Hello and a bit of help please

Hey everyone greetings from Ireland

Nice forum you got here and I think I found the right place to help.

We got a rescue staffy today. He is 3 and a real beauty. He has had a bit of a tuff life from what I take.

We had a great day and brought him for a massive walk something I say he has never experienced but we have returned home and his mood has changed as in he has got hyper and is barking and nipping at us. Its unnerving a bit because we have never experienced this before and because he has become over hyper we cant seem to calm him.
He is licking the patio door biting the doors and getting a bit destructive.

What is the best advice please I have raised a number of rescue dogs and different breeds but this is a bit new to us.

Thanks in advanced
John

Hi &

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It's only his first day, he sounds anxious? I know someone else who knows a bit more will be along shortly When Rascal does the excited jumping around nipping thing we say a firm "no" and turn our backs to her. She gets zero attention when she's doing this. I'm so sorry I have nothing else to offer. btw, Rascal is 13mths old, so still a puppy. Take my advice with that in mind.

Hi and welcome from us and Suki. If he is nipping turn around and ignore him. He is probally a bit excited and nervous being in a new home. You were wise to take him for a walk first.

hia from me and sasha and well done you on the rescue
its very early days for him give him time to settle prob very excited and nervous,im sure he be fine.

hello and welcome from me and billy

Hiya and welcome from me and Moo

I agree that its very early days and he needs time to settle but saying that staffs are very strong minded so discourage all bad behaviour now and he will soon learn. As a breed they are very eager to please and catch on pretty quick. Congrats on your new addition and thank you for rescuing Xx

hi and welcome from me and scarlett, when we first got ours she was nervous of her new surrounds and she was bitting our sofa about a few days in she was fine

Hiya from me and Butkus

It is still early days. I agree with the others tell him 'no' in a firm tone and ignore him when he starts. Staffies hate being ignored and so behave in order to be adored once again

My staffy is 3 and a half and even now if he's been naughty and we tell him to lay down and ignore him he hates it and sighs really loudly, makes the funny grunting noise or smacks his paw on the floor loudly (things like that) to try and get the slightest bit of attention out of you. As long as you do not break the ignoring too soon so they actually feel they have done wrong they do not repeat it (after 2 or 3 corrections).

Hope this helps

Sometimes when we have my boyfriends kids (we have them every other weekend) Butkus will get over excited and hyper.

We tell him 'calm down' and he takes himself to the 'naughty corner' and lies down with his head on the floor (looks like he's sulking). Does his own little time out thing and re-approaches us once he's calmed down.

It's quite funny, self disciplining dog

Hi & welcome.

He's anxious. He's been moved from home to rescue kennels to another home and is probably feeling quite scared. Make sure you have plenty of treats in your pocket. Whenever he does something good, give him plenty of praise & a treat. When he does something you don't want him to do say "No!" and turn away from him - totally ignore him for a couple of minutes or until he's calmed down.

If he's chewing things, tell him "No!" and call him away, making sure he sees a treat in your hand. That way, not only are you discouraging the bad behaviour but you are encouraging the good behaviour (ie a recall for a treat!).

Be consistent, firm & fair. I'm sure he'll settle in very soon.

Hi and welcome from me, Millie and Bella

Hi and welcome from Rocky and me.

He needs time to settle in to his new surroundings. Do you know how long he was at the rescue centre for? His behaviour is most likely related to his previous treatment, so please be patient with him.

Once he is in a routine for feeds and walks etc. he will settle down I'm sure.

Hey thanks everyone for the kind welcome and the help

Its my first Staffy so you can do all the reading and use all the knowledge you have gathered from other dogs and it still gives you a surprise. He is getting use to us now and his new surrounds I suppose the poor lad is just bubbling with excitement aswell. AFAIK he was in the pound for 3 weeks and thats a long time in dog time.

I do have in the back of mind how his past life has been, the previous owners told the pound he was not to be near other dogs but last night I gave a wide berth but he didnt bat an eye at any dogs we met on our walk.

My family have dogs I would like to introduce him to and my neighbour has a lovely little dog "furball" that wanders in but I cant take any risks which is a a bit of a downer because I dont want him to be isolated either.

Anyone tell some early tell tale signs of an agressive dog?

thanks again everyone!

Hello and welcome from me the wife and marley

welcome

Hello and welcome aboard

Welcome from Hiccup and I!

Definitely sounds like he was nervous and needed some time, also make sure you have a lot of appropriate things for him to chew (Staffies love chewing) so have some lasting toys, Kongs stuffed with things, pigs ears, rawhide etc. It also helps keeping them out of mischief.

