Dogs

squidlydoo · July 2015

Has anyone else gotten protective over their stomachs and such things as dogs jumping on them?

My brother inlaw adopted a 10 month old pit bull puppy and it is so unpredictable and does not listen!! He (brother in law) is the culprit for the whole not listening thing. Gets the dog so riled up that it just runs rampant and then leaves to play xbox. So frustrating when I already have to protect my baby from this dog!!

Any tips on how to get it to stay down, other than not going over there?

chelseajeanene · July 2015

Has it actually tried jumping on you while pregnant? Because I had a similar situation with a very very hyper lab and I braced myself for her to jump on me like normal, but to my surprise she jumped on my hubby and as she walked towards me she sniffed my belly and calmly sat next to me the entire time I was there! It actually made me tear up because it was so sweet

squidlydoo · July 2015

He jumped on me twice tonight. Goes straight for my belly.

AmandaNacora · July 2015

When teaching my dog not to jump on me I would bend my arm and put it out in front of me so when she jumped she would hit my arm and I would tell her firmly no. It worked for me. She has a lot of energy so she has lots of toys, but her fave is the rope so when she's excited we tell her to go get rope and she'll get the rope and play with it instead of jumping on people.

squidlydoo · July 2015

Hmmm. I may need to try that!! Only thing is, he also likes to bite

.

cattiva8 · July 2015

My dogs can get over excited and launch themselves at me. I just lift my knee so they jump into my leg. Doesn't stop them trying again (they're not the smartest) but it at least it protects my belly!

FinalyFound · July 2015

squidlydoo said:

Hmmm. I may need to try that!! Only thing is, he also likes to bite .

This has me really concerned. Please stop going there NOW and especially not with the baby once s/he arrives. It sounds like your brother is not training this dog whatsoever, nor does he care how it reacts towards other ppl which is incredibly dangerous especially considering the breed and what they are actually bred for. A dog like this with no training, no matter how sweet they seem, is like a bomb waiting to go off.

TeacherMom210 · July 2015

Ditto @FinalyFound. My sister experienced this with her MIL when she was pregnant. They stopped going over there and won't bring the baby there now that she is here. Dogs can do a lot of damage, whether they mean to do so or not, especially if they are not trained.

reeny345 · July 2015

Unfortunately the dog needs a lot of training. Like any dog, If you don't train these dogs (I have a pitbull) they can be very unpredictable. My pitbull loves to jump as soon as you walk in the door, but we trained her to stay "down," "no jump," and "off" if you're sitting. We simply held her butt down when people came in, and sometimes with the choke collar. But it's a daily thing your in law would have to do. Otherwise, suggestion is to stay away while pregnant

mamadeez · July 2015

Turn your back to the dog. When you enter a room and the dog comes to greet you do not make eye contact, or give attention to the dog. You can use your knee or arm to block the dog and continue to ignore the dog otherwise. Even if undergoing training high energy puppies can get over excited and jump up.

victoriah1516 · July 2015

Puppies (just like very young humans) are going to have certain undesirable behaviors that take time and training to end. Jumping is definitely one of them! We have two big labs (8 and 4) and their behavior/energy level is so different than when they were puppies. Puppies also teethe so when they are losing their razor-sharp baby teeth, they like to gnaw on things (including arms and legs!) - they are not necessarily biting but it doesn't really matter because it hurts like heck!

If your brother-in-law uses crate-training, you can ask him to crate the dog when he comes over. Other than that, I would say you just might have to stay away until he gets his dog under control. You have a right to set that boundary to protect yourself and your baby.

HellsAngel22 · July 2015

Crate training is good but please be sure to either use it as their safe place or punishment. I was told by my vet to not use it as both. Just a suggestion.

barryfamily · July 2015

Please do not judge a dog by it's breed. Judge a dog by it's owner. My husband is a K-9 officer and we have three dogs. His working dog, a German Shepherd, and two personal dogs, a black lab and a Giant Alaskan Malamute. You must work with a dog and train them for them not to jump. I agree with leonadeez and cattiva8. Do not give the dog attention until the dog calms down or listens to your commands. If the dog some how does jump on you before you have a chance to turn bring your leg up so the dog gets hit by your knee when it jumps. This will teach the dog as well.

ElleMF728 · July 2015

My in laws have a dog that DH and I don't feel comfortable with. They don't see him as a problem but he is not trained at all and can be a bit nippy according to other family members (and in laws themselves).

