My Dog Killed my Other dog

My Dog Killed my Other dog - Part 1

By Gaby Dufresne-Cyr, CBT-FLE

The following taboo topic article might come as a surprise for some, but I assure you dogs killing dogs within the same household is common. The reason you most likely have never heard of this phenomenon is that people rarely talk about the situation. Today, I want to shed some light on the problem and offer a few tips on how to prevent deaths.

Second Dog Introduction
When you decide to get a second dog, usually meetings and introduction processes take place before the second dog becomes a fulltime family member. The most common situation for a multiple-dog household is dog two (Fido) is younger than dog one (Rex). When Fido moves in, all is well, and friendship might start to blossom. Both dogs enjoy each other and seem to do everything together. In other cases, Rex and Fido tolerate each other; over time, tolerance turns to annoyance.

Dog Aggression vs. Dog Attack
There is a big difference between dog aggression and dog attacks. The former is a boisterous and fasts pace action exchange where individuals try to settle a conflict. The latter, on the other hand, is silent and somewhat stationary. A dog attack serves to kill the individual. In some cases, aggression can turn deadly, but in most cases, it never comes as a surprise.

Multiple Dog Household Deaths
Pet caregivers will consult when dogs with an age difference display aggressive behaviours. From there, we can work on behaviour modification and management. Clients leave with dog behaviour and training protocols designed to facilitate peaceful living arrangements. On other occasions, clients consult for aggression because one dog killed the other. This claim might surprise you, but unfortunately, it’s a real one.

Younger dogs like Fido will often kill older, more vulnerable dogs like Rex. From a canine point of view, the kill behaviour is normal. Dogs are opportunistic predators who exploit vulnerabilities. When dogs see an injured, sick, juvenile, or otherwise compromised individual, their predatory brain tells them to kill. Humans have tried to breed this out of dogs; unfortunately, most individuals retain their genetic makeup.

Death by Dog
So far, in my career, I’ve evaluated over two dozen dogs for the death of an older dog within the same household. Clients present the case as a silent, unexpected attack. People are shocked about the situation and think Fido just turned into a monster. Fido rarely is a monster; he is merely a dog. The proof is in the pudding: when the household has more than two dogs, Fido never attacks or displays aggression towards the other canines.

Most often, the attack occurs when people are in another room or out on a short errand. There is no sound from the attacker. The cries come from Rex. The high pitch cries serve to tell the attacker I am in pain, let me go! An attack never lasts long; it usually is over within a few seconds up to a minute or so. People never saw it coming, or more often than not, they could not recognize the subtle signs. Dog language is complex

Take-Home Message
If you have more than one dog in your household, learn dog language. You will need to identify the situation before it occurs. From there, you can separate dogs to manage the situation. Dog training can go a long way, but remember, we are working against natural behaviours.

Please do not feel guilty about the death of a dog within your household; you didn’t know and couldn’t have prevented the situation. I recommend you take a dog language class and invite your friends with multiple dogs to join you. Make your experience know, for together, we can educate and prevent tragic deaths.

I suggest you talk about the situation with or comment below to share the knowledge. If you recently lost a pet and need counselling, please drop me a line. I know how hard it is to lose a friend under such tragic events.

For the second time now, this blog post has been removed (without and explanation from our web host) along with the nearly 200 comments that you shared. I am truly sorry and apologize for the problem. We read every comment and e-mail you send us, which is on average one a day.

Please leave a comment, others seek solace in knowing they are not alone. Thank you for understanding this very frustrating situation.

31 comments

Emanuella Mexico
Jul 8 2020 10:47 AM

Hello. I have just read an article about dogs killing another dog in the same home. I have 3 dogs. The two, have almost killed my 3rd dog 4 times since January. We have spent thousands on vets. I live in rural Mexico. To drive to a behaviorist is just not feasible at this time. I’m afraid my 3rd dog will not survive another attack. He may not survive this most recent one. Please if you think you can help me, email me back. I’ve been observing their behavior since February. Im trying so hard to understand what’s happening so I can address it and I can’t figure it out. I will gladly describe and answer any questions, but I hate to write out all of the little things they do only to be directed elsewhere. So again, please just respond and I’ll write the whole thing out. Thank you for your time thus far. I really hope to hear from you.

Hello. I have just read an article about dogs killing another dog in the same home. I have 3 dogs. The two, have almost killed my 3rd dog 4 times since January. We have spent thousands on vets. I live in rural Mexico. To drive to a behaviorist is just not feasible at this time. I’m afraid my 3rd dog will not survive another attack. He may not survive this most recent one. Please if you think you can help me, email me back. I’ve been observing their behavior since February. Im trying so hard to understand what’s happening so I can address it and I can’t figure it out. I will gladly describe and answer any questions, but I hate to write out all of the little things they do only to be directed elsewhere. So again, please just respond and I’ll write the whole thing out. Thank you for your time thus far. I really hope to hear from you.
Jennifer Texas
Jul 10 2020 11:07 AM

We just had our older Anatolian Shepherd kill our 9wk old miniature Red Heeler pup. I am so hurt over this. We've never seen any aggressive behavior towards other dogs in our Anatolian before. The pup got in a tiff with another red heeler and was yelping, the Anatolian grabbed the pup and crushed it's head. I am in shock. My husband is furious and wants to kill the Anatolian. I am wondering if this is normal dog behavior.

We just had our older Anatolian Shepherd kill our 9wk old miniature Red Heeler pup. I am so hurt over this. We've never seen any aggressive behavior towards other dogs in our Anatolian before. The pup got in a tiff with another red heeler and was yelping, the Anatolian grabbed the pup and crushed it's head. I am in shock. My husband is furious and wants to kill the Anatolian. I am wondering if this is normal dog behavior.
Monika Manitoba
Jul 11 2020 11:28 AM

I just found your article online after losing my old and increasingly sickly Brussels Griffon to an attack by my young female my pit bull (1 yr old.) For about 2 weeks prior to the fatal attack, both my young female Doberman (just over 1 yr) and my young female pitty began showing aggression toward my little old man. Of course my Dobe is easily called off and never laid a tooth on him, but the crabbiness toward him was definitely there. My pitty, though, got her ‘switch’ flipped and did the deed. I was present at the time of the attack (she literally snatched him from right under my feet,) and did everything in my power to get the dog to let go, but there was literally NO getting her off of him. A true case of ‘lights on, nobody home.’ It was violent and horrible. After yelling at my Dobe to get back, she hid under the kitchen table and stayed put. She is very trainable and respects my commands in every situation. My pit has never shown aggression toward any other dog or human... very loving and plays well with my other dogs... the Brussels included up until the 2 weeks prior. My question is this: Is this a case of an attack on an older, compromised dog due to the instinct to cull the weak pack member? Or is this the start of a behavioral pattern that will inevitably happen again? This dog is so precious to me and to my family, but we can’t risk a repeat with another dog, or worse, a child. Of course the rescue groups will not touch her with a kill history, so our only other option is euthanasia. I am anxious to hear your thoughts. Thank you so much for your time. Peace and Blessings

I just found your article online after losing my old and increasingly sickly Brussels Griffon to an attack by my young female my pit bull (1 yr old.)