Here's the link for body language: http://staffy-bull-terrier.co.uk/dogbodylanguage.html

The best is probably to do a one on one introduction somewhere safe but not your own dog's territory. Probably with a female dog with a good personality who has been well socialised, not too small. Have both dogs on a leash and see how they interact from afar and gradually approach. Just remember that any tension you have will transfer down the lead and sometimes being on lead can result in more aggression than off lead. I like to see if the dogs will approach each other calmly (no pulling/lunging etc.) and then, once they've sniffed each other and no big fireworks, let them off leash to see how they get on.

Thanks again everyone.

Brutus has really settled in with us the change in the few days is massive
He has basically accompanied me everywhere the last few days and is having great fun. He still has a few bad habits but he is starting to obey me even when he starts the licking the patio door biting the glass thingy I can now get him to stop.
He is super intelligent and always judging his surrounds looking for attention or new things to experience!

Two things tho he seems to have sussed out Viv, she has been a little bit nervous of him. Tonight I went shopping she went out to play with him but all he wanted to do was chew her runners and nip at her. If he comes inside he knows she will always rub him for as long as he wants because she is slightly afraid to stop with worry of his reaction
What is the best way for her to tackle that?

Second Im presuming he was kept outside in his last home. At night when we bring him in he wont settle and he goes mad to get to us. If I let him out he will stay at the door for a few minutes then he just goes on into his box and goes to sleep.

Whats the best way of training him to sleep in the kitchen or will I just do what makes him happy

Is Viv your oh or your daughter?

My oh

Ok. Tell Viv to keep plenty of treats in her pocket. If he starts to nip at her or chew her shoes get her to tell him "No" firmly but calmly & then stop all play immediately - turn away, cross her arms in front of her & don't even look at him. If he doesn't stop, then put him in another room for a couple of minutes to calm down. Once he's calm she can call him to her & give him a treat. Soon enough he'll be looking for the treat rather than nipping at her!

If she's a little nervous of him & he starts to get a bit out of hand, tell her to stand still, take some deep breaths, and close her eyes. Then calmly walk away. Dogs often respond well to someone who stays calm.

Hi there welcome from me and lexi.

Regarding the out side situation...what do you want? I keep my girl outside and she has always been totally fine with this. She enjoys coming inside when its really cold out for a treat but she is always just as eager to get outside again and has her own box inside a shed so shes nice and cosy. The only thing is she deffo smells worse than a house dog cause she doesn't get washed as often to keep her oils in her coat. Also being outside she has more chance to sniff about and won't eat up the house but the garden is a goner. If your fence is secure enough i don't see a problem with keeping him outside if that it what you think he is more suited to.

Hi and welcome from me and Tilly
As others have said , you have to be firm and fair from the start or he will soon have you tied up in knots. Treats are the best thing ever . If you think he was kept outside , does he seem uneasy or does he just prefer being outside. Not something I would ever do as Tilly is as much a part of the family as the wife and daughter so she gets the same comforts (and a few more )
More than anything you have to be patient , expect a few things to get a little bit wrecked when you're not looking its inevitable and all part of the settling in period

But just cause you might keep a dog outside doesn't mean its any less a member of the family or any less comfortable!

not even rising to that one

just read all this..well done on giving a rescue dog a loving home!!

Welcome and well done..rescue's are a good thing to do.....
so......the advice you have been given is spot on.
1....a firm "No"
2....back turned and ignore for a few minutes.
3...be consistent and dont weaken .
...sure you will be fine and your dog will feel more secure knowing he has boundaries.

Cheers everyone.

Brutus has bonded with me so quick, he obeys me and we enjoy each others company. He is beginning to see he wont be going anywhere else so he is starting to relax. I also insulated and made his Doghouse the most eco heat holding house out there so it will keep him nice and warm at night.

Now for the missus to do face her challenge

Butkus is a completely outdoor dog now he hasn't always been and to be honest he's a happy dog indoors but his own kennel outside has made him extremely happy. He loves the fact that the back is his space, and he even has a heater in his kennel. He loves sitting on top of his kennel and being able to be a nosey neighbour, he much prefers that to being locked in a room where boredom would set in. Like Lexi Butkus is very much a part of the family and my 'baby boy' but when he is let in he wanders back out of his own accord after a few minutes, because he prefers his own space too. He is no less loveable and has even won the heart of our next door neighbour to get treats off her and play fetch if we are not there I've even caught her talking to him...bless she lives on her own and is elderly so its company for her too.

Nice post cg

thank you

you have a gorgeous looking staffy.

