My dog has started to attack other dogs?

Question

My dog is a 3 year old female cross between a german shepard and a husky, she has a very lovely gentle temperament, loves children. Recently when we have taken her to the park she has attacked other dogs. There hasn't been any growling or barking before hand, she has just started fighting with them. She is stopping and leaving when I say but I don't like having to walk around with her on the lead all the time. My partner said it might be because she was attacked by a german shepard recently, if that is the reason how can i get her back to her old friendly self. When she is with the neighbours dog, who they have know since puppies she is fine. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Answer 1

She must feel very threatened by new animals and is taking the initiative in being dominant. You will have to keep her on a lead because it is up to the owner to control their dogs.

Answer 2

That is a very tough one. Your partner is on to something. It's a protection mechanism if she's recently been attacked. Kill or be killed sort of thing.

I DO NOT recommend this unless you have a trainer to guide you but the only thing that worked on my English Setter (she's the same way) was a remote collar.

Any sign of negative behavior and she'd get zapped. It took a few weeks before I could take her to a dog park. She's to the point now that she'll play with other dogs in a group for a limited amount of time but no real contact just running and fetching.

One on one she'll let dogs lay on her and wrestle. Talk to a trainer that will come to YOUR house for some one on one guidance.

Training will have A LOT to do with it, but it's a specific problem aimed at one thing - other dogs and probably not ALL dogs in general.

Good Luck

Answer 3

The puppy has gone from being a harmless puppy to being competition now that it is nearing adulthood. The adult dog is displaying his dominance over the puppy, trying to retain his position as the Alpha male in the pack. It is natural! This is what wolves and coyotes do too. Whether we like it or not, there is this natural struggle whenever you get a "pack" of dogs together, especially when there is a female present in the "pack". As long as the adult male is not going for "kill spots" or seriously trying to injure the younger dog, this should pass. If you feel that the younger dog is in danger, you may have to get rid of one of the males. The reason your adult male doesn't fight with your female is because that dominance has already been established. How does she treat the puppy? Does she ignore these fights or does she try to protect one of the males? That will tell you a lot about what kind of spat this is. Being around the puppy since it was six weeks old would give her some maternal instinct towards it. If she is doing nothing about the fights, like trying to protect the puppy, it is probably just a power struggle between the two males.

Answer 4

It could just be her breed (not that she is a bad breed). My 3year old female German Shepherd/Husky has always been the dominant one but has gotten a lot worse the older she gets. Mine will also attack with no warning, which is very scary. dakota is a very loving dog but has always been a little protective of me, my husband, our family, and our other animals. Do you have other animals or just have people in your house. If she doesnt have other animals she may feel like you are her pack and she feels she must protect you. If these other dogs come running at you (whether friendly or not) she may think that they are trying to attack you and go into defense mode. dakota has done this when we were walking down the street the neighbors two border collies came running at us barking and she jumped in front of us and started fighting them because they were coming after us. So your dog could be in the same mindset. The previous attack has probably put her in the attack them before they attack you mindset and so when they come running it triggers the attack response. I know it is hard to do it but she may just have to be on a leash permanently because if she severly injures another dog or person you could be held liable and she could possibly be put to sleep or quarantined for rabies observation. I know your dog is a loveable dog but if she is anything like mine you have to take precausions against stupid people and stupid pets and unfortunately that means keeping her on a tight leash. I hope you guys figure something out. if you have any other questions email me.

Answer 5

If she was attacked by another dog, she's probably decided now that the best defense is a good offense.

The solution is to use positive methods to desensitize her to other dogs - it's VERY important not to punish her for her reactions to other dogs, or you could make the problem much worse. Go to the library, pet store, or book store (or online) and pick up the book "Click to Calm" by Emma Parsons: http://www.dogwise.com/ItemDetails.cfm?ID=DTB825

For now, it's best to stay away from the dog park until you've had a chance to begin addressing her issues - you don't want to risk anything happening that might make her worse, and you don't want your dog to give anyone else's dogs fear issues, either.

Also, read this article "He Just Wants to Say Hi!" by Suzanne Clothier: http://www.flyingdogpress.com/sayhi.html

Canine body language can be very subtle, and there's usually a lot more to the interactions going on in dog parks than a lot of owners realize. Spend some time at the dog park without your dog, just observing dog interactions, and you'll learn to read the various signals that dogs give off to indicate that they want to be left alone, and you'll learn to recognize the pushy behaviors that set some dogs off. Learning to recognize pushy dog behavior was a huge help to me with my 'touchy' dog - she loves polite dogs and will play happily with them, but doesn't have much patience with pushy dogs - when I see a pushy dog coming, I can prevent problems by blocking it from getting to my dog and/or by distracting and redirecting my dog. If the pushy dog is persistent and doesn't pay attention to the 'leave me alone' signals my dog gives out, and the dog's owner doesn't understand or care that their dog is being pushy, we leave. I take charge & get her out of the situation, so she doesn't feel like she needs to defend herself.

The book "The Other End of the Leash" by Patricia McConnell is a wonderful resource for learning about dog body language and behavior. If you're interested in learning to better understand your dog, I highly recommend it.
http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DTB745

Answer 6

Being attacked is why she's changed - she's defending herself now by being the aggressor. You can't let her off lead until you've got this problem resolved. Take her to obedience classes where she can get a lot of socializing in, and gain confidence again.

Answer 7

Your dog isn't properly socialized and you should get help from a professional trainer. If not, you're facing potential suits for having an aggressive dog.

Answer 8

listen keep her on the leash and introduce it to strangers but dont be scared have controll.