Very upset

O.K. I am really concerned now.

Just got back from our afternoon walk and were joined by one of Bacchus' friends, a spaniel collie cross. Towards the end of our walk ( our dogs were off lead as it is a very big area, well away from roads etc.) a lady was coming in the other direction with a collie puppy on a lead. Bacchus as usual ran towards the other dog and owner and the puppy rolled onto it's back. I'm ashamed to say that Bacchus dived on the puppy snarling and made it yelp. I don't think he actually bit the puppy, more that he frightened it, but I had to drag him off to the cries of the lady owner to " take your dog away please ". I apologised profusely and tried to explain that Bacchus is also a puppy but I'm afraid it fell on deaf ears as the lady was heading off in the other direction, with her puppy in her arms, and understandably upset.

I am still annoyed and embarrassed that I allowed this to happen.

What is the way forward?
Do I keep him on the lead, even in off-lead areas, if I see another dog approaching? I don't want to stop him interacting with other dogs but equally I can't allow this sort of behaviour to continue.

He is normally very friendly with other dogs, if a little boisterous, although thinking back he acted this way about a month back when we encountered a young springer which seemed submissive, rolling on it's back etc.

I am so ashamed at this incident as I know I would have been upset had the boot been on the other foot.

At 5 months old, why has he acted in this way

I know I was in the wrong so please no " holier than thou " comments. But constructive criticism and advice will be welcome.

would keep him leashed till he learns recall. Thats why we keep Miley on leash now she used to do the same. If your dogs off lead and bites someone or another dog you can bet a visit from the law will be coming. Also if he does bite he may even be desroyed. He is still a pup and will behave like one.

Go back to basics for a while, keep on a long training lead so you can stay in control and try introductions to other dogs while he is sitting down and calm. Try the Watch Me command if needed also.

It is quite a shock when this happens Rocky and me have been on the end of this behaviour, Rocky is now nervous of dogs being in his face but we are getting his confidence back a bit now. I'm sure the lady will be OK once she has had time to calm down.

All I can suggest is to practice recall, I doubt he was showing aggression at all its just they way they play, but yes can look and sound bad Xx

Don't fret too much, he's 5 months, approaching the teenage stage of rebellion !

You should always be sure ur dog will return to u, don't allow him to randomly run upto a strange dog.

Keep him on lead - go bk to basics with recall training and maby invest in a longline in the meantime. The collie pup showed submission by rolling onto it's bk.... Staffys are known to play hard ! My 2 drag each other around by the neck, legs and ears ! Not many dogs would put up with that !

He's not being bad - just needs some manners !

X

Edit: body language says a lot. For eg I won't let my male off at the moment ad he's too full of himself as my girl is in season. He would just run bk home ! And snuffing like crazy ANY dog that comes near.

It's a case of knowing ur dog, which u as a responsible owner will learn in time x

you should never let you dog run up to an on lead dog regardless of how friendly yours or the other dog is.

sounds like over enthusiastic playing to me with the pup but go back to basics and work on recall and keep him on lead until then

This is why I went to training with Tommy , he did a naughty when he ran up to 2 girls and jumped and said hello with his teeth (nothing to worry about but obviously bad for a staffy ) then he ran up to a whippet pup and did exactly as you explain here , the pup yelped through fright , I had a bit of an argument then realised it was me that was at fault and did a lot of back peddling and apologising. Might I add both situations were when I was caught off guard and didn't see people coming as I normally always clip them on unless I am 100% confident they are owners and dogs we know and are ok with the play
Bacchus like Tommy is now a teenager so the best course of action is containment , clip him on and let him say hello under your control, and get a second pair of eyes

Try not to get to upset, Rolo did the same... had a real phase of it at about that age, Complete dominance over younger dogs. His favourite either really tiny pups jacks etc or Rottweilers?? I took him back to basics and had him on a training lead. That way he could run over with out me and I also kept him away from young dogs, only let him near older ones. A few months later and he was a different dog. He is now very patient around youngsters and gentle... although i do not allow him to get into any form of play with them, say hello and move on is our motto. Good luck

Yeah I know. I have been practising recall constantly and he is 100% when no distractions and getting better when there are.
Will have to invest in a training lead and have just downloaded a training lead instruction book on the kindle.
He's my first staff, do they ever become 100% reliable on recall??

reuben wrote:Yeah I know. I have been practising recall constantly and he is 100% when no distractions and getting better when there are.
Will have to invest in a training lead and have just downloaded a training lead instruction book on the kindle.
He's my first staff, do they ever become 100% reliable on recall??

Me like you say 100% no distractions We have had a couple of better incidents lately where we again have been caught out as many people let the dogs run wild and Tommy has found me more interesting than them though he has give me the runaround first

They do yes, my girl 20mths old is awesome at recall even though shes a hyper scatty cow !

My boy was good but he's a crafty little * at the moment and will run off as I get close so he's on a long line !

My 2 are fab with other dogs, even had a spaniel all over my male the other day and the owner told me to let my dog 'tell it off' but I know him inside out ! I TS her he won't ! And he didn't !
She was surprised.

Dave wrote:This is why I went to training with Tommy , he did a naughty when he ran up to 2 girls and jumped and said hello with his teeth (nothing to worry about but obviously bad for a staffy ) then he ran up to a whippet pup and did exactly as you explain here , the pup yelped through fright , I had a bit of an argument then realised it was me that was at fault and did a lot of back peddling and apologising. Might I add both situations were when I was caught off guard and didn't see people coming as I normally always clip them on unless I am 100% confident they are owners and dogs we know and are ok with the play
Bacchus like Tommy is now a teenager so the best course of action is containment , clip him on and let him say hello under your control, and get a second pair of eyes

Thanks Dave. When on a training line, how do I let him know when behaviour is unacceptable??

reuben wrote:

He's my first staff, do they ever become 100% reliable on recall??

