dididog

I'm sorry you're going through this it's really crappy of LDH but to be honest kind of expected... they don't like dealing with inconveniences (hence their high kill rate). Did you see a trainer or a behaviourist? Did they give you follow up information on how to manage the behaviours? Just obedience training would not really be sufficient for your problem and you'd need a reputable behaviourist to assess the situation. Can you clarify the extent of aggressive behaviour? My dog is currently fear reactive with strangers, mainly in close proximity or making threatening movements(or what she perceives to be threatening)and I getcha, it is a massive drainer and I can imagine with the dog aggression added in that you would feel overwhelmed. However if you're willing to give it one last try I can personally recommend Judi from proK9, she came to see us recently and my dog's behaviour makes so much more sense and I am better able to deal with it. While it still requires lots of management and consideration, it is a lot less stressful when you know how to handle it. I really don't know how you will go surrendering a dog with aggressive behaviours but depending on the extent of the behaviours I'm sure somebody else will have a better idea of who you should talk to. Good luck and chin up, you are trying to do the right thing by your dog, despite LDH letting you down. I am no expert btw just trying to find out more info so somebody with a better idea can help you out :) eta. I too think depending on your answers to the further questions that you should consider trying again as I do think it will not only be hard to rehome her but also a unethical as you are passing problems along.

In owning 2 cats, 2 horses and 2 rats we always had females. Didi was meant to be a boy but when I saw her face and watched her pull her own pee soaked paper towels out of the foster carer's bin and all over the kitchen, I knew she was the one :) I can't say that Didi's traits are due to her being female but she is so cheeky and calculating, once she knows something is naughty, she will carefully and sneakily do it as much possible, eg. instead of just chewing my shoes she will rip the innersoles out of the right shoe (only the right) and put it back where it was so you are none the wiser... until you go to put your shoes on of course. Just now I forgot I'd put her outside for a wee and only remembered to let her back in when she whimpering (cold and windy out) instead of coming straight back in, she sat and stared at me accusingly right in the eye until I got the point and then trotted in. On the flip side she lives for cuddles and is a huge sook, she will whine over the littlest thing and while she's fine doing her own thing, she enjoys being as close to us as possible. She's very patient and forgiving with other dogs, barely ever seen her snap and when she is snapped at she just looks sad and slinks away. I've got to say I was a bit worried I wouldn't bond with a female dog and that she would be drawn to the men in my family instead and while she is in love with my Dad (he is definitely her favourite) we have a solid bond and while she might be most affectionate with Dad, she knows I am her 'person' and the amount of snuggly-sookiness I get from her is more than enough. I think my next dog will probably be male just for the sake of trying something new and avoiding a two bitch household if I can... but I will always want a female, it's what I've always known and I can appreciate that 'spice' (good word btw whoever used it) and think it suits my attitude too.

It never ends!

Perhaps leave puppy with something really good that she only gets when you leave her alone? You could give her a bone when she's outside during the morning rush or a kong when she's in her crate? That is unless she completely shuts down when you're gone and is not interested in anything else but if that's the case you could get her used to playing with a kong in her crate while you are in the room, wait till she's really going to town on it and slip out of the room briefly and come back in (rinse and repeat) so that eventually she pays less attention to what you're doing because she's more interested in the super good thing mum gives her? Also the first day of puppy school is extremely overwhelming, she may have been too nervous around the other pups to take food from you or she might've been too excited by the other pups to be interested in what you have to offer. Or if she just really isn't food motivated you could try using her favourite toy? Oh and yes greyhound puppy pictures would be appreciated!

Yeah I might just make a passing comment about how I noticed he could stick his head out and he gave Didi a bit of a shock and I'm a bit worried another dog might not react so nicely. Might say something about if I kept Didi in the front yard and she could get her through the fence she'd probably do same thing (which she probably would) so it feels like less of a personal attack on their dog. It confuses me though because there used to be a hole in their fence he could stick his head through so they blocked it off but they then turned their whole fence line into a bunch of holes??? The worst walk by head thunking Didi has ever received was from a toddler passing us in one of those prams that are really elevated and sprung out with an outstretched hand determined on showing Didi some love. Another thing big dogs seem to attract is a weird form of catcalling (dogcalling???) Where I live is really busy with tradies at the moment as half of it is being redeveloped and the Showgrounds are setting up for the Melbourne Show and so many just honk and shout things like NICE DOG, or NOW THAT'S A DOG!!! (well I hope they're referring to Didi and not me....)

