rescue greyhound aggression problems, plz nice answers only?

Question

I tried to ask this before about my dog, but some people tended to think I'm unfit and that I need to give away my dog. I tried to ask a question to get help and all i got was b*tched at. So here goes again.

I have a 3yr old male greyhound who is suddenly developing aggression issues. I have another dog and cat who behave just fine thank you. the grey is scared of the cat and leaves her alone. But recently he has been growling at my other dog and at us. I took him to visit my dad, and let him run outside in the fenced yard, he tried to attack through the fence the neighbors dog who did nothing to him. He growled at my dads dog as well. He usually got along with other dogs VERY well and was very peaceful towards other dogs and humans. now i dont trust him at all. He is unpredicatble. I've had him for 6 months now and just recently this behavior has shown up. I've been a member of a grey fun run group and i am afraid this may have set off his aggressive behavior. cuz he is around

cuz he has been around these other greys now. We are not mean to him, but we do set rules for him. We do not yell or hit him. I crate him, but only when we are gone. but there is usually always someone here. and he is not left alone for too long. when he growls i tell him to lay down, which he knows on command. I do this to make him in a submissive position to say I am boss. I make the other dog come over to him to show dominance over him, so he wont growl. But he still does. we show him plenty of love and i am thinking we show too much, or at least at the wrong times. i have never heard of an aggressive greyhound before. and i dont know what his problem is. i treat him just like i do my other dog. and my other dog is perfectly well behaved and couldnt ask for a better dog. he obeys and will NOT poop or pee in the house. he hasnt in the 5 years i've had him. Why does my greyhound do this? and why wont he obey and stop being aggressive?

Answer 1

Your newer greyhound has likely had a more difficult life than the earlier one. All his behaviors are stress related. It does sound likely you are doing the best you can, but he has some real insecurity problems. Here is a site that should be of help> http://www.leerburg.com/articles.htm
Just scroll down to the free e-books and articles.

I really like the advice above, about contacting greyhound rescue organizations..

Answer 2

Greyhound Aggression

Answer 3

God your lucky! I miss my Greyhound so much! Okay the one thing I know about them and from mine was that if they are not permitted to run full out regularly, they will litterally go crazy! I worked the night shift at an animal ER and my 4 dogs went with me, in the morning when we got off work, we went straight out and hiked for about 2 -3 hours off a leash through the woods and across big open fields that my grey would streak across like a wild horse, I had 3 other large dogs and 8 cats at home, and never had a problem with him, but I was told when I first took him that they had to have run time regularly or they'd mentally lose it! This is why they don't make great pets for everyone, not everyone has the time, space, or hiking territory for them. Not sure what you have, but you really need to incorporate vigorous activity into his schedule every single day, or you might have to think about finding him a home with someone who can. Is he neutered? That may also be a reason for aggrestion, I'd have him neutered if he's not already. They are an aggressive and strong breed, that is why you always see the greyhounds muzzled while racing or being walked and such, they do like to fight each other not people, but if they are frequently ran, they tend to get their aggressions out that way instead of fighting. You have to understand these dogs were originally bred to chase and hunt large wild cats! They are built to run and hunt, they can't be denied both, they have to do one or the other or they'll lose it. My greyhound got very depressed if we missed a hike and aggitated if we missed more that one, he probably would have gotten nasty if we didn't do it at all.

You may want to purchase a greyhound racing muzzle and put it on him during his growling periods, so that he learns that this isn't acceptible behavior and also so he sees that it is useless to growl, he isn't going to be able to do any damage with a muzzle on. They can still drink water with them on and if he has it on long enough it may calm him down a bit. He is used to them, they wore them constantly as racers, he may not trust himself without one.

Answer 4

Greyhounds, while an absolutely wonderful dog, can have peculirities such as jealousy issues.

He is past the "juvenile" age so he may be trying the pack dominance routine. Most pack oriented animals try becoming "alpha" before 3, but if he has been around the 5 yr old since puppyhood, he may just be feeling his oats now. He has settled in and gotten the feel of the turf so his confidence has been built up.

Another issue is PTSD...yes dogs can have post traumatic stress disorder. Because they can't tell you what they are feeling it requires diligent observation. Irratic behavior is an indicator. Simply because he hasn't gone after the cat YET doesn't mean he won't. You need to be aware of their unpredictable behavior.

Greyhounds are highly sensitive to human behavior. They don't respond well to human scuffling if only playful wrestling. They also don't like loud noises.

You didn't mention how you came to own this dog. If it is a former racing animal, then you have other issues to address. Some Greyhounds are still taught by live bait method (most are not). Trust me, it is a formidable task to break a retired racing dog and often impossible. They have many psychological issues to deal wtih post racing life. Noises are a number one factor because they are reminders of the track life. Other dogs are another factor. Even CATS.

Overall Greyhounds make wonderful companions. They have great dispostions IF they have not been a racer. Even retired racers have loving dispostions, but they also have bad baggage.

What I would do is; first take him to your vet for a thorough check up (if you have not already done so). A brain scan is not a bad idea.

When he is around other dogs, MUZZLE him. No it is not cruel. He needs to learn that aggression is not acceptable. Do NOT put the other dog next to him after he has shown aggression. That will only exacerbate the problem. You don't force negative stimuli on a dog. Your other dog at the moment is that negative stimuli. When you let him out or walk him, he is to be on a leash. Greyhounds are by nature..runners and they are prey oriented.

