Fear Aggression

[openarms]

Hi all, i have a foster here who's around 8 months old (staffy x mostly staffy) that has a fear aggression problem with other dogs. The story is she was going to be adopted by her first foster home untill their adult female attacked her- reasons unknown as they were not home at the time. Previous to that she was fine with other dogs. Obviously she needed a new carer ect so thats how she ended up with me. It was believed that she would still be ok with other dogs when she came here and she did seem ok initially. But i was taking her to the vets one day and had her on a lead to take her through the house to the car. My mellow 10 year old girl was in the hall way facing the other way not doing much of anything at all. I had stopped to get my keys and the Staffy x just went her seemingly without provocation. She has remained separate from my dog and my other foster girl. She seems ok with them through the back screen door initially but sometimes will snap at them through it at odd moments and again without any provocation from the other dog/s. She responds to being told no and will stop immediately if i rouse on her. My questions are -Would it be possible to rehabiliate her in terms of getting her to be good with other dogs again? And if so how do i go about that?

efs

Edited March 18, 2008 by openarms

[Mushaka]

aww poor baby!! what a mix up of emotions...

wishing you all the best with her rehabillitation

[Em and Phil]

Staffys and staffy x's have to be socialised from a very early age. Failing that, you're best to keep them with a dog of the opposite sex, especially one that can stick up for itself :rolleyes:

I have a staffy mix, she's one year old and loves my three other boy dogs (All different breeds and sizes), but she doesn't do well with other females.

I love staffies, they're beautiful dogs, but they were bred to fight, and they haven't quite gotten over it.

[openarms]

Thanks. It's just that she seems like she will be fine some of the time but then out of the blue will snap but will stop when reprimanded. I just don't know what to make of it or how to approach the situation of trying to get her used to other dogs again.

[Em and Phil]

Thanks. It's just that she seems like she will be fine some of the time but then out of the blue will snap but will stop when reprimanded. I just don't know what to make of it or how to approach the situation of trying to get her used to other dogs again.

If she stops when reprimanded, she must know she's doing the wrong thing, which is a good start. Just keep on her. She has to know that you are top dog, and it's not up to her to put other dogs in their place. Make sure she knows you won't tolerate it.

And as i mentioned before, you'll find she'd be more settled with a male companion.

[Erny]

And as i mentioned before, you'll find she'd be more settled with a male companion.

Although this is not necessarily going to be the case if 'fear' is the cause for the aggression.

Definitely agree with the leadership being important though.

Consultation with a trainer/behaviourist might be the better way to go ..... expert observation is invaluable and often crutial.

[Kelpie-i]

Without seeing the dog, it is hard to make a diagnosis, however it may be a case of lead aggression which caused the outburst with your girl. This dog will need some rehab work with a pro.

[Em and Phil]

And as i mentioned before, you'll find she'd be more settled with a male companion.

Although this is not necessarily going to be the case if 'fear' is the cause for the aggression.

Definitely agree with the leadership being important though.

Consultation with a trainer/behaviourist might be the better way to go ..... expert observation is invaluable and often crutial.

I understand what you're saying re 'fear aggression', and i do agree.

However in this instance, i feel that in my experience with staffies, and my current staffy x, that they tend to be aggressive towards other dogs, in particular of the same breed, which are of the same sex. I have been bitten twice, trying to seperate staffies from other dogs, and have actually had to resort to using a tree branch to seperate two staffy boys who would otherwise have fought to the death.

I'm not saying that these examples reflect this situation at all, merely that Staffies have certain tendancies, and that although the right training and behavioural therapy can rectify most problems, there are things you can do to try to avoid the situation in the first place.