# My Dog Hates Other Dogs :(



## julez (Jan 17, 2011)

We just got Chase from a rescue. He's a poodle mix and is 5 years old, male, neutered. He absolutely loves people and is the nicest he can be around us, our friends, etc. However...however...he hates other dogs.

This is to my surprise. I've grown up with dogs and even though we did not socialize our dog with other dogs, he could tolerate other dogs. We brought a new dog into the house when our old dog was 10 and maybe they weren't friends, but they surely did not hate each other!

Chase, on the other hand, is another story. When we were at the vet the other day, he smelled a puppy greyhound (both dogs were leashed). The puppy greyhound was about his size, probably a little bigger. Chase had no qualms about it...just smelled him a little then went on to his own business. 

However, this weekend, we brought him over to my parents house, who has a 12 y.o. german shepherd mix, Sammy. Sammy is the nicest dog you will ever meet. However, as soon as Chase (leashed) walked into the house, he went to bite Sammy's face! we kept them apart a little then let them both loose in the backyard as we watched them. They avoided each other for the most part, but Sammy sometimes gets curious and same with Chase. Chase may smell a little but any second he may just snap at Sammy's face! we ended up leashing him the rest of the visit. If it matters, Sammy is also a male, neutered.

The next day, our friend brought over her super chilled, relaxed fremale Shih Tzu. Yes, Chase snapped at her as well. The Shih Tzu was not on a leash but someone held her so she did not roam. Chase, our dog, was leashed because of fear of him attacking. He tried to bite the Shih Tzu a few times, and we'd pull him back and tell him "no" in a very stern voice, but he doesn't get it. A lot of times he'd smell her and we'd think it's fine and next thing you know, you see him trying to snap at her!

We don't know what to do! I don't care if he plays with another dog, I just want him to tolerate and not attack another dog! Someone suggested a Muzzle as well as a Shock Collar. What are ya'lls thoughts? Please help! Chase is the cutest dog alive and we love him but we would like to be able to take him with us places....


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## julez (Jan 17, 2011)

Update: yesterday, our tv had a picture of (still) horses and I think he thought they were dogs. He growled and barked and ran to the tv and tried to jump on it. we stopped him and he ran back to the sofa, sat there and continuously growled and barked at the picture even after we firmly told him "NO!"....

we think he was attacked by a dog or something when he was a stray? we've been trying to get his wounds to heal and a lot of it we thought were skin infections from being dirty and a stray, but they are wounds on both his hind legs and his pecker and one on his back....(he came to the rescue with these wounds)....maybe they are bite wounds?

anyway, we are at a lost to what to do to just get him to tolerate dogs. We've had suggestions of:

(1) put him in a kennel next to other dogs so that he can smell them/watch them and see that they are not harmful
(2) put a muzzle on him around other dogs so that he cannot attack and see that the other dog will not attack either
(3) use a shock collar for each attack he does
(4) feed him treats continuously around another dog so that he associates dogs with treats

please help!


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## lil_fuzzy (Aug 16, 2010)

Are you sure it's full blown aggression and not just him being a bit apprehensive and testing the waters, or even just being friendly and initiating play? Dogs bite and growl a lot during play. If their body language is relaxed then it's nothing serious, if he's rigid then he's being serious about it. A video to show how he behaves would be good.

If you want him to be comfortable around other dogs, do not ever punish him around other dogs. Do not use a shock collar. The only thing you will accomplish is that he will associate other dogs with being shocked and get even worse. You have to allow him to let you know when he feels uncomfortable around other dogs. If you shock him when he's trying to tell you something, he will stop communicating and if he attacks it will be without warning.

Do you really NEED him to tolerate other dogs? It's easy to live with a dog that doesn't like other dogs. If a friend with a dog comes over, just put your dog in another room, or keep them leashed and away from each other.

One of my dogs is rather timid around other dogs, she takes a long time to warm up to them. When I first got her I thought it was super important to socialise her with other dogs so she would be more comfortable around them, but as time went on I realised she doesn't need to be comfy around other dogs. She's happy not interacting with strange dogs, and we don't have many friends that have dogs, so it doesn't bother us either. She plays beautifully with our puppy, so she has a canine friend. And she loves all humans, so it's all good. It's much more important that a dog is good with humans than with other dogs.