For about 2 weeks prior to the fatal attack, both my young female Doberman (just over 1 yr) and my young female pitty began showing aggression toward my little old man. Of course my Dobe is easily called off and never laid a tooth on him, but the crabbiness toward him was definitely there. My pitty, though, got her ‘switch’ flipped and did the deed. I was present at the time of the attack (she literally snatched him from right under my feet,) and did everything in my power to get the dog to let go, but there was literally NO getting her off of him. A true case of ‘lights on, nobody home.’ It was violent and horrible. After yelling at my Dobe to get back, she hid under the kitchen table and stayed put. She is very trainable and respects my commands in every situation. My pit has never shown aggression toward any other dog or human... very loving and plays well with my other dogs... the Brussels included up until the 2 weeks prior.

My question is this: Is this a case of an attack on an older, compromised dog due to the instinct to cull the weak pack member? Or is this the start of a behavioral pattern that will inevitably happen again? This dog is so precious to me and to my family, but we can’t risk a repeat with another dog, or worse, a child. Of course the rescue groups will not touch her with a kill history, so our only other option is euthanasia.

I am anxious to hear your thoughts. Thank you so much for your time.

Peace and Blessings
Anonymous Spain
Jul 12 2020 7:23 AM

Hi, I just stumbled across this blog post, and would like to know if you could detect in these cases other similarities apart from the age gap, like eg. it's more common in same-sex dog households, or in specific breeds (eg. dogs with increased canine-aggression, like fighting dog breeds, livestock guardian dogs, etc.), or between dog with significant size/weight difference? I eg. have an old, arthritic, very sweet and gentle hound mix (male, intact, 42lbs/19kg), and a very obedient, now almost 2 year old, also very sweet spayed female, what I think is a Pit bull-Podenco-mix (44lbs/20kg), and which I found abandoned at around 5 months old. They get along very well, play gently with each other, although she does sometimes display dominant behavior, which I do not allow (like blocking his way, or gently pushing him away with her body when they walk up to me, and such), but there's no real aggressive behavior involved. I'm actually quite an experienced dog owner myself, but I never had such an age gap, at least not where the younger one would have been physically capable of doing harm to the older one (the only other time I had a large age gap was with the young female being a Chihuahua mix, and the male senior dog a large Spanish Mastiff-German Shepherd mix). However, this blog entry has raised concerns, so I'd really like to know if our situation is among the ones where these things commonly are prone to occur, and what I need to look out for. I do not want to risk any harm to my old boy. Thank you very much in advance!

Hi, I just stumbled across this blog post, and would like to know if you could detect in these cases other similarities apart from the age gap, like eg. it's more common in same-sex dog households, or in specific breeds (eg. dogs with increased canine-aggression, like fighting dog breeds, livestock guardian dogs, etc.), or between dog with significant size/weight difference?

I eg. have an old, arthritic, very sweet and gentle hound mix (male, intact, 42lbs/19kg), and a very obedient, now almost 2 year old, also very sweet spayed female, what I think is a Pit bull-Podenco-mix (44lbs/20kg), and which I found abandoned at around 5 months old.

They get along very well, play gently with each other, although she does sometimes display dominant behavior, which I do not allow (like blocking his way, or gently pushing him away with her body when they walk up to me, and such), but there's no real aggressive behavior involved.

I'm actually quite an experienced dog owner myself, but I never had such an age gap, at least not where the younger one would have been physically capable of doing harm to the older one (the only other time I had a large age gap was with the young female being a Chihuahua mix, and the male senior dog a large Spanish Mastiff-German Shepherd mix).

However, this blog entry has raised concerns, so I'd really like to know if our situation is among the ones where these things commonly are prone to occur, and what I need to look out for. I do not want to risk any harm to my old boy. Thank you very much in advance!
Dogue Shop
Jul 12 2020 9:31 AM

@AngelaBrown Yes, you are at risk. To put it simply, it is time to start a management plan to not leave these two dogs alone, even for a fraction of a second.

@AngelaBrown
Yes, you are at risk. To put it simply, it is time to start a management plan to not leave these two dogs alone, even for a fraction of a second.
Sarah Australia
Jul 13 2020 1:05 PM

Hi, About three months ago my husband and I got married and me and my dogs moved onto his place. He ranches and has four dogs, I have my two. All dogs have been integrating great and no problems. He has an 11 year old Aussie mix that is grumpy and in charge. She is growly over her food and lives outside most of the time, but never any problems and is in general a happy dog. I have a Rottweiler (Gypsy) age, 5, that has high anxiety, very attached to me, but no history of aggression. This past Friday we had all the dogs out (a common occurrence) and everything was smooth and happy. My husbands Aussie (Bailey) was lying a little off to the side of all the dogs. My husband walked over and started petting her, to which Bailey rolls on her back in a submissive position and he continues to scratch her tummy. Gypsy out of the complete blue runs at her and starts attacking her, with a locked jaw in between her legs, I run over and pull her off to which she runs and hides shaking. Bailey had two big puncture wounds on the inside of her leg, and limped inside. The next day she had a large Hematoma and I had to take her into the vet resulting in surgery. The vet is REALLY concerned about them doing it again, as am I. Gypsy has no history of aggression with any animal, but has been acting out of character since I moved. I am really concerned about her going after anohter animal or person and have lost all trust in her, which is hard because I have spent her whole life highly socializing her and working on her being very kind and going against her breed standards... and this was SO RANDOM and scary. I read your article "My dog killed my other dog" and it seems to pretty closely fit the situation, except my husband was literally petting Bailey and she was in a completely submissive position. Please let me know if you have ANY suggestions and how to proceed. Both dogs are obviously very loved and Bailey is my husbands own dog and Gypsy is mine... Thank you so much

Hi,
About three months ago my husband and I got married and me and my dogs moved onto his place. He ranches and has four dogs, I have my two. All dogs have been integrating great and no problems. He has an 11 year old Aussie mix that is grumpy and in charge. She is growly over her food and lives outside most of the time, but never any problems and is in general a happy dog. I have a Rottweiler (Gypsy) age, 5, that has high anxiety, very attached to me, but no history of aggression.

This past Friday we had all the dogs out (a common occurrence) and everything was smooth and happy. My husbands Aussie (Bailey) was lying a little off to the side of all the dogs. My husband walked over and started petting her, to which Bailey rolls on her back in a submissive position and he continues to scratch her tummy. Gypsy out of the complete blue runs at her and starts attacking her, with a locked jaw in between her legs, I run over and pull her off to which she runs and hides shaking. Bailey had two big puncture wounds on the inside of her leg, and limped inside. The next day she had a large Hematoma and I had to take her into the vet resulting in surgery. The vet is REALLY concerned about them doing it again, as am I.

Gypsy has no history of aggression with any animal, but has been acting out of character since I moved. I am really concerned about her going after anohter animal or person and have lost all trust in her, which is hard because I have spent her whole life highly socializing her and working on her being very kind and going against her breed standards... and this was SO RANDOM and scary.

