i have a 5 year old papillon mix. he's the most adorable, playful energetic dog, but he hates other people and other dogs. he only likes my family and our other dog... and if we have company or when we take him for walks, he goes crazy on strangers and other dogs. according to some he is, by law, a "dangerous" dog and I don't think anyone can or will adopt him. There is no way I can keep him, as much as I want to... I am still researching on options but I'm stuck. Any suggestions?
2007-02-24 19:19:07 · 14 answers · asked by livefreexdiehardY 1 in Pets ➔ Dogs
My dog is trained, i know how to walk him, I know how to take care of him... So, i know it's not my fault. And plus, he's not a spoiled dog. He behaves angelically around me. It's everyone else I'm worried about. Thank you to those who were being kind and helpful. And screw those who think otherwise.
2007-02-25 04:07:48 · update #1
--- oh, and its NOT because of his behavior that i have to give him up. My mother won't let me keep him anymore because recently, she found out that she's allergic to dogs, and she just doesn't want him, or my other dog. I've begged and pleaded, and cried and everything oyu can possibly think of... but nothing's working, so i have no choice but to give him up.
2007-02-25 04:16:07 · update #2
If this adorable little guy is so adorable... why give him up? It's a matter of training, both for you and the dog. Sounds like he's pretty much a classic case of fear aggression and lack of training and proper socialization.
That is NOT a negative judgement, just an opinion from the info you offered in your question. Please do not take offense as none is meant!!
Is he neutered? If not, please neuter him, that can help in many ways to calm him and perhaps remove a bit of his aggresive tendancies and need to dominate so heavily, not to mention saving him from testicular cancer.
Crate train him so he has a safe haven when he is unsettled and a safe place he is comforable being in when the household situation becomes too much for him. When you have guests, put him in his crate with a special chew toy and check on him to see if he needs to go out. Otherwise, leave him be and do not allow others to bother him while he is in his crate.
If he does not like other dogs, then do not make him be around other dogs. That simple! He will live if he does not go to dog parks or play with the neighborhood dogs. If he likes your other family dog, great, let them play. This should be a none issue.
When you say he "goes crazy" on stranger and other dogs... what does that mean? Does he bark, does he actually attack, does he run at them or run near them and then bark and growl? The behaviour he shows tells a lot about the fix. The way you respond makes a HUGE difference. Dogs know body language and if you tense up when walking him when you see another dog, he is going to react to that. You may be "feeding" this behaviour unwittingly. If you walk him and see another dog coming your way, then turn around and walk away, you could be sending him the message that the other dogs are for him to fear. Instead, I would suggest you play with him at home to begin to tire him out, then take him to a park where there are other people and dogs and just walk on the edge of the area so he can see them but not be threatened by them. If he takes his walk without incident, praise the heck out of him and back home you go to treat him and go on about your daily business.
If he begins to act up, give him a gentle but firm tug and release on his leash and the word "NO!" and continue walking. Keep on tugging and saying NO each time he does it until he stops. Do NOT become physical about it. It is matter of fact... trainer with trainee. If he stops, give him a tiny treat and praise him up grandly. If you can ask him to do a behaviour he has been taught in order to distract him, by all means do that, then praise him when he does what is asked of him. Do NOT let your body language tell him you are nervous or waiting for an outburst from him, instead, put yourself into a mindset that he is going to behave and expect it from him. Unless he is neurologically unsound or ill, he WILL get it!
You've allowed this behaviour for 5 years, it will not go away overnight, but it WILL improve quickly if you use positive reinforcement with conditioned confinement and lots and lots of love!
You took on the wonderful responsibility of this little fur ball when you made him part of your family, take the time to make him a better behaved family member and you will be rewarded. You'd do it for your child if they exhibited an unwanted behaviour, I'm sure you can find a way to do it for a pet that loves you unconditionally and only wants to please. Show him how and he will do it!
Good luck!
Jackie in Riverside, CA
2007-02-24 20:21:44 · answer #1 · answered by Jackie M 3 · 2⤊ 2⤋
iam sorry 2 say this and i have 2 say this 2 lots of peps i work with it is ur doing u cant blame him 4 it i work with dangerous dogs all the time i have been doing this job now 4 12yrs and u can stop this prob with ur dog u c what ur dog is doing is being head of ur house not u u need 2 show him that ur the top dog not him put some cash in a old tin with a lid on it when ur out with him if he dose something u dont like shake the tin by his ere dont hit him at all and at the same time say no and pull down on the leed down 2 hes bum he should then b sat down and looking at u trying 2 find out where the niose came from now u got him under u u can do the same in the home 2 i had a dog just like him and this works with a lot of dogs there r more that i can tell u how u can get ur dog bk 2 being a good dog my dog that was like urs she dont do a thing bad now it u need more help from me u can i.m. on dragontears330 yahoo i will get bk 2 u
2007-03-02 05:01:10 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
No kill animal shelter......as a last resort.
All you need is love. Take your dog to a behaviorist trainer. You slowly introduce him to things that make him crazy. Thats a minor problem. You can break him from these habits. You just need to be majorly patient. Not to mention careful, since he's aggressive to everyone else.
Have someone you trust come over. Keep him leashed and far away enough so that he can't hurt your visitor....then walk him to the visitor, let him smell and as soon as he starts to get crazy, run him in a different direction and praise him like no other when he reacts in a positive way. Give lots of positive reinforcement. If you're nervous, your dog will be too, so make sure you're calm and show your dog that you're in control.
