September 14, 2011
I need a muzzle for my dog who has recently shown aggression towards my eldest daugher. Please help!
Full Question:
Hello Ed,I need a muzzle for my dog Diesel, and may have to find other alternatives anyway. Diesel has been our family dog since he was 7 weeks old, but he has recently shown aggression on more than one occasion towards my eldest daughter (15). He is only 1.5 years old, and is very protective with my five children, including my eldest. But, he will not tolerate ANY form of discipline towards my children when administered by my daughter. First, let me explain what the discipline entails: she is allowed to physically carry her brother or sister upstairs if they refuse to go to their room when asked (which usually includes crying or kicking on the way)! My dog sees this as aggression towards a family member and has recently bit my daughter in attempt to protect her younger sibling!
I can say that my oldest daughter is VERY submissive, and when I'm not home, I have to assume Diesel takes it upon himself to be the boss. My children get off the bus an hour before I get home, so my oldest daughter is in charge. I can't worry that the dog I bought to protect our family is going to hurt them because he can't differentiate between a real threat to our family and something he just doesn't like. He is not neutered yet, and that may be part of the problem, but now that he has already bit her, I don't know what else to do except put him to sleep, and I really don't want to do that. He does try to show dominance towards me as well, for the same reasons, but he backs down because he knows I'm the leader in the home. I have to say 'GET' and he will obey, but I'm not 100% sure he wouldn't try to get me if I turned my back without telling him off. I did buy a muzzle, but he can get it off and I want to make sure, if we do end up keeping him, that I have a muzzle that will stay on.
He probably needs to go to obedience training and get more exercise as well. All summer long, he has been able to go outside more often because the kids were home, but now that they are back to school, he has to wait for me to come home at lunch and when the kids get home, he can go out again. I need help and any advice you can give me would be greatly appreciated. I need to know if you have a muzzle that would fit a dog this big as well. Please respond to this message, as this is the only thing I can think of to do!
Thank you,
Jennifer
Cindy's Answer:
The first thing I would recommend is this section on preventing dog bites in kids.
Under no circumstances would I allow your dog to interact with your kids in this manner. At only 1.5 years old your dog is a teenager and his aggression levels can be expected to increase as he matures. This is an accident waiting to happen. The fact that he shows aggression to you & you think he might go after you if you turn your back tells me that he needs strict supervision and training, he needs to learn his place in the family pack. If he’s showing aggression to you, your kids are in danger of injury. I hope you take this very seriously. I don’t want anyone to be hurt. I would not allow this dog to interact with the kids at all unless you are handling the dog on leash.
Start with our groundwork program and Pack Structure for the Family Pet.
I’d also recommend Dealing with Dominant & Aggressive Dogs.
He needs a properly sized dominant dog collar and a muzzle. We have directions on how to measure the dog for a muzzle on this page.
Neutering may or may not help, many times it doesn’t make any difference if the dog is truly dominant. So many vets will tell you it will help, but our experience is that it usually doesn’t make much of a difference in situations like yours. Training and leadership are the key, not removing the dog’s testicles.
Once you get the measurements for the muzzle and dominant dog collar, we can help you select the correct sizes. You can order online or if you would like to call our office for help with the muzzle and collar, the number is 715-235-6502.
I hope this helps.
Cindy Rhodes
Under no circumstances would I allow your dog to interact with your kids in this manner. At only 1.5 years old your dog is a teenager and his aggression levels can be expected to increase as he matures. This is an accident waiting to happen. The fact that he shows aggression to you & you think he might go after you if you turn your back tells me that he needs strict supervision and training, he needs to learn his place in the family pack. If he’s showing aggression to you, your kids are in danger of injury. I hope you take this very seriously. I don’t want anyone to be hurt. I would not allow this dog to interact with the kids at all unless you are handling the dog on leash.
Start with our groundwork program and Pack Structure for the Family Pet.
I’d also recommend Dealing with Dominant & Aggressive Dogs.
He needs a properly sized dominant dog collar and a muzzle. We have directions on how to measure the dog for a muzzle on this page.
Neutering may or may not help, many times it doesn’t make any difference if the dog is truly dominant. So many vets will tell you it will help, but our experience is that it usually doesn’t make much of a difference in situations like yours. Training and leadership are the key, not removing the dog’s testicles.
Once you get the measurements for the muzzle and dominant dog collar, we can help you select the correct sizes. You can order online or if you would like to call our office for help with the muzzle and collar, the number is 715-235-6502.
I hope this helps.
Cindy Rhodes
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