I read your article "My dog killed my other dog" and it seems to pretty closely fit the situation, except my husband was literally petting Bailey and she was in a completely submissive position. Please let me know if you have ANY suggestions and how to proceed. Both dogs are obviously very loved and Bailey is my husbands own dog and Gypsy is mine...
Thank you so much
Molly Corpus Christi
Jul 14 2020 4:39 AM

If still in shock and it makes it even harder she was my daughter comfort dog.my emtionless is me trying to my daughters rock but I really feel lost

If still in shock and it makes it even harder she was my daughter comfort dog.my emtionless is me trying to my daughters rock but I really feel lost
Nikole Edmonton
Jul 19 2020 3:08 PM

I am not sure this is the right place, but there seems to be a lot of post about this subject. We have a combination of rescue dogs and dogs we have had since they were born. There is a total of 8: Buster (miniature greyhound), max (Jack Russell), Daisy (lab basset hound, Bear (great Pyrenees mix), Diesel (bully), Cherokee (red heeler)m, Tank (bully), Ellie (great Pyrenees). They have always been together and never separated from each other. Other than we were introducing them to a new dog, whether we basically be a temporary rescue or they became part of the family. Before Tank which is the last dog that was rescued and we have been unable to place there have been no signs of aggression and no dog fights. Tank has been in the picture for two years roughly and has become a large part of our one year's life.I came home yesterday to see our oldest dog Buster laying in a pool of his own blood and not moving. They were in a garage that is insulated, has old couches, food water and fans with ac. Its a two car garage. I chased the dogs out into the backyard and rushed my poor old man to the er vet. Two vet visits later he ended up passing away from his injuries, shock, and they think cardiac arrest. I cam home to evaluate the situation, but I only found a lot of blood all over our five-year-old bully Diesel. Now I am confused because Diesel has never shown any signs of aggression. To be honest, sometimes the other dogs picked on him (the smaller dogs because he was submissive) so that was always monitored closely. However, we believe that Diesel acted alone but some of the dogs have injuries on their snouts and a very small amount of blood. Diesel kept trying to come inside to see Buster. We don't know if we need to have him put down or if this is some crazy act of aggression. Literally, we are at a lost. Like I said we have many other animals, a one-year-old little girl, and we are expecting our second child, I have been raised around dogs my whole life. I knew this was possible when you have a large pack of dogs but for some naive reason, I thought it would never happen to us with how they always cuddled and played well together. Can you please give us some advice?? Our vet said he does not see why he would need to be put down, Rescue groups say rehab him, others say to keep him separate ( which we are), some say take him to the pound, and we dont know what to do.

I am not sure this is the right place, but there seems to be a lot of post about this subject. We have a combination of rescue dogs and dogs we have had since they were born. There is a total of 8: Buster (miniature greyhound), max (Jack Russell), Daisy (lab basset hound, Bear (great Pyrenees mix), Diesel (bully), Cherokee (red heeler)m, Tank (bully), Ellie (great Pyrenees). They have always been together and never separated from each other. Other than we were introducing them to a new dog, whether we basically be a temporary rescue or they became part of the family. Before Tank which is the last dog that was rescued and we have been unable to place there have been no signs of aggression and no dog fights. Tank has been in the picture for two years roughly and has become a large part of our one year's life.I came home yesterday to see our oldest dog Buster laying in a pool of his own blood and not moving. They were in a garage that is insulated, has old couches, food water and fans with ac. Its a two car garage. I chased the dogs out into the backyard and rushed my poor old man to the er vet. Two vet visits later he ended up passing away from his injuries, shock, and they think cardiac arrest. I cam home to evaluate the situation, but I only found a lot of blood all over our five-year-old bully Diesel. Now I am confused because Diesel has never shown any signs of aggression. To be honest, sometimes the other dogs picked on him (the smaller dogs because he was submissive) so that was always monitored closely. However, we believe that Diesel acted alone but some of the dogs have injuries on their snouts and a very small amount of blood. Diesel kept trying to come inside to see Buster. We don't know if we need to have him put down or if this is some crazy act of aggression. Literally, we are at a lost. Like I said we have many other animals, a one-year-old little girl, and we are expecting our second child, I have been raised around dogs my whole life. I knew this was possible when you have a large pack of dogs but for some naive reason, I thought it would never happen to us with how they always cuddled and played well together. Can you please give us some advice?? Our vet said he does not see why he would need to be put down, Rescue groups say rehab him, others say to keep him separate ( which we are), some say take him to the pound, and we dont know what to do.
Kelly Arizona
Jul 20 2020 9:29 PM

I had noticed some wierd injuries to my older dog over the last 4 years. He was beginning to loose hearing and did loose sight in one eye. Did my best to keep him separated when not supervised. The other morning let all outside early, was inside house and heard no sounds. Went outside 1 hr later noticed my border collie/aussie had blood all over his face/neck. My younger thought to be meaner dog had little blood. Found my old dog alive but completely in shock and mauled to point of needing to be put down. I am angry at my dogs, feel guilty I was not there to protect him and thought of putting my other dogs down as just cant believe after so many years they killed my older, passive and never aggressive dog. Makes me sick just to think of his last minutes in such fear and pain. I cant believe my border collie was capable of this, he is such a nice dog.

I had noticed some wierd injuries to my older dog over the last 4 years. He was beginning to loose hearing and did loose sight in one eye. Did my best to keep him separated when not supervised. The other morning let all outside early, was inside house and heard no sounds. Went outside 1 hr later noticed my border collie/aussie had blood all over his face/neck. My younger thought to be meaner dog had little blood. Found my old dog alive but completely in shock and mauled to point of needing to be put down. I am angry at my dogs, feel guilty I was not there to protect him and thought of putting my other dogs down as just cant believe after so many years they killed my older, passive and never aggressive dog. Makes me sick just to think of his last minutes in such fear and pain. I cant believe my border collie was capable of this, he is such a nice dog.
Julie Edmonton
Jul 27 2020 10:46 AM

Hello, I am extremely hurt, heartbroken, and untrusting as our newer female dog that we’ve had for 1.5 years who is almost 2 lunged at our 4 year old female dog for what seemed she was being protective of me during a group play between me and both of them. The 1.5 year old is extremely dog aggressive and reactive with all other dogs besides our dog and our friend’s 2 dogs. Well, she now seems to be aggressive with ours and we are worried. They have always been best friends since day one. When the 1.5 year old lunged at our 4 year old dog, she wouldn’t let go of her ear and eventually broke her cartilage and caused her to get stitches in her ear. She just bit down and shook her. Had it not been for my husband there, I think she would’ve killed our 4 year old dog. Our older dog was crying in pain and the pup would not let go. It has been 3 days since the fight and they both have been acting fine like nothing has happened - have been playing and sleeping in the same bed together. I just can’t believe the 1.5 year old that has always played submissive to our older dog attacked her so aggressively and viciously. She didn’t growl or give her any warning. I am so lost and don’t know what to do. I can’t trust her and her dog aggressiveness. I’m worried it will happen again, or worse, she will start to turn human aggressive and bite one of us or someone else. I don’t know what to do to prevent this other than to get rid of her. Please help us!!

Hello,
I am extremely hurt, heartbroken, and untrusting as our newer female dog that we’ve had for 1.5 years who is almost 2 lunged at our 4 year old female dog for what seemed she was being protective of me during a group play between me and both of them. The 1.5 year old is extremely dog aggressive and reactive with all other dogs besides our dog and our friend’s 2 dogs. Well, she now seems to be aggressive with ours and we are worried. They have always been best friends since day one. When the 1.5 year old lunged at our 4 year old dog, she wouldn’t let go of her ear and eventually broke her cartilage and caused her to get stitches in her ear. She just bit down and shook her. Had it not been for my husband there, I think she would’ve killed our 4 year old dog. Our older dog was crying in pain and the pup would not let go.

It has been 3 days since the fight and they both have been acting fine like nothing has happened - have been playing and sleeping in the same bed together.