Yes they certainly do, Moo is never on lead (unless by roads etc), just takes time

reuben wrote:

Dave wrote:This is why I went to training with Tommy , he did a naughty when he ran up to 2 girls and jumped and said hello with his teeth (nothing to worry about but obviously bad for a staffy ) then he ran up to a whippet pup and did exactly as you explain here , the pup yelped through fright , I had a bit of an argument then realised it was me that was at fault and did a lot of back peddling and apologising. Might I add both situations were when I was caught off guard and didn't see people coming as I normally always clip them on unless I am 100% confident they are owners and dogs we know and are ok with the play
Bacchus like Tommy is now a teenager so the best course of action is containment , clip him on and let him say hello under your control, and get a second pair of eyes

Thanks Dave. When on a training line, how do I let him know when behaviour is unacceptable??

P.S.
Did you go to mixed classes or classes aimed mainly at staffs?? I already attend staff classes.

reuben wrote:

Dave wrote:This is why I went to training with Tommy , he did a naughty when he ran up to 2 girls and jumped and said hello with his teeth (nothing to worry about but obviously bad for a staffy ) then he ran up to a whippet pup and did exactly as you explain here , the pup yelped through fright , I had a bit of an argument then realised it was me that was at fault and did a lot of back peddling and apologising. Might I add both situations were when I was caught off guard and didn't see people coming as I normally always clip them on unless I am 100% confident they are owners and dogs we know and are ok with the play
Bacchus like Tommy is now a teenager so the best course of action is containment , clip him on and let him say hello under your control, and get a second pair of eyes

Thanks Dave. When on a training line, how do I let him know when behaviour is unacceptable??

You shouldn't let him get close enough for that . These days the only time Tommy gets close is if another owner doesn't have their dog under control and he is clipped on , to be perfectly honest if he does growl then I just shout them to get their dog out of my face. Let them meet each othe ronly with the other handlers acceptance and from a distance , just because you have the long line doesn't mean you have control. Main reason for the long line is to help you in recall nothing else. I don't use the long line all the time as it's incredibly difficult with 2 dogs running around but if me and the daughter are out I use it more. Mostly means Tommy has more leaway when there are 2 of us.
The other side of it as well is the fact that if you had a JRT or a Lab and they behaved exactly the same way it wouldn't be looked on half as bad and it's fine making the stand for staffies but when we are in the wrong its tenfold and whether we can keep cool or not these situations only make matters worse so we just have to grin and bear it

reuben wrote:
P.S.
Did you go to mixed classes or classes aimed mainly at staffs?? I already attend staff classes.

I go to mixed classes , sorry just seen after I posted. There are certain traits to staffs like rough play , stubborness , great affection with people etc (and soppier than a wet tissue ) but TBH in my mind these problems that we are experiencing are just common manners issues which are compounded in other peoples eyes due to breed ignorance / perception

Yep manners is the key word.
Staffys like to do everything at 100mph ! They are extremely affectionate, playful, fearless.

Recognising Bacchus's body language will give u a heads up.

I've learnt a lot from my first staffy so I knew what to expect with my 2nd.

Control is key, long lines are great, controlled introductions with other dogs, my male has 3 dogs he sees and plays with more that 4times a week whereas I wouldn't let my girl run batshit crazy with these dogs.
My girl is a proper alpha female so wouldn't want her to be put in the position of taking dominance over another dog. Know your dog, know the limitations

Hey reuben don't get so down about this at least your trying and im sure you will get there with Bacchus, it sounds to me nothing more than a bit of domineering puppy play , i agree with those who have said best keep him on the lead till he learns recall , going of your previous post on these forums you are a caring owner dont let this one small thing get to you or stop you making Bacchus into a great Staffy .

mickgill wrote:Hey reuben don't get so down about this at least your trying and im sure you will get there with Bacchus, it sounds to me nothing more than a bit of domineering puppy play , i agree with those who have said best keep him on the lead till he learns recall , going of your previous post on these forums you are a caring owner dont let this one small thing get to you or stop you making Bacchus into a great Staffy .

Nice comment Mick and to add my 2 penneth I got down over it as I was determined to be the lad in the area with the 2 best staffies in the world that would change the reputation of the breed but the little Tomminator got in the way of that dream , they are just dogs being dogs and it's the name that does them no favours . I hope we can sit here in 10 years time and be chatting about that time a few years ago when every stupid person in the world thought our babies were evil. These days I'm proud of my kids and don't let things phase me

Rodger I do sympathise with you and understand how you are feeling.

Kuchar is still uber-exuberant around other dogs and people (as well as having wander-lust) so I keep him on an extendable lead and "reel him in" as Tara says when other dogs or people hove into view. There are only 3 dogs around here that I will let him off the lead to play with as their owners are not Staffy-nervous and understand dogs. In fact, one of these dogs is an absolute horror with any other dogs and only trusts Kuchar!

You have had some terrific advice and reassurance above, and it has helped ME a lot as well as I am reassured to learn that recall will become more reliable - in time!

I think you should put him on the lead when he sees another new dog, but then ask the owner if it's OK for Bacchus to meet them. That why it's not this thing of a random dog running up to theirs, some people (and dogs) don't like that. Then once the introduction's over, they can be off the lead together. That's just my opinion anyway.

Thanks everyone for your advice and encouragement. I was feeling very down and guilty for letting the staff side down. Also beginning to wonder if I would have the will to persevere with the Wee Man.
I'm feeling much more positive,thanks to you guys and have enrolled us in a mixed breed training class beginning on 7th Jan. Of course we will also continue with the staffy classes when they resume in Feb.
I just wish that lady could