please help my staff keeps attacking me

Hi everyone , don't know if i'm doing this right , new on here . I have a 6 month old male staff for the last 4 weeks he has been attacking me , by this i mean bitting me really hard . His heckles go up he bears his teeth at me he barks at me growls at me , this can happen at any time . I have tried putting him in another room thats once i can catch him , i have tried taking myself in to a different room , i've tried smacking his bottom with a rolled up newspaper and my hand ( i do not agree with smacking dogs i am just trying what people have suggested and so want this to stop) . he stops me walking where i want to go by grapping hold of my legs holding on and biting my trousers to the point of dragging him along as i'm walking . All other aspects are fine , he walks lovely on a lead doesn't pull , fine off the lead , eats well does all the tricks he learnt at training school ie sit ,down ,give my his paws ,stay ,leave , close and side but as soon as he starts attacking me he won't listen to anything i say . sorry to bore u all just so need help as i have 2 children of 7 and 8 . he does bite them but not to the extent he bites me . please suggestions anybody . ps this only happens in the home

angela you need to see a dog behaviouist my rocky used to bite me harder than anyone else but purly cus he could ( my fault ) but he always stopped ounce i told him ... just see some one please mate and find out wat his parents were like for your sake and the kids good luck mate

Hi & welcome to the forum.

The first thing I'd do is to seek the opinion of a vet. Make sure that your dog is fully fit & well. Sometimes an injury or infection can cause this sort of behaviour.

Once you have a clean bill of health, get on to a behaviourist. You need help to reverse this behaviour, and the sooner the better.

Has anything changed in the home over the last few weeks? What was he like before? Is he a dominant dog? What is he allowed to do indoors (ie furniture/bed etc)? How much & what sort exercise does he get?

As caryll says get him checked if all is ok it sounds like dominant behaviour he's being boss and your his nearest in command as he see's it, routine, discpline and proper training will have an effect

a good dog is a tired dog

He has about 2 hours of walks a day , also have a big garden . His not allowed upstairs, was letting him on furniture but have stopped it now since this has started . He has his own dog bed which he loves . I have also started feeding him after me , walking through the door first . Just all the things suggested to me to show i'm the boss .

PS the dog trainer where we used to go said that i had him neutured to early , he was done at 16 weeks because of problems . i just really hope this hasn't caused all these problems

What sort of problems did he have before he was neutered?

All men don't look lol . He kept humping his bed and twice one off his balls come out of the foreskin and i had to take him to the vet so they could get it back , so they said to get him done asap to stop this as is very destressing for the dog and can be dangerous

The vet was right, you didn't really have much choice!

Was he a nervous pup? Or was he dominant & 'pushy'?

my dogs testicles come up half way up his penis sometimes ...im like WTF then they go but deffo ur vet was right jeeeez hope he gets better

He was always an active pup used to bite but just put it down to teething , we always used to walk round with teddies and if he started just put a teddy in his mouth . have been lucky i think in the respect his never chewed furniture or wires or anything .

it was horrible charlie just sat there crying at me didn't want to move and i just ran round like headless chicken cos i didn't know what to do . so when it happened second time just thought it was best i had him neutured

I would recommened a vet and behaviourist as well if aggression towards family members was an on going issue.

ok thank you , as i said have seen one but thought i would ask on here see if anybody had any other suggestions . just so upset cos feel i have done the best i can , took him to training school bought all the books and now this has happened just want to know what i have done wrong . Thanks everyone

it must be so distressing for you I hope you get sorted i can not suggest anything else than what has been put allready sorry

It is distressing tracie , but am not giving up , never given up on anything not having a dog beat me lol . Just need it sorted for my children would never forgive myself if he really hurt one of them . What gets me is when he is good he is such a lovely affectionate dog . His like jeckyll and hyde

angela0302 wrote:PS the dog trainer where we used to go said that i had him neutured to early , he was done at 16 weeks because of problems . i just really hope this hasn't caused all these problems

I doubt that the early neutering has caused this, as you say he was a 'biter' as a pup.

He sounds quite a dominant dog, and at his age he's starting to want to be in charge. Exactly what happened when he went for you? What were you & he doing just before?

he bites me all the time , today was when i was tidying up my garden and can just be asking children what they want for dinner and he bites or my daughter will call me because he has just bit her and he then flies at me . there is no pattern to it .