My rule is that we don't come over unless he is put away either outside or in a room of the house using a gate or something. We call on our way over so they have time to remove him. I'm not going to put anyone else's feelings before my child's safety. Tell BIL that if he refuses to train the dog then he needs to do something with him before you come over.

Training not to jump is really hard, you have to be consistent and spend a ton of time on it. We have a Jack Russell and he can be very jumpy even after 2 years of us working with him. However, our terrier is about 12 lbs...not 40 and as a courtesy we usually put him outside for a few minutes so he has time to calm down when guests come over.

NoSugarCoating · July 2015

HellsAngel22 said:
Crate training is good but please be sure to either use it as their safe place or punishment. I was told by my vet to not use it as both. Just a suggestion.

Never use a crate as punishment.

squidlydoo · July 2015

FinalyFound said:

squidlydoo said:

Hmmm. I may need to try that!! Only thing is, he also likes to bite .

This has me really concerned. Please stop going there NOW and especially not with the baby once s/he arrives. It sounds like your brother is not training this dog whatsoever, nor does he care how it reacts towards other ppl which is incredibly dangerous especially considering the breed and what they are actually bred for. A dog like this with no training, no matter how sweet they seem, is like a bomb waiting to go off.

I completely agree with you and said to my husband that we will not be going over there until that dog is trained!! Even then, I won't trust it around the baby. My husband agreed as the final straw was when it bit him pretty good and we left.

v1wwo · July 2015

I feel like you could go about it two ways.
Like pps said, you do not have to come over and tell your BIL why. That is the simple solution I feel.
Or... even if you BIL does not want to take care of the dog's behavior that does not mean that the dog should disrespect you or your kid. When you come in the room/house you could project a leadership role and the dog will pick up on that. So even if your BIL plays with the dog the dog will know not to jump on you or your kid because you do not allow that and if your BIL leaves the room you could easily calm the dog. But this requires training and time from you.
Also, there is no wrong choice when it comes to your and you're kind/s safety.

FinalyFound · July 2015

barryfamily said:

Please do not judge a dog by it's breed. Judge a dog by it's owner. My husband is a K-9 officer and we have three dogs. His working dog, a German Shepherd, and two personal dogs, a black lab and a Giant Alaskan Malamute. You must work with a dog and train them for them not to jump. I agree with leonadeez and cattiva8. Do not give the dog attention until the dog calms down or listens to your commands. If the dog some how does jump on you before you have a chance to turn bring your leg up so the dog gets hit by your knee when it jumps. This will teach the dog as well.

I understand what your saying about not judging a breed, but you need to look at the facts here. PitBulls are responsible for 64% of fatal dog attacks between 2005-2014. That's significant for 1 breed. They were bred for their powerful jaw strength and 'lock-jaw' and to create as much damage to their 'prey' as possible without letting go.

There's a reason why there are now laws in states/provinces in which this breed is either banned or must be muzzled when in public.

I have a friend who has a PitBull. He's a huge baby but I would NEVER turn my back on it, I keep it in sight and there is no way I would allow my daughter or LO2 within any proximity of him. And this dog has been through comprehensive training.

OP said that the owner of this dog doesn't/hasnt trained the dog and gets it riled up and then leaves the room. That's not being a responsible owner, no matter the breed. Even with constant training a dog can be unpredictable, but more so without training. A dog obeys their master, and OP is not this dogs master.

aprilmay92 · July 2015

Pitbull "lockjaw" is not a real thing. I'm just gonna leave this here.

https://www.petfinder.com/pet-adoption/dog-adoption/myths-and-facts-about-pit-bulls/

shaunnar053 · July 2015

FinalyFound said:

I understand what your saying about not judging a breed, but you need to look at the facts here. PitBulls are responsible for 64% of fatal dog attacks between 2005-2014. That's significant for 1 breed. They were bred for their powerful jaw strength and 'lock-jaw' and to create as much damage to their 'prey' as possible without letting go.
There's a reason why there are now laws in states/provinces in which this breed is either banned or must be muzzled when in public.

I have a friend who has a PitBull. He's a huge baby but I would NEVER turn my back on it, I keep it in sight and there is no way I would allow my daughter or LO2 within any proximity of him. And this dog has been through comprehensive training.

OP said that the owner of this dog doesn't/hasnt trained the dog and gets it riled up and then leaves the room. That's not being a responsible owner, no matter the breed. Even with constant training a dog can be unpredictable, but more so without training. A dog obeys their master, and OP is not this dogs master.