I just can’t believe the 1.5 year old that has always played submissive to our older dog attacked her so aggressively and viciously. She didn’t growl or give her any warning. I am so lost and don’t know what to do. I can’t trust her and her dog aggressiveness. I’m worried it will happen again, or worse, she will start to turn human aggressive and bite one of us or someone else. I don’t know what to do to prevent this other than to get rid of her. Please help us!!
Erika Montreal
Jul 28 2020 9:43 PM

I work for a yorkshire dog breeder and today was the most traumatic experience I ever lived. I was alone at the house with the dogs outside, I suddenly hear a big fight so I check in the windows and see them all ganged up so I run inside to get a broom and I run back outside and yell at them, they all moved and I saw Cinnamon, laying there eyes wide open, all covered in dirt with her stomach open, she was pregnant. I had the worst panic attack ever, I fainted and vomited, I’ve been crying for 10 hours now, I don’t know how to recover for this and i’m getting scared, is this PTSD? Please help me i’m scared

I work for a yorkshire dog breeder and today was the most traumatic experience I ever lived. I was alone at the house with the dogs outside, I suddenly hear a big fight so I check in the windows and see them all ganged up so I run inside to get a broom and I run back outside and yell at them, they all moved and I saw Cinnamon, laying there eyes wide open, all covered in dirt with her stomach open, she was pregnant. I had the worst panic attack ever, I fainted and vomited, I’ve been crying for 10 hours now, I don’t know how to recover for this and i’m getting scared, is this PTSD? Please help me i’m scared
Gaby DufresneCyr
Jul 29 2020 4:02 PM

@Erika (Montreal) I'm sorry you had to witness this event. First, breathe in deep a few times when the images come to mind and release your thoughts to the universe. The first thing to remember is that dogs do what dogs do. I know it sounds harsh, but it is their nature. We cannot ask of them to be people and act as we do, that would be unfair and cruel to both them and us. A panic attack doesn't mean it will develop into PTSD. Although traumatic, your resilience will prevail and the images in your mind should dissipate. Time, in this case, is the only remedy. However, if you feel you need counselling, please find and animal trauma psychologist who can help you through this event. I wish you the best and send my condolences to you and your breeder. Gaby

@Erika (Montreal)
I'm sorry you had to witness this event.
First, breathe in deep a few times when the images come to mind and release your thoughts to the universe. The first thing to remember is that dogs do what dogs do. I know it sounds harsh, but it is their nature. We cannot ask of them to be people and act as we do, that would be unfair and cruel to both them and us.
A panic attack doesn't mean it will develop into PTSD. Although traumatic, your resilience will prevail and the images in your mind should dissipate. Time, in this case, is the only remedy. However, if you feel you need counselling, please find and animal trauma psychologist who can help you through this event.
I wish you the best and send my condolences to you and your breeder.
Gaby
Sarah Indiana
Jul 30 2020 10:40 PM

I’m sorry to read everyone’s losses and heartaches. Yesterday my daughter and I witnessed our 1 yr old pitbull kill our 7 yr old Italian greyhound. It was over in a matter of seconds, we have had the pitbull since he was 5 weeks old and the ig for 6 yrs. both had/have strong personalities. I keep playing the screen over and over and seeing the IG staring up at me as I’m trying to help. I just wasn’t strong enough and I feel like a failure. The pitbull is a good pup but now I’m scared, how to I work to correct this? Will this cross over to people? I failed our Italian Greyhound , and I want to help our pitbull not become a statistic.

I’m sorry to read everyone’s losses and heartaches.
Yesterday my daughter and I witnessed our 1 yr old pitbull kill our 7 yr old Italian greyhound. It was over in a matter of seconds, we have had the pitbull since he was 5 weeks old and the ig for 6 yrs. both had/have strong personalities. I keep playing the screen over and over and seeing the IG staring up at me as I’m trying to help. I just wasn’t strong enough and I feel like a failure. The pitbull is a good pup but now I’m scared, how to I work to correct this? Will this cross over to people? I failed our Italian Greyhound , and I want to help our pitbull not become a statistic.
Betty Alabama
Jul 31 2020 10:31 PM

Thank you for this information. We rescued a Schnauzer in January bringing her into our home with an older dog who is a small dog half her size. The past two weeks, the Schnauzer has attacked the older dog in a very vicious manner. I’m convinced she’s trying to kill her. I’m heartbroken and confused. I’ve been searching everything I can find on this topic and you’re the only information I can find on this subject. I’ve had dogs my entire life and have never witnessed these attack’s for no apparent reason. The older dogs doesn’t do anything, one time, she was sleeping and the Schnauzer jumped on her trying to kill her. This was in front of my grandkids!!

Thank you for this information. We rescued a Schnauzer in January bringing her into our home with an older dog who is a small dog half her size. The past two weeks, the Schnauzer has attacked the older dog in a very vicious manner. I’m convinced she’s trying to kill her. I’m heartbroken and confused. I’ve been searching everything I can find on this topic and you’re the only information I can find on this subject. I’ve had dogs my entire life and have never witnessed these attack’s for no apparent reason. The older dogs doesn’t do anything, one time, she was sleeping and the Schnauzer jumped on her trying to kill her. This was in front of my grandkids!!
Catherine New york
Aug 8 2020 9:56 PM

My sisters pitbull has now killed a second dog. The first dog was his son about a year ago, and they were fighting over a female in heat. This time, it was an unprovoked attack on a Yorkie. He LOVED this little girl. They slept together, hung out, played, etc. My sister is besides herself. She has other dogs in the house and doesn’t feel safe having him around them. I don’t want her to euthanize him for something I think we can fix- if not maintain. I think rehoming him to a house that has no other dogs is the best option. Any advice?

My sisters pitbull has now killed a second dog. The first dog was his son about a year ago, and they were fighting over a female in heat. This time, it was an unprovoked attack on a Yorkie. He LOVED this little girl. They slept together, hung out, played, etc. My sister is besides herself. She has other dogs in the house and doesn’t feel safe having him around them. I don’t want her to euthanize him for something I think we can fix- if not maintain. I think rehoming him to a house that has no other dogs is the best option. Any advice?
Aubrey Texas
Aug 9 2020 9:33 AM

I have a dog fighting question. I have three wonderful dogs that are all mixed breed. They get along together famously, usually. My two youngest Velcro and Ethel play well together (share toys, cuddle, etc.) and the eldest Elvira kinda just hangs out and watches every now and then she will play. When I was at my mothers back in April there was a dog fight that broke out where my youngest, oldest and my mothers dogs jumped my middle dog, Velcro. I had to break it up as I am certain they would have killed her. She suffered lacerations to her hind leg and had to spend three days at the vet. I brought my babies back home thinking that it had more to do with the number of dogs in the pen than anything else, but unfortunately last night 8/9 I had to break up an attack once again. Ethel and Elvira had jumped Velcro again. Luckily Velcro seems to have only suffered some bruising and swelling on her front leg. I am heartbroken, but blessed that she is alive and will survive. Unfortunately now I am faced with the decision of rehoming one of the two that attacked Velcro, or attempting to manage them. Th problem is I didn't see the beginning of either attack, so I don't know who started it or why. The first time I think it was excitement over a dog on the other side of the fence, but this second one...I'm not sure what triggered it. As much as I want to keep them all with me, I just don't know if that is the right choice.

