Hope for dog-aggressive pups

Just wanted to share a quick story in case others are struggling with similar issues. Without going into detail, as many of you know Gracie struggled a lot with serious dog aggression for a long time. We had to limit where she walked, couldn't have her off-leash, couldn't have friends over with their dogs, and certainly couldn't consider adding another dog to our pack.

Well, this morning, Miss Dominance (Gracie) was relaxing on our bed with us as we were having our coffee, all blissed out and lying on her back. Little Heidi crept up beside her, and laid her head on Gracie's tummy for a pillow. The two of them snoozed happily that way for about half an hour, interrupted only by the odd nose-to-nose sniff or lick and mutual wagging of tails. It was AWESOME to see.

Less than two years ago, Gracie wanted to tear apart pretty much any other canine she laid her eyes on. Now she looks to her humans to control iffy situations, uses and reads polite doggy body language, and actively solicits other dogs (including our newest addition) to play. And we have a harmonious three-dog pack in our home.

So, if you think there's no hope (as we did) get yourself a good trainer, commit yourself to LOTS of hard work, and look forward to reaping the rewards.:D

oh that is soooo great Bendyfoot!!! and of course you didn't happen to have a camera handy huh? good going!

Great news and I bet you have a happiers dog(s) too.

Excellent news. So glad that you went the mile and kept working at it. Personally, I have only come across one dog in my lifetime that was not salvageable.

It proves that there are no bad dogs. With time and committment and preserverance things can change for an animal.

This is a huge victory. Congrats!

Congrats on a great job :thumbs up. It is wonderful when the training pays off :highfive:.