My dog keeps attacking her puppies!?

Question

I have a dog that's 1 and a half years old. She recently had 15 puppies.. but only 13 remain. When they were just less than 2 weeks with their eyes still closed.. she attacked 5 of them, killing one brutaly. Ever since then we haven't let her alone with the puppies, but she still attacks them even while we're around. She is a very sweet dog and don't understand her behavior. I know she would never attack me or my husband but I'm worried about my unborn child. I will be due in another couple of months and worried sick she may be aggressive to my baby. Should I give her away to protect my child?

Just so you know.. we began bottle feeding them and she was no longer needed after they turned 4 weeks when they were weaned. They are now 8 weeks and they have no need for her... The reason why she attacks them is because they get near her food. She's never done that before with my chihuahua.. is that normal for a mother dog to react?

And to shepard girl, you don't know me and for your information I take real good care of those puppies. Do you have any idea what I went thru with those puppies.. Bottle feeding 13 puppies 4-5x a day can be very exhausting and then cleaning up after them is a whole other story.So don't come up to me saying I don't know what I'm doing... If you don't have anything intelligent to say... Shut Ur Mouth!!

Answer 1

I think you should re-home the dog and ALL of the puppies because you do not have any idea what it takes to raise a dog and you certainly do not have a clue about breeding.
I wonder if it occurred to you when you bred your dog, she was not mature enough to handle a litter.

ETA: I am not the one asking whether or not I should get rid of my dog because I do not know how to handle her. Also, what are you expecting sympathy? You had to hand raise the puppies that you forced your dog to have when you had absolutely no knowledge at all about breeding? When problems began those puppies were your responsibility so big deal you had to do what countless other breeders have had to do. I never once commented on the job you did taking care of your pups, I said you had no idea what it takes to raise dogs correctly because if you did you would not be here asking questions and you would have known that you should not breed a dog before it is at least two years old. So, I think you should take your own advice and btw, learn to spell, it's SHEPHERD. Also, everything I had to say is based on research and first hand knowledge because of having to take in dogs that are dumped by people like you, so this was a very intellegent thing to say regardless of whether you liked it or not.

To korlis01's, maybe you have no problem with BYBs who do not research before breeding but many people do. It is because of people like her that AR groups are trying to pass mandatory spay and neuter laws. If she truly cared about her dogs and puppies she would not have been unprepared and ignorant when she bred her dog and she would of had mentors to help and guide her along. Strangers on YA should not be her only resource.

Answer 2

I won't comment fully on what I think. You'd probably tell me to shut up to.

You've got a dog that has killed a couple of puppies. Should you give her away to protect your unborn child.

- May or may not be an issue. Probably not, BUT if it was me I'd get a PROFESSIONAL opinion of someone who knows about dogs and can come in and evaluate the situation in person. A professional needs to see what the issue is and they need to see the mother and the puppies to evaluate the situation. (I can't tell if someone is an ax murder simply by looking at a picture of them on the internet. Get it?) If you are unwilling to do this NOW, get rid of the female NOW.

This is not a situation where a dog is peeing in the house. You get the wrong advice, who cares. You just clean it up. Two puppies have already been killed you don't screw around with this, or YOU take total responsibility for anyone or anything that gets hurt.

Now on to other unasked questions.

- Keep the mother and the puppies separated TOTALLY until the puppies have left your home. No excuses. Separated. If you cannot do this at your house, put the puppies or the female somewhere else until they are gone. No excuses about money or anything else. Puppies and the mother are separated ALWAYS with no excuses. Period.
- Spay this female as soon as possible, if you decide to keep her. This type of thing can be genetically dominant with some lines. If she is doing this, any of her female offspring will potentially do this. If you are unwilling to spay her, give her away. Period.

You wanted honest answers. You may not like it but that's the answer.

Pixie - Only the alpha in a dog pack breeds? Where did you get that idea from? If that was the case wolf packs would be awfully, awfully small and you'd have one female that was really, really tired.