I have a dog fighting question. I have three wonderful dogs that are all mixed breed. They get along together famously, usually. My two youngest Velcro and Ethel play well together (share toys, cuddle, etc.) and the eldest Elvira kinda just hangs out and watches every now and then she will play. When I was at my mothers back in April there was a dog fight that broke out where my youngest, oldest and my mothers dogs jumped my middle dog, Velcro. I had to break it up as I am certain they would have killed her. She suffered lacerations to her hind leg and had to spend three days at the vet. I brought my babies back home thinking that it had more to do with the number of dogs in the pen than anything else, but unfortunately last night 8/9 I had to break up an attack once again. Ethel and Elvira had jumped Velcro again. Luckily Velcro seems to have only suffered some bruising and swelling on her front leg. I am heartbroken, but blessed that she is alive and will survive. Unfortunately now I am faced with the decision of rehoming one of the two that attacked Velcro, or attempting to manage them. Th problem is I didn't see the beginning of either attack, so I don't know who started it or why. The first time I think it was excitement over a dog on the other side of the fence, but this second one...I'm not sure what triggered it. As much as I want to keep them all with me, I just don't know if that is the right choice.
David Pennsylvania
Aug 11 2020 6:16 PM

We are currently in on vacation and I got the call two days ago that our German shepherd attacked our puggle while being boarded together. I am in total shock. The shepherd cried when we boarded the two little dogs first, then when we can back to get her she was anxious to leave to see where her friends went. When I let them out and she comes in first, she nervously waits by the door for them to come back. Three years ago she was boarded and she cried the whole time, the woman who boards them asked us to put (chewie) our puggle in the kennel with her, and it worked. Rey, the shepherd immediately calmed down. This time the border walked in after hearing the puggle screaming and saw the shepherd had his head in her mouth. The puggle died yesterday after being rushed to the vet. Injuries to the neck, near jugular, and shoulder of puggle. I am now overridden with guilt and maybe I misinterpreted these signs that looked like “dog love” as something else. I don’t know what to do when I get back as I will have the shepherd and another dog left,... a shitzhu. I’ve had dogs die before, but not like this, this absolutely kills me. The guilt is overwhelming and I feel I abandoned him and was helpless to do anything. Not being there when he passed also makes it difficult. I still haven’t told my children who were very bonded to the puggle. Should I get rid of the shepherd (who was my dog) ?? Are the kids in any danger ?? Was it separation anxiety, lack of water (it was in the ’90s), fighting over food,... or something much, much worse. I’ll never know. If anyone reads this and has any info to share, it would be appreciated. Thanks for reading, writing this helped a little.

We are currently in on vacation and I got the call two days ago that our German shepherd attacked our puggle while being boarded together. I am in total shock. The shepherd cried when we boarded the two little dogs first, then when we can back to get her she was anxious to leave to see where her friends went. When I let them out and she comes in first, she nervously waits by the door for them to come back. Three years ago she was boarded and she cried the whole time, the woman who boards them asked us to put (chewie) our puggle in the kennel with her, and it worked. Rey, the shepherd immediately calmed down. This time the border walked in after hearing the puggle screaming and saw the shepherd had his head in her mouth. The puggle died yesterday after being rushed to the vet. Injuries to the neck, near jugular, and shoulder of puggle. I am now overridden with guilt and maybe I misinterpreted these signs that looked like “dog love” as something else. I don’t know what to do when I get back as I will have the shepherd and another dog left,... a shitzhu. I’ve had dogs die before, but not like this, this absolutely kills me. The guilt is overwhelming and I feel I abandoned him and was helpless to do anything. Not being there when he passed also makes it difficult. I still haven’t told my children who were very bonded to the puggle. Should I get rid of the shepherd (who was my dog) ?? Are the kids in any danger ?? Was it separation anxiety, lack of water (it was in the ’90s), fighting over food,... or something much, much worse. I’ll never know. If anyone reads this and has any info to share, it would be appreciated. Thanks for reading, writing this helped a little.
Lisa Wisconsin
Aug 12 2020 9:12 AM

I had a dog that killed one of our older dogs when we were gone and we thought it was the older dog who instigated it. We didn’t have the realization at that time so two weeks later he killed another one of our dogs who was also an older dog. We have Lived with him for two years after that but unfortunately he almost killed a neighbor’s dog who got into our yard and almost killed and has tried to killed out cat.Based on our vets recommendations and the rescue we rescued him from we are euthanized him last week. It makes me very sad because 95% of the time he was a very sweet and loyal dog but he would just snap and would become reactivity and it would cause him to kill. We still have three other dogs in the house, we alway had to keep them very separate from him because we never knew when he’s going to react. We’ve begun to realize this is no life for him, the other dogs or us. Plus I’d he killed another animal I would not be be able to forgive myself.

I had a dog that killed one of our older dogs when we were gone and we thought it was the older dog who instigated it. We didn’t have the realization at that time so two weeks later he killed another one of our dogs who was also an older dog. We have Lived with him for two years after that but unfortunately he almost killed a neighbor’s dog who got into our yard and almost killed and has tried to killed out cat.Based on our vets recommendations and the rescue we rescued him from we are euthanized him last week. It makes me very sad because 95% of the time he was a very sweet and loyal dog but he would just snap and would become reactivity and it would cause him to kill. We still have three other dogs in the house, we alway had to keep them very separate from him because we never knew when he’s going to react. We’ve begun to realize this is no life for him, the other dogs or us. Plus I’d he killed another animal I would not be be able to forgive myself.
Marilyn New Jersey
Aug 12 2020 1:01 PM

yesterday my akita male attacked my morkie male. I feel so responsible woulda coulda shoulda is now playing in my head. Im so torn what do I do I loved them both. I have other dogs and he never showed aggressive behavior with them. My husband was considering getting rid of him. For now he doesn't even want to see the dog, he walked this dog akita everyday. The akita looks to me like, he knows he did was wrong hes sniffing around and seems ok but sad i don't know maybe its me so im also grieving but for now Im taking him out for walks because the dog seems he wants to go but then when i bring him home he doesn't want to come in right away as if hes afraid He is such a sweet gentle dog im hurt but im going to try with him. I pray my husband can too otherwise Im hoping i find a could home for him but also afraid for him. So hurt and confused

yesterday my akita male attacked my morkie male. I feel so responsible woulda coulda shoulda is now playing in my head. Im so torn what do I do I loved them both. I have other dogs and he never showed aggressive behavior with them. My husband was considering getting rid of him. For now he doesn't even want to see the dog, he walked this dog akita everyday. The akita looks to me like, he knows he did was wrong hes sniffing around and seems ok but sad i don't know maybe its me so im also grieving but for now Im taking him out for walks because the dog seems he wants to go but then when i bring him home he doesn't want to come in right away as if hes afraid He is such a sweet gentle dog im hurt but im going to try with him. I pray my husband can too otherwise Im hoping i find a could home for him but also afraid for him. So hurt and confused
Leslie Montana
Aug 13 2020 4:56 PM

Our 10 month old golden retriever just attacked our 9 week old puppy (lab) over a small stuffed toy. He's done it before over food but never over a toy. I never thought a golden could have these tendencies. He was a rescue and we aren't totally sure if he's purebred but he looks like a golden. He most definitely has behavior issues and something is obviously not fully right with him. But he's been so sweet until recently. We have an older lab (almost 2 years old) and he's done that to her but she can fend for herself and it's only been a couple times over food. Clearly, he has food aggression but is it now progressing into other areas? I'm afraid the puppy will be traumatized and I don't want that. Please, any advice is welcome. I love him so but I don't think I can trust him and we have 3 kids (teens) and I don't want them to have to deal with this if we're not home, etc.

