STAFFY OWNERS HELP PLEASE urgent

RooBee

Dog on dog attacks are not the same as dog on human attacks. I would be surprised if the police take any action as they don;t ten to get involved in dog/dog attacks. Do prepare yourself for a visit from the dog warden at the very least though.

However, you KNOW your dog is dog aggressive therefore it is YOUR responsibility to ensure he never has the opportunity to attack another dog. YOU were the party who was in the wrong in this incident. The German Shepherd was properly under the control of its owner so whether it showed aggression or not is neither here nor there. Your dog was not under control. End of. That cannot be allowed to happen again.

A halti is no substitute for a muzzle and I would suggest that the invest in a Baskerville (basket) style muzzle for him to wear that still allows him to pant, bark etc. It goes without saying that he should never be off lead in a place where another dog might appear. If you want to exercise him off lead, find an enclosed space (many parks will have tennis/basketball courts which are fully fenced) and throw a ball for him but when walking anywhere else, he MUST be kept on lead at all times. I cannot stress that enough. You are lucky that it was a large dog he picked on today, a small breed is unlikely to have fared to well in the altercation even with his halti on. If the GSD had been off lead; you could well have a seriously injured or dead dog on your hands right now.

I also believe that dog aggression (especially in a breed like the Staffy, that has been bred for it) bears no relation to human aggression. Even the toughest Pit Bulls used for fighting would never, ever turn on a human otherwise they couldn't be handled. If they did, they would be dispensed with forthwith as they are no good to anyone. I therefore don't believe that your dog should necessarily be PTS but he cannot ever exercise off lead in an unenclosed space where other dogs might be.

You might be able to use a long line atached to his harness in an open space but you would have to be confident that you could recall him/reign him in if another dog were to appear suddenly. Only you can decide if that's a feasible option but if you are in any doubt as to your ability to control him in such a situation, don't take the gamble...keep him on a short lead.

Sagz_2

I don't have much to add, RooBee excellent post has lots of common sense advice which I'd urge the OP to follow.

Did your Staffie come from a good rescue? Some of them offer a life-long behavioural back-up service - it might be worth contacting them to see if they can help, or at least reccommend a tried-and-tested behaviourist.

ali-t

I have a staffy and she can be the perfect pet in the house but a little !!!!!! when there are other dogs about that she doesn't like. I agree with the majority of other posters that your dog should be kept on a lead and should only go out with people who have full control of the dog.

Mine gets off the lead and has excellent recall so I am always confident that if I shout her back upon seeing another dog she will be at my feet and she is so used to this that she will come back to me and sit at my feet if she sees another dog.

There are many people who have undersocialised dogs who cannot read body language and I am aware of all of the signals my dog gives off to say she is not happy but lots of dogs do not appear to notice. What I am trying to say is that often your dog may be reacting to signals given out by other dogs although I am not condoning your dogs behaviour.

I learnt a lot by reading Turid Rugaas work and have included a link to her site as she does a lot of work around calming signals. I am not suggesting that you cannot read your dogs body language but there are a lot of elements of her work that had never crossed my mind but I found to be very enlightening.

http://www.canis.no/rugaas/

Only you can decide what is right for your dog but remember that dog ownership should have an element of fun and that any emotions you are feeling will be transmitted down the lead to your dog. My dog has gone for other dogs in the past and it is extremely scary as staffy's are less likely to let go once they get a hold of a dog but I feel a lot safer out with her now as I am in control.

sad_dog_lady

ok...
1. it was not a public place it is a wood owned by a friend , who allows people in it.
2. i thought about it... exact reinactment...
ok, muddy wood, dogs come here every day
they run back to car about 100 meters ahead of me because... its muddy and i almost slipped over twice.
we had never had an altercation in this wood, very few people know of its excistance
so i wasnt ever expecting to find anyone
the dogs we met by the car were 10
6 border collies off lead a little mad ( excited)
one black labradoor off lead.. very freindly but calm
two women one clutching a tiny dog to her chest
the other said " we have to watch him he'd eat your two"
refering to the alsation on lead
the dogs all mixed fine until
i got near the alsation... i think he growled at me, so my staffy went for him.
we have had two behaviorlists, two trainers and a proffesional dog walker
i attened puppy classes with him at 4 months but he was aggresive then, so i was asked to leave. i have had a doberman, collie and lab and akita.
never ever had so much trouble as i do with this staffie, thanks for the helpful answers, i am not as upset now. it wasnt more than a min that they were together and i think it was the dogs claws that opened up my stffies chest not his teeth.

sad_dog_lady

oh and another man with an off lead staffie , watching procedings.
so that was 10 dogs all at the same time

newmee

oh, bless all of us....dogs are such an emotive subject aren't they! I rarely get on my 'high horse' about stuff!
Glad you are feeling better about it sad dog lady.....don't worry too much....I bet it wasn't as bad as it seems in black and white.

Take Care all x x x x

sad_dog_lady

i'm resolved to keep an extender on him but no halti or muzzel as he is not strong enough to pull me with harness on lead, but i feel it will be sad for him to not be able to run free. any decent dog trainers or behaviorlists anywhere between lincoln and hull, are invited to pm me. but be warned i'm no longer paying in advance, as people dont return after 6 sessions

elsien

Sad dog lady, my dog has never been off the lead, due to her unpredictable behaviour around dogs and people. I'm sure yours will get used to it in time - just be careful when he's on the end of an extender lead that he can't pull you off balance. Mine is fine with a halti on a shorter lead, but is too strong for me on the end of a long lead. It's not just your dog having a go at others, it's also being able to deal with the situation if an off lead dog has a go.
It might be worth trying a muzzle, but I found it made mine worse, as she knew she couldn't defend herself from other dogs, so she freaked out all the more.
Good luck.

tbain

Incisor wrote: »

Tough thing to say, but I think at some point you need to be prepared to put him to sleep. I think you know this already.

You say he is wonderful with children. Sure, he is with your son, because he has correctly identified your son as part of 'his pack'. What you really need to doubt is his behaviour with animals and humans from 'other packs'. The fact that he has attacked an alsatian 5 times his size means that he cannot be trusted. The things you really have to fear are the dog taking off at a child you don't know or even taking off at a child who comes to visit your son, particularly if they end up having a little fight or argument as kids might. In this case, I would guarantee that your dog will give the visiting child no leeway and you will probably not be able to prevent a very serious situation.

Totally agree. I think putting the dog to sleep will have to be something you need to consider. It's only a matter of time before it attacks another dog and is it worth risking any childs safety? By the way I know I will probably get criticism for this response but it is the way I feel and personally that dog is at high risk of hurting a person or other animal.

sad_dog_lady

are you staffy owners? its just many people are prejudice . i was asking in this post for any staffy owner or people experianced with the breed.
my friends two and three yr olds play with him, and in the parks children stroke him, stffies have that smile when they pant like rotties, i think kids like that. he is only occasionaly dog aggressive, and then i think it is when he senses a threat. actually im a bit like that with people..