Answer 3

As any experienced breeder would know, that's the risk you take when breeding any female that is too young. What you allowed to happen is no different then allow a 12-14 year old girl try to raise 13 babies. Kinda dumb don't ya think? Yes, hand raising pups is a hard thing to do! I'm very sure you are exhausted. As a pregnant woman yourself aren't you afraid you may not be ready for even this one? How would you like to have 15 labors ? Instinct can only go so far which is why our animals need us to make mature, responsible decisions for them. You my dear, no matter how you look at it were irresponsible and now these poor pups have paid the price. I think you should get rid of the dog. For its and your future child's safety. NEVER BREED AGAIN!!!


Oh, and how many two week old puppies with their eyes still closed have you guys seen running to the food bowl??? Exactly!!!!!

Answer 4

I am afraid you won't find me a very supportive person in this situation. You might be dedicated to the pups now, but it sounds like you could have done a bit more research befoer bringing life into this world. What breed is she? Was she tested for all the potential genetic diseases for her breed before breeding? These are specific tests you must ask your vet for, like OFA readings, CERF certifications, etc, not just a check up. Of course you didn't because OFA won't certify a dog before 2 years of age. Why? Because they aren't mature enough. Did you know dogs aren't mentally mature until at least 2 years of age. At 1.5 years of age, she's equivalent of a 15 year old mother. How mature are the 15 year olds you see at the mall? Should they be mothers?

I am glad you at least stepped up to the plate after it was too late to prevent this, but how do you feel when you consider you may wind up having your dog killed because she was pushed to have pups too young? I have done rescue for 20+ years. I KNOW that food aggressive dogs are not safe to place, IF anyone even could be found who might want her. Did you know that if you sell her or give her away, and she bites someone, YOU are still responsible because you knowingly placed a food aggressive dog in a home. That is why shelters kill them. They can't afford the lawsuits.

Hate me if you will, but Shepherdgirl gets my defense. Breeding an immature dog was an unwise decision.

Answer 5

Your dog is young and doesn't understand why these little things are all over her. She was too young to have been bred. If she is attacking them, you shouldn't let her be around them period. She could be jealous of the attention they are getting as well. It is your choice as to get rid of her or not, but if she is attacking her own puppies, I would be worried about a new baby. She will be jealous of the baby and do whatever it takes to make it back to the center of attention. In a dogs eyes, that means getting rid of the threat.

Maybe you should talk to a behaviorist and see what they think.

Answer 6

You might just have to give her away for the safety of your child and those puppies. She seems like a sweet dog around you and your husband but then again she knows you well.Her puppies and your child will be new to her and she may act the same to your child as the way she did that puppy. Hope for the best of luck for you.

Answer 7

first thing I would do is take dog to vet and make sure she is not developing mastitis (breast infection-very painful)
It may be that she, like some women is not cut out to be a mother(I have seen other dogs kill their own puppies too).
I would hold off on giving her away until you see how she reacts to the baby, if after a couple of weeks she is growling or acting aggressive, then get rid of her,but it may turn out she is very protective of your baby as you are her pack and the alpha female , most dog packs only the alpha breeds, but all care for the young

Answer 8

This is another reason why people need to research before they breed anything! If you knew that she was being food agressive then why did you not move her food???? It would of been very easy to feed her away from her pups, or even have a nice whelping area where she could leave the pups to eat!! My girls have whelping boxes, their food is not with the pups at all!! The food is in a different area from the pups, away from the pups for them to free feed when they want. This would of been able to be solved if you had only researched before you bred!

Answer 9

That is a very tough one...I think that I would end up giving the dog away, because I wouldn't want to take that kind of risk with my child. I would keep one of the puppies, though...if they are raised together you might have a better chance, but as I'm sure you already know...puppies and babies are a LOT of work.

Answer 10

Wow you are nasty.. You are the one here looking for help.. and you are being nasty.. YOU are the problem here.. You allowed your b itch who is TOO young to be bred.. To produce a litter.. Yeah it's alot of work, yeah there is alot of cleaning up.. DUH.. SO what.. everyone who has a litter does that.. You are the one that bred their young ***** and now you are whining cause she is killing puppies.. Guess what.. She wasn't mature enough to be bred, to care for a litter.. and you likely sucked her up and allowed her to act that way in other areas of her life so she is acting the same spoiled rotten way with her kids.. You don't treat her like a dog, and you bred her too young and voila you get a b itch that kills her kids.. Congratulations.. Hope you are pleased with yourself.. Spay her.. It's a habit now.. She'll do the same thing next time. You breed them young and it screws them up.. Good job!