Our 10 month old golden retriever just attacked our 9 week old puppy (lab) over a small stuffed toy. He's done it before over food but never over a toy. I never thought a golden could have these tendencies. He was a rescue and we aren't totally sure if he's purebred but he looks like a golden. He most definitely has behavior issues and something is obviously not fully right with him. But he's been so sweet until recently. We have an older lab (almost 2 years old) and he's done that to her but she can fend for herself and it's only been a couple times over food. Clearly, he has food aggression but is it now progressing into other areas? I'm afraid the puppy will be traumatized and I don't want that. Please, any advice is welcome. I love him so but I don't think I can trust him and we have 3 kids (teens) and I don't want them to have to deal with this if we're not home, etc.
Anonymous Canada
Aug 14 2020 10:47 AM

Here is the bottom line (in my opinion) after thirty years of experience rescuing and breeding German Shepherds and leading large and small packs of dogs including mixed breed pit bulls, terriers, etc. Unless an attack provokes a defensive aggressive behavior, there is no single incidence of dog bites or attacks on animals or people. If a dog bites or nips someone, they will do it again and again, given time and opportunity. If a dog attacks another dog within the pack, it will happen again. It might take two years but it will happen again and if it’s an older and/or smaller dog, it could well be fatal. Dogs are animals, they are not perfect and neither are human beings. However, it is your job as a dog owner to protect the young, aged, infirm and vulnerable members of your family or pack. Some dogs lose all aggression towards animals simply by making them the only dog in the household. Off property they can interact well with other dogs without incident. Aggression towards people is not something to fool around with. If your dog is aggressive towards you, euthanize immediately. If aggressive towards other members of your family, children or friends, euthanize it. In all other cases, isolate that dog from coming in contact with the animals or people that it is aggressive towards at all times. There is nothing more distressing than dealing with unprovoked aggression from an animal you love. Some dogs just can’t deal with living in a pack and some are just plain aggressive or aggressively protective or fearfully aggressive and some will resort to aggression whenever you as pack leader are not present. These dogs should be locked in a crate or kennel whenever you are not present.

Here is the bottom line (in my opinion) after thirty years of experience rescuing and breeding German Shepherds and leading large and small packs of dogs including mixed breed pit bulls, terriers, etc. Unless an attack provokes a defensive aggressive behavior, there is no single incidence of dog bites or attacks on animals or people. If a dog bites or nips someone, they will do it again and again, given time and opportunity. If a dog attacks another dog within the pack, it will happen again. It might take two years but it will happen again and if it’s an older and/or smaller dog, it could well be fatal. Dogs are animals, they are not perfect and neither are human beings. However, it is your job as a dog owner to protect the young, aged, infirm and vulnerable members of your family or pack. Some dogs lose all aggression towards animals simply by making them the only dog in the household. Off property they can interact well with other dogs without incident. Aggression towards people is not something to fool around with. If your dog is aggressive towards you, euthanize immediately. If aggressive towards other members of your family, children or friends, euthanize it. In all other cases, isolate that dog from coming in contact with the animals or people that it is aggressive towards at all times. There is nothing more distressing than dealing with unprovoked aggression from an animal you love. Some dogs just can’t deal with living in a pack and some are just plain aggressive or aggressively protective or fearfully aggressive and some will resort to aggression whenever you as pack leader are not present. These dogs should be locked in a crate or kennel whenever you are not present.
Dogue Shop
Aug 14 2020 11:20 AM

[Editor's comment] - Here is the bottom line (in my opinion) after thirty years of experience rescuing and breeding German Shepherds and leading large and small packs [Dogs are not pack animals] of dogs including mixed breed pit bulls, terriers, etc. Unless an attack provokes a defensive aggressive behavior, there is no single incidence of dog bites or attacks on animals or people. If a dog bites or nips someone, they will do it again and again [Not necessarily], given time and opportunity. If a dog attacks another dog within the pack, it will happen again [Not if the conflict that triggered it was resolved]. It might take two years but it will happen again and if it’s an older and/or smaller dog, it could well be fatal. Dogs are animals, they are not perfect and neither are human beings. However, it is your job as a dog owner to protect the young, aged, infirm and vulnerable members of your family or pack [Again, dogs are not pack animals]. Some dogs lose all aggression towards animals simply by making them the only dog in the household. Off property they can interact well with other dogs without incident. Aggression towards people is not something to fool around with. If your dog is aggressive towards you, euthanize immediately [Killing a dog is rarely necessary]. If aggressive towards other members of your family, children or friends, euthanize it. In all other cases, isolate that dog from coming in contact with the animals or people that it is aggressive towards at all times. There is nothing more distressing than dealing with unprovoked aggression from an animal you love. Some dogs just can’t deal with living in a pack and some are just plain aggressive or aggressively protective or fearfully aggressive [Fear aggression is not possible. I've discussed this at length on this blog] and some will resort to aggression whenever you as pack leader are not present [Dogs are not pack animals and people are not their leaders. This belief can lead to more aggression]. These dogs should be locked in a crate or kennel whenever you are not present.

[Editor's comment] - Here is the bottom line (in my opinion) after thirty years of experience rescuing and breeding German Shepherds and leading large and small packs [Dogs are not pack animals] of dogs including mixed breed pit bulls, terriers, etc. Unless an attack provokes a defensive aggressive behavior, there is no single incidence of dog bites or attacks on animals or people. If a dog bites or nips someone, they will do it again and again [Not necessarily], given time and opportunity. If a dog attacks another dog within the pack, it will happen again [Not if the conflict that triggered it was resolved]. It might take two years but it will happen again and if it’s an older and/or smaller dog, it could well be fatal. Dogs are animals, they are not perfect and neither are human beings. However, it is your job as a dog owner to protect the young, aged, infirm and vulnerable members of your family or pack [Again, dogs are not pack animals]. Some dogs lose all aggression towards animals simply by making them the only dog in the household. Off property they can interact well with other dogs without incident. Aggression towards people is not something to fool around with. If your dog is aggressive towards you, euthanize immediately [Killing a dog is rarely necessary]. If aggressive towards other members of your family, children or friends, euthanize it. In all other cases, isolate that dog from coming in contact with the animals or people that it is aggressive towards at all times. There is nothing more distressing than dealing with unprovoked aggression from an animal you love. Some dogs just can’t deal with living in a pack and some are just plain aggressive or aggressively protective or fearfully aggressive [Fear aggression is not possible. I've discussed this at length on this blog] and some will resort to aggression whenever you as pack leader are not present [Dogs are not pack animals and people are not their leaders. This belief can lead to more aggression]. These dogs should be locked in a crate or kennel whenever you are not present.
Petra Wiederhorn Canada
Aug 15 2020 7:02 AM

If dogs are not pack animals, what do you call them when they live in large numbers? If dogs are descended from wolves, why is it called a wolf pack and not a dog pack? If a person provides all food, shelter training and discipline for a group of dogs he or she owns, why not call them a pack leader versus an owner? Is Cesar Milan not an expert in dog aggression and behavior modification? Do some dogs not attack out of fear aggression because they lack social skills or have been attacked themselves at a young age? Trying to respectfully understand your adversity to these ideas.