As for barking at the tv, ignore it. It doesn't mean anything. Tv's are strange things and sometimes they show things that set them off. It could be another dog, another animal or something that looks and sounds weird.


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## GottaLuvMutts (Jun 1, 2009)

First let me say that I am absolutely not an expert on dog aggression, so hopefully more people will chime in soon.

Of the suggestions that you have listed, I think that 1, 2, and 4 are ok and at least will not make the situation worse (although some dogs feel more defensive with muzzles). Number three, though, the shock collar - not a good choice in this situation. Your dog is snapping at other dogs because he is fearful. It is very likely that he was not socialized properly as a puppy. Using pain (shock collar) to discourage the snapping behavior when the dog is already feeling fearful is only going to make him feel MORE fearful!!! If he receives a shock in the vicinity of another dog, he's going to learn to associate other dogs with pain. He WILL act out MORE, not less, in their presence, in an effort to avoid that pain.

If your dog is food-motivated and will take treats even when stressed (like in the presence of another dog), I would encourage you to use this to your advantage. Take your dog close enough to other dogs that he can see them, but far enough that he can remain below threshold. Feed high-value treats every time he offers a glance towards another dog. If he is clicker trained, you can incorporate that here, too. Slowly (like over the course of a few months), decrease the distance between you and the other dogs that you're watching. Always set him up to succeed, and if he goes over threshold, you went too close too fast. Eventually your dog will learn that in the presence of other dogs, it pays to watch you instead of snapping at the other dogs.

Side note: Any shelter/rescue should evaluate their dogs and be upfront about dog aggression ahead of time. But what's done is done - he's yours and solving this issue so that he can enjoy a fuller life is your responsibility, no matter who was responsible for creating it.


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## julez (Jan 17, 2011)

Thanks for the info ya'll! When he bites, it does not appear playful, it looks like he's being aggressive. We can try the treat idea, but for now, we will keep him away from dogs so that he has time to adapt to his new home first. I'm still pretty nervous about taking him out to other dogs. Don't want him to attack a big dog who can and will mess him up; also, don't want him to attack a little dog and hurt it!


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## doxiemommy (Dec 18, 2009)

Some dogs are more fearful when they're on leashes. They feel restricted, like if there was a situation they wouldn't be able to take care of themselves. I have a reactive dog, who is fearful around other dogs. The suggestion of moving your dog to a "safety zone" where he can observe, but not feel threatened is a good one. Gradually, very gradually, your goal would be to shrink the safety zone so he can be closer to other dogs without reacting....


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## Talore (Sep 3, 2013)

Hello, 

I see that this was posted a couple year ago. I am now having the same problem with my recently adopted 5 year old dog.. What ended up working for you?

Thank you, 
Talore


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## Cristina (Mar 3, 2016)

I took my puppy from a dog foster home about a year ago. I love him to bits; he has a great personality, and I feel that he loves our family so much. BUT, whenever I take him for a walks we have problems. So, going for walks is always a challenge for us. And he barks and howls A LOT.
My husband and I were thinking about taking him to 'doggy school', but then again, it’s extremely expensive, and the nearest 'doggy school' is far away from us. Maybe you have some advice? THANK YOU!!!!


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## Nancy74 (Feb 2, 2016)

Cristina said:


> I took my puppy from a dog foster home about a year ago. I love him to bits; he has a great personality, and I feel that he loves our family so much. BUT, whenever I take him for a walks we have problems. So, going for walks is always a challenge for us. And he barks and howls A LOT.
> My husband and I were thinking about taking him to 'doggy school', but then again, it’s extremely expensive, and the nearest 'doggy school' is far away from us. Maybe you have some advice? THANK YOU!!!!


I feel for you...we had problems with our dog also. He used to hate other dogs. Both my husband and I work a lot and had no time to take our Bud to dog training classes. We asked one friend who works in foster care (he is always surrounded by dogs) what we should do. He recommended one online dog behavior trainer. I love this trainer http://bit.ly/1Tm6XWg
It helped us a lot, and I strongly recommend it for you.


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