Thanks and so do you

He is exhausted and has gone for his sleep so Im going finally sit down and a grab a glass

That's the way. I had a bit too much yesterday so having a quiet one tonight.
Butkus goes to bed early, because he's always outdoors he goes to bed at 8pm!!!!! I don't know why
In the morning I'm always up before him and when he wakes (usually around 9am) he hits his ball against the door to let me know he's up and I go out and feed him and play for a bit. He's crazy but I wouldn't change him for the world.

cg wrote:Butkus is a completely outdoor dog now he hasn't always been and to be honest he's a happy dog indoors but his own kennel outside has made him extremely happy. He loves the fact that the back is his space, and he even has a heater in his kennel. He loves sitting on top of his kennel and being able to be a nosey neighbour, he much prefers that to being locked in a room where boredom would set in. Like Lexi Butkus is very much a part of the family and my 'baby boy' but when he is let in he wanders back out of his own accord after a few minutes, because he prefers his own space too. He is no less loveable and has even won the heart of our next door neighbour to get treats off her and play fetch if we are not there I've even caught her talking to him...bless she lives on her own and is elderly so its company for her too.

There is absolutely no way I could keep Dempsey outside. Round here, if your dog is left unattended for 5 minutes you've lost him - he'll be taken & used as a bait dog. Even a 'secure' garden wouldn't stop them.

That was in the back of my mind when he first stayed outside I would be in pieces if that happened but thankfully where we are people are not like that (touch wood). No-one knows that he is there either because he is a quiet dog and you can't see in our garden. They would have to be strong anyway because his muscles make him weigh a tonne

Dempsey weighs just over 5 stone, but believe me if they wanted to take him they'd find a way.

dempsey is sooo cute

He's a lump of lard at the moment, but he's lost quite a bit of weight. He's almost back to his proper weight!

There are some nasty people round here - they don't fight their dogs but they know people who do & they 'collect' dogs for bait. It's a horrific thought.

Their the ones that should be locked up and banned for life from ever having dogs. It turns my stomach when I see RSPCA footage of dogs bbeing left to starve etc how people can harm dogs is beyond me.

I think it's beyond every decent minded human being. But I suppose if you're pond scum, you don't care.....

I agree with you - they should be locked up & should never be allowed near an animal again.

I'm lucky in the way that if someone wants to get to lexi they woul have to get through two automatic gates and a whole tard of security lights then her dog pen gate that squeaks lol it would be impossible for us not to hear someone come in. I'd love to have her indoors obviously but can't so she's happy enough outside and that's ok as long as she's safe and happy so am i

Hi and welcome to the forum from Tyson & me

Hello & welcome from Pene and me. Pene sleeps outside every night although she'd love to be inside. She knows around 10.30pm its time for treats and bed and off she happily goes outside to her kennel. I was beginning to think that most staffys do live / sleep inside from most of the posts I've read on here but then the majority are from UK where it gets a lot colder than down here in NZ. He sounds a lot of fun and they really are!

Pene is a beaut Thanks folks trainer is on the way Brutus is settling and the missus is feeling more relaxed around him.

Amazing the negative view people have these dogs tho, a lot of people seem to think Staffys are monsters with killer jaws

Hi and welcome from Me and King
Glad to hear he's settling in well and that the wife is growing to like him.

I cannot understand why the bad name has stuck with them, surely by now people would have put ignorance aside and realised that its bad ownership and mistreatment that make ANY dog dangerous, not just a select few breeds.

Boring story alert *
When I was younger I had heard about them being dangerous and was pretty weary of them. One day at a friends house a neighbour had left their gate open and gone in the house and a muscly, big headed sbt came charging up to me and knocked me to the ground. I was absolutely packing my pants I thought I was going to die haha. But the dog, I still remember its name was Angus , showered me with kisses and cuddles. And i've loved them ever since.

king_staff wrote:Hi and welcome from Me and King
Glad to hear he's settling in well and that the wife is growing to like him.

I cannot understand why the bad name has stuck with them, surely by now people would have put ignorance aside and realised that its bad ownership and mistreatment that make ANY dog dangerous, not just a select few breeds.

Boring story alert *
When I was younger I had heard about them being dangerous and was pretty weary of them. One day at a friends house a neighbour had left their gate open and gone in the house and a muscly, big headed sbt came charging up to me and knocked me to the ground. I was absolutely packing my pants I thought I was going to die haha. But the dog, I still remember its name was Angus , showered me with kisses and cuddles. And i've loved them ever since.

I too heard when I was younger that they were nasty dogs until I met one when I was 22 yrs old and it was the most loving dog I'd ever met. Ever since then I've had the staffy bug