If dogs are not pack animals, what do you call them when they live in large numbers? If dogs are descended from wolves, why is it called a wolf pack and not a dog pack? If a person provides all food, shelter training and discipline for a group of dogs he or she owns, why not call them a pack leader versus an owner? Is Cesar Milan not an expert in dog aggression and behavior modification? Do some dogs not attack out of fear aggression because they lack social skills or have been attacked themselves at a young age? Trying to respectfully understand your adversity to these ideas.
Carrie Maine
Aug 16 2020 11:19 AM

My husband and i had a 5 year old female bezenji. We rescued 2 catahoula sisters at 6 months. They got along great. Slept together, played together etc. No apparent issues. 2.5 years later one of the sisters attacked the bezenji. The other sister joined in and they were literally tearing her apart. My husband and i witnessed the entire event. There was no warning. It was out of nowhere. We couldn't get them away from her. Seems like the attack went on forever but in reality it was probably a few minutes. My husband and i both were bit trying to intervene. We finallt seperated them. My poor bezenji was very torn up around her neck and head. The animal hospital could not save her. We had her euthanized that afternoon. The next day we put both sisters down. We NEVER saw it coming. It was horrible. Nightmare. No signs of aggression. We are devestated to say the least. I can only shudder to think if they had attacked a child! This occurred nearly 2 years ago. We have sinced rescued an older king shepherd male, and more recently, a female siberian husky pup. So far so good. But we are on alert for any signs of aggression. Once this tragedy occurred we don't trust dogs like we had in the past. I still am in shock.

My husband and i had a 5 year old female bezenji. We rescued 2 catahoula sisters at 6 months. They got along great. Slept together, played together etc. No apparent issues. 2.5 years later one of the sisters attacked the bezenji. The other sister joined in and they were literally tearing her apart. My husband and i witnessed the entire event. There was no warning. It was out of nowhere. We couldn't get them away from her. Seems like the attack went on forever but in reality it was probably a few minutes. My husband and i both were bit trying to intervene. We finallt seperated them. My poor bezenji was very torn up around her neck and head. The animal hospital could not save her. We had her euthanized that afternoon. The next day we put both sisters down. We NEVER saw it coming. It was horrible. Nightmare. No signs of aggression. We are devestated to say the least. I can only shudder to think if they had attacked a child! This occurred nearly 2 years ago. We have sinced rescued an older king shepherd male, and more recently, a female siberian husky pup. So far so good. But we are on alert for any signs of aggression. Once this tragedy occurred we don't trust dogs like we had in the past. I still am in shock.
Dogue Shop
Aug 17 2020 8:55 PM

@Petra Wiederhorn When dogs are in large groups, they are called a group of dogs. Normally large groups come together to find mates. If they hunt, it's a disorganized event and the winner normally takes all because their pray is too small. We do not call people leaders because we are not dogs. We do not speak their language, thus, people and dogs interpret communication. That said, we can learn their language, so some extent, but I have yet seen the day when a "dominant" human has raised their hackles, pushed their ears forward and have raised their tail and tip tail wagged. Cesar Milan is not an expert, especially not in dog aggression. He doesn't even know how many aggression categories exist. When he went to Germany for his tour, he had to be certified by the government as it is their law. He failed all counts: behaviour, training, and management. No, dogs do not attack out of fear. Fear and aggression are 2 very different emotions, thus 2 very different chemicals released by the brain. My ideas are not adverse, they are simply based on science. The idea of pack leader was termed and presented to people by the Monks of New Skete in the early 90s. They have since then (which is a long time ago by now) retracted and explained that their training methods were wrong, based on scientific evidence. I've worked with wolves for nearly two decades now and can guarantee you that humans will never be pack leaders.

@Petra Wiederhorn
When dogs are in large groups, they are called a group of dogs. Normally large groups come together to find mates. If they hunt, it's a disorganized event and the winner normally takes all because their pray is too small. We do not call people leaders because we are not dogs. We do not speak their language, thus, people and dogs interpret communication. That said, we can learn their language, so some extent, but I have yet seen the day when a "dominant" human has raised their hackles, pushed their ears forward and have raised their tail and tip tail wagged. Cesar Milan is not an expert, especially not in dog aggression. He doesn't even know how many aggression categories exist. When he went to Germany for his tour, he had to be certified by the government as it is their law. He failed all counts: behaviour, training, and management. No, dogs do not attack out of fear. Fear and aggression are 2 very different emotions, thus 2 very different chemicals released by the brain. My ideas are not adverse, they are simply based on science. The idea of pack leader was termed and presented to people by the Monks of New Skete in the early 90s. They have since then (which is a long time ago by now) retracted and explained that their training methods were wrong, based on scientific evidence. I've worked with wolves for nearly two decades now and can guarantee you that humans will never be pack leaders.
Jag NY
Aug 18 2020 1:04 AM

Back in February, my 2 year old staffy went after my 12 year old corgi mix. They are both females. (I have a 2 year old male dog too) My corgi did not like the other dogs and repeatedly try to go after my staffy, who just wanted to play. We knew that if my staffy ever fought back it would be bad. So we separated them. My corgi would try to instigate her through the dog gate. Well one day in the process of letting the dogs out (I didn’t put them out together), it happened in an instant. My son was there and tried to stop it but got all bitten up too. I had to take my my girl to the emergency clinic and I had to put her down. Then I had to go home where there’s another dog that loves me too. I feel like I’ll never get over this. :(

Back in February, my 2 year old staffy went after my 12 year old corgi mix. They are both females. (I have a 2 year old male dog too) My corgi did not like the other dogs and repeatedly try to go after my staffy, who just wanted to play. We knew that if my staffy ever fought back it would be bad. So we separated them. My corgi would try to instigate her through the dog gate. Well one day in the process of letting the dogs out (I didn’t put them out together), it happened in an instant. My son was there and tried to stop it but got all bitten up too. I had to take my my girl to the emergency clinic and I had to put her down. Then I had to go home where there’s another dog that loves me too. I feel like I’ll never get over this.
Marilyn New Jersey
Aug 18 2020 5:09 PM

ITS been almost a week since my Loki is gone Im moving but still so heartbroken.I miss this little guy he had so much personality. My akita OB1 killed him with his bite. All the other dogs have been doing well and the all seem to be getting along as if nothing happened except for the akita hes been sleeping alot and looks as if he is looking for Loki. Could it be possible that OB1 thru his aggression not realizing he harm him and now missing him. The akita OB1 is younger then my Loki was. And since this happened he has also been like glue to me.

ITS been almost a week since my Loki is gone Im moving but still so heartbroken.I miss this little guy he had so much personality. My akita OB1 killed him with his bite. All the other dogs have been doing well and the all seem to be getting along as if nothing happened except for the akita hes been sleeping alot and looks as if he is looking for Loki. Could it be possible that OB1 thru his aggression not realizing he harm him and now missing him. The akita OB1 is younger then my Loki was. And since this happened he has also been like glue to me.
Gillian England
Aug 28 2020 5:35 PM

Our much loved family labradors have killed another Labrador at our home - I have a mother and daughter (Not spayed) Labradors who share a home with a male Related neutered Labrador. In March the family homed an other female lab (not spayed) because our elderly neighbour sadly passed away. All animals got on very well. A slight growl over food but no other aggression ever witnessed. This attack happened whilst we were on holiday and was witnessed by other family members who were looking after them. The heartache and upset is unbearable for all. How can we forgive the bitches that have done this and why would they do this? How should we now treat them? Punish them? Can we trust them with other animals? We have since spayed the older bitch and will do with the younger one as I’m assuming we shouldn’t breed from her? They are well bred, well trained and have tons space and plenty of exercise. I can’t get my head around this and I’m terribly terribly upset.

