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German Shepherd aggression towards other dogs.
Took in a 10 month old German Shepherd 5 months ago so he's now 15 months.
He's great with people and kids but really aggressive towards other dogs although until I got him he had been reared with 2 other dogs. If I try taking him out on a lead all's OK until he sees another dog then he goes nuts trying to attack them. Last time I took him out was about a month ago and he's so strong he pulled me to the ground hurting my arm and hand whilst trying to attack another dog. Can't even think about taking him out at all now, I have arthritis and don't have the strength to handle him when he's like this. I did get him neutered thinking it might calm him down but it made no difference. I don't like keeping him closed in the yard all the time but cant take the chance of walking him, even muzzled. Any advice on how to deal with this behaviour? I can't afford a professional dog trainer. Kenny Cargill |
#2
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German Shepherd aggression towards other dogs.
Kenny Cargill wrote:
Took in a 10 month old German Shepherd 5 months ago so he's now 15 months. He's great with people and kids but really aggressive towards other dogs although until I got him he had been reared with 2 other dogs. If I try taking him out on a lead all's OK until he sees another dog then he goes nuts trying to attack them. Last time I took him out was about a month ago and he's so strong he pulled me to the ground hurting my arm and hand whilst trying to attack another dog. Can't even think about taking him out at all now, I have arthritis and don't have the strength to handle him when he's like this. I did get him neutered thinking it might calm him down but it made no difference. I don't like keeping him closed in the yard all the time but cant take the chance of walking him, even muzzled. Any advice on how to deal with this behaviour? I can't afford a professional dog trainer. Kenny Cargill As much of play is a form of play fighting, it is not unknown for owners to mistake play behavior for agression. If you have any doubts about your judgement it might be useful to have a more knowlegeble dog person accompany you with your dog to verify that he is truly aggressive. Still it is likely that he is aggrssive, and too big for you to handle unless you become very good at training him Puppies are almost invariably good with other dogs, but that often changes on adolescence (7-8 months for most breeds), or adulthood 14-16 months for most breeds). There are some breeds where agression is rare, but German Shepherds are not one of those breeds. Aggression tends to be less common with males than with females, but it is far from unknown with males At this stage it is likely that the best thing for both of you would be to turn him over to someone else. Keeping him in the yard is not a good solution. If you are to keep him, both of you need training. He needs to learn that you are the alpha male, and he needs to pay far more attention to you than to other nearby dogs. You need to learn both how to maintain that attitude, and how to read his behavior so you can anticipate and prevent potential problems. Best would be one on one training, by a knowledgeable dog person. You have ruled out a professional, but I urge you to reconsider. A few sessions with a professional would be a minor expense compared to the years of food and health care you can anticipate for your dog. If you still cannot afford a professional look for a local dog obedience club, and ask them for advice on dealing with him. Five months ago I would have suggested obediance classes preferably at a local obedience club. But given his current strength and dog aggressiveness, starting off training him around other dogs is problematic. There are training books and videos that can also help, but they are not as good as one on one training, and it will be difficult for many people to be confident that the behavior they get in the house and yard will carry over to the street in the presence of other dogs. |
#3
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German Shepherd aggression towards other dogs.
Thanks for the reply.
It may come to the point where I have to consider rehoming him. It will be a shame because he's a beautiful dog and apart from this thing with other dogs has a lovely nature, I can easily take the food from his mouth and things like that without him turning nasty. It puzzles me where this behaviour comes from, in my experience most aggression is the fault of the owner but that's not the case here, he's like that since I've had him and I knew the previous owners and don't think it came from them. Kenny Cargill "William Clodius" wrote in message t... Kenny Cargill wrote: Took in a 10 month old German Shepherd 5 months ago so he's now 15 months. He's great with people and kids but really aggressive towards other dogs although until I got him he had been reared with 2 other dogs. If I try taking him out on a lead all's OK until he sees another dog then he goes nuts trying to attack them. Last time I took him out was about a month ago and he's so strong he pulled me to the ground hurting my arm and hand whilst trying to attack another dog. Can't even think about taking him out at all now, I have arthritis and don't have the strength to handle him when he's like this. I did get him neutered thinking it might calm him down but it made no difference. I don't like keeping him closed in the yard all the time but cant take the chance of walking him, even muzzled. Any advice on how to deal with this behaviour? I can't afford a professional dog trainer. Kenny Cargill As much of play is a form of play fighting, it is not unknown for owners to mistake play behavior for agression. If you have any doubts about your judgement it might be useful to have a more knowlegeble dog person accompany you with your dog to verify that he is truly aggressive. Still it is likely that he is aggrssive, and too big for you to handle unless you become very good at training him Puppies are almost invariably good with other dogs, but that often changes on adolescence (7-8 months for most breeds), or adulthood 14-16 months for most breeds). There are some breeds where agression is rare, but German Shepherds are not one of those breeds. Aggression tends to be less common with males than with females, but it is far from unknown with males At this stage it is likely that the best thing for both of you would be to turn him over to someone else. Keeping him in the yard is not a good solution. If you are to keep him, both of you need training. He needs to learn that you are the alpha male, and he needs to pay far more attention to you than to other nearby dogs. You need to learn both how to maintain that attitude, and how to read his behavior so you can anticipate and prevent potential problems. Best would be one on one training, by a knowledgeable dog person. You have ruled out a professional, but I urge you to reconsider. A few sessions with a professional would be a minor expense compared to the years of food and health care you can anticipate for your dog. If you still cannot afford a professional look for a local dog obedience club, and ask them for advice on dealing with him. Five months ago I would have suggested obediance classes preferably at a local obedience club. But given his current strength and dog aggressiveness, starting off training him around other dogs is problematic. There are training books and videos that can also help, but they are not as good as one on one training, and it will be difficult for many people to be confident that the behavior they get in the house and yard will carry over to the street in the presence of other dogs. |
#4
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German Shepherd aggression towards other dogs.
