WWYD if your dog started showing aggression?

RSMom32011

This isn't a "Getting rid of my dog" post. 

We have a 10lb Teacup Australian Shepard. He used to be really well behaved around children, and in general. Well, since R came into the picture his whole demeanor has changed.

At first, he would be super protective over her. Sleep next to her crib, whine when she cried, etc. Then he went to just not giving a crap. As long as he got his bone and a good tug o war game in, he was good.

Now, if we're on the floor playing with R, he's completely up under us. Coming in between R and us. He'll usually lick her hand or something if she touches him. She tends to be kind of rough, so I don't really let her play with him a whole lot. I think the first time she got a hold of him, she pulled out a handful of white fluffy hair.

This weekend, I was laying on the floor playing with R and he of course came in between us and started laying on me. I pet him for a second and scratched his ears. R played with her toy. Well, she went to turn to him and he growled at her. Instinct told me to push him away, so I did. He hung his head, walked away and laid in the corner.

Edit: to take away the 1st born son thing... because if it came down to it, and he ever hurt her, I can't say without a doubt that he'd stay.

lclaws13

My sister just hired a doggie shrink for her dogs.  It was just last week, so I can't tell you if it was worth it or not.

TobleroneBar

No animal lover would like what I had to say... I'll leave it at that.

RSMom32011

lclaws13:

My sister just hired a doggie shrink for her dogs.  It was just last week, so I can't tell you if it was worth it or not.

I could only imagine the look on DH's face if I told him this. 

JJsMom211

My SIL got rid of their dog the first time he growled at my nephew over a dog toy. I'm not sure if I would do the same thing, but I would seriously consider it.

I know you said you don't want to get rid of your dog, so my suggestion is to start doing some research on how to train for this particular situation. If you can afford it, hire a trainer to come to your home to work you, your LO, and your dog. Good luck!

RSMom32011

TobleroneBar:

No animal lover would like what I had to say... I'll leave it at that.

I honestly would love to know... I mean, I love my dog. He has gone through some pretty low times with me. But at the same time... That's my baby girl. And I can't say what I'd do if he ever hurt her... 

MomlovesEloise

I think you need to teach your dog how to be a dog. My dogs are my babies, so I understand where you're coming from. Your dog needs to get attention only after your DS and any act of aggression needs to be addressed. It sounds like he's trying to be alpha over DS and you need to make sure that doesn't happen. Before you give your dog a toy, let your DS handle it, before you feed him, let your DS play with the food, always let DS go through a doorway first, be greeted first, etc. Soon your dog will realize it too. And if he is aggressive or gumpy, quickly make him submit by laying him on his side with his belly showing. Then allow your DS to pet his stomach, which again shows him that your DS is dominant. Obviously don't do this if your dog is being vicious or wants to attack DS.

Also, make sure that you give your dog plenty of your time. Throw a ball, play tug of war, snuggle, and give him love. It's a big adjustment and I don't think he's being aggressive, but more jealous. HTH!

themissizz

My suggestions:

Don't let your dog play with your kid's toy or your kid play with your dog's toy.
I think that the biggest thing is that you should absolutely never let your dog between you and your child.

A dog is still an animal - as far as I'm concerned, even the best trained dog can be set off randomly and shouldn't be trusted completely with an infant. 

I wouldn't hesitate to get rid of a pet if they showed aggression towards my child. We rehomed one of our dogs when I was pregnant because he was growing increasingly aggressive the farther along I got in my pregnancy. It's a chance that I'm not willing to take.

JJsMom211

RSMom32011:

TobleroneBar:

No animal lover would like what I had to say... I'll leave it at that.

I honestly would love to know... I mean, I love my dog. He has gone through some pretty low times with me. But at the same time... That's my baby girl. And I can't say what I'd do if he ever hurt her... 

And this is exactly why you need to consider finding him a new home if he continues to show the same kind of aggression. I have two dogs and I love them dearly. But if they ever threatened or hurt J, I would get rid of them in second (of course that is when I'm able to find a good home for them). Again, see if you can find a good trainer to give you some pointers. This sucks, I'm sorry you have to deal with this.

