• Definitely one of those sink or swim scenarios

    Thanks for sharing and good on you for putting the work in. My partner and i are at the same 6 month stage with our rescue and it's been quite the rollercoaster.

    On reactivity, Nori our Staffie cross has reactivity issues with other dogs that we were not made aware of from the rescue charity beforehand. Sadly after a scrap last week where i had to pry another big dogs jaws of her face only for her to lunge back in and she has taken a real downward turn. She now disengages very quickly, looks tense, has poor recall and looks like she's brewing for a fight. In the time we've had her we've had 3 quite severe incidents and i'm worried it's taken it's toll on me and the dog. It's becoming increasingly hard not to tense up when other dogs come bundling over (which clearly makes things worse) or not feel that a disproportionate amount of other dog owners are fucking useless (which given that me and my dog are the "problem" doesn't get me very far with them).

    We're trying to lock down a decent behaviourist but we're struggling to find someone that can either give us the time atm. FWIW both the trainer and the behaviourist we've seen have made very positive comments about her but it's hard to put the bad stuff out my head.

    Apologies for the dump, feeling the pressure right now!

  • I think you need to start by not blaming yourself or thinking you and Nori are the problem. Lots of dogs are dog reactive or aggressive (particularly if they are attacked when young) and, as long as they are on the lead and under control around other dogs, you are doing nothing wrong. It's been discussed on here before - the irresponsible owners are those that let their dogs run up to you and Nori. If you keep Nori on a lead, they should acknowledge that and give you both space.

    You need to enjoy having her and taking her out, so that she enhances your life, so here are some things you might consider:

    -Be prepared to accept that Nori might not like most other dogs and find a way to make her life fun without "dog friends". Make her walks and games fun and interesting in other ways.
    -Get a harness with a velcro patch that says something like "nervous dog" to make it clear to give you space
    -If there are dogs that you know she does get on with, arrange your walks to meet them
    -If not, look into when and where you can walk with less chance of meeting other dogs - see if there is a dog run with one gate, take her in when it's empty and ask others to give you 10 minutes before they come in
    -Learn to shout authoritatively at strange dogs as they charge over to stop them in their tracks
    -Learn how to disengage her from another dog without risking hurting her or yourself - the out-of-control off-lead dog's health is not your priority
    -Try to relax (so much easier said than done) as she will inevitably pick up your tension

    People will tell you that dogs are less likely to react aggressively when off the lead, which is true, but you don't need to be the owner of a bull breed that gets into a fight off-lead. Keep the moral high ground and be in the right, as you might need that some day.

    I'd be happy to meet you and her (without Reggie) and have a look. I'm no dog behaviourist but I do have lots of experience of the breed.

About

Avatar for Markyboy @Markyboy started