Kenny Cargill wrote:
Thanks for the reply. It may come to the point where I have to consider rehoming him. It will be a shame because he's a beautiful dog and apart from this thing with other dogs has a lovely nature, I can easily take the food from his mouth and things like that without him turning nasty. It puzzles me where this behaviour comes from, in my experience most aggression is the fault of the owner but that's not the case here, he's like that since I've had him and I knew the previous owners and don't think it came from them. Kenny Cargill snip While the wrong owner can make induce aggressionin almost any dog, if they train the dog to fight dogs, and an unassertive owner can let an alpha dog more easily get out of control, there are also dogs that would challenge any owner. Your dog sounds like a difficult, but not extremely difficult dog. An adult with reasonable health and strength should be able to maintain control of this dog after a little appropriate training. But in your case your age has made many of the obvious methods of asserting dominance less practicable, and a bad fall has brought fear into the interaction. It is difficult to be assertive and confident while fearful. If a dog thinks you need protection, it will tend to be more aggressive. I also wanted to note that (aggressive) behavior is often very different for in pack dogs (once the pecking order is established) versus out of pack dogs, in home territory versus away from home territory, on lead versus off lead, and age: puppy versus adolescent versus young adult versus old adult. The differences in behavior with respect to the age in particular can be difficult for humans to interpret and hence anticipate: puppies and young adolescents can provoke adult dogs to teach them manners using restrained versions of the behavior that is genuinely aggressive with older adolescents or active adults. Very old dogs are generally less assertive, and hence generally well tolerated by other dogs. |
#5
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German Shepherd aggression towards other dogs.
On Sat, 23 Mar 2013 21:13:13 +0000, Kenny Cargill wrote:
Took in a 10 month old German Shepherd 5 months ago so he's now 15 months. He's great with people and kids but really aggressive towards other dogs although until I got him he had been reared with 2 other dogs. If I try taking him out on a lead all's OK until he sees another dog then he goes nuts trying to attack them. Last time I took him out was about a month ago and he's so strong he pulled me to the ground hurting my arm and hand whilst trying to attack another dog. Can't even think about taking him out at all now, I have arthritis and don't have the strength to handle him when he's like this. I did get him neutered thinking it might calm him down but it made no difference. I don't like keeping him closed in the yard all the time but cant take the chance of walking him, even muzzled. Any advice on how to deal with this behaviour? I can't afford a professional dog trainer. Kenny Cargill Kenny, please, get the book: Control Unleashed, Puppy program. by Leslie McDevitt. Read it, the whole thing, then apply. (please avoid all "alpha" dog stories, it's a myth) Also search the net for "control unleashed" classes in your area and take one if you find it. Good luck |
#6
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German Shepherd aggression towards other dogs.
I have a two year old female German Shepherd and a16 year old male Terrie type dog. My shepherd has known him since she was 4 weeks old. Now the Shepard wants to take the old dog out. I have to keep them completely separated because the Shepard tries to kill him every chance she gets. I am very close to both dogs. I also live alone.Is there anything I can do or am I going to have to get used to the way it is
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#7
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German Shepherd aggression towards other dogs.
On Saturday, March 23, 2013 at 3:13:13 PM UTC-6, Kenny Cargill wrote:
Took in a 10 month old German Shepherd 5 months ago so he's now 15 months.. He's great with people and kids but really aggressive towards other dogs although until I got him he had been reared with 2 other dogs. If I try taking him out on a lead all's OK until he sees another dog then he goes nuts trying to attack them. Last time I took him out was about a month ago and he's so strong he pulled me to the ground hurting my arm and hand whilst trying to attack another dog. Can't even think about taking him out at all now, I have arthritis and don't have the strength to handle him when he's like this. I did get him neutered thinking it might calm him down but it made no difference. I don't like keeping him closed in the yard all the time but cant take the chance of walking him, even muzzled. Any advice on how to deal with this behaviour? I can't afford a professional dog trainer. Kenny Cargill Hi Kenny- I have the same problem x 2. I have two rescue female shepherds who I love to walk. Unfortunately, they have taken me down twice nice trying to protect me from a small dog who charged them during our walk. I'm trying to find a dog trainer. Did you find a solution to your problem? |
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