As much as any one of us here would love to wave a wand & give you the 'right' way to stop this, I think you're going to need some one-to-one help from a professional. Not a 'trainer', but a behaviourist. They will be able to watch both you and the dog to see what is triggering the bahaviour & will therefore be able to give advice to combat it.

I really wish I could be more help - I feel a bit useless sitting here while you're struggling!

Ive been reading the posts so far and wow! but having said that your dog is only 6 months old and still a juvinile they play so hard maybe practicing and as he sees you as family/litter mates is he presenting as he would to another dog.
How is he with other dogs? Is he dominant? We all know the traits of our breed and sometimes they can be testing a firm aproach(not smacking) is needed with some.
Your boy needs to learn respect not just with you with the whole family with a dominant dog you have to handle them a little differently than a submissive one in the sence that cuddles are only done when the dog comes to you and does not demand them if you know what I mean never suprise them and when you feel them to be anxious ignore walk away. If I were you I would leave his collar on at all times if this happens again can you control him better with a collar on routine shouting and screaming with the kids ect can excite the dog there is a multitude of reasons that is setting him off you need to find out what and make changes.

so sorry to hear this and hope you get it sorted soon, just a thought maybe his food is making him hyper just like it does us, what are you feeding him

I feel bad not being able to give definitive advice. Suki was a handfull when she was that age and would come after me as well but no body else. I blame it on the fact that I played rough with her alot. I eventually tried yelping really loud and she seemed to go "oh wow I hurt him I'm so sorry daddy". Not sure if that helps or if it really worked with her but she doesn't do it anymore.

angela0302 wrote:He was always an active pup used to bite but just put it down to teething , we always used to walk round with teddies and if he started just put a teddy in his mouth . have been lucky i think in the respect his never chewed furniture or wires or anything .

This seems to be where the problem might have started.A puppy needs to learn bite inhibition meaning not to bite so hard.This is usually the first step in training the dog to not bite at all.If he was not allowed to bite on your hands in training and given something he could bite as hard as he wanted he may have missed this important step.By 3 months old the dog should understand bite inhibition and by 6 months be mouthing only.
My pup Blue is almost 4 months old and is now working towards the mouthing stage(still a ways to go).I used the methods suggested here of showing pain when bitten to hard and ignoring him when he would continue to apply too much pressure.There were also a few timeouts mixed in there when he would get too worked up.I would suggest going back to the basics and using the techniques suggested on these forums and maybe invest in some gloves to save your hands.

hi lynne , at the moment i have been feeding him natures diet he has 500g a day which is what is suggested for his weight . i have had a nightmare with his food , he started of on dried food science plan which vet recommended then found out this was bad so moved him on to iams which he only had for about a week then wouldn't eat any more . he then had pedigree puppy dried food which he only ate for about 3 weeks then went of it . As i say he is now on natures diet has been on this for about 10 days now and loves it licks the bowl clean which is the first time i've had this since i have had him .
Pitboss when i say i gave him teddies all the time he did bite us and we all yelped as was told to do this and then turn back on him , then if he came back then gave him a teddy . if i yelp now it just makes him worse and he bites even harder .

Firstly as the others have said go the vets for a check up just to be sure nothing is wrong, but I dont think this is the case really. Secondly really in a situation like this you do need professional 1-1 help at your home, they can investigate exactly what happens and give you the right advise on fixing the problem.

i yelp now it just makes him worse and he bites even harder

Defo a dominance issue then going of this that you have said.

Dont hit your dog all you are teaching them is aggression/violence is the way to deal with things, which when you have a dominance issue, which it sounds like. It will end up messy as your teaching the dog violence is the answer and thats what it will use aswell when trying to battle you for the top rank.

Obidiance training is the first step against dominance issues really which it sounds like you have covered, but dont stop always keep teaching them new tricks and practising ones you have taught already.

As it sounds like you already have make sure he knows his place dont allow him upstairs, dont allow him on furniture, make sure you eat first make sure your first through the doors (Expect your space, they should sit and wait at a distance, only going through the door if you allow it).