Holy crap I can assure you that lady would've been met with a lot of growls and barking (from both me and Didi) if she'd tried that to us. So rude to take your photo without asking and to then try and interfere with your dog's collars on top of touching your dog without asking. People and their self imposed right to touch your dog is the reason why if someone so much as smiles at Didi I move far, far away, they've already created enough damage. Good thing Del is opinionated-idiot proof :D I haven't been doing many on lead walks since Judi came which is annoying but I got the chance to do one today, I'm really having to work on remembering to be overly cautious because Didi is only okay with a situation until she isn't and in the early stages I can't let it go that far. Passed a fair few people today, most of which Didi happily ignored with me walking in between her and the strangers and keeping our distance. Handful of occasions where I could see her on the brink of ticking over threshold but managed to overt the situation. While we had one of her worse enemies approach us (elderly person with one of those market trolley things) and Didi was only a little worried, the sight of a man 100m away on the path made her tense up completely and focus intensely so who knows what goes on in that big head of hers. It's amazing how a change in outlook and demeanor by me helps though. One worrying thing that I encountered on our walk, our neighbours have what looks like a maltese/shih tzu who is fairly old and mainly just curls up in a ball on their porch bench. He's a pretty snappy bugger and always rushes at the fence and carries on if he sees Didi on walks. Up until now they had a solid picket fence so he mostly didn't see other dogs walking past or at least was completely separated from them but they redid their fence last week and the sheeting is like a powder coated metal grid, with the holes of the grid big enough for him to stick his head out of. I didn't know he was outside until I walked past with Didi up against the fence and he just came out of nowhere and popped his head through one of the holes barking and snapping at Didi's face. Didi obviously reacted back and I really had to drag her away. Didi was not trying to bite back more just upper lip curled back and snarling but we live in a high traffic area for dogs and I'm scared this little guy is going to get his face ripped off if he surprises the wrong dog. Don't really know how to go about telling the neighbours though? They're nice enough and we say hi and chat every now and then but I feel like they're the type who will take offence to being told their dog is a bit of an asshole and that their lovely new fence was probably a bad idea??

Brandi is gorgeous and Benny has such a kind and soulful face, he must feel so lucky to be seeing his twilight years out with you :) Makes me really wish a greyhound would suit what I want in a dog, they are so lovely! I still don't really have a foolproof method of trimming Didi's nails... I kind of just wait till she's passed out asleep and do a sneaky trim, she wakes up but is usually too half asleep to make a fuss!

That's so exciting :D what breed are you getting?

Yeah I think I saw that, the dog was an American Bulldog, all that was supplied was a photo and the info that her her owner could not comply with requirements and was about to be destroyed and so many people were just commenting saying they would have her in a heartbeat but I doubt any of them would still feel that way when they find out the truth. I really hope they page doesn't become a platform to jailbreak dogs with dangerous dog orders...

Probably but then she would not be able to chew bones or play with the other toys she gets to keep her occupied and she'd probably dig or something else destructive as a result of being bored. Plus I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving it on her for hours unsupervised. Would be an absolute last resort I think.

Thanks for that, there's a saddlery up the road so I'll check in and see what they have. Also the wood isn't rotten, the gouged away corner only looks like it because that happened months ago and it has since been exposed to the elements, you can see with the bit she just chewed that the wood is normal and that's what it looked like when she first chewed the other one. We are on very good terms with our landlord and he's been great about us having Didi so no I don't want to pull the wool over his eyes, I don't even know if he'll want to replace it yet as it's only cosmetic and wood in other areas is deteriorated even worse.

Guess who's had Bark Busters in... *sigh* The last time I saw someone alpha roll their dog, I asked them if they'd like to try it on my Rotti/Pittie girl - with the warning that she'd tear them a new one if they tried it... they declined the offer, and stopped doing it to their own dog while I was there at least. T. I was so surprised I did not know what to say. In my area everyone is very into positive reinforcement/in general not being a dick to their dog and I just couldn't fathom their thinking. They're pretty lucky the dog didn't turn around and bite them since it was already in a state, wouldn't have taken much to redirect it's aggression. I hope I never bump into them again, I didn't like them or their dogs or the way they interact with other people's dogs.

