Dog Advice needed ASAP!!!

[Jamie_Dog_Trainer]

Quote:
Or that. You can always return the dog, but if you are unwilling to do that, then getting a trainer and being ok with making some very hard decisions and possibly life style changes is what you will have to do. Personally I would not risk the situation with a dog that you've only had for just under a week. Your daughter can get just as good of a bond with a dog that doesn't have this kind of temperament issue.

I really feel for your situation.

 

[flowerchicks]

I had two dachshunds when I was a kid, they were nice enough (one was a little "slow" due to an infection from a cat scratch), but I don't trust them. My friend had a dachshund years ago, and it is the only dog I have ever been bitten by. The trigger was me, very gently trying to get him off the couch, he didn't want to move, and bit my hand. Luckily for dog, he belonged to my friend, but I let him know, that was NOT a smart move. Up until that point, he loved me, after that, we were enemies. She rehomed him not long after that because he was biting them, and he bit both the grandkids of the woman who took him. I have another friend who has a dachshund, I was with her when she picked her out as a puppy. She is a sweet dog, mostly, but has bit their granddaughter (3 yrs old) and they had to stop giving her dog bones because she became aggressive trying to protect them. I am not saying all dachshunds are aggressive, but I do think the breed has a VERY independent streak and they can be fearless. They were bred to run into holes and flush out badgers and other vermin. It's like having a Rottweiler in a long, short body. If this breed doesn't learn to respect people and other animals right away, they will take over the house. I don't think this is a good choice for a special needs child. There are lots of dogs that "worship" their owners, and wouldn't bite, even if the really should (due to abuse

) jmo

 

[AinaWGSD]

If you want to keep this dog, you need to call your vet and get a referral to a behaviorist. Not just a trainer, a behaviorist who has experience with aggression. If you can't afford to take this dog to a behaviorist and get professional help, then you need to either return him to the foster home or have him euthanized yourself. There's a lot on the line here, and while your male friend may be "tolerant" of being bitten others may not be so forgiving and it would be even more heartbreaking and traumatic for your daughter if the dog had to be taken from your home for a rabies quarantine and/or euthanized because he bites someone who will go after him with the law.

I understand your stress since your daughter is making such great progress. But it is the very fact that you do have a disabled child in the house that you need to get professional help in working with this dog if you are going to keep him. Your friend is right, a dog that shows this kind of aggression with no obvious trigger (now maybe your male friend is doing something subtle that is setting the dog off, but you don't mention anything that sends up a red flag as far as your friend's behavior goes) can cause serious damage to a child or even an adult. I have seen aggressive dogs make great progress with the help of a behaviorist, but it will require the help of a professional behaviorist and a ton of work on your part. And that work doesn't "end" when the dog seems to have "gotten over" his issues, it will be a constant life-long vigil 24/7 for you until this dog passes.

One final note, if you haven't already taken this dog to the vet for a check-up I couldn't recommend this strongly enough. While it does seem that this aggression is behavioral, you do both the dog and yourself a huge disservice if you don't investigate possible medical reasons for this aggression. I work for a vet and just recently we had a dog come in for sudden aggression towards the owner. Turned out the dog was lyme positive, and once we treated the lyme disease the dog was no longer painful and no longer aggressive either. Not saying that your new dog has a medical problem, but if he does it could be compounding the behavior.

 

[welsummerchicks]

You said he's nipping the male friend who lives with you?

I would have the male friend who's living with you, toss the dog sliced deli chicken or turkey, which all dogs love. If the dog is growling at the friend out of fear or suspicion, let him see the person isn't a problem.

I do not do this when growling is actively going on, I'd do it when the growling is not happening. The good thing about deli chicken is you can throw it from a little distance, so the dog doesn't have to get up close to the person to start.

I have stood there with a training collar and leash on the dog and given him a correction every time he growled, and when he stops growling, even if for a second, the person tosses him a piece of chicken. That worked very, very quickly. The dog totally forgot about growling at the person and decided he was a very, very interesting person for OTHER reasons, LOL.

When the dog was actually growling, I would correct the dog, 'No', and a collar correction. The trick with deli chicken is to get the dog to where he watches and looks UP at the person waiting for that treat, and stops growling. So yes you can use treats but the timing is critical.

When the dog starts to nip the person, you correct the dog, and you remove the dog and put him in a crate or bathroom with door shut for 10 min. Let him cool down in there for a little while and then try again.

A lot of times, dogs only growl and nip when the person is moving around. So when the person is still, might offer a chance to try to reduce the amount of tension and getting his head up and looking at the person for food. You can also teach the dog to sit for a treat which helps.

The dog probably thinks that guy is nip-able, ie, he's lower ranking, he doesn't belong there, etc. Teach the dog that you decide who is nip-able.

I don't yet think there is anything big wrong with the dog except that he sounds like not a whole lot of effort was ever put into him, he hasn't quite figured out what your friend's place is. Sounds like dog is just trying to figure out who's in charge in a new home.

 

[Jamie_Dog_Trainer]

Behaviorist/trainer or a trainer. Most behaviorists don't train, they'll just tell you where the behavior is coming from (origination) and what type of behavior might come from that, and how the future behaviors might change. I have worked with real Behaviorists -- people with Doctorate Degrees in animal behavior, with specialties in Canine psychology, physiology, ect. And, while what they say is interesting, and has its place...they rarely can teach you how to modify or change the behavior. They have a lot of good ideas but most lack hands-on training and experience. That is why I would look for Behaviorists that have in-house trainers working for them.