Here we go... let me break this down with ACTUAL facts for all the self proclaimed pit bull experts on here...

1. "PitBulls are responsible for 64% of fatal dog attacks between 2005-2014."

“Pit Bull” is NOT a breed, but rather a category in which over 20 breeds are lumped (the term "Pit Bull" is nothing more than a generic term often used to describe all dogs with similar traits and characteristics often known by the public as "Pit Bulls"). You simply cannot compare that many breeds grouped under one label to the rest of the dog population and expect the statistics to be accurate..

In fact, "a 2008 study by the University of Pennsylvania looked at aggressiveness in 30 dog breeds and found that Chihuahuas and Dachshunds were the actually most aggressive toward humans and other dogs." Interesting, no?

" 'Pit bulls' were among the most aggressive toward other dogs, particularly those they didn’t know. However, pit bulls weren't more aggressive than other breeds toward strangers and their owners." Which brings me to my next point...

2. "They were bred for their powerful jaw strength and 'lock-jaw' and to create as much damage to their 'prey' as possible without letting go."

American Pit Bull Terriers where ACTUALLY “selectively” bred for hundreds of years to fight other dogs. In the same way that Labradors were bred to retrieve birds, APBT’s were, unfortunately, bred to face other dogs in mortal combat. With that said, animal-aggression and people-aggression should never be confused with each other as they are two different traits. Unless they have been very poorly bred and/or specifically “trained” to attack humans (often through abusive methods by undesirable individuals), American Pit Bull Terriers by nature are very good with people.

Also, "lock jaw" is a myth. The jaws of a "pit bull" function the exact same way as all other dogs' jaws, and no dog breed has ever been found to possess a locking mechanism. Pit bulls also don't have more bite pressure than any other dog breed. In fact,

"Dr. Brady Barr of National Geographic found that the domestic canines have an average bite of 320 pounds of force, and as part of his study, he tested the bites of three popular dog breeds: a German shepherd, a Rottweiler and an American pit bull. The Rottweiler had the toughest bite with 328 pounds of force, the German shepherd came in second with 238 pounds of force, and the pit bull bit with 235 pounds of force — the lowest of the group."

3. "There's a reason why there are now laws in states/provinces in which this breed is either banned or must be muzzled when in public."

There IS a reason for this (although breed specific legislation has shown to be unhelpful in aiding this reason, and more states have actually been removing this legislation than adding it as of recent). The reason for these laws are due to evidence that owners of pit bulls and other dogs labeled "high risk" are often high-risk individuals themselves, which could contribute to the breed's reputation.

"A 2006 study published in the Journal of Interpersonal Violence found that owners of pit bulls and other "high-risk dogs," such as German shepherds and Rottweilers, were more likely to have criminal convictions for aggressive crimes." Therefore, this legislation was put into affect in an effort to remove these dogs from the majority of people who were using them for unlawful and cruel purposes (i.e. criminals who were more than likely using them for fighting, and abusing them terribly).

With all that said, I COMPLETELY agree with everything else you've said. No dog should EVER be left alone with any child, ever. OP's BIL is a perfect example of why "pitbulls" have such a bad reputation, bad owners. OP, you should definitely stay away from your BIL's house if he has ANY type of large, untrained, unpredictable, powerful dog in his home. That just is not a safe environment for you or your little one.

rkk0002 · July 2015

shaunnar053, that is the single best reply to criticism about the "pit bull" breed I have ever read, thank you for posting it!

mrstzouganos · July 2015

My sisters dog is a jumper but since I got pregnant she has not once jumped on me. She prefers to lick my belly, I think it's cute. We were told by a trainer to bend your knee and it will hit the dog it his chest when he try's to jump and will make him stop. We used this for a while with my sisters dog and it works. Don't worry it doesn't hurt the dog, it just creates an obstacle and they realize that they can't jump there anymore.
I have a chihuahua that loves to jump in my lap when I sit down, but since the baby he jumps next to me then slowly creeps across my belly to lay on it. I'm super nervous about how he will be once the baby is born but I'm assuming he will be the same way and jump next to me before he climbs on me.
Good luck!

lmcissne · July 2015

I have 3 pitbulls who like to jump. They haven't jumped on me at all since I've been pregnant and when they lay on me I just readjust them so they aren't on my belly. They were great with my stepdaughter when she was little all it takes is time to work with them. I remember when my stepdaughter was 9 mos old and it was like they just knew she was different than a dog and they were so gentle when she pet them.

hbailey11 · July 2015

I am a dog groomer and I just put my knee up when I can sense that a dog is about to jump on my belly. I also have 6 large dogs at home and they know not to jump. But every now and then one of them starts feeling spunky and surprises me. Baby is doing fine though despite the occasional jump Sounds like this one is just a hyper puppy that needs some training.