TobleroneBar

RSMom32011:

TobleroneBar:

No animal lover would like what I had to say... I'll leave it at that.

I honestly would love to know... I mean, I love my dog. He has gone through some pretty low times with me. But at the same time... That's my baby girl. And I can't say what I'd do if he ever hurt her... 

okay, I'll be the sh!thead today...

The way I see it, you have two options... keep them seperated or get rid of the dog.  Personally, I'd prefer finding a home for my dog should he ever exhibit aggression rather then locking him away from the family, keeping him outside, or crating him all the time. 

I've seen what dog attacks can do, even the most family friendly dogs.  My friend in elementary school was mangled by the family dog and has had many surgeries, skin graphs, and the butt of many jokes.  Even today her face is not right.  I would not want that for my son.

It's great if you're in a position to hire a shrink, trainer, whisperer...however, I am not sooooo...those would be my options.

RSMom32011

TobleroneBar:

RSMom32011:

TobleroneBar:

No animal lover would like what I had to say... I'll leave it at that.

I honestly would love to know... I mean, I love my dog. He has gone through some pretty low times with me. But at the same time... That's my baby girl. And I can't say what I'd do if he ever hurt her... 

okay, I'll be the sh!thead today...

The way I see it, you have two options... keep them seperated or get rid of the dog.  Personally, I'd prefer finding a home for my dog should he ever exhibit aggression rather then locking him away from the family, keeping him outside, or crating him all the time. 

I've seen what dog attacks can do, even the most family friendly dogs.  My friend in elementary school was mangled by the family dog and has had many surgeries, skin graphs, and the butt of many jokes.  Even today her face is not right.  I would not want that for my son.

It's great if you're in a position to hire a shrink, trainer, whisperer...however, I am not sooooo...those would be my options.

I don't think you're a sh*thead for this. I think it's perfectly logical... It was my first reaction. "Oh you're gone!"

I calmed down, and realized this may be able to be handled a different way. If it continues, I have a fear that this will eventually be my decision.

I do not have the means to hire a dog shrink/trainer. So it's either do some home training like PP mentioned above (awesome advice) or he finds a new home. He is a good dog. And I honestly just think he's jealous.  

TobleroneBar

whatever you decide to do, keep it to yourself

RSMom32011

MomlovesEloise:

I think you need to teach your dog how to be a dog. My dogs are my babies, so I understand where you're coming from. Your dog needs to get attention only after your DS and any act of aggression needs to be addressed. It sounds like he's trying to be alpha over DS and you need to make sure that doesn't happen. Before you give your dog a toy, let your DS handle it, before you feed him, let your DS play with the food, always let DS go through a doorway first, be greeted first, etc. Soon your dog will realize it too. And if he is aggressive or gumpy, quickly make him submit by laying him on his side with his belly showing. Then allow your DS to pet his stomach, which again shows him that your DS is dominant. Obviously don't do this if your dog is being vicious or wants to attack DS.

Also, make sure that you give your dog plenty of your time. Throw a ball, play tug of war, snuggle, and give him love. It's a big adjustment and I don't think he's being aggressive, but more jealous. HTH!

I think this is part of the problem too. He's always shown alpha tendencies over other dogs. It's mostly played out well. I guess (I'm not too familiar, but they played well.) And it's quite obvious that he isn't in charge here. He's jealous too. The only time we used to get on the floor was to play with him. Now we're there all the time playing with DD. 

I'm going to take your advice and try and make sure he knows DD is the one in charge here. I have never really paid attention to who we greet first or anything like that. And I'm pretty sure that he gets the 1st attention. Because he's at the door when we walk in. I'm going to hold off on the petting thing. I don't trust it right now, and would never forgive myself if something happened. 

jhleap

I am in Atlanta, and If you PM me I can give you the name of the trainer we worked with before the baby came. It is a well respected company and the trainers have been great.