This article looks like it has a few good bits of info.
http://shibashake.com/dog/the-dominant-dog-dealing-with-dominance-in-dogs

if you have done all the things you are saying, for the childrens sake i would think of adobtion.the dog cant fell the news papper or your hand that much as special in that state of mind. as you said you hit it.if a dog can knows you cannot control it or are scared you know what to do as you have children. im diffently not saying ring the pond!!!. but look up some local breeders, and do your childen, then you dog, then you,can live a in a safe and happy home. good luck

I do not hit my dog now i only done it for a few days to see if it would stop him biting me . As i said in my original posting i don't agree with hitting dogs but when ur in my position you would try anything . I repeat i do not hit , smack or wack him with a paper i just pick him up and put him out of the room when he starts .
Johneva thank you for the link

angela0302 wrote:I do not hit my dog now i only done it for a few days to see if it would stop him biting me . As i said in my original posting i don't agree with hitting dogs but when ur in my position you would try anything . I repeat i do not hit , smack or wack him with a paper i just pick him up and put him out of the room when he starts .
Johneva thank you for the link

My plesure just hope you get this sorted soon so you can all live a happy life where you feel secure and trust each other.

He is only 6 months old and starting the equivlant of the teenage years of his life, where he will try and test and play up, but you need to be confident, consistant and show him that you and the rest of the family are ranked higher than him, all he needs to do is have fun and follow what you and the rest of the family tell him to do.

I dont think this is aggressive biting is it? If it were dominancer and he was doing it this frequently then by now he would have at the least drawn blood. I think this is puppy behaviour which hasn't been nipped in the bud and has carried on. He is only a baby at 6 months old and is starting to get to the age where he will test the boundaries. You need to be firm and consitant, please dont smack him with a newspaper, at best he will think its a game, at worst he will become fearful of newspapers and fast movements and will probably start flinching.

When he does it cease all games, activities, movement of any kind. Look strait at him and give a loud and firm 'NO!' (if he has become deaf to the word 'no' use something else like 'STOP!' just be consistent). If he stops praise him, but dont let him get excited again, one pat on the head and a 'Good boy' and then carry on with what you were doing. If he ignores you and keeps nipping then say nothing else (No/Stop should be a command not a warning, so only say it once), pick him up and put him somewhere on his own (behind a stairgate or in another room) for about 2 minutes. When he has settled let him back into the room, if he repeats the biting again give a 'no' and if he continues I'm afraid its back to time out for a minute so he can settle.

Keep repeating these steps, be firm he will soon realise you wont take his rubbish!

i would take to vets and behavuer testing
hope it gets better

Where are you located? If your not too far from me I would be happy to come and give you a hand.

Everything you are describing I experienced with my boy at that age, and at times I was tearing my hair out. Its not aggression, its a strong willed young dog feeling his feet and wanting your constant attention and doing everything he can throw at you to get it. He will with consistent training as you are doing, accept things and calm down. Castration is not too blame, I had this problem and my boy wasn't done until he was 3! The only thing I found that helped was wearing him out with using his brain, playing 'find it' and that sort of thing, increasing his exercise didn't calm him at all.

Nosipho wrote:I dont think this is aggressive biting is it? If it were dominancer and he was doing it this frequently then by now he would have at the least drawn blood. I think this is puppy behaviour which hasn't been nipped in the bud and has carried on. He is only a baby at 6 months old and is starting to get to the age where he will test the boundaries. You need to be firm and consitant, please dont smack him with a newspaper, at best he will think its a game, at worst he will become fearful of newspapers and fast movements and will probably start flinching.

When he does it cease all games, activities, movement of any kind. Look strait at him and give a loud and firm 'NO!' (if he has become deaf to the word 'no' use something else like 'STOP!' just be consistent). If he stops praise him, but dont let him get excited again, one pat on the head and a 'Good boy' and then carry on with what you were doing. If he ignores you and keeps nipping then say nothing else (No/Stop should be a command not a warning, so only say it once), pick him up and put him somewhere on his own (behind a stairgate or in another room) for about 2 minutes. When he has settled let him back into the room, if he repeats the biting again give a 'no' and if he continues I'm afraid its back to time out for a minute so he can settle.

Keep repeating these steps, be firm he will soon realise you wont take his rubbish!

That's all good advice, as long as it isn't aggression. At 6 months, I doubt it's true aggression, more likely pushing to see who's 'boss'.

The above may take a while to work, but it's worth trying & persisting with.

Anyway if you are in south west or south wales I dont mind giving you a hand, though Im working this weekend. Let me know, if u are too far maybe someone else more local can come and see him and just work out if Charlie is being aggressive or naughty...