NoSugarCoating · July 2015

FinalyFound said:

barryfamily said:

Please do not judge a dog by it's breed. Judge a dog by it's owner. My husband is a K-9 officer and we have three dogs. His working dog, a German Shepherd, and two personal dogs, a black lab and a Giant Alaskan Malamute. You must work with a dog and train them for them not to jump. I agree with leonadeez and cattiva8. Do not give the dog attention until the dog calms down or listens to your commands. If the dog some how does jump on you before you have a chance to turn bring your leg up so the dog gets hit by your knee when it jumps. This will teach the dog as well.

I understand what your saying about not judging a breed, but you need to look at the facts here. PitBulls are responsible for 64% of fatal dog attacks between 2005-2014. That's significant for 1 breed. They were bred for their powerful jaw strength and 'lock-jaw' and to create as much damage to their 'prey' as possible without letting go.
There's a reason why there are now laws in states/provinces in which this breed is either banned or must be muzzled when in public.

I have a friend who has a PitBull. He's a huge baby but I would NEVER turn my back on it, I keep it in sight and there is no way I would allow my daughter or LO2 within any proximity of him. And this dog has been through comprehensive training.

OP said that the owner of this dog doesn't/hasnt trained the dog and gets it riled up and then leaves the room. That's not being a responsible owner, no matter the breed. Even with constant training a dog can be unpredictable, but more so without training. A dog obeys their master, and OP is not this dogs master.

Yeah, no. The CDC doesn't track breed reports with bite reports, because (A) they're usually wrong, and (B) they give no useful information about WHY the dog bit.

kjs08 · July 2015

I have a 13 month old Aussie/boxer mix who still jumps, but we've been training her not to and it does take a lot of work. Best thing we've done is getting a bag of training treats from Petco (she LOVES these things) from their treat bar. As far as commands, you can do this yourself and eventually the dog should (in theory) do it to you (she does this for me but not my husband since he doesn't do it to her), especially if the dog is food driven but not food possessive. If you keep up with it, the dog should associate you with treats and view your presence as a reward, but you have to be the alpha to him/her. I've learned her body language when she's going to jump (she has a full butt wiggle normally so she's going to jump when she isn't as wiggly), I put my hands behind my back with a few treats in my hand and tell her to sit. Once she sits, I give her a treat to reward the behavior I want. You can have the dog do this multiple times by moving around the room and repeating the command 10-15 times. After I make her sit, I then tell her "down" (our command for having her lay down) and treat her again when she does the behavior (if the dog doesn't know this, you may need to put your treat hand on the floor to get them to lay down, only releasing the treat when the desired behavior is achieved). Now overtime I come in the house, she gets all wiggly, but I will not pet her until she sits and then lays down. I normally don't have to tell her to sit, but I do have to tell her down occasionally (she's still a baby so it's expected), and she doesn't do this for my husband (she sits for him, but still jumps on him but will not do it to me anymore). My husband and I would work on this every day and 2-3 times throughout the day as well since we got her in August. It may take longer since the dog doesn't live with you, but I did similar things with my SIL's dog who had no training and got her to at least do the basics by the end of a weekend (it was a miniature schnauzer and not the brightest bulb in the box either) and I can still get her to do these things (she still doesn't really listen to my SIL). Pit bulls are smart and loyal dogs, but they need to be trained of what behaviors are acceptable. Best of luck to you.

dmland17 · July 2015

I have two dogs. One is a 5 year old pit and the other is a 4 year old westie. Neither has jumped on my belly, although my little westie likes to gently place himself on top / on the side. I know he feels her kicking him and I always wonder what he's thinking. My pit just likes to come sniff my belly and sit beside me.

