention and, like pawing at you, is often a sign of jealousy.

This behavior can be dangerous as they may jump so high that they knock you over or hurt you unintentionally.

If your australian shepherd jumps on you excessively when around others, it’s likely because they’re feeling jealous and are trying to get your attention.

5) Shadow-Dog

Shadow-dogging is when your aussie follows you around constantly and doesn’t leave your side.

It’s often seen as an act of jealousy as they’re trying to make sure that they’re always the one who gets your attention.

They want to make sure they know where you are at all times and are included in any fun that you might have.

While also making sure that no one else gets to enjoy your attention and affection instead of them.

4 Tips To Help Your Australian Shepherd Not Get So Jealous

1) More Interactions = Better

One of the best things you can do to help your australian shepherd not get so jealous is to make sure they have plenty of interactions with other people and animals.

This means socializing them as much as possible while they’re young.

The more they’re around others, the more comfortable they’ll be and the less likely they are to become jealous.

Which is why introducing them to as many dogs, people and situations before they turn 1 is very beneficial.

When they learn at a young age that they aren’t the center of your universe they’re much less likely to act out because of jealousy.

It also helps make all future interactions much more enjoyable because they aren’t bugging you all the time when you have guests over.

2) Correct Don’t Encourage

One mistake that many australian shepherd owners make is unintentionally encouraging jealous behavior.

This often happens when giving your aussie attention to try and calm them down when they’re acting out.

While it may seem like you’re helping, you’re actually just rewarding the bad behavior and making it more likely to happen again in the future.

It’s important to correct the behavior instead of encouraging it.

This means ignoring them when they’re acting out and only giving them attention when they’re behaving the way you want them to.

It takes patience and consistency but it’s the best way to help your aussie not get so jealous.

3) Keep Things 50/50

Do your best to spread your love and attention evenly in your home.

This means not giving your aussie all of your attention while also not forgetting to give them some attention.

Many times this accidently happens when they start out as your sole focus when home.

But if you’ve recently brought home another dog/pet or a new baby has joined your home it can easily make them feel neglected.

In this situation it means others might start getting more of your attention than your australian shepherd and it’s making them get jealous.

Instead, do your best to spread out your attention as evenly as possible.

While there will definitely be periods where other members of your home will require more of your attention, try your best to remember to make time for your aussie as well.

4) Find Their Main Trigger

Each australian shepherd is different and will have their own individual triggers that set them off into jealous mode.

Some common triggers may be other dogs, people or animals being in your home, you paying attention to someone/something else, or even something as simple as you picking up your car keys.

Once you know what sets your aussie off, you can start to work on helping them not get so jealous.

And there’s only really two ways of doing this.

One, limit how often they’re exposed to their trigger (not ideal).

Two, help them overcome their jealous feelings by exposing them to their triggers more often in a safe, controlled environment.

This helps them overcome these silly jealous feelings and become a more well behaved pup around other dogs & people.

Other posts you might find interesting:

12 Best Harnesses for Australian Shepherds

16 Things To Know About Australian Shepherds & Cuddling

7 Reasons Australian Shepherds Eat Everything + 4 Tips

7 Fascinating Reasons Why Australian Shepherds Stare At You