Yesterday I witnessed somebody Alpha roll a dog for the first time. I was talking to our friend at the park and there was a couple with 3 dogs there as well. Didi was playing with their youngest dog and another one of their dogs kept trying to join in and getting agitated so they called the other dog over and started using my friend's tug toy. My friend's Berner likes playing tug with other dogs and went to join in and the other dog growled at it and its owner yelled its name and yelled NO BAD BAHHH BAHHH whilst pinning it to the ground and also whacked it over the nose. The whole time it was being pinned to the ground she was yelling at it. I was a bit but seeing how confident she looked about doing it I didn't say anything because I was really not in the mood and I couldn't gather my thoughts well enough to tell them why what they were doing was so wrong and not going to stop resource guarding. I found out after they left that the dog she'd pinned to the ground wasn't even hers! It was a friend's and they were babysitting. I also found out after they left that the young dog Didi had been playing with was fresh out of the pound, they'd only had it two days and had brought it down to 'see what it was like with dogs'... luckily for them it was only a little boisterous and rude rather than dangerous but sheesh reminded me why I don't like mixing with people and dogs I don't know at the park.

So at the end of obedience today we got try our hand at a lil bit of agility. Just 10cm jumps and a tunnel + low hoops. I never really felt like doing agility but Didi really took to it and seemed happy doing it. She's only 10.5 months old and a large/giant breed (yes I know we'll probably just dabble in it for fun) but I was wondering if you guys could point me in the direction for some good resources just for foundation training as obviously she can't do it properly until she is much older. Thanks :)

I'm sure somebody else can shed light on what your pup is doing but it's good you're intervening and not letting it become an ingrained behaviour :) and yes I agree this thread has made me so much more mindful of where my dog is in relation to others. Unfortunately the only person I've bumped into with a reactive dog who has actually cared their dog is reactive was working their Rottie offlead at an oval with other dogs around and flipped their lid at me when I walked near them to leave even though Didi never got very close to their dog. Didi also went to the beach today... she's grown so much since we used go in the summer that you now have to walk in SO deep for her to be able to swim :laugh: . Didi used to have such a high value for dogs that her recall was terrible offlead around dogs but she's gotten so much better and I recalled her away from 4 different dogs that came up to play which is when she would normally find it hardest to break away. We're going to brave obedience club tomorrow, last time she got spooked when the trainer looked like he was going to touch her and would get a bit antsy afterwards when he was talking while facing us but I've had a chat with him since and he's really good about it and will be extra mindful.

Aw, such a beautiful gal ( even if she woofs wood & timber ) :laugh: she's definitely lucky she's cute... Or she'd be off to the glue factory by now (the metaphorical glue factory of course...)

This might be a less invasive way, I don't like the idea of having to attach things to the outside of the house in case it damages it in someway. Does it have any effect on paintwork? Yeah I was thinking she could probably chew through mesh which was why I was also thinking some sort of sheeting as she would find it hard to get a grip on a smooth flat surface. Hmm I don't think it is because two out of the three times she has done we've been home and she was just outside playing/eating a bone which she does everyday so I'm sure she'd be doing it more frequently and more obsessively if it was anxiety based? If she is doing it a lot/being destructive in general I will try it but I think it's more just a case of her having a sweet tooth for wood since she will try and chew sticks and bark, I think she's probably just worked out the house is also made of wood :laugh:

One day she'll grow into that head... one day... 10.5 mths and 42ish kg :)

Yeah I was thinking we'd have to put some sort of sheeting around the house, perhaps acetate or corflute but chicken wire or some other mesh will probably be less bulky and less expensive. She's really tall so I will need a lot of what ever it is to cover all the bits she can reach. Thanks for the idea, might hit Bunnings up tomorrow and see what would work :)

I can count on one hand the amount of things Didi has destroyed in her life time which I think is a fair tally... the problem is one of them is the outside of our house! We rent and it's an old weatherboard so plenty of wood and there are 4 separate walls she can access in the backyard. The first occasion was pretty bad. I'd put her outside with a bone for maybe 45 minutes and came out to a large corner gouged away. We've blocked this area off and in the months since she hasn't done it again. Yesterday she was in the yard while I was out and had a frozen chicken frame, a stuffed Kong and two other chew toys she likes to keep her occupied and she had been to the park that morning so was relatively tired. Came home to a few little nibbles on one of the panels which was not too bad so I didn't do anything about it but then my Dad let her out this morning to play with her Kong and in that small time frame she made it A LOT worse. I don't know what to do! I can't do the usual suggestions like Vicks or something similar because there are so many walls and so many possible chew areas. As mentioned we rent and already I can tell this will be costing be a bit to fix Suggestions to stop her? Don't really like the idea of her crunching on old wood and paint very much either.