They stay calm for my husband and me, but when we have company they get excited when people arrive. I tell everyone to ignore them until they calm down and then give them attention. It's amazing how quickly they calm down when they aren't paid any mind initially. This may help if the puppy is jumping on you when you get there. If it is at random times, he needs better training and you may have to tell your brother-in-law you just can't visit until the pup is trained to not jump on people.

nerdymama15 · July 2015

When you say bite, are you meaning play bite or vicious I'm going to eat you alive bite. Trust me they are VERY DIFFERENT things. Don't get me started on defending the pit bull against stereotypes. If a pit bull was really truly biting you, you would be in the hospital just due to their jaw strength. But since you aren't, I'm going to go with play bite. Regardless, though, training should take care of that. Pits are very smart and can pick up on training quickly.

hrossi253 · July 2015

Also, pit bulls don't have "lock jaw", that's a myth. In a test of jaw strength, German Shepherds and Rotties have the most PSI per bite. But that's besides the point. If you have to go over there for any reason, call ahead and have him put his dog away, in a bedroom or something or stop going over there all together. I have 2 German Shepherds and I taught them not to jump by giving them a knee to the chest when they started to jump on me. Not a kick but I brought it up hard, and coupled with the force of them jumping, it took about 2 tries and they don't jump anymore. As puppies we nipped nibbling in the bud and they would never dream of biting, either play or otherwise. I can put my hand in their food bowl while they are eating and would never think twice about it. That said, I still would never trust my son alone with them, they're still dogs, and he's a rough little toddler. The other day he started poking my older dog in the eye and tried to ride him, and my dog just licked him in the face but he had the option to respond. My son doesn't know what hurts them yet, he thinks they are his play buddies, which they are, to a point. Seeing the 3 of them explore the backyard together is pretty hilarious. That sucks that your BIL isn't doing anything with his dog, that kind of animal gets destroyed later. Especially if it gets out, and it sucks for the dog.

Nehouston · July 2015

While I appreciate everyone's passion for getting into pitbull specific issues, the fact is it doesn't matter what kind of breed your brother owns - the issue is that he has a dog (whether it's a labrador, a pit, or anything else) that is acting inappropriately at a young age and if the dog is not trained properly the behavior will only worsen as the dog grows and becomes stronger.

You've gotten some decent advice, but it is not your responsibility to train your brother's dog. Your safety & the safety of your child MUST be your first priority. Puppies that don't learn that nipping is not appropriate dog-human contact will grow into larger dogs with stronger teeth that continue that behavior - only it doesn't feel like nipping once they're bigger.

If you wish to continue to have a relationship with your brother that involves you being around his dog, I urge you to encourage him to get some training help for his dog as it will benefit many, not just you. Explain to him in no uncertain terms that the behavior is not funny, and while it may not be a big deal to him now, it is going to cause you not to be around the dog. If he values your relationship, he will take you seriously. Ultimately this is his responsibility, though obviously his actions will (should) impact you being able to spend time with him at his home.

Good luck. If the behavior does not improve, I strongly urge you to continue to put your baby first and not allow your child to be around an untrained dog that doesn't respect humans. It will not lead to good things.

hrossi253 · July 2015

Also, OP mentioned this is her in law...is this your sister's husband? Your hubby's brother? Whoever is related to him should be backing you up as well. Have your hubby talk to him if it's his brother or if it's your sister's hubby, she needs to take control here.

squidlydoo · July 2015

hrossi253 said:
Also, OP mentioned this is her in law...is this your sister's husband? Your hubby's brother? Whoever is related to him should be backing you up as well. Have your hubby talk to him if it's his brother or if it's your sister's hubby, she needs to take control here.

It's my husbands brother. He did talk to him about it. His brother really needs to work with this dog.
It's more so the unpredictable behaviour of the dog that scares me. My brother in law was playing with him and then went upstairs. Out of nowhere the dog started sprinting from couch to couch and jumping on my belly. Nobody provoked him to do so. It was actually quite scary.
If the dog was to do this with the baby there, I'd be beside myself in tears. We will be avoiding being there until he is better trained.

krmicmac · July 2015

I have a four year old excitable pit bull who loves to run and jump, but whom we've been carefully training foot the past seven months to not jump on me. When he does go to jump on me, I put my arm out and he jumps to my arm instead, something his previous owner trained him to do. He had been very perceptive of training, which had made our lives easier, but training takes tinge and constant effort. But it has seemed to pay off. Our dog is now extraordinarily gentle with me and saves his rough play for my husband. Granted, he still loves to run like a crazy thing.....so we play fetch with him until he tires out enough to be sweet abd cuddly.

Your brother in law needs to get his act together and get his ass to obedience class with his dog, and at least make an effort if he wants you guys over. A little training can really go a long way, but he has to start.

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