So far not much has changed. The feeding aggression is not a problem but...Somtimes he'll growl as I try to put the food dish in his crate. When he does this I tell him no and do not put the bowl down, try again tomorrow. Sometimes he'll growl after the door is closed. Then I ignore him. There is a difference in his reaction depending on who does it although my youngest placed his bowl 2 nights ago without a peep (yes, I was right there). One thing that has stopped is the mess on the kitchen floor. He would take a mouthful of food and drop ALL of it on the ground, then get another mouthful to eat. He would leave 1/2 cup of food on the ground. I don't understand that. Anyway, my wife has pretty much given up on him and if I try to keep him, he will probably only get attention / care from me. She keeps telling me we need to do something about him and I keep telling her I'm trying. Some have mentioned re-homing him, of which is not an option in my eyes, but who would want him? Looking for good home for dominant aggressive large chow who is only aggressive to in home residents? I gotta believe in Ed's theory that most dogs that fall under this category do not deserve / require to be put down. I want to become trained enough to be the person that I would be looking for were he to be re-homed. If that means he does not interact with my family unless I am there from now on, so be it. I want to better understand what bothers him and the most effective way to counter it. I believe if it's possible, I will find a way to curb his aggression. And the part that really sucks, he sounds like Satan himself but he is not like this 99% of the time. Many times he will obey all family members but; we don't know when he'll decide to be a turd and because of that he is not reliable and I am here. Thanx for reading.

DZ

In some of your past posts, it sounded as if you were having good succuss using an e-collar, and I wonder how that is going. I am finding it very useful with my chow mix, although she still freaks out at times, when caught unawares by certain dogs.

I finally watched the Dominant Dog DVD again. More toward the end Ed mentions growling as a means for the dog to communicate he's not comfortable with something. I was so wrapped up in growling being the onset to aggresion, I perceived the growling as aggression and was giving him a level-10 correction for it. That stopped today. Since this is most of his problem (growling) I am very optomistic that he won't be as much of a problem as I thought. I think I was unintentionally being unfair to him although; I can't let him control the situtaion by growling. Still allot of work to do but I think this reminder from the video should help allot.

We belong to a training club and I entered my youngest in a basic obedience class with Bruno. I am there at all times as well as 3-4 trainers. Bruno has always done well in these classes and loves the training. Obviously the class is not for him, but rather to teach my youngest the concept of timing, appropriate praise etc. The first class, Bruno behaved better for my daughter than the instructors dog did for her. Today I took her, and another kid in the class, out for some training in an open field. All 4 did very well. Bruno healed, sat, downed, and stayed for Evette nearly every time. I only let her use a flat collar as this is the requirement for the class. She used treats as a lead to keep his attention, just as I did in my first classes and it was a relief to see them work together. After about 30 minutes I cut Evette loose and worked a little more with Bruno. Another thing I forgot was no peeing except where I allow. I guess my groundwork was not as thorough as I thought. After the training session, we let him and the other dog (6 month Akita) loose in my backyard for some intense exercise. Bruno has spent allot of time in his crate as I work 12-15 hour shifts during the day (military). Speaking of which, I am exhausted. G-night!

DZ

Does Bruno have to spend the whole 12-15 hours in the crate? I hope not...no wonder he's still having issues if this is the case. Adults really shouldn't stay in a crate for more than 8 hours. It can lead to urinary tract infections from having to hold it too long as well as frustration or even neurotic behavior. Any way you could get an experienced dog walker to exercise him during those long days? The more you exercise a dog, the less behavioral problems you'll tend to see.

Is both Bruno and your Akita pup neutered (I'm assuming it's male)? If these are companion animals, knowing the dog aggressive tendencies of these two breeds, having an intact maturing male Akita and an already dominant chow is not a good combo to have in the coming months.

My wife just left for Michigan on Friday so yesterday he was crated during the day from 7 am to 6 pm. When she was home she would let him out back for about 30 minutes halfway through, then back into the crate. When I got home yesterday we took him out for exercise. Today he was crated during the day from 0400 until about 1600 (12 hours) I am on break tomorrow and taking leave this week so he will not be crated like this until next Mon / Tues, then on Friday and Saturday. On Sunday the 9th, we leave for Michigan and his long hours will be over (except the 9 hour car ride). He will be boarded from the 11th to the 17th while we go on vacation but they have an indoor / outdoor climate controlled kennel for him. They know about his temperment and have agreed to take him but will not walk him daily to avoid any ill actions. Once we get back we'll have 2 more weeks of time off in Mi. to train and enjoy many outside hours. My Outlaws have 3 acres fenced in and this is a perfect place to conduct off leash training. They have a female Travern and a female little yip dog (??). He's played with them before last year. As for the Akita, thanx for the warning. Bruno has been neutered and I'm not sure of the pup. They play probably twice a week in our backyard and usually the pup is chasing Bruno. He'll come in completely slimed up and gross. I keep a close eye anyway but I'll keep your advice in mind when they are together. Thanx!

DZ

I'd highly recommend hiring an experienced (once again, experienced being the keyword) dog walker who can understand chows (those are probably going to be pretty few and far between) for those days when he'll be alone for that long. No offense, but can you hold it for 10 to 12 hours in a small space? 8 hours should be about the longest for a dog without a break. Even though it seems like a fairly temporary thing, UTIs are no fun at all...

And yes, definitely keep a very close eye on them when Bruno and the Akita play together. I have a husky/Rott mix that acts very much like an Akita (is affectionate when he wants to be, mostly aloof, dominant with people and other dogs, wouldn't let me roll him over for a belly rub for about 4-5 months) and only once have him and my 1.5 year old Malinois gotten into it, but it was quite the sight. It was when Zoso the Mal was about 11 months old (a maturing male) and I was in my office. I heard a low growl and then that "rawr raw raw rawr!!" sound of the makings of a full blown fight between the two of them. I was actually surprised as by the time I was able to get to them, Zoso was giving Buck a good thrashing. No one was hurt and now they don't cross each other, but both are neutered. If you're going to let them play around females (I assume you mean Belgian Tervuren shepherd?), I'd neuter the Akita for sure just in case...but that's just me. I've seen a male or two that were neutered after being used as stud dogs that still were possessive of females around other males, especially intact males.

I have no control over the Akita, he's not my dog but this dog lives near us in MD. My outlaws live in Michigan which is where Bruno plays with the female, no other dogs are around.

You're right, my resources are limited. About all I could do is have my oldest let him outside for awhile when I go back to work next Monday. Then he would stay in the back yard until I got home. This is what we've done since he was about 10 months old and I was working. I know he'll have allot of freedom but which is worse, to much freedom for a few hours on 4 separate days or 12+ hours in his crate?

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which is worse, to much freedom for a few hours on 4 separate days or 12+ hours in his crate?

12 plus hours in his crate is definitely worse. that is too long for a dog to be cooped up. can't you build a run and shelter for him outside so that he doesn't have to hold it all those hours?

Was he still resisting being put in the crate? I might be getting dogs confused, I can't remember...though heck, I'd resist too if I knew I wouldn't be allowed to pee for the next 10-12 hours. <img src="http://www.leerburg.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> Anyways, is there any reason your oldest couldn't put him back in the crate if he's allowed outside for a few minutes to stretch his legs and whatnot? If that's going to cause a problem, then I would probably stick to letting him be in the backyard, though I'm not a big fan of that either.

i thought i should add: being forced to hold urine that long can result in not only bladder infections, but also bladder stones, and that is not only painful but quite possibly life threatening. that long in a crate borders on abuse. please get him a dog house and a run and keep him outside while you are at work.