This situation needs some kind of professional help, whether the OP decides to give the dog back to rescue or keep the dog.

ETA** I second the good Vet exam and bloodwork to rule out a medical issue.

 

[savingdogs]

I have to say I agree with the vet exam also.....excellent point to add...

But if the vet finds nothing medically wrong I'd let the rescue deal with the dog's issues. Vets can be excellent assessors of personality in a dog as well and how the dog reacts to a veterinary visit can be very informative.

There are so many wonderful, wonderful dogs out there.....who don't have that issue. Let your daughter be a part of the choosing process in finding another dog. Just let her know that getting a long with everybody is the one thing that a dog MUST do in order to live at your house. While it will be a temporary dissapointment, learning to make the right choices for oneself is a part of growing up, let her be a part of the correcting of this problem so she learns how you solved the issue. Sometimes being a parent means we cannot protect our children from dissapointments in life, but rather, how to learn to deal with them.

I think you could make a happy ending for everyone, including the dog. That dog just isn't a "match" for a special needs child, even if it does love her. She is probably totally 100 percent loveable and another nice dog will quickly fill the shoes. My children have dealt with us fostering and giving away dogs constantly, their whole life. For us, it was because they were never meant to be ours. But you would be surprised how quickly children forget the beloved dog that just left when presented with a new playmate. As someone who promotes lifelong ownership of dogs and cats, I don't say this lightly, it is not something to be done without consideration. But when all is said and done, children generally react positively to the new animal in the home, such as after the death of a beloved pet.

My experience is with re-homeing pets, I hope you found it helpful.

 

[greytmommy]

I used to train dogs professional, and have fostered many dogs.

I havent read all the replies yet (sorry!) but gonna throw in my 2 cents.

Has the dog actaully put his teeth on a human (made contact)? if so, did he draw blood?

Sounds silly, but it is important.

If he is just skittish around men, and acting aggressive that is easier to fix than a dog that has bitten and drawn blood. There are things you can do to desensetize a dog to people/situations that make them anxious. I would also contact a professional...but until you can get in to see them here are some things you can do to hlep:

1. make sure no male is intruding in on the dogs space. We want the dog to feel comfortable, not threatened by men, so it doesnt get worse. So most man need to ignore the dog as much as possible, and act non-threatenning

2. Have a man, sit on the floor, NOT facing the dog (sideways), and throw treats on the floor toward dog. do NOT make eye contact and do NOT smile. These are seen as aggressive moves by dogs.

3. never, never, never bend at the waist OVER the dog...that is threatening. alwasy sit or squat, and ALWAYS let the dog come up to you.

That will get you started. I helped work with my fair share of "scared' dogs. All of them are now happy and can go to parks ect, and you would never know there was a problem. It takes work and dedication, but it can help.

http://www.diamondsintheruff.com/ This wesite has a TON of free articles in the Behavior FAQ section. And there are a lot of good ones about "Dog Speak". Take a look a "space invaders" espically...and the "dog body language" so you can get better at picking out when the pooch is stressed, and remove him from the situation before he growls and nips.

This is a GREAT GREAT book about working with a fear aggressive dog: Emma Parsons "Click to Calm" http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DTB825 and Patricia McConnell " Cautious Canine" http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DTB586

They are both wonderfully helpful books!!!

hope this helps, and good luck!

 

[greytmommy]

Quote:
ok, i see 2 things here.
1. The reaction your male friend had was BAD. majorly bad. The last thing the dog needs is for this person to instill more fear. he responded to the dog's aggressive behavior in MORE aggressive behaivor...like he is "challanging" the dog. That can lead to bloodshed if the dog feels like it needs to fight back.

2. your reprimanding the dog is an issue. When the dog does an aggressive display, you cannot counter w/ ANY type of violence at all...even if it is yelling, stern face, or forced submissive positioning. The best way to handle it, is to take the leash, and w/o ANY emotion remove the dog from the situation and isolate it. Any emotion will just aggitate the dog more and make the situation worse.

But honestly...your dog so far, sounds like a pretty classic case of a dog that might have been abused before, but can be fixed. But you HAVE to lay down the law to the male in question first. B/c he sounds like he will just make the situation worse, instead of helping fix the dog. KWIM?

 

[farmgirl68]

To: redhen

If that dog will bite your friend..he WILL bite your kid someday too...
Just my opinion..
No way i'd risk my kids face.. or worse!.. nope. I couldnt even imagine how i'd feel.. can you?
Doggie needs to go to another home where there are no children... at the very least... maybe even put down. A human agressive dog is NOT something for a child to be around..

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Why does Sea World have a seafood restaurant?? I'm halfway through my fish burger and i realize, Oh man.... I could be eating a slow learner.


My daughter is special needs, but 20 yrs old. She is very good with the dog.

I agree though the dog, can turn on her to, I am sure.

I am hoping training will help.

 

[greytmommy]

don't lose hope yet! Just b/c the dog has nipped ur male friend doesn't mean he wil turn on your daugter. Talk to the professional. Read the material. There are so many reasoons a dog could bite. Problem with humans is that we are bad at speaking 'dog'.....& a lot of the time, humans unknowingly prevoke the dog to bite, & the situation could have been avoided.

I speak every spring to classes of 4th graders at the local school on how to be safe around dogs. It is amazing how 90 percent of the general public make a ton of canine faux pas. Some dogs are mellow enough to take it....some dogs have to be trained to take it....and some never learn to be that mellow. But does that make it amean or dangerous dog? Well..imo, no. Just makes dangerous humans.