My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Share your favorite training tips, ideas and methods with other Positively members!

Moderators: emmabeth, BoardHost

willkelly
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Aug 19, 2010 4:52 pm

My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Post by willkelly »

I have a 3 year old female, half American pit bull, half German Sheppard, who has never had any aggression problems with the other dogs in our family. I adopted a 5 year old, pure bred American pit bull today and everything started out fine. She would growl at first, but after 2-3 hours they seemed to be associating normally.

Out of nowhere my female just attacked my male and has been completely aggressive ever since. We're keeping them separated at the time, and we introduce them with muzzles every hour or so, but she continues to have high aggression.

The male doesn't show any signs of aggression, bark, or even growl. He just minds his own.

Does anyone know why? Or have any solutions? Cause I would really hate to have to get rid of my new family member.
emmabeth
Posts: 8894
Joined: Tue Oct 17, 2006 9:24 pm
Location: West Midlands
Contact:

Re: My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Post by emmabeth »

Im not going to lie to you and tell you that you can easily fix this, its highly likely you can't.

In my experience, when a ***** decides she does not like another dog or ***** and wants them GONE... she means it and will not change her mind over it.

However, if you want to have a bash at getting her to see this new dog in a positive light:

- No confrontations at all. So no face to face meetings, no meetings in confined spaces, no meetings in 'her' territory.
- Distance - keep them apart, work with them outdoors, muzzled and on leashes and keep her working working working, with you, rewarding stuff, fun stuff, but with him in sight.

ONLY have them in sight of one another when they are busy working with a person, on walks have them parallel or have her behind him (so theres NO possibility of her eyeballing him because shes behind him (the person handling him needs to be totall on teh ball here and not allow him to turn around and eyeball her either).

Keep this up until he is settled in and she starts to associate him with work/rewarding times.

I cannot and will not promise that this will work, as I say my experiences to date tell me that bitches, and sadly, especially shepherd bred bitches, are not inclined to change their minds on such issues.
West Midlands based 1-2-1 Training & Behaviour Canine Consultant
willkelly
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Aug 19, 2010 4:52 pm

Re: My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Post by willkelly »

So basically, I'll have to get rid of one of them?
BCMumto3
Posts: 250
Joined: Tue Jan 12, 2010 7:54 pm

Re: My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Post by BCMumto3 »

at least try doing what Emmabeth suggests before just giving up hun

Im not being judgemental , please dont think that , it will be a hell of a lot of work ... but at least if you try and she still doesnt like him you'll know that you did everything you could
User avatar
Mattie
Posts: 5872
Joined: Tue Jan 09, 2007 5:21 am

Re: My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Post by Mattie »

Having been through this with 2 of my dogs it does take a lot of very hard work, under no circumstances can they meet for some time, not even through a gate, their stress levels have to get down to normal before you can start to work with them.

Everyone in the house must never slip up, if they did you can end up with a dead dog.

No matter how hard your work, there is no guarentee that these dogs will be able to live together and you may never be able to leave the together. I would never go through this again, I would rehome my newest dog.
[url=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v312/Nethertumbleweed/PIXIE.jpg][img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v312/Nethertumbleweed/th_PIXIE.jpg[/img][/url]
willkelly
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Aug 19, 2010 4:52 pm

Re: My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Post by willkelly »

It would be SO HARD to get rid of either of them though. I love my girl, and I am falling in love with my new boy.

This sucks! :(
User avatar
Mattie
Posts: 5872
Joined: Tue Jan 09, 2007 5:21 am

Re: My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Post by Mattie »

We do understand, a lot more than people think, just ask yourself this, if you can't get them to accept each other, will they have the life they deserve? By this I mean they will have to be split all the time so will spend a lot of time on their own no matter how hard you try. Would one have more quality time with his owners if you rehomed him? Really you have to put your dogs first even though it is breaking your heart, my heart feels like it is breaking now, I have just lost my 4th dog in 11 months. :cry:
[url=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v312/Nethertumbleweed/PIXIE.jpg][img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v312/Nethertumbleweed/th_PIXIE.jpg[/img][/url]
User avatar
Nettle
Posts: 10753
Joined: Sun Apr 13, 2008 1:40 pm

Re: My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Post by Nettle »

In a situation like this, your dogs' needs should come before your own emotions. We appreciate it is hard for you, but it is much harder for the dogs, and will be even harder on you if one kills the other.

