Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Basset aggressive after attack.. any ideas how to help?

I have two bassets 1 female (Yewkie )who I flew over from Australia with me and one rescue (Ringo ) who we have had for 10 months.. they are both nearly 7 years old .
2 months ago Ringo was attacked in the park and since then he is very aggessive towards other dogs he goes up to them as if to say hello like he normaly would but then he has a go at them.. he has never bitten but its not friendly.. I keep him on the lead now and I wonder how I can train him so he is okay with other dogs again.. he is fine with all other bassets he used to be such a sweet heart.. any tips??

Also my husband dosn't like walking them now incase he bumps into this fella and his dog- (he was very nasty police were called) any tips for this?

Thanks
Answers:
My basset, Copper, also became fearful after being attacked and would go for any large dog that came too close to her. Unfortunately, I was not able to train her out of it, so I simply kept her on lead when there were other dogs around, and let her know that I would protect her by getting between her and strange dogs and not letting them near her.
soundsa like dominance aggression. if you can stop him in his tracks when he begins to show signs of aggression( stiffnes, pulling on leash, growling, staring) it will hep. find a proffessional dog behaviorist to assist you or a GOOD dog trainer. do not attelpt this on your own. also, don't do medication as it is only a band-aid for the problem. it isn't addressing the root cause of the aggression and won't fix it. dogs only live in the moment they are in, not the past. humans live in the past, and therefore feed the behavior. so if everytime he starts, you go back tto the incident in your mind, he feeds off of it. find help soon, and in the meantime, read a book called Cesar's Way by cesar millan.
When you are walking him, and he starts this going berserk, just walk on past the other dog. If Ringo notices he isn't allowed to say hello because he gets nippy, he will learn to stop. Praise him when he learns to be nice.

As for your husband, I would get him a Great Dane. If your husband walks alongside one of them he won't get any bother. Technically he shouldn't anyway though, because the other man could get an ASBO for his trouble.
Dog training classes help imensly w/ socialization. Just make sure when he is getting ready to approach another dog that you are there for support. This maybe more than just standing there. you may need to get down w/ him. Also reward him for positive interaction w. other dogs.
It is NOT dominance aggression

It is FEAR aggression - as in I'm going to scare you off before you attack me.


First, never ever let your dog go up to another unknown dog. If you would like to introduce dogs, stay about 6-8 feet back from the other dog and its handler. Watch him and see if he tenses defensively. If he seems relaxed, let him move few feet closer. Keeping watching and act accordingly. I fhe gets upset, tell him no and "cal down" and reassure him with voice and your hands.

I suspect he is not biting but doing the roaring, body slamming thing and snapping at the air.

You can NOT train him to be friendly. All you can do is expose him to very very dog-friendly dogs and hope he gets over his bad experience. Do it slowly, gradually and get down and put your arms around him for reassurance as they approach. If lunges while you are holding him, tell him NO in a voice that sounds like you mean it - force him backwards..

My now-retired Service Dog was in a down next to me one day when two huge dogs (loose and uncontrolled by their owners) came leaping and landed on top of her. She has never forgiven nor forgotten to this day. She watches other dogs warily and her body tenses into defense - particuarly where the dogs we are passing are large, moving fast or mouthy. If they move in close at her, all bets are off and she is snarling and braced. (These days she shows the teeth and snarls and then ducks behind my young Service Dog who weighs 120 lbs and is a herding guarding breed capable of killing a wolf with an "okay kid, you take him.")

She will settle down and make friends with another dog but it takes daily expousure to that dog for 3-4 months - and she first establishes that she is not to be pushed,bumped or otherwise threatened in anyway.

Ringo is worried about other dogs that he doesn't know - not the ones that he does.

Like people, dogs have their personal space and he has learned not to let unknown dogs intrude in his.

Think of it as if you had been walking down the street and been mugged. Wouldn't you get a bit defensive.

Second, never take your dog out in public off a leash. What happened is exactly why.

If you want to let them have more room to romp than just a 6 ft leash, do this:

Go to the hardware store. Get 3 lengths of 录 inch to 3/8 inch soft nylon line 鈥?20 foot, 50 foot and 100 foot. Get 3 snaps. Tie the snaps on one end and make a loop handle on the other.

Its called a long line and lets you reel your dog in..

No comments:

Post a Comment