With that being said, make sure you know the difference between a "doggie" correction, as they would correct a puppy and true aggression. If it is true aggression, even as a dog lover, I would say that without immediate intervention, you have to get rid of the dog. Our dog (55 lb labradoodle) growled at DS the first few times he pulled her hair... I freaked. But the trainer came over and observed and said that the dog thought she was doing what we wanted her to do (ie "teach the hairless puppy").... as soon as we made it clear that it was not her job, she stopped. She does get mad when he pulls the hair on her feet, but her mad now is to leave him. We have given her "safe" places to go where we keep the baby away from her when she needs a break. She doesnt even mind when he plays in her dog bowls now, but we make him sit across the room while she eats. I am sure that they will be the best of friends as soon as he knows her boundaries, and until then, she has to learn that I am the alpha dog of the house... and she tolerates him or she goes to a different room.

LadybugPicnic2011

RSMom32011:

MomlovesEloise:

I think you need to teach your dog how to be a dog. My dogs are my babies, so I understand where you're coming from. Your dog needs to get attention only after your DS and any act of aggression needs to be addressed. It sounds like he's trying to be alpha over DS and you need to make sure that doesn't happen. Before you give your dog a toy, let your DS handle it, before you feed him, let your DS play with the food, always let DS go through a doorway first, be greeted first, etc. Soon your dog will realize it too. And if he is aggressive or gumpy, quickly make him submit by laying him on his side with his belly showing. Then allow your DS to pet his stomach, which again shows him that your DS is dominant. Obviously don't do this if your dog is being vicious or wants to attack DS.

Also, make sure that you give your dog plenty of your time. Throw a ball, play tug of war, snuggle, and give him love. It's a big adjustment and I don't think he's being aggressive, but more jealous. HTH!

I think this is part of the problem too. He's always shown alpha tendencies over other dogs. It's mostly played out well. I guess (I'm not too familiar, but they played well.) And it's quite obvious that he isn't in charge here. He's jealous too. The only time we used to get on the floor was to play with him. Now we're there all the time playing with DD. 

I'm going to take your advice and try and make sure he knows DD is the one in charge here. I have never really paid attention to who we greet first or anything like that. And I'm pretty sure that he gets the 1st attention. Because he's at the door when we walk in. I'm going to hold off on the petting thing. I don't trust it right now, and would never forgive myself if something happened. 

This is some good advice and is training that we have done with my 45 lb dog along with some racing dogs I train.  They must learn you and DD are alpha.  Good luck with your fur baby.

TobleroneBar

jhleap:

I am in Atlanta, and If you PM me I can give you the name of the trainer we worked with before the baby came. It is a well respected company and the trainers have been great.

With that being said, make sure you know the difference between a "doggie" correction, as they would correct a puppy and true aggression. If it is true aggression, even as a dog lover, I would say that without immediate intervention, you have to get rid of the dog. Our dog (55 lb labradoodle) growled at DS the first few times he pulled her hair... I freaked. But the trainer came over and observed and said that the dog thought she was doing what we wanted her to do (ie "teach the hairless puppy").... as soon as we made it clear that it was not her job, she stopped. She does get mad when he pulls the hair on her feet, but her mad now is to leave him. We have given her "safe" places to go where we keep the baby away from her when she needs a break. She doesnt even mind when he plays in her dog bowls now, but we make him sit across the room while she eats. I am sure that they will be the best of friends as soon as he knows her boundaries, and until then, she has to learn that I am the alpha dog of the house... and she tolerates him or she goes to a different room.

this is great advice. 

GHBEA

Years ago our well mannered no aggressive dog bit our then 1 1/2 year old.  She was just sitting next to him with me like we always did.  The animal control took the dog from us after the emergency room reported the incident to the sheriffs department.

All I can say is keep a very close reach to your dog when they are around your LOs.  We never expected the incident to happen but it did in a split second with out warning.  Now we are very alert with our newest LO around our two dogs.