Yes I think I would be returning her I think otherwise you might be up for an extremely hard task requiring constant management and it will be made so much harder by her sheer size and strength. My dane cross puppy is very friendly and polite with dogs and will even lie down to greet and play with smaller dogs and puppies but due to her size she still gets snapped at a lot/receives aggressive reactions from other smaller dogs who are intimidated by her size alone, even if my dog is not close to them. I can only imagine how badly it would end if she ever reacted back to one of these aggressive displays and how hard it would be to stop her if she really wanted to attack. My dog is currently reactive to people in close contact while on lead and even though her reactions are mild and more defensive than aggressive it is a lot of stress and hard work and has made an impact on what we would normally be able to do (and I have only been dealing with this for a month). Having a dog with behavioural issues is hard at any size but because my dog is so big the stakes are a lot higher and there's no room for mucking around. I think with your older whippy it would not be fair for it, you don't want to spend it's final years busy worrying and spending all your time managing a new, reactive dog that you have to keep separated instead of enjoying the time left with your current dog. Even if your new Dane was not dog aggressive I would be hesitant to leave them alone regardless as your Dane could quite easily bowl your frail, older dog over or hurt it by accident. I'm sorry what should have been a great, exciting day has turned out like this but I think it's good you found about this as soon as possible instead of later on once you were attached to your new addition.

Didi was a lil puppy over the summer break and I would go out a lot with friends but always left early and could never stay over because puppy needs to wee and get put to bed etc etc. And so many of my friends would get annoyed and would say it's just a dog, it can live without you and that I baby her too much. This was mainly coming from people who had never owned a dog or in particular from a guy who owns an obese beagle/german shep mix that is fed canned pedigree everyday and boasts about how his dog can spend 24 hours on it's own, not a problem. I soon found myself not getting invited to things at all which was nice... I still knock back a lot of offers or since I have obedience on Sunday mornings I never stay out late on a Saturday and I just think people don't grasp the concept that just because I don't need to do all the things I do for Didi doesn't mean I don't WANT to. I am lucky that my best friend got a kelpie pup a week before I got Didi and we have been able to relate a lot and we have regularly found ourselves discussing poo in depth over dinner and other things my other friends would never dream of entertaining. My family is very doggy and treat their dogs similarly to how we treat Didi so no issues there :) My mum's stepmother though HATES animals and I remember she came to stay with us for a month and would refuse to let us free run our rats at the time and would make a big fuss every time I said I was going to do it and would go to her room. When my mum told her that we got Didi, even though she knew how much I wanted a dog she more or less it was a bad decision and that dogs are a waste of time... I hope she doesn't invite herself to stay anytime soon otherwise she will probably have to spend the entire time in the spare room :laugh: I judge people all the time with what they do with their dogs (internally of course) but living in the inner city I don't come across too many people who subscribe to the old treat em mean keep em keen addage. What I do come across is many badly behaved dogs or dogs with severe issues whose owners overlook everything they do and brush it off, think that love is all a dog needs.

Well the little guy will not be destroyed if his owners can relocate him to Cairns. I can only hope that where he is relocated, the new owners take on the responsibility his previous owners clearly lacked. Doesn't look like the supporters are satisfied... I thought the point was to Save Hugo? He's been saved (on conditions) and I don't think returning him to his owners will help keep that intact tbh as they seem like the type to pass their problems onto others.

Snook, could you find an obedience club that's on between now and seeing Pax and go a bit before it starts or a bit before it ends and just walk around the grounds so that you can see if his threshold has changed? At least all dogs will be on lead and if you went before or after class there will only be a few dogs around. I took Didi for our first walk using BAT and some other new skills and it went pretty well. She was more or less non reactive until the very end when a group of men started walking behind us. Fairly sure I handled it the right way, made some detailed notes for my one week check in with Judi just to make sure. Also to make sure everyone gives us a wide berth I gave her car harness a lil touch up. Unfortunately the little weed has outgrown her car harness (an XL) so might by another cheapo one and get those same labels embroidered on it because they really seemed to put people off!

Thanks guys and thanks for the initial support and advice re this issue :) Obviously it would be great if Didi were perfect... but I think I'm going to learn so much more by having her as my first dog than I would otherwise so I'm trying to keep that in perspective.