Help with my dog's selective aggresiveness

thanks great advice. MY only concern is the "what if." what ever that may be. I would much rather deal with getting rid of a dog now then in a few years. My son's will barely remember her right now and can barely talk so he cant talk back. I really dont want us to have to deal with a worse situation down the line. The way i was raised is not to risk everything you work for over something like this but my gut and wife's gut is keep her and figure it out and do all the suggestions listed above.

ARGH i hate this

 

Another bump before people are heading to bed and i am trying to sleep but not while i think about all of this.

 

last bump before bed

 

I've seen my trainer deal with this type of situation.

Whenever you have anybody approach a dog, the dog needs to learn to sit and be calm. If they aren't, have the person turn their back to them until they do. Once they are calm, then have them put their hand palm up and come slowly under the chin of the dog and let them sniff. Keep the meetings short and try again and again, slowly building up the length of the meeting, this is going to take time and energy to build the relationship between them. (If the dog makes a wrong at any time move turn your back and start over.) Reward with treats when they perform correctly and ignore them when they don't. Dogs are social creatures and always want to be part of the pack. BTW you can always teach them no matter what age they are.

 

you have no idea how happy this makes me to read this. Thank you

 

I have a very aggressive cattle dog (feat based) you need to learn to either manage it, or train the dog...why on earth are you letting the dog close enough to bite the kid? Multiple times?... That's on you. Use a leash and either walk the other way or restrain your dog.

 

should have asked in the previsoue post. all people all ages or just the problem kid

 

The dog...positive reinforcement is the ticket to success

 

dog was on leash in my arms. he is in my yard. im stuck in a town house to close to neighbors with no fence. every example was all ways on my property.

 

I said anybody. The dog will need to learn to react the same to everyone including yourself and family (unless its the in-laws or such!). I'd recommend starting with your own family first until the dog learns what is going on. It all boils down to behavior modification.

 

I live in a apartment . Wish I could just buy a house and never have to deal with people and my dog again lol

 

thanks for the clarification. With two kids we stopped the sit and stay for everything she does.

 

thats my dream right now. not worried about this dog around my kids just this one.

 

People always blame the dog.

But: In this case multiple humans are to blame. The child, to some degree, for being a dickhead to the dog. The parents, for not teaching their child to respect animals (both morally/ethically and in recognizing them as a danger). And finally, you as the dog's owner.

It is your job as the dog's pack leader to protect it. The dog will look toy YOU to keep it safe. When you do not it is forced to defend itself. The dog has learned that YOUR children are part of its pack. It understands that it is beneath them and has no right to become aggressive toward them. However, the neighbor kid is NOT part of your pack. And because the kid has proven himself to be a danger to your dog that you've done nothing about your dog now believes it must defend itself against this child. Dogs do not have human psychology. They live on instinct. And when their experience teaches them that a particular child is a dickhead that is uncontrolled they will put the child in its place (just as they will an unruly puppy).

The problem here this dog MAY be learning that all children are dickheads. This may lead to the dog becoming fear based aggressive toward unknown children in general.

I would say at this point to prevent further harm (to the neighbor or your dog) the two should never have contact again. Period.

 

Get a dog run on a slack line and keep the dog tethered to it within your property line.

There's ways to fix this.

A fence.
A tether.
Telling your neighbors to stay the fuck off your property unless they want to get bit by your dog.

It sucks, but either your dog is attacking someone or he is protecting something.

Attacking is bad. Protecting is great.

If humans don't understand their boundary and they get bit by a protecting dog, then they deserve to get bit. Even California understands this. Surely Colorado does also.

I don't see anything telling me your dog is an aggressive sadist. I do think you aren't quite up to snuff as an owner, so I'd suggest some training. Good training - which isn't cheap, and cheap training isn't good.

In addition to that, this is an animal you're responsible for. Your neighbor needs to be responsible for themselves also. So go there, have a serious and frank conversation that they need to not have any contact with your dog or your dogs protected items/areas again.

Basic dog owner adulting. Failing to do your duty here can easily find you in a veterinarians office and your dog being put down because of your failure, and you in a court of law being sued.

 

This sounds like a dangerous idea to me!!!

 

Man this is why I'm so glad my closest neighbor is 2 miles away. I couldn't deal with kids coming over and messing with my dog whenever they want. I hope you get it resolved, I would just tell them to stay off your property for a while and get some training or worst case find a new home for her. There's no need for a dog to be put down just because of some bratty kid.

 

If you have control of your dog with a muzzle should be nothing dangerous about it. you should have complete control of you dog no matter what the situation. you as the owner should never let the dog loose without knowing how your dog reacts to certain situations. obedience training is key for a dog owner. a dog should listen when comanded.if done right this should work for anybody with a similar situation

 

Highly recommend spending several HOURS watching these guys many dog training videos.
http://leerburg.com/

Some are free. Others are not. These guys understand unique dog psychology. I'm far from perfect but when I chose to get a Rottweiler I wanted to get a better understanding of MY responsibility so my kids are safe.

 

This dog is obviously not the dog you theorize about. It obviously is showing fear based aggression with this neighbor kid. Forcing the dog, muzzle or not, to encounter this child up close is a stupid idea.