Aggressive dog

Cinnamon563

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My oldest dog has never been aggressive always been the sweetest dog ever but as she gets older it gets more and more impossible to live with her. She is 8 years old just a little mutt probably about 25 or so pounds, she keeps gaining weight no matter what we try. Problem is lately she barks at everything constantly has bit everyone in my house and last night went as far as to attack one of the younger dogs over a piece of food that was dropped. We can't even touch her unless it's completely her choice. She also goes potty all over the house no matter how many times we take her outside.
I love the dog dearly and really don't want to have to resort to keeping her in a pen all the time.
Any ideas what might be causing this or how I can help her? ImageUploadedByTapatalk1415710736.612812.jpg
 

Cinnamon563

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Any idea how to make her a bit more comfortable for now? Won't have the money for the vet till next month.
 

johnsonnboswell

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Crate that dog. Give her more exercise. Feed her separately from the other dogs. Be the boss. If she's in control, it's driving her mad.

She is not old for a dog that size. That behavior is not normal or acceptable. She's miserable. You need to identify and treat medical issues - or eliminate them - asap. If it's not medical, you need a behaviorist. If that fails, you should put her out of her misery. I say that as a kindness to her, because she can't be rehomed.

I know it feels more complicated because you love her.
 

phebe121

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Yes shes not old enough to be going crazy yet i went threw that last yr with a small dog she was 19 yrs old.she needs more exercise and needs someone to be Alfa cuz she cant handle it .my dog i had put to sleep bit and gtowled at u for no reason at all one other thing sometimes make them go crazy early is a brain tummer get her to the vet full check up
 

kathyth

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The very first thing I would do, is have her worked up. She could be reacting to severe pain or a medical problem.
After that I would crate, expertise, consult a kind trainer or animal behaviorist.
I would do everything as no one else in the world will deal with it. The problem can only be handled by you and obviously you can't allow a dog to go around attacking others.
Good luck!
 

dmmj

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could she have a stroke? going blind or deaf?
 

Cinnamon563

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She could maybe have cancer or something. She is really prone to tumors but they always stay small and benign
 

ascott

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My oldest dog has never been aggressive always been the sweetest dog ever but as she gets older it gets more and more impossible to live with her. She is 8 years old just a little mutt probably about 25 or so pounds, she keeps gaining weight no matter what we try. Problem is lately she barks at everything constantly has bit everyone in my house and last night went as far as to attack one of the younger dogs over a piece of food that was dropped. We can't even touch her unless it's completely her choice. She also goes potty all over the house no matter how many times we take her outside.
I love the dog dearly and really don't want to have to resort to keeping her in a pen all the time.
Any ideas what might be causing this or how I can help her? View attachment 104012


So in all honesty.....has the dog NEVER EVER EVER snipped at any kids/adults playing and such? honestly the dog NEVER EVER EVER gets scraps or human treats? As a dog ages, these things react differently with the animal....
 

Cinnamon563

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The dog has only recently been snipping at people and dogs. And my dogs get treats and scraps all the time. As a puppy she played rather rough and we never really taught her to not even play bite by the time she was 9-10 months she stopped even playing. She is a rescue who was from an abuse case but other than her timidness even towards us 8 years later despite the fact that she has never once been absused her she's never shower aggression
 

Prairie Mom

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Oh, I'm so sorry to hear that you and your oldest dog are having these troubles! I agree with everyone that your dog needs to see the vet ASAP. I absolutely agree that these could be symptoms of serious medical issues. If not medical, then there is something else happening in this dog's life that is stressing it out beyond belief. The stressor could be something as simple as the dog being upset with his place in the pack. Ifs he doesn't actually have a medical condition, stress like this will definitely CAUSE a medical condition SOON. I really hope you have a good vet that can advise you on what to do from here.
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Also, just to offer up another opinion...I disagree with the idea that a dog with behaviors like this would need to be put down. They may be hard to come by, but there are rescues that are equipped to handle extremely difficult dogs, work with them, and find appropriate homes for them. Here's an example of one such place: http://bestfriends.org/ I've adopted two dogs from them. This animal rescue also famously took in the ex football player Michael Vick's dogs from his horrific dog fighting ring. This animal rescue was able to rehabilitate and even place many of these dogs in homes. They refer to them as the "Vicktory Dogs." Here's a link to info about them: http://bestfriends.org/The-Sanctuary/Explore-the-Sanctuary/Dogtown/Vicktory-Dogs/ --I've followed the stories of these dogs and they are a beacon of hope in dark times! :)
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I'm crossing my fingers for you that things will improve. Please keep us posted.
Big hugs to you guys!
 
