Help - Becoming Aggressive at the Dog Park

[BarbaraWNJ]

I am having a lot of trouble with my 11 month old girl Samantha - she is becoming very aggressive at the dog park. She has always been a bit of a problem in that she becomes very wound up when she's there but she's worse when she doesn't go to the park for exercise. This dog park is filled with very responsible owners who have helped me tremendously as I never had a dog before - my son rescued Samantha and now I have her as dogs are not allowed where he had to move (work related move). She is often the terror of the dog park and a few days ago wrestled a huge Golden Retriever to the ground, had her front paws around him and would not let him up. She has, of late, been focusing in on one dog whom she could bully and today after 15 minutes or so I had to take her out of the park. I can't exercise her myself as I have a bad back so no jogging or bike riding can be done. I've had a trainer in to help and she's much improved but lately she's become a holy terror at a dog park filled with really nice dogs.

 

[EAO76]

My female was the same way. She was raised with her littermate and the two of them had developed a very aggressive style of play. It didn’t change until we added Trucker who simply wouldn’t tolerate her very rough inappropriate play. She wanted to be his friend but he wouldn’t have anything to do with her. Eventually she learned to tone it down. Now that she has adapted her play style they are best friends. After she figured it out with Trucker she became much better with all dogs. Now when ever we get a new foster I let her meet them first. She is our good will ambassador and welcoming committee.

So maybe you can find her a friend who she can have some one –on- one time with and who will teach her to be appropriate. A dog park may not be the best situation to teach this. Also make sure she gets a “time out” each time she crosses the line at the park. Gently lead her away and make her do some “sits” or “downs” and don’t release her until she is calm. Keep repeating & be very consistent with the time outs and she will eventually get it.

 

[Goodgirl]

I agree, try arranging playdates with some people from the dog park whose dog she seems to get along with- or at the least won't be afraid of your girl when she gets pushy.
Also, if you have the room- you can get a cheap treadmill to help keep her exercised. If introduced slowly she will get the hang of it, and then all you have to do is stay with her while she walks herself!

 

[BarbaraWNJ]

Thank You

Thank you both for your help - I have been taking her to the entrance to the dog park where she has a time out & also left the dog park when indicated. I've never thought of giving her commands to settle her down; what a great idea. As for the treadmill, another good idea but I live up one flight or so of stairs and with a bad back, this isn't going to happen. Playdates would be great but no one has the time for this. Most of the people I see at the dog park are racing to get there before it's too dark after work and as I'm a real estate agent, weekends are very tough for me when others are available.

But, thank you very much - I'll combine the time outs with commands and hopefully she'll settle down. This morning she lasted 10 minutes before I had to take her out. But, after being upset at leaving and spending time in the crate while I was working this afternoon, I took her back to the park and she was much improved.

BTW is it a boxer thing to drive smaller dogs crazy? I've noticed that the other 2 boxers who go to the park regularly also do this. Thanks again.

 

[greenlantern]

Aggression, Learned Behavior?

King has been going to the same dog park for nearly 3 weeks on a daily basis. Initially, he was very mellow, getting along with all the dogs, but when he had several adult dogs pin him down and would not let him up, King started fighting back, by growling, showing his teeth and barking. I was calm and figured it was an older dog putting King in his place, as King just turned 7 months.

However, when it looked like it was getting worse, the owner of the other dog got very concerned and started getting worried. We were calling out our dogs names, but it just got louder. Luckily an experienced dog owner came over, distracted them by clapping her hands several times, while saying "knock it off" in a loud stern voice and we were able to separate them. The owner of the white boxer apologized profusely and explained that her boxer was a rescue and it was his first time at a dog park. I reassured her that I understood and there was nothing to apologize for.

This has happened at least 3 times to King. The first time was when an inexperience young owner who did not know how his 4 month old pure pitbull pup was going to react, unleashed his pit near me. They sniffed each other and before I could blink, the pit had King by the throat, briefly. The owner immediately grabbed his puppy by it's collar, apologized to me, leashed him and left immediately.

Another time, was when an adult German Shepard rescue pinned him, but the owner was able to call off his dog. The other time was a pitbull mix rescue.

The last couple of days King has pinned a puppy Lab and a puppy boxer, but I immediately pulled him off. I have noticed that King has not been very obedient, lately, and have had to give him time-outs several times.

I was wondering if blowing a whistle is a good idea in distracting the "fighting dogs".

 

[greenlantern]

Aggression Learned?

Do you know or anybody else think blowing a standard whistle to breakup a fight is a good thing or not recommended?

 

[ELubas]

Do you know or anybody else think blowing a standard whistle to breakup a fight is a good thing or not recommended?

It might distract them but if they are really ramped up it might not make any difference at all. My girl is very scappy and I have trained her to come to a whistle but I need to get her to come before a fight-once she is in it forget it :( I really avoid dog parks for the very reason everyone is talking about. They tend to be used for exersize so all the dogs are pretty wired going in. For my boy that is fine as he has no interest in "trouble" but my girl just does not belong there. She has arranged playdates with certain dogs she gets along with. As far as breaking it up once they start sometimes throwing a blanket over them will startle them or blast them with a hose-but good luck having those handy in the dog park. With my girl as she does not bite I can usually get her off but if the other dog is retaliating I have to be sure the other owner will get a hold of their dog-and that should always be done from the rear of the dog.

 

[Najo]

I have male rescue, he is about a 1 1/2 years old. I got just over a month ago, and he was just altered 3 weeks ago. I take him to the dog park several times a week. He is not dog aggressive at all, but he plays real rough. He is fine with dogs that hang with him and run him around, but he really can bully lower energy dogs, and when he gets on top of them, they freak out, and then a tussle ensues. For some reason Golden Retrievers are the worse. Trying to walk off some of their energy is suppose to be the best thing before taking them to dog parks. Ceasar Milan had a real good episode about dog parks and what to watch for. I am starting to get in tune with Jango and can anticipate trouble, and try to steer him away. I am also think of getting a backpack for him to wear him down a bit on his walks. The treadmill is also a good idea. I have heard from many people at the dog parks I have visited that Boxers can have issues with other breeds because of their high energy levels. Other Mastiff breeds seem to be the best at keeping up with their physical play.

 

[Goodgirl]

Yes, Felix is better about giving up on dogs that find his play intimidating. As a puppy he was relentless! He finds dogs his energy level now and his best buds are bulldogs, huskies, pits, and a terrier mix. Sometimes when he is playing with Delilah at home, it sounds like they are going to tear each other up- but they are playing- just really vocal.

 

[shells]

i've had trouble with my 2 boys as well. we are not able to go to the dog park like we used to, and now that i have a fenced in yard, i prefer to let them play by themselves. they are so used to each other and play well together. at the dog park, they are their own pack and can be quite aggressive. we take them to daycare when we go away and they get group play there. i've been told that they now seperate my 2 boys to keep the "pack" mentality to a minimum, but they are often placed in time out for the first day or so, until they get their aggression out. we pretty much had to stop going to the dog park because by the time they calm down, we have to leave.

and one of mine is obsessed with little dogs. they bark and bark and bark, and he just insists on trying to sniff them as if trying to figure out why they are barking which then riles them up and makes them crazy!