Thank you everybody that has commented , it is so nice to have support out there.
Hi Nosipho thank you so much for your offer but unfortunately i live in hertfordshire .
Feel i have had a great day today been over the woods with my friend and her 2 dogs one a lab one a ridgeback and 7 children and charlie has been fantastic . NO biting at all . Played wonderful with all dogs we met which was about 15 most he has ever met ( charlie has NEVER been any problem with other dogs but has normally been on a lead ) off the lead never snapped at any of the children or me came every single time i called straight away . My friend was so impressed . Hopefully things are getting better fingers crossed .
My friend also taught me this thing which she trained her dog's with , what u do when the dog is naughty put him on his side and place finger tips on his neck until dog calms down , no pressing hard just so he can feel them . Apparently its what the mother dog does with her teeth when her pup is naughty . Don't see any harm in it as no force or pressure is used .so going to give it a go As anyone else heard of this ???

That's ok as long as your dog doesn't mind being put on his side. The problem comes if he's all hyped up & you try & flip him over - he ain't gonna have it! If you then force him, he'll fight against it - a natural reaction.

Despite popular theories, I don't think our dogs respond well to us making out we're like its parents or siblings. We're not, and he knows it! However, he should also know that he does as he's told. That's where training, consistency & firmness come in.

Ok caryll thank you, think i just keep doing the time out . Did like the advice from nosipho about changing the NO word to STOP cos do just feel like he does not listen to me cos i'm repeating myself all the time . So glad i found this website i think it's great that people are so welling to help and advise and are so knowledgeable .

I can appreciate some breeds will accept being put on there side but not a stafford all these behaviours are sent to try us but when youve established whos who and the order youll have a great dog there

To be fair we do it with Molly sometimes very rare now but when she used to get overly excited at younger ages it was more often, its known as an Alpha roll, it needs to be done the right way and at the right time though not just as an when he/she don’t listen. Also as mentioned it works well with some dogs and not so well for others.

We did it with Molly from a very young age and she knows what it means so will submit very quickly and give her chance to calm.

But you try this trick on an adult Male staff with dominance issues and tendencies to bite without a lot of knowledge on how to do it correctly and safely and someone could very easily get hurt.

Yours is still quite yung but still maybe asking for trouble to be honest.

that sounds like what Cesar milan does on the dog whisperer, I tried it with Russell when he was being dominant and aggressive with my parents dog, and it worked temporarily but he is very persistant with harrassing bonnie haha. anything is worth a try! I know a lot of people dont like Cesar milans methods but I see no problem with this one as it is imitating the mother dog.

*edit* whoops I didnt see there were two pages, that was in reply to an old comment

Can't stand alpha rolling at all. Some bloke did it to his little dog who was yapping at Rips. Don't have any magic answers but I certainly would not alpha roll a staffy they can get so wound tight with excitement they are like a coiled spring and I could quite easily imagine them being the same when they are being agressive.

I've never experienced this kind of behaviour luckily. But wish you all the best. I haven't read the entire thread yet but plan too.

Are you taking him to dog school? And I agree about getting some one on one advice. This will give you the confidence. As well as the tools.

Glad some of the advice helped anyway! U r quite a drive from me so glad your getting things sorted. I think it will definately do your boy good to take him out frequently with other dogs, it will mean he can play and get all of his energy out. It also will be good as the other dogs wont tollerate him biting and will put him in his place.

I meant to put in my previous post one of the most valuable things I have learned about dogs, especially staffords, is that if you really wear them out and give them things to occupy their mind (kongs etc) they will chill when they are at home and sleep.

Yeah Alpha rolling is a very debatable topic, some say its fantasic some say its the worse idea in the world for humans to use this method.

Personally I am half and half, I think it can work great for some people and some dogs. I would say its something you need to start early on though and have a good understanding of how it works.

It used to only take a very very gentle bit of pressure with Molly just cup your hand slightly and shape it like a bite almost but dont literally grab them as thats not going to work and is cruel anyway, positioning and pressure of doing this has to be spot on though or it wont work.

Molly is used to it so much that normally when she is overly excited and wont listen you goto do it and she will rollover and submit straight away. The position they lie in is so important though, dont let them literally lie on their back, they should be on there side and calm like playing dead basicly. When they do this slowly remove your hand/bite and expect them to stay there till you give a realese command. If they go to get up just add your hand to their neck again.

Its a real tricky one to get right, most likely just do it wrong and make things worse to be honest, even more so if its an adult dog your doing it to thats not used to this method.

Unless you really are confident with this method and have a very good understanding of it I would highly recommend staying well clear of it personally. Infact I would never actually recommend it to anybody else as a method even though we have used it in the past and it has worked for us.

It does work as I say we have used it with Molly and still do on occasions but think there is other options that work better in 99.9% of cases.