Be patient!! You don't have to get rid of your dog. He just simply needs to be taught how to act. Any dog can be a dangerous dog....even the really great ones.
2007-02-24 19:48:58 · answer #3 · answered by rogue3838 2 · 3⤊ 1⤋
It is hard to say from a 7 line post in the Answers forum what the problem is with the dog and if he can be rehabbed. Consult a real behaviorist. Do a whole evaluation.
It could be something as simple as the dog has an elevated opinion of himself from being carried around, pampered and spoiled.
Or it could be medical, such as hypothyroidism or a tumor.
It could be lack of appropriate socialization at an early age.
It could be idiopathic aggression, which is actually quite rare.
It could be fear aggression, which can be helped a lot by positive reinforcement training.
You CANNOT use force and pain to cure aggression. It will only cause the animal to suppress its reactions, but if any stimulus is enough to cause that animal to overcome the suppression, your dog will aggress to a state you've never seen before.
That's like delivering regular beatings with a cat o' nine tails daily to prisoners to make them stop their criminal behavior.
2007-02-24 20:55:50 · answer #4 · answered by renodogmom 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
You have behavior and social issues. Also, you have serious "leash aggression" issues - much of which may be your fault. That is, you recognize a potential "bad" situation. You tighten up, you tighten the leash and you are tense. Your dog reads all of this from you and in turn, he becomes tense and in an "attack mode" stance. In other words, both your dog and YOU need training.
This is not meant to be insulting. I took both my dogs to training and I assure you, I received training as much as they did. My trainer was very serious about "leash aggression". Some dogs simply are very aggressive while on a leash. Given that your dog is so aggressive while on walks, this is clearly an area you need assistance. A good trainer will help you socialize the dog, re-establish yourself as the "alpha" in the pack, and learn how to handle a potential stressful situation. As the alpha, you have to prove to your dog that you can and will protect him such that he doesn't need to be in this "attack stance".
Therefore, instead of giving the dog away, getting another and repeating the exact same mistakes with a new dog (which could create the exact same situation in another few years), I highly recommend that you look into training. And I don't just mean a token class or two in a group setting. Search out trainers and behaviorists. Ensure that they are top-quality trainers. Some trainers are really rather poor, so check references. Physical punishment is not an option, but prong collars, rattle cans, training leashes, whistles, etc. can work fine. A good trainer may have your dog turned around (as well as you) in mere weeks. Please look into this! It's worth the $$ and time!
2007-02-24 20:32:01 · answer #5 · answered by doctoru2 4 · 2⤊ 2⤋
Try using a soft muzzle on him when you walk him so he can not bite anyone. Crate him when you have company there is also an herb you can buy at the pet store that will calm him. Check with your Vet about that. Don't give up on him. Your all he's got. I fell so badly for both of you.
2007-03-02 08:33:45 · answer #6 · answered by momof2 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
He is not unfixable. You just have to build up a good pack leader relationship with him. Go for walks everyday and do not allow him to walk in front of you. He can only walk next to or behind you and this should apply on everything from walking out the door, to walking at the trail. Human must eat before your dog and have boundaries. When he shows agressive behavior, turn his belly up and have direct eye contact, make him stay at the same position until he is relax. When there are visitors, make sure that they won't give your dog attention when they first walk in, wait until 10-15 mins later then allows them to feed your dog a treat.
Dogs get agressive when they dont have enough exercise and discipline; you have to show your dog that you are the leader and he has to look up to you. Small dog is easy to control because they wont hurt people as bad as big dog, you just have to make sure you are strict with the rule and he should be fine.
2007-02-24 21:34:48 · answer #7 · answered by Dogs Mom 3 · 1⤊ 3⤋
Why can't you put him in a bedroom when you have company. Has he done obedience training? Can you get him to sit and lie down?
Try joining the Yahoo group called "agbeh". You can read their files and past posts. There is so much good information on these difficult behaviors. I have a small dog who only likes me very much, he tolerates my husband and likes our daughter. He is getting better just from giving him treats and getting hi to sit and lie down and keeping him away from circumstances that trigger his outbursts.
This site has tips on training:
http://www.ddfl.org/tips.htm#dog
Good luck!
2007-02-24 19:27:53 · answer #8 · answered by Susan M 7 · 5⤊ 0⤋
Papillon rescue..Papillon Club of America, Inc.
Tammy Tackett, 573-680-3210, pcarescue@papillonclub.org
they will very likely have re-hab experts to train her and they screen homes very carefully..
If you want to have a go at re-training her yourself, you can scroll down on this page to free Frawley training e-books on aggression.
http://leerburg.com/dominantdogs.htm.
2007-02-24 19:21:56 · answer #9 · answered by Chetco 7 · 7⤊ 0⤋
The person who said they shocked themselves with the collar...and it is not that bad.....
well, I tried it on myself also... just to see.
It knocked the *heck* out of me. That person probably had it on the lowest setting.
And *big wow*...nothing happened on the low setting.
Surpise their, huh?
That is why they have the low setting...to demonstrate how it doesnt' hurt. It also doesn't work on that * low* setting/
I suggest you go for the answer by the person with the pappillion link. I think it was the first answer. That was the closest to best answer...
Best wishes...
2007-02-24 19:46:20 · answer #10 · answered by KarenS 3 · 3⤊ 1⤋