Go Back   Pet forum for dogs cats and humans - Pets.ca > Discussion Groups - mainly cats and dogs > Dog training - dog behavior

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old September 14th, 2008, 10:52 AM
sassynsweet034 sassynsweet034 is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: iowa
Posts: 2
our new dashound bites us

Hello. My problen is we got a older male dashund from the pound about 6 months back, dont know a lot about him but he was abused, the thing is when ever any yells or palys arounds a to hard, or touches someone else in a playful way or not,, Brownie goes nuts grawling and chasing his tail, he has bite me about 5 time and boths my boys a lot, i think it has to be with him being abused, I need to know if any one knows how to stop it, you cant not touch him when he go crazy.. oh and he is 6 years old a older male .thanks for any thoughts. Sandy

Last edited by sassynsweet034; September 14th, 2008 at 11:00 AM.
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old September 14th, 2008, 12:45 PM
joeysmama joeysmama is offline
Senior Contributor
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: northeast
Posts: 1,343
Oh the poor little guy. It makes you wonder what kind of a person could treat a dog that way. You've got to be sick to hurt a defenseless animal !!

I'm not an expert by any means, and hopefully someone else will come along who can give you more advice than I can but here's my two cents for what it's worth.

When we adopted Joey he was at least 2 and a half and had been abused and abandoned. He was very timid for the first few days--just scared to death I think. Then he began to bite. I think he may have bitten my husband nearly every day for 5 years. He didn't bit for no reason. He bit if anyone tried to pick him up at night when he was done for the day and just wanted to rest. He bit if anyone tried to put his leash on him when he didn't want to go out. He bit if he thought someone was coming near his food dish when he was eating and he bit when he was startled. If someone tried to touch him or pet him when he wasn't looking that would startle him and cause him to "snap".

I regret not having a trainer come in the very beginning since I wasn't an experienced dog owner. I think the professional help might have been a smarter way to go.

What we did do was learn his patterns. Since he was very bonded with me I was able to pick him up and I was able to put his leash on him. So I just learned to respect what his triggers were. If he was resting and we wanted him to go ouit for his last walk I would talk to him in a pleasant voice to rouse him first. Many times I would put his leash on him and then, if it was my husband taking him out I would actually have to escort him to the door or else he would plant his feet and not want to move and trying to make him walk would not bode well for hubby. But if mommy walked them to the door then he would go.

Fortunately we didn't have little ones and I was cautious when kids came over. I would explain everything and ask them to never touch Joey without asking me first. He was actually friendly, not aggressive at all until he felt threatened but he felt threatened by things that would not have been an issue for most dogs who hadn't been abused.

I would have loved and protected him for the rest of my life but we only had 5 years before he died of cancer.

Our new little guy is exactly the opposite. Loves the whole world and thinks any attention is good attention. Always has a big old doggie smile and I wouldn't be surprised if one day he actually laughed out loud !!