Our much loved family labradors have killed another Labrador at our home -
I have a mother and daughter (Not spayed) Labradors who share a home with a male Related neutered Labrador. In March the family homed an other female lab (not spayed) because our elderly neighbour sadly passed away.
All animals got on very well. A slight growl over food but no other aggression ever witnessed. This attack happened whilst we were on holiday and was witnessed by other family members who were looking after them. The heartache and upset is unbearable for all. How can we forgive the bitches that have done this and why would they do this? How should we now treat them? Punish them? Can we trust them with other animals? We have since spayed the older bitch and will do with the younger one as I’m assuming we shouldn’t breed from her?
They are well bred, well trained and have tons space and plenty of exercise. I can’t get my head around this and I’m terribly terribly upset.
Catherine Woodstock
Aug 31 2020 9:53 PM

I answered an ad 2 years ago. It was regime for a dog cane corso/pit bull female, 3 years old. No real history to give and was told she took her in to prevent her being put down but she decided for whatever reason she couldn't keep her. Making ,me her 3rd owner. I let her get pregnant by accident and the dad was 100%pit bull. She was FANTASTIC with her litter of 8 puppies. Couldnt have asked for better mother. Beautiful, not kidding, gorgeous pups. I decided to keep one, a male. They got along so well, played morn to night. Golden family until suddenly at 14 weeks old out of no where she attacked him to kill. I'm losing my mind trying to understand it. Got pup to emerg vet, fixed up took him home well if she didn't immediately do it again, we were luckily sort of ready for it so acted quickly but just the same....I'm gutted, I had to surrender her. I wanted to urbanize but the vet wouldn't but she took a cat's eye out before in a snap and this is her 3rd attack that I am witness to. However I now suspect is the reason she was almost put down before. I was yelled at and almost name called by the facility that was supposed to Handel the surrender. Long story bad very bad hillside kennel in innerkipp fyi. I was so angry that my vey sent me there. I miss her so much. I hate this but I have 2 grandsons and live in a community of 100 homes closely joined all families with kids and various pets. I had no choice. What went wrong. How could this happen to her/The pup/ to us. I need to understand what went so very wrong. Sickened by it all and desperately need to know if I made the right call here

I answered an ad 2 years ago. It was regime for a dog cane corso/pit bull female, 3 years old. No real history to give and was told she took her in to prevent her being put down but she decided for whatever reason she couldn't keep her. Making ,me her 3rd owner. I let her get pregnant by accident and the dad was 100%pit bull. She was FANTASTIC with her litter of 8 puppies. Couldnt have asked for better mother. Beautiful, not kidding, gorgeous pups. I decided to keep one, a male. They got along so well, played morn to night. Golden family until suddenly at 14 weeks old out of no where she attacked him to kill. I'm losing my mind trying to understand it. Got pup to emerg vet, fixed up took him home well if she didn't immediately do it again, we were luckily sort of ready for it so acted quickly but just the same....I'm gutted, I had to surrender her. I wanted to urbanize but the vet wouldn't but she took a cat's eye out before in a snap and this is her 3rd attack that I am witness to. However I now suspect is the reason she was almost put down before. I was yelled at and almost name called by the facility that was supposed to Handel the surrender. Long story bad very bad hillside kennel in innerkipp fyi. I was so angry that my vey sent me there. I miss her so much. I hate this but I have 2 grandsons and live in a community of 100 homes closely joined all families with kids and various pets. I had no choice. What went wrong. How could this happen to her/The pup/ to us. I need to understand what went so very wrong. Sickened by it all and desperately need to know if I made the right call here
Isabel N. California
Sep 3 2020 11:06 PM

There is no way how to start this but just wanted to share. I had two dogs in my household. Chloe the chihuahua who was 9 years old and Mia a lab/pit bull mix who we rescued from a shelter around 5 years ago. Chloe was always grumpy and would want to show dominance towards Mia. Chloe was attacked twice with Mia and luckily those times I was there to save her and she would get taken to the vets and get stiched up. Last week Thursday, Chloe growled and Mia and this time she attacked her bad that she mailed my baby to death. My whole family feels to blame as we have Mia so many chances and always thought she changed. I know Chloe was no angel but she did not deserve to die this violet death. She died and took her last breath in my arms. Our hearts our so broken, our house is so quiet without her. We still have Mia but we leave her outside now as we cannot bear to see her and it reminds me of that tragic night. I miss my fiesty Chloe, the way she would protect us, how she loved playing fetch, loved her daily snacks, miss taking her to the park, miss our rides in the car. I miss her sooooo much. I’m so heartbroken writing this but I know my Chloe is in a better place and she will always be in our hearts. She is waiting for us at the Rainbow Bridge. Miss you Coco 💔😢🐶🌈

There is no way how to start this but just wanted to share. I had two dogs in my household. Chloe the chihuahua who was 9 years old and Mia a lab/pit bull mix who we rescued from a shelter around 5 years ago. Chloe was always grumpy and would want to show dominance towards Mia. Chloe was attacked twice with Mia and luckily those times I was there to save her and she would get taken to the vets and get stiched up. Last week Thursday, Chloe growled and Mia and this time she attacked her bad that she mailed my baby to death. My whole family feels to blame as we have Mia so many chances and always thought she changed. I know Chloe was no angel but she did not deserve to die this violet death. She died and took her last breath in my arms. Our hearts our so broken, our house is so quiet without her. We still have Mia but we leave her outside now as we cannot bear to see her and it reminds me of that tragic night. I miss my fiesty Chloe, the way she would protect us, how she loved playing fetch, loved her daily snacks, miss taking her to the park, miss our rides in the car. I miss her sooooo much. I’m so heartbroken writing this but I know my Chloe is in a better place and she will always be in our hearts. She is waiting for us at the Rainbow Bridge. Miss you Coco 💔😢🐶🌈
Aaron MIssissippi
Sep 6 2020 10:13 AM

I’ve been having trouble with my two dogs fighting. For 3 years I never had a problem. Then I finally got my medium younger dog (Luna) fixed. The day she got fixed my larger older dog (Cassie) attacked her. Since then (6 months ago) I have stopped 6 different dog attacks. The most recent one was yesterday. In the midst of separating them I was bit a few times on my hand. Nothing serious but a reality that the dogs could not remain together any more. My sister took Luna to live with her for the dogs protection. The attacks are hard to pin point what provokes them but it was just best to separate the situation before one of the kids was accidentally hurt. Also for anyone with attacking dogs, I stopped the attack by pulling out the hind legs of the aggressor (Cassie) which forces her to let go because she could no longer stand. I only got bit when Luna came back to continue fighting and I put my hand out to separate them further. But pulling or kicking out the hind legs can also result in a bite just a warning. But it does work good for stopping it.

I’ve been having trouble with my two dogs fighting. For 3 years I never had a problem. Then I finally got my medium younger dog (Luna) fixed. The day she got fixed my larger older dog (Cassie) attacked her. Since then (6 months ago) I have stopped 6 different dog attacks. The most recent one was yesterday. In the midst of separating them I was bit a few times on my hand. Nothing serious but a reality that the dogs could not remain together any more. My sister took Luna to live with her for the dogs protection. The attacks are hard to pin point what provokes them but it was just best to separate the situation before one of the kids was accidentally hurt. Also for anyone with attacking dogs, I stopped the attack by pulling out the hind legs of the aggressor (Cassie) which forces her to let go because she could no longer stand. I only got bit when Luna came back to continue fighting and I put my hand out to separate them further. But pulling or kicking out the hind legs can also result in a bite just a warning. But it does work good for stopping it.

Add comment

Please log in or register to include your contact info.