for no apparent reason she flips out especially towards female family members, she gets very aggresive biting ankles and locking onto trouserlegs. her eyes bulge and go red, when we restrain her she starts to yelp and cry as if in pain. in extreme cases we tend to muzzle her for a few minutes, which does calm her down but she does'nt seem to be able to associate this with her bad behaviour. the vet has given her a clean bill of health and suggested a behavioural therapist, which we tried, he managed to control her but when we try his suggestions they dont seem to work. we wondered if it could be an alpha female thing as she does'nt seem to attack male family members so much. she can be an extremely loving dog most of the time but seems to turn nasty when she becomes excited which being a puppy is quite often. we also have a 5 year old bull terrier who behaves well and has never had this trait (we also had this dog from a puppy), where are we going wrong?
2007-02-22 02:27:17 · 6 answers · asked by John B 1 in Pets ➔ Dogs
Keep working with the trainer. You may not have shown your dog that you are the boss yet, which may be why his suggestions aren't working for you. It may take time, but don't give up. A trainer told my family, when our puppy was showing signs of agression, to roll him onto his back and hold him there until he submitted. It didn't work at first for us either, but we kept at it, and now he is really gentle. Good luck. Don't give up.
2007-02-22 02:36:11 · answer #1 · answered by erinn83bis 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Do not smack an English Bull!!!! It is a waste of time as they are almost impervious to pain. Smacking him will only make him more excited. Use sound i.e. your loud voice or even a container full of pebbles or beads. When he misbehaves, shout at him and use the rattle. Keep at it until he sits at your command. You must spend the time with him now!! In six months, this dog will be a serious problem if not socialised and trained. An out-of-control male English Bull is bad news. If you are not using him for breeding, think about having him neutered. He will become much easier to manage and much less of a liability. Bull Terriers make excellent companion dogs and are utterly loyal. However they are also easily ruined by poor handling. make sure he knows that you are boss. He will be happy with the situation. Rough and tumble games only serve to confuse the dog. Never allow him to dominate a human physically and NEVER NEVER play tug-of-war games as he will interpret this as you giving him a chance to dominate. Be firm and only show the dog affection after you have acknowledged all other people in the room. This is not cruel. A dog only needs to be sure of his place to be happy. Good luck.
2016-05-23 22:57:13 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Bullies are very strong-willed and intelligent. You need to be strong, firm, and calm. Do not hit or yell to correct behavior. If you must do something physical, pinch her neck between your thumb and fingers [not hard, just enough for her to feel] and say 'No' in a strong, firm voice. Do not get nervous or apprehensive or fearful that she will bite someone. She can feel those vibes, and may misinterpret it as you needing to be protected. Be a strong, calm presence. Make her submit to you [roll over on her back] so that she gets to know you're boss. Be careful, because she does sound like she is exhibiting alpha behavior and she won't like you taking over the role. But you absolutely have to. Intelligent dogs like this need a strong, calm owner and you have to be up to that challenge if you chose an animal from this breed. She's still young. You'll turn her around. Bull terriers are great dogs when trained right. If you need to, bring her to a good trainer.
You might want to muzzle her while making her submit to you. Just to be careful. Good luck.
2007-02-22 02:35:19 · answer #3 · answered by dark_reaction 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You have a smart dog on your hands! Getting her into a obeidence class that does NOT use treats would be very helpful. Also if you are playing games like tug-o- war with her stop playing games like that are traching her that it's ok to bite and grab at things. have her wear a leash arond the house so you can grab it and correct her for bad behavior she cries when you restrain her because she knows if she does you will stop. As long as you are not really hurting her. Dogs learn by being physical and you need to let her know that you are the Alpha in the pack not her good Luck
2007-02-22 02:41:10 · answer #4 · answered by triomom 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Tell the trainer that things are not getting better. He/she will make sure that you are doing the exercises correctly and, if so, should offer other suggestions. If the trainer can't give you any other tips, find someone else.
Considering the age of your dog and the behavior you describe, I have a feeling that behavior modification drugs may be needed in order to get through to her.
2007-02-22 02:43:08 · answer #5 · answered by melissa k 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
unfortunately dogs are tricky but so darn cute :) I have always like the spraying of the dog (or cat) with water. I think it works great and they usually stop dead in there tracks. I have trained my 3 dogs, my sisters dog, and my cousins dogs that way. Dogs even though they like water apparently do not like being sprayed with water (like out of a water spritzer you use for plants or something like that) and when they are a puppy they get freaked out just when you reach for the bottle eventually :)
It could be an alpha female type thing or even it being jealous that other things are spending time with you instead of the doggie. If possible i would keep doing the training classes as well sometime puppies like babies are just stubborn he he
2007-02-22 02:36:41 · answer #6 · answered by lyd285 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