Be patient. You're doing a good thing. But if you think you need to get someone in to help you I think you'll be glad you did. Some gently training might be in order.
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old September 14th, 2008, 01:01 PM
mollywog's Avatar
mollywog mollywog is offline
Molly's mama
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: NW Ont
Posts: 1,340
aww poor guy for sure. my in laws rescued a doxie at about 6 months of age and he has some major trust issues. He absolutely LOVES his family but as soon as a "new person" comes in the house, he gets scared and if there is any sort of sudden movement or reason for him to be suspicious, he will bite.
The only advice I can give you is be patient with this guy. And try to be PROactive rather than REactive. Watch for signs that he is nervous or uncomfortable. Do lots of obedience, and any type of play that he enjoys to build up his confidence.
I am sure more knowledgeable people around here will give you more specific advice. But don't give up!
__________________
Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole.
http://mollywogblog.blogspot.com/
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old September 14th, 2008, 04:35 PM
weppasmom weppasmom is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Atlanta
Posts: 18
I can definitely relate. We adopted a 2 year old mini-schnauzer who had been neglected (almost starved to death) and abused. She was scared and very distrustful with me, but loved my husband. If I tried to pick her up she would bite me, and believe me, she brought blood. I was beyond frustrated with her and tried everything to get her to trust me. I was beginning to feel like nothing was going to help, but after reading lots of posts on this website and researching it, we decided it 'might' help if we enrolled her in basic obedience classes. Well, it worked WONDERS! I was the one who took her to the classes and practiced her commands with her, and she began to respect me and was no longer fearful of me.
All this to say, if your doxie hasn't had basic obedience, it just may help. Good luck. Vicki
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old September 14th, 2008, 04:36 PM
TwoLostSouls TwoLostSouls is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Mississauga
Posts: 28
Quote:
Originally Posted by sassynsweet034 View Post
Hello. My problen is we got a older male dashund from the pound about 6 months back, dont know a lot about him but he was abused, the thing is when ever any yells or palys arounds a to hard, or touches someone else in a playful way or not,, Brownie goes nuts grawling and chasing his tail, he has bite me about 5 time and boths my boys a lot, i think it has to be with him being abused, I need to know if any one knows how to stop it, you cant not touch him when he go crazy.. oh and he is 6 years old a older male .thanks for any thoughts. Sandy
Is this your first dog? Dogs who bite and snap are being dominant. The only way to make it stop is to take charge, become the pack leader and show it discipline, not punishment as that will backfire. Biting anyone should never be tolerated.

If you continue to feel sorry for the dog, rather than take charge of it, the attacks will only get worse. The dog sees your pity as weakness and has taken charge, biting whomever, whenever it wishes. This is very bad, especially if you have children. If you back off when it growls or snaps, you are empowering the dog and making yourself look even weaker.

You'd best seek professional help before your rescue dog gets put down. You may tolerate it biting your children, but don't count on others being ok with it.
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old September 14th, 2008, 05:54 PM
sassynsweet034 sassynsweet034 is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: iowa
Posts: 2
no this is not my first dog or my first dashhunds i have a 3 year old dashhund, that is a wonderful boy, and i cant even think about having him you only bite us no one else and its not cus he wants to the big dog .its olny when someone get loud or paly around , he a sweet boy
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old September 15th, 2008, 11:05 AM
bendyfoot's Avatar
bendyfoot bendyfoot is offline
Geek Club CEO
 
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Ontario
Posts: 5,019
You can't be making excuses for his behaviour...it shouldn't be allowed no matter what, even if people around him are being loud or playing. He may be biting out of fear or because he's "correcting" people for the loud behaviour. Either way, biting is a no-no. If he can't tolerate that stuff, then it's your job to take charge, either by having him under control via a leash so you can intervene/correct as soon as he starts the bad behaviour, or put him in his crate so he can feel comfortable and safe if you're not able to supervise. I'd try tying his leash to your belt and do the umbellical approach with him for a while until he settles in. He'll have to watch you for direction, and you'll have him under control all the time.
__________________
Owned by:
Solomon - black DSH - king of kitchen raids (11)
Gracie - Mutterooski X - scary smart (9)
Jaida - GSD - tripod trainwreck and gentle soul (4)
Heidi - mugsly Boston Terrier X - she is in BIG trouble!!! (3)
Audrey - torbie - sweet as pie (11 months)
Patrick - blue - a little turd (but we like him anyways) (6 months)
__________
Boo, our Matriarch (August 1 1992 - March 29 2011)
Riley and Molly
Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off


Forum Terms of Use

  • All Bulletin Board Posts are for personal/non-commercial use only.
  • Self-promotion and/or promotion in general is prohibited.
  • Debate is healthy but profane and deliberately rude posts will be deleted.
  • Posters not following the rules will be banned at the Admins' discretion.
  • Read the Full Forum Rules

Forum Details

  • Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8
    Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
    vBulletin Optimisation by vB Optimise (Reduced on this page: MySQL 0%).
  • All times are GMT -5. The time now is 05:06 AM.