Diesell turned on me tonight, please help me.

[travishedric]

I got bit in the chin, deep gash to.
Ok, I need help, for the both of us. And if I am doing something wrong, PLEASE tell me, correct me and tell me what I SHOULD be doing different.
I have had him since he was 12 weeks. He is now 2 years. Tonight he was trying to steal a raw hide bone from Jada, the female. By the way, neigher is neutered or spayed. Lori tried telling him no and he growled at her a bit, no big deal he has done that before. I came in and picked him up off of Jada and set him on the ground. I did not spank him, cause that is a no no. But as I was picking him up, he was snarling and snapping, but not really trying to bite me. He has done this before, but no big deal. When I sat him on the ground, I yelled at him, loud, and pointed at him. That is when he bit me.
So, what happened? Now, whenever he mis behaves, I yell at him. Does my voice scare him, does my size (250, 6 foot bodybuilder), I dont know. He is NEVER an aggressive dog, even towards strangers. He is a cuddle bug also. I am always kissing him on the face and playing rough with him. I am confused on what happened. I am also very upset. It worries me to have a pet in the house that will turn on you.
So, if this is my fault please explain why, cause I love him more than life itself.
Also, he has had no training, only the sit, come, no bite, and hush commands.

 

[travishedric]

I am for sure getting them fixed now. The training I am betting that is what I have to do. Oh by the way, thanks for the reply.
My concern is this, I always thought boxers were supposed to be so loving. I know they are a dog at heart, but is it normal/abnormal for them to turn on us like that.
I will call for some classes tomrow. And if anyone is in the STL area and can recommend someone, please let me know (STL is st. louis)

 

[jenjones28]

Lori tried telling him no and he growled at her a bit, no big deal he has done that before. I came in and picked him up off of Jada and set him on the ground. I did not spank him, cause that is a no no. But as I was picking him up, he was snarling and snapping, but not really trying to bite me. He has done this before, but no big deal.

I would disagree. I think that is a REALLY big deal. If you let your dog get away with growling at you, basically you're letting him get away with challenging your status as alpha.

I would definitely get them both fixed ASAP, both for health and behavior reasons. Also, like someone else already mentioned, training classes will be a huge benefit.

Third, I would do the NILIF thing to reinforce your alpha status. Basically, for everything that your dogs get, whether it's their dinner, getting to go outside, getting to play, ANYTHING, they have to do something for you first. They have to sit, or lie down, whatever.

I think you can rest easy about them having turned on you, though. I think it's a natural thing for a dog to test you as the alpha, some dogs more than others, and from what you're describing it doesn't sound like your dog all of a sudden "snapped". I think it's just a natural dog thing that you can get control of with a little work.

 

[CondoPup]

So much of what they're doing now may have developed over two years that it's hard to say from one incident what may have led to the behavior. But a couple of observations:
The yelling and the playing rough are things that are not advisable, particularly the yelling - all they understand is the anger but they don't associate it with what they did wrong. It really doesn't do any good at all, other than to get them agitated and possibly frightened of you (either of which is bad). Instead reward good behavior with calm, positive methods.
Neutering and spaying is a GREAT step - good for you for doing that.
Now that you know they are competitive over food, separate them when they have their marrow bones (at least - maybe also with other food/treats too) until you determine it's safe to have them back together again under those circumstances. I would say "let them work it out for themselves" but if your male was upset enough to attack you, err on the side of safety for them and keep them apart around food for awhile.
Obedience classes are your best bet, I agree with Samsonite completely. And through a good trainer you should be able to find a good animal behaviorist, should you need to go to that level of assistance to help your dog bring his behavior back in line.
A book I'd strongly suggest - "The Other End of the Leash" by Patricia McConnell, it is an excellent book that not only covers positive training methods but delves into what dogs' behaviors are all about, and what's going on in those canine brains. It might really help you a lot, in understanding why they do what they do when they do it!

 

[travishedric]

I appreciate the support everyone. Thanks. I was freaking. he is my best friend. Going to make some calls tomrow.

 

[jenjones28]

Let us all know how it goes. We can all tell how much you care about him, and just because he got you tonight doesn't mean he doesn't love you just as much!