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Prairie Mom

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Any idea how to make her a bit more comfortable for now? Won't have the money for the vet till next month.
Since you don't have the funds currently, does your vet accept Care Credit http://www.carecredit.com/vetmed/? If you're not familiar with Care Credit, it's basically a credit card that can only be used at Vets and Dentists. Not every vet or dentist takes it, but more and more do. If your vet doesn't take, chances are very likely another nearby vet accepts it. I hate to be a commercial for a credit card, but having this card has REALLY SAVED US when we've had animals that have needed emergency surgeries etc and the credit card ALWAYS has 0% financing offers if you're able to pay the balance in full within 6 mos or sometimes a year.
 

ascott

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The dog has only recently been snipping at people and dogs. And my dogs get treats and scraps all the time. As a puppy she played rather rough and we never really taught her to not even play bite by the time she was 9-10 months she stopped even playing. She is a rescue who was from an abuse case but other than her timidness even towards us 8 years later despite the fact that she has never once been absused her she's never shower aggression

The treats and scraps can begin to pile weight onto an animal when the animal begins to age---

Some dogs are naturally mouthy and if the animal is not taught differently (even rescue dogs need to learn acceptable/not acceptable social behavior) that is is not acceptable---it too will progress--

Also, peeing and pooping are a natural function---not a behavior issue...now, where the function occurs is entirely up to the human to direct where is acceptable or not----not sugar coating much here but just stating the facts (no attitude being offered either, seriously :D)

Animals completely react in a situation with a human by what the human allows/promotes as acceptable behavior....just saying. I also do not believe that an animal should be put down due to the humans inconsistency.....
 

Cinnamon563

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Thank you guys for the advice. We've decided that though it's going to be tough with the money problem right now she needs to be seen sooner rather than later and will be seeing the vet Saturday. Hopefully all works out
 

Tom

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Dogs will do what you let them. Stop letting her do the things you don't want.

Crate train her until the potty issue is resolved. Put her on a leash and don't allow the aggression to take place.

Sounds like you will need professional help, but the problem is probably fixable. I agree a vet work up is the first step. Eliminate any medical issues as contributing factors and then get to work training your dog.

Something I frequently tell clients when they makes excuses for bad behavior, "If I had your dog, do you think he/she'd be doing that?" After a short pause to contemplate, the answer is always a quiet, "No..." You can fix this with a little help Cinnamon. You need to stop allowing this bad behavior immediately. You might just need some help with how best to stop it.
 

Cinnamon563

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Thank you guys for the advice. We've decided that though it's going to be tough with the money problem right now she needs to be seen sooner rather than later and will be seeing the vet
 

the_newzie

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Just a question, how much exercise does she get? One of our dogs had similar problems when we first rescued him. We soon noticed the level of his bad behavior was directly correlated by how much exercise we got him each day.
 

Cinnamon563

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Other than running around outside sometimes none really. They really only get walks on occasion if it ever cools off.
Based on the advice I've been getting I'm going to start walking her a couple times a week and hopefully the vet gives us a few answers
 

the_newzie

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Other than running around outside sometimes none really. They really only get walks on occasion if it ever cools off.
Based on the advice I've been getting I'm going to start walking her a couple times a week and hopefully the vet gives us a few answers

Well, and I'll be clear, I'm not a vet, and I'll always defer to a vet for advice, but I would really, really advise, based purely on my own experience, to get her at least an hour of walking everyday, minimum. If you are for any reason unable to walk that much (due to health or other issues) get her to a dog park or other fenced in, open area to run around for at least a hour a day. Ideally, I'd get her more than that and ensure the exercise really tires her out. Maybe I'm wrong, and it's a physical problem (your vet will tell you more), but weight gain coupled with aggression sounds to me like she's simply inactive and bored and acting out as a result.
 

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