dog aggressive dog

Oranage2 · 01-08-2011 5:19am

I remember seeing a similar problem on dog whisperer and caesar milan would kick the dog every time it went for another dog. He tried to also keep the dogs attention and he have the dog positive re enforcements when he left the other dogs alone.

paultf · 01-08-2011 2:25pm

Shanao wrote: »

Chicken, beef and pork are the three major meats when it comes to dogs having allergic reactions, often the proteins aren't properly broken down by the body and run a bit rampant in the system. If the proteins aren't broken down properly, they can miss out on having the right levels of tryptophan (think that's what its called anyway), which is essential for producing seratonin (which has a calming affect). What we see as fear aggression can be linked in with the wrong diet.

Lamb and fish-based foods have the least allergic reactions of the meats used in pet foods so suit some dogs better.

I'm guessing this is what AJ was talking about.

adrenalinjunkie wrote: »

I can best describe it as extreme hyperactivity, she would literally charge around the house at top speed crashing head-first into walls, furniture etc. it was at it's worst around an hour after meals.

I did a lot of research on-line and contacted breeders, breed-rescues etc. that deal with breeds that are prone to being food sensitive, all said that their dogs did best on lamb/fish diets. I also took advice from the nutritionist that works for Burns (Burns provide this service free of charge). I took her off chicken completely and did some little 'experiments' where I gave her a tiny piece of chicken in various forms (boiled, raw, freeze dried) and it was definitely the chicken.

I didn't know there was a scientific explanation at all, I just went on trial and error and the experience and knowledge of others better placed than I was. Thanks for posting this though, I've learned something now from this thread, even if no one else has.

AJ, Shaneo,

Thanks for that info. I suppose I was always aware of some foods causing an allergic reaction in dogs e.g. skin reaction or a dog being hyper. But I never thought about food causing problems with agression.

I feed my lot Burns chicken and brown rice. They like the food. During the day they are docile and sleep alot. But when we go for a walk they bark alot at other dogs - I suppose even been aggressive (I have them on a lead at all times). I wonder if I change to fish and brown rice would that make a difference? Must it check it out with Burns.

EDIT: just been in touch with Burns. I am at home with my lot 90% of the day so they always have company and during the day they are quite & sleep alot. So the Burns advisor reckons if they had a problem with the chicken flavour they would be causing problems during the day like being hyper. So I think they are OK on the chicken.

The Burns advisor also asked me about treats. I said I gave them a cream cracker now & again. She told me to cut these out because of the wheat which can cause behavourial problems.

Tranceypoo · 01-08-2011 5:14pm

celticcrash wrote: »

Hi Kristian
Dogs are feral, I hope you dont have kids in the house, because if
the dog attacked one of the kids you would not be able to control the
dog.

Not only is that unhelpful but it's also untrue and nonsensical!! Dogs are feral??!!

Tranceypoo · 01-08-2011 5:31pm

paultf wrote: »

AJ, Shaneo,

Thanks for that info. I suppose I was always aware of some foods causing an allergic reaction in dogs e.g. skin reaction or a dog being hyper. But I never thought about food causing problems with agression.

I feed my lot Burns chicken and brown rice. They like the food. During the day they are docile and sleep alot. But when we go for a walk they bark alot at other dogs - I suppose even been aggressive (I have them on a lead at all times). I wonder if I change to fish and brown rice would that make a difference? Must it check it out with Burns.

EDIT: just been in touch with Burns. I am at home with my lot 90% of the day so they always have company and during the day they are quite & sleep alot. So the Burns advisor reckons if they had a problem with the chicken flavour they would be causing problems during the day like being hyper. So I think they are OK on the chicken.

The Burns advisor also asked me about treats. I said I gave them a cream cracker now & again. She told me to cut these out because of the wheat which can cause behavourial problems.

Would you mind giving me the contact details for this Burns service?

paultf · 01-08-2011 6:12pm

Tranceypoo wrote: »

Would you mind giving me the contact details for this Burns service?

Burns customer service is in the UK - you have a choice of email, telephone or internet chat. I used the latter today - first time using that method - it was good & free!.

They provide a great service and I always find them very helpful.

http://burnspet.co.uk/misc/contact-burns-pet-nutrition.html

Discodog · 01-08-2011 6:37pm

I can't speak from experience in that I have never had an aggressive dog. But the number of people jumping on the training bandwagon is scary. My Vet's notice board is covered in training ads. There is no conceivable way that all of these people are qualified.