I have experienced exactly that on several occasions when owners have used their emotions over their common sense and ignored the warnings. There's no need for you and your dogs to go through all that, and there's no softening the regrets if you do and it goes as predicted.
A dog is never bad or naughty - it is simply being a dog

SET YOURSELF UP FOR SUCCESS
willkelly
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Aug 19, 2010 4:52 pm

Re: My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Post by willkelly »

Well, I live with two other people, so both of the dogs are ALWAYS getting some sort of attention.
User avatar
Mattie
Posts: 5872
Joined: Tue Jan 09, 2007 5:21 am

Re: My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Post by Mattie »

So in order to give both dogs attention all the time, you are going to live virtually seperately from the other people, that is what will be involved.
[url=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v312/Nethertumbleweed/PIXIE.jpg][img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v312/Nethertumbleweed/th_PIXIE.jpg[/img][/url]
willkelly
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Aug 19, 2010 4:52 pm

Re: My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Post by willkelly »

No, but it's not like the dogs are being attention deprived. We have them on a 1 hour outside, 1 hour inside rotation until we go to sleep, and then they come inside to their separate rooms. They get attention based upon where people are at the time, and it's usually 50/50.
Lauram
Posts: 182
Joined: Fri Mar 05, 2010 5:59 am

Re: My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Post by Lauram »

I can only echo the thoughts of the others on here. One should probably go and perhaps it should be the new arrival.

I once rehomed a lurcher that had killed a cat. Everything was fine untill one day we stopped it killing a chicken, in that moment the dog changed and attacked my lurcher Alf, it had him on the ground and literally ripped his throat out!! The trachea was visible and there were bits of muscle hanging out of a gaping hole, his shoulder, his neck and his back were also very damaged and it took a vet 3hrs to stitch him up and the recovery was long and slow. We had the dog put to sleep.

What i am trying to say is that when two dogs take against each other there is no happy ending, a proper dog attack is viscious and bloody, you have two very powerful and strong jawed dogs the potential for severe damage is very high.

I can totally understand what you are going through, but your first thought should be to your existing dog. To keep them both would mean that they always have to seperate that means years of organisation without making a small mistake, like not quite shutting a door.

Could you manage that?
User avatar
Nettle
Posts: 10753
Joined: Sun Apr 13, 2008 1:40 pm

Re: My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Post by Nettle »

This isn't to do with how much attention each dog is getting - it's to do with one doesn't like the other and wants him gone.

This is the last time I will post on this thread, because the decision is yours and I am simply presenting facts. What you choose to do and how you choose to manage your dogs is entirely up to you. There is no point in us going over the same ground.

All the best with whatever you decide.
A dog is never bad or naughty - it is simply being a dog

SET YOURSELF UP FOR SUCCESS
User avatar
Mattie
Posts: 5872
Joined: Tue Jan 09, 2007 5:21 am

Re: My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Post by Mattie »

willkelly wrote:No, but it's not like the dogs are being attention deprived. We have them on a 1 hour outside, 1 hour inside rotation until we go to sleep, and then they come inside to their separate rooms. They get attention based upon where people are at the time, and it's usually 50/50.
Personally I don't think that is a life for any dog, especially the dog you have had for some time, suddenly attacked by the new dog then bannished every hour.

It is time you put your feelings to one side and considered your dogs, at the moment it is all you and what you want, you took the dogs on, you own it to both to do what is right, I feel sorry for both dogs at the moment.

Like Nettle, I won't be posting on this thread again, you know what we think but are choosing to go your own way, that is up to you, your choice, but I don't want to read that one dog has either seriously injured or killed the other in future.
[url=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v312/Nethertumbleweed/PIXIE.jpg][img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v312/Nethertumbleweed/th_PIXIE.jpg[/img][/url]
willkelly
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Aug 19, 2010 4:52 pm

Re: My pit bull is being aggressive, help?

Post by willkelly »

Well apparently neither of you believe in even trying to make things work between the two. So at your requests I'll take him back to the pound where I'm sure he'll be put-down within the week.
Post Reply