I could sit here all night and recant horror stories of dogs "gone bad". It is not THEIR fault. It happens. As a former K-9 handler I was ALWAYS aware of my dog's emotional "stance" at ALL times. Any odd behavior and he was confined temporarily. Trust me, while I have never been bit by a dog, I have seen people ripped severely. And, there are a number of cases where dogs NEVER showed a days aggression and turned on their owners and killed them.

Recommendation: leash, muzzle and crated when not around. Lots of patience and love. Quit running him in a group of dogs. The "fun run" is over. You cannot afford to take chances.

If this situation doesn't improve within a short time, I personally would look for a home for him with no other dogs in it. Last resort, sad though it is, often times dogs do need to be put down.

Here's a few tips in the event your dog comes at you....or any dog for that matter. Keep a CLEAR head...you have to think and act quick. When a dog is coming at you in attack mode...first thing you do is bar your throat with your forearm...the arm you do NOT write with. Let the dog have the damn arm, do not try to pull away...you will only suffer further injury from the dog ripping flesh. Dogs "latch". So by sacrificing a forearm to some lacerations, you have created a barrier and also put enough distance between you and the dog to effect a blow because they will pull that forearm toward them Take your free hand, make a fist and nail the dog right between the eyes as hard as you can. This will normally render them unconscious without killing them. At the very least it WILL stun them to give you time to get away from it. NEVER let that dog get you on the ground or floor. It takes a quick thinker to react to an attacking dog.

I hope things work out to where you can keep your pet. Best of luck to you and your dog.

Answer 5

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I've heard rescued greyhounds make awesome pets! They aren't demanding and love to laze around when they aren't out exercising and playing with you. Most greyhounds haven't been socialised around other animals but I don't think you'll find they are naturally aggressive. I'm sure a rescue group would let you bring one to your house to see if it's compatible with your rabbit and hammy. Like you said, they aren't going to play together - you just want to know it's not going to lunge at their cage. Good luck, the world needs more rescue greyhound owners!!

Answer 6

Greyhounds can live with small caged pets quite nicely. However, I would NEVER risk a rabbit's life by allowing it to interact with a greyhound. Many greyhounds get along fantastically with cats...but then again cats are predators in their own right, even if they are occasionally seen as prey by some dogs. Rabbits on the other hand ARE prey animals, their very movements are enough to trigger a prey drive in most dogs, including the most calm and animal-friendly dogs. It just isn't worth the risk.

Answer 7

My experience is that most rescue dogs have aggression issues. I adopted a rescue dog and he became more and more aggressive. Dog trainers told me it was because he was being possissive of me, but at times he was even aggressive with me. I have known many people that have adopted rescue dogs and aggression always seems to be a problem. My theory is that rescue dogs need a calm environment and that most don't do well with other dogs or being around a lot of people. I gave my dog to a single person and he is doing fine.

Answer 8

He is becoming more comfortable in the home and may be trying to assert himself as the alpha dog in the house depending on how how are dealing with it could be leaving him frustrated and feeling you are an unfair leader.
http://www.boxer-rescue-la.com/training_tips/Two_or_More_Dogs.htm

Being he is still fairly new he may not alway view other dogs as dogs but some dangerous beast, before he came to you he may have never met another breed of dog before, so he could be reacting to the way they look if they are considerably different looking than a greyhound( long hair, heavy set etc) so reactions can be defensive if they look scary to him.

Running with other greyhounds will not make him aggressive, it is good for him because he can related better with other greyhounds than many pet dogs, greyhounds have been raised amongst other greyhounds right from puppyhound so have developed very strong social skills a lot of pet dogs do not have the same level of dog social skills so they are harder for him to comunicate with, so get togethers with other greys is like being with old friends and comforting to him.
My other suggestion is to join http://forum.greytalk.com it is a forum for owners of retired greyhounds, it has a huge membership, with some owners having 30 or more years experience with adopted racing greyhound, there are also people from adoption groups, foster parents and new owners like yourself, so a vast collection of knowledge about the dogs, and is there for the purpose of helping new owners of retired greyhounds and to share info about them which could be related to health issues, behaviour and explaining past life experience and how it relates to the way they act as a pet, you will probably find a lot more helpful advice there then you will here because greyhounds have lead a whole different life prior to become a pet, which causes them to act slightly different, but also because they lack lots of the experiences compare to other adopted dogs who were raised as a pet, some do struggle trying to understand what is expected of them when they go into a new home, because life is now nothing like what they grew familiar with, so for some the transition is tough, and some really need a strong daily routines to help them cope. But if you go there and call you grey a jerk or idiot expect the people there to bash you, they love the dogs fiercely and many being longtime adoption reps are going to be might upset, they spend many hours volunteering their free time often without holidays trying to find the best homes for these dogs and get upset if they feel a dog was placed in an unsuitable home, and many have seen and have had dogs returned that were destroyed emtional by adopters who treated them harshly and cruely to the point they became fear biters and have had the bitter experience of having to euthanize them because they could no longer be safely adopted out, it is even tougher for them when they were the foster parent of the dog and knew what the dog was like prior to going into the home, so you will see some fierce emotion on the forum, just so you understand why, but remember it is because to them the dogs needs comes first, there are a lot of people there that are willing to help you, but they want to know you want the help and are not just to complain and that you care enough to help him become a desirable member of the family

Another good resource is the book Adopted Retired Greyhounds for Dummies, most groups recommended perspective adopters read it before adopting a greyhound, and covers info about behaviour, introducing to other animals, health, training and caring for them

Answer 9

Contact any of these organisations and see what they can tell you. After all they do this for a living.

http://search.msn.com/results.aspx?q=Greyhound+rescue+aggression+problems&form=QBRE&go.x=14&go.y=8

Answer 10

A good site for all puppy queries