I have no doubt that a disreputable "trainer" who is getting €50 a time will hardly want to solve the problem in a hurry. It is just too easy for anyone to reel out a lot of crap, be believed & then keep the cash rolling in.

Any animal professional such as a Vet or behaviourist/trainer should be able to diagnose a problem & that diagnosis should be the same if you get a second opinion.

I would never allow a trainer to continue unless I was certain that they were doing the right thing & getting the right results. The danger is than the wrong action may actually make it worse & harder to resolve.

kristian12 · 01-08-2011 7:47pm

paulgalway wrote: »

On walks, our dog, Fox terrier X rescued dog, would either start barking and straining the lease; or sniff other dogs and then start barking and snapping.

I forget where I saw it suggested, but I now use a water bottle (squirt type). When she starts to show aggressive interest in another dog, she gets a squirt of water at the back of her head. she is now less likely to go for other dogs. At this stage, I only have to shake the water bottle and she behaves.

Thanks for the advice but if people are right and its fear based and made worse by the correction methods used by the behaviourist then i'd be worried this might add to it?

Thanks everyone for your advice and i'm going to call the behaviourists i was recommended on here tomorrow and talk it through with them and see if any of them are prepared to take over me and my guy. I'll certainly try changing his food and i'll keep you all posted as to how it turns out, as he's going nowhere.

LucyBliss · 01-08-2011 8:46pm

Best of luck, OP! Hopefully even something as small as changing the food will make him more receptive to you when out walking. When it comes together, walking your dogs can be a lovely experience. It can be very frustrating and worrying when the dog has a certain mindset going and can't/won't respond to your attempts to break through it.

liquoriceall · 01-08-2011 9:08pm

Just as an aside you might be interested in reading 'In Defence of Dogs' Im only about 50 pages in but its great got it off Amazon

DBB · 01-08-2011 9:32pm

kristian12 wrote: »

Thanks for the advice but if people are right and its fear based and made worse by the correction methods used by the behaviourist then i'd be worried this might add to it?

Hi Kristian,
Well spotted! This squirty bottle thing is all too regularly used to try to correct behaviour. It is another example of potential inhibition of behaviour, rather than curing the underlying emotion.
So, a dog who's anticipating a squirt of water on the neck/face/wherever, may repress the problem behaviour, but inside he's still in turmoil. But now, not only is he afraid of the other dog, he's got a squirt of water to contend with too!

the grooming pa · 05-08-2011 10:56pm

If he is part wheaten, then there is terrier in him, and they can be a bit funny at times, typical terriers I call them. You should never let him walk out the door before you, sit on a chair without your permission or anyone elses in the house, feed him after the rest of the family and let him see this, the second he reacts to other dogs, stop him, bring a can with some stones in it out with you on a walk, if you see as much as a hint of him thinking other than walking nicely down the road, shake it firmly, you must do this at the exact moment you see him THINKING about acting up to break the habit, I have four children, two dogs and a cat , the dogs obey everyone, never had any problems, they obey me over everyone else, you can always say in a loud voice DOWN when he makes a move if you dont want to carry things around, but you MUST do it the min you see him thinking of it, (as I said already) hope this helps, good luck

kristian12 · 05-08-2011 11:22pm

Hi just a quick update, i phoned the behaviourists i had recommend through here and altho neither were in a position to help (distance) i was put onto somebody who one of them recommended and she is coming out on monday to talk things through see him behave and then she'll come up with a plan of action using positive reinforcement and encouragment only. She has already suggested i replace his harness with a gentle leader as once i feel i have more control i'll relax more and so will he and after a few days of him realising its ok to have on he should be ready to walk on it.

I explained the problem to all of them on the phone and they all said that there was a very good chance this behaviour pattern can be sorted once we've dealt with any underlying problems.

A huge thank you to you all.

carwash_2006 · 06-08-2011 12:00am

While I have seen the pebbles in a bottle used to good effect for certain things, it should never be used to attempt to change behaviour in a fearful dog. Also timing is so important in this that I would not recommend it for most people.

The case where I have seen it work well was where a dog gets caught up in a behaviour (barking) and the shake of the bottle snaps her out of it. At this stage the presence of a bottle with stones in it is enough to make her remember herself and not go into that zoned out state.

dog aggressive dog

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