 

[OSCARS MUM]

hi there, im really sorry to hear what your baby has done, and i just wanted to say that i, like you, had thought (and i still do) boxers were very loving and affectionate and it broke my heart when my 2.5yr old Oscar started to have a go at other dogs at the doggy beach, and his 1 year old sister Roxy. Thanks to the advice fr the guys here at BW i too realised that he was "boss", i have been working away for 7 weeks and the last time i went home i did the NILIF thingy and i did this at the beach too and you could see it in both my boxers eyes that they actually loved it ( i have been slack with training all this year if not longer!! naughty i know) even down to when i let them out the car at home they went straight in the yard, instead of roaming into my neighbours and having a sticky beak!!! hehe .... I now know that when i go home i will put the effort into there training not only for me, soon to take over "the boss" position hehe, but for them because i could see how much they loved it... good luck to you and your "kids" melzee Oscar Roxy

 

[KMB's BabyB]

Your boxer boy has been pushing the alpha issue a long time, it sounds. I think the snapping at you was just going a bit further. We had to do the NILIF(Nothing In Life Is Free) with my Lhasa. He nearly was sent packing because he bit my son. We had him neutered, kicked him off all the furniture for about six months and worked obedience with him everyday. I would suggest that Lori work with him too. Thanks to our hard work we now have a decent dog who surely would have ended up in some dog pound if we hadn't addressed the issue. Boxers are very loving but also protective and if he is confused as to who is in charge, it is only natural for him to try and gain control. In his mind this will keep you safe. There also might be confusion if your female isn't fixed.
Good luck and keep us posted. It sounds like with a commitment(which you have) to regaining his respect, nuetering and obedience, he will return to decency pretty quick.

 

[Jersey's M0m]

I am for sure getting them fixed now. The training I am betting that is what I have to do. Oh by the way, thanks for the reply.
My concern is this, I always thought boxers were supposed to be so loving. I know they are a dog at heart, but is it normal/abnormal for them to turn on us like that.
I will call for some classes tomrow. And if anyone is in the STL area and can recommend someone, please let me know (STL is st. louis)

Boxers are VERY loving.. but what you have to understand is that these dogs are ANIMALS... and they behave in pack behavior just like wolves do.. the instinct has not left them.. and out in the wild there is an Alpha.. Boxers were bred as police animals and are very strong tempermented meaning they need strong owners who will enforce their alpha position. I recommend reading "the dog listener" by jan fennel.. AWESOME book.. but also enroll in obedience classes along with it.. they will help guide you... good luck let us know how it turns out

 

[boxer]

Why is it when things like this happen that everyone rushes to blame the dog?

Your dog is trying to be boss...

I think that is a REALLY big deal. If you let your dog get away with growling at you, basically you're letting him get away with challenging your status as alpha.

Boxers were bred as police animals and are very strong tempermented meaning they need strong owners who will enforce their alpha position.

Your dog need leadership. That means leading, not getting into some sort of battle to enforce your supremacy or "alpha position" :rolleyes: Gmacleod has posted on this issue before - and this thread contains some very useful links: http://www.boxerworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=71282

Your dog was reacting in a perfectly reasonable way to an unreasonable action on your part. You got a clear and unambiguous warning, you ignored it and continued to manhandle him and threaten him (which is what standing over him, yelling and pointing is - a threat). So he bit. That's normal, it's defensive and it's justified. Don't handle and threaten your dog like that, listen to the warnings you get, and he won't bite you. Better yet, manage the situations and issues (food included) in your household so those sorts of situations don't occur in the first place.

Also, he has had no training, only the sit, come, no bite, and hush commands.

And that's a large part of the problem. When you don't put any time into training a dog how he should behave, but instead try to "train" him not to do the things you don't like by yelling and threatening him, you end up exactly where you are - with a dog that reacts by defending himself. He's got no idea what the problem is - how could he, when he's been behaving like this up until now with "no real problem". Suddenly (from his perspective) you're yelling, manhandling and then continuing to threaten him. His only possible reactions are to either run away, or to defend himself. He defended.

Dogs are like little kids - telling them what not to do is not very effective. You have to train them what to do instead, because they'll never guess the correct behaviour for themselves.

But don't get sucked into the "my dog is showing 'dominance' and I must put the rebellion down" sort of mentality. Training a dog to be a good family member is not, and never should be, turned into some sort of battle for supremacy. And if you try to do that, you'll probably lose Certainly neither you nor the dog will have an enjoyable relationship. You'll never become your dog's leader by force or domination, so why try it? Put your time and energy instead into convincing the dog to join the team - teach him what you *do* want from him, and reward him for doing things your way. It's more effective, and makes for a much more enjoyable relationship between owner and pet.