Alfie02 Posted December 26, 2010 Share Posted December 26, 2010 (edited) Hi all, So long story short - my family dog since I was a a kid is a backyard bred maltese cross who has always had temperament issues despite adequate socilization. His mother was human aggresive and unfortunatly so is he (we didnt know this untill after we got him). Anyway, ever since he was little, even at puppy school he has been unreliable around people and is dog aggressive aswell. When we began to notice this undesirable behaviour we took him to a behavouralist who told us he is fear aggressive. We worked on him as she told us to and took him back for more visits but nothing was working, if anything he was getting worse. So we went to someone else who came to our house and did what he said, but again to no avail. We accepted him how he was, but continued to work with him everyday and are very careful with who he meets and dogs he meets. In his life he has bitten 3 people, all people who have entered the house or been walking past (I know, horrible that he has done this and we do everything that we can to avoid this, but when we tell people that he is aggressive and will bite them, they usually dont believe us because he is white and cute, silly people.) He will even go to bite us on occasions when he doesnt want to do something. The main reason for this post is that on Christmas day we were walking the dogs and two older ladies stopped to say Merry Christmas, not paying any attention to the dogs or anything, which is great because if the people just ignore our dog he will ignore them too and will not show any aggression. When we were talking, only for like 30 seconds, our dog stepped forwards, wagging his tail and bit the woman on the leg! Now I didnt even have time to stop him, he just did it . The woman only has a tiny scratch,but still, he bit her! This is the first time he has ever done this in a situation like this and I feel so horrible....I dont know what to do, we try so hard to 'fix' his problems but get now where. We are now going to buy a muzzle that he will wear whenever we are out.We are responsible dog owners who love our dogs and dont know what to do. I am devistated . I walked home crying that he could bite an old lady (he loves my grandma and this lady even looks like her, but he still bit her). Can anyone please recommmend a proffesional trainer/behavouralist that specialises in this in the Newcastle NSW area? Thank you. PS. this is cross posted in the general section. Edited December 26, 2010 by Alfie02 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staranais Posted December 26, 2010 Share Posted December 26, 2010 I have no idea if he's near NewCastle, but he's in New South Wales: http://www.k9pro.com.au/ I would travel a considerable distance for a consultation with Steve from K9Pro if I had an aggressive dog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms James Posted December 26, 2010 Share Posted December 26, 2010 Have you had him assessed by a vet? It might be a good idea to approach it in a two-pronged way and see if you can find a vet behaviourist. I don't want to sound alarmist, but if you've been consistent with training and you're using the right method with him (as in you're training him in a way that gets him to work for you and using the right drive), then there could be something happening medically with him. I'm *not* saying that there is, but there might be something happening in addition to his behavioural problems that could be aggravating the situation and I'd start there first. Although, I have to say, that sometimes "trying everything" can be a bit tricky if you're chopping and changing the rules on him from month to month. He needs time to learn what's acceptable and what isn't, some dogs aren't as quick on the uptake as others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfie02 Posted December 26, 2010 Author Share Posted December 26, 2010 (edited) Thanks Staranais, will be considering K9 Pro very seriously and will be contacting them about this situation, thank you for the link Im open to all ideas, so that could be a good one too Ms James, thanks for the suggestion It might very well be something medical setting him off...he will be going to the vets next week for a very thourough check up. And about the trying everything, it does seem to not be working so hopefully by getting a good behavouralist to help us we can pinpoint the right method for him. Fingers crossed Edited December 26, 2010 by Alfie02 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BonJosie Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Alfie, I am sorry I have no advice, but I just wanted to wish you the best. This must be such an incredibly frustrating situation for you, and I can only commend you for having the heart to care for this dog where so many other people would have given up. I hope you find the right solution for him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luvsdogs Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Thanks Staranais, will be considering K9 Pro very seriously and will be contacting them about this situation, thank you for the link Im open to all ideas, so that could be a good one too Ms James, thanks for the suggestion It might very well be something medical setting him off...he will be going to the vets next week for a very thourough check up. And about the trying everything, it does seem to not be working so hopefully by getting a good behavouralist to help us we can pinpoint the right method for him. Fingers crossed Have you taken him to the vets yet & if so what did they say? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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