So sad my dog won't stop biting!

[Jonezie]

He's okay with other dogs just, but he'll unpredictably lunge at some people just as he does with me.

The other day I was just sitting on the sofa reading a book and he lunged and jumped and bit me in the breast, . .thank goodness for padded bras!!

Janie, if it helps to know, my Willoughby is nicknamed the Willoughbeast in our family for just that reason. From the age of 6 months to a year and a half, he was so UNPREDICTABLE. He'd be lying down one minute, and then something would just come over him and he'd launch into attack mode (and when I say attack...it was 100% in a playful way, not aggression). And he had those razor sharp milk teeth. And PS...I had the same attack to the "buhbies." There's nothing more painful!

If it ISN'T red flag aggression with George, but just a puppy who can't yet control his impulses, everyone I know has said that 2 years is the magic age for puppy transformation. And it has been true for me. Willoughby is 90% calmer now that he is almost two. And the unpredictable behavior has almost disappeared.

Jonezie

 

[lrayburn]

Janie,
I just sent you a pm.
Lisa

 

[Gayle]

By the way I actually agree with you and didn't really agree with the vet. He told me and my husband not to socialize him at all till he was 6 months to 1 year old and that the risk of infection was worse than the risk of having a non socialized puppy. .

This advice from your vet is RIDICULOUS! Actually, it's the direct opposite of the advice we've gotten from both our vet AND trainer. Socialization should happen as early as possible! I'm so glad you haven't been listening to this vet.

Get him into a group class. (((HUGS)))

 

[janie1234]

This advice from your vet is RIDICULOUS! Actually, it's the direct opposite of the advice we've gotten from both our vet AND trainer. Socialization should happen as early as possible! I'm so glad you haven't been listening to this vet.

Get him into a group class. (((HUGS)))

I thought that too. My husband thought he was nuts. We don't have back yard. That is why we walk him so much everyday. He wanted us to make Georgie poop and pee on pads in the garage for up to a year! Then again he also is the one who recomended Science Diet. Thanks to you Georgie is eating Wellness and his coat is so beautiful and shiny! You recommended it a while back. I was surprised because he was reccomended by the AKC website and the local Human Society. I could tell he was more of a Cat Dr because he had pictures of him with Cats all over the place. We've since switched Vets.

I am deffinitely getting him into a group class. Lisa gave me a great idea to call the trainer and ask to sit in on a class and tell him/her about the problems I've had with Georgie. I can't believe that I didn't think of that. but I promise you he'll be in class by the end of the month! Thanks for all your support Gayle!

 

[mspina]

His background well he was removed from his litter right after birth found abandoned. I was told that most of his little did not survive. He had no time with littermates, . aparently the ones that did make it were sick and quaranteened (sp?) . He was in a foster then at 8 weeks put in rescue adopted out then returned and adopted out and returned again. The rescue seemed to think that he was punished or hit for peeing and whining because he seemed fearful when a clip board was near. The paper work from his previous owner said that he pooped and peed to much but that he was left home alone for hours. He was also returned really skinny. Then we came along. He was a happy, playful pup at 3 months, . showed off his fetching skills when we first met him but was rail thin. Even our vet said he was underweight on a scale from 1-5 he was a 3.

Oh, man, seeing this poor guy's history is just heartbreaking!!!!!! You are rock stars for rescuing him, really, you are.

I was thinking of you all weekend hoping that things were going well. I'm continuing to send "good boy vibes" your way and I hope that finding a puppy class will really help. I'm also dumbfounded that your vet suggested waiting so long. That is just ..... bizarre. There are puppy classes that start at 10 weeks old! But it sounds like you already figured out that was crazy - that is great.

Losing some of the worse teeth will hopefully help as well - those freakin' baby teeth are brutally sharp. Does he have chewy toys that he likes? Those bully sticks were big hits for us - gives them something to do with their mouths. I don't know if that is at all related (chewing/biting), but it's worth a shot if he doesn't already have a go-to chew solution (raw hide bones are also a favorite here).

Keep us posted!!!! I really am pulling for you. And again, I'm **so** sorry if I sounded bitchy initially - I really didn't mean it that way and I feel badly that it apparently came across differently. {{{hugs}}}

Friends?

 

[janie1234]

Oh, man, seeing this poor guy's history is just heartbreaking!!!!!! You are rock stars for rescuing him, really, you are.

I was thinking of you all weekend hoping that things were going well. I'm continuing to send "good boy vibes" your way and I hope that finding a puppy class will really help. I'm also dumbfounded that your vet suggested waiting so long. That is just ..... bizarre. There are puppy classes that start at 10 weeks old! But it sounds like you already figured out that was crazy - that is great.

Losing some of the worse teeth will hopefully help as well - those freakin' baby teeth are brutally sharp. Does he have chewy toys that he likes? Those bully sticks were big hits for us - gives them something to do with their mouths. I don't know if that is at all related (chewing/biting), but it's worth a shot if he doesn't already have a go-to chew solution (raw hide bones are also a favorite here).

Keep us posted!!!! I really am pulling for you. And again, I'm **so** sorry if I sounded bitchy initially - I really didn't mean it that way and I feel badly that it apparently came across differently. {{{hugs}}}

Friends?

Hey Mspina. Of course we're friends (((Hugs))) right back! I hope you saw my apology before. I really didn't mean to come off so snotty, . .I love my little "beast" so much. I really fear that if we had to bring him back they'd put him down. Esp since he's been returned before. The thought of which would tear me to shreds, . .which is why I'm doing all I can to help him get through his "beast" stage. The pictures and this article are what really scared me about dog bites and children.
http://leerburg.com/pdf/preventingdogbitesinchildren.pdf
Really thanks for the support and I too am very sorry I got so defensive. I need to learn a thing or two about understanding that not everyone thinks the way that I do and not everyone is going to agree with my opinions.
He lost 2 canine teeth so that has helped stoped the painful bites. I've also learned to always have a bag of treats, bully stick, and chew toy with me so that he I can redirect him.
My husband has been walking farther with him in the morning so now he's getting over 4 miles of walks a day. Tiring him out has helped a lot too. When he's tired he isn't biting. I swear this dog is trying to train me to run a marathon. He walks so much that in the 3 months we've had him he's never had to had his nails trimed back. They've stayed filed down from all the walking!
Everyone here you are all so great!!! I can't thank you all enough for the overload of support and advice I've recieved here.
I shall keep you all posted.

 

[lrayburn]

The Leerburg site is an interesting and informative site but I just need to point out to the people following this thread that this man works with dogs trained to do protection work and most of his techniques are considered highly outdated when it comes to training companion dogs. His information on not allowing dogs to be unsupervised, etc with children is sound and his understanding of temperment is sound but I wouldn't use many of his techniques to train my dogs. Please don't read his site and then try his techniques at home.

*Hopping off my soapbox*
Lisa

 

[janie1234]

The Leerburg site is an interesting and informative site but I just need to point out to the people following this thread that this man works with dogs trained to do protection work and most of his techniques are considered highly outdated when it comes to training companion dogs. His information on not allowing dogs to be unsupervised, etc with children is sound and his understanding of temperment is sound but I wouldn't use many of his techniques to train my dogs. Please don't read his site and then try his techniques at home.

*Hopping off my soapbox*
Lisa

Don't worry Lisa, . I haven't tried his technigues. They down right scare me. You can really tell that they are aimed more for professional k-9 training. If you read some of his older articles they also are very conflicting. I do find some of his articles informative. I do like his tips on how to train kids to avoid a bite. I've bought some doggie toys there just because they were a cheap price and I like the quality of the leather leashes.

 

[syzygy314]

Janie - I'm still sending you positive energy and calming energy for your "beast!" I'm still expecting that post from you that says you've conquered the biting issue! Every time I see you've posted, I come back and check on your progress.

I'm so glad to see you fighting for your baby! I have a friend who has sent back several dogs when they didn't fit her "lifestyle." It's broken my heart! Especially just last month when she had one of her dogs put to sleep. He was still such a young baby at only 6 years old! He was the brother to my little Peanut! I hate seeing people like that owning pets. They treat them more like a Coach pocketbook than a pet/family member!

Hang in there!

 

[janie1234]

Janie - I'm still sending you positive energy and calming energy for your "beast!" I'm still expecting that post from you that says you've conquered the biting issue! Every time I see you've posted, I come back and check on your progress.

I'm so glad to see you fighting for your baby! I have a friend who has sent back several dogs when they didn't fit her "lifestyle." It's broken my heart! Especially just last month when she had one of her dogs put to sleep. He was still such a young baby at only 6 years old! He was the brother to my little Peanut! I hate seeing people like that owning pets. They treat them more like a Coach pocketbook than a pet/family member!

Hang in there!

Aw thanks Tricia. I'm trying desprately to be patient. You see it bugs me too when I hear or see people who will for example get a border collie but never want to walk it. I really hate when people just dump their dogs in the back yard because they are to busy. I was turned down by 3 other rescues because I didn't have a back yard and it upset me because I knew that having a back yard does not make a good dog owner. I unfortunately know way to many people who dump their dogs in back yards and tell me "I can't wait till my dog dies." I vowed never to do that and promised to be commited. I guess that is why I feel so defeated. No matter how much I thought I was prepared by reading, and asking, and researching, . . . obviously I'm still doing something wrong otherwise he wouldn't be biting me. I'm just trying to figure it out. I'm not giving up. There is still so much more to try. I just need to do my best to avoid a bite to me, my kids, or anyone else.

Everyone was so right when they said that dogs show their true colors about 3 weeks AFTER you bring them home. It is so hard to believe that when he first came he was the perfect puppy. Potty trained, never barked, . .even when the UPS guy would ring the bell, never jumped, never chewed on the furniture, and mostly importantly he never mouthed or nipped at all. I'm double duty trippling my efforts to get him trained. Thanks for the support.

 

[joejack]

The Leerburg site is an interesting and informative site but I just need to point out to the people following this thread that this man works with dogs trained to do protection work and most of his techniques are considered highly outdated when it comes to training companion dogs. His information on not allowing dogs to be unsupervised, etc with children is sound and his understanding of temperment is sound but I wouldn't use many of his techniques to train my dogs. Please don't read his site and then try his techniques at home.

*Hopping off my soapbox*
Lisa

I understand where the warning is coming from, but I wanted to add that I used Leerburg's puppy training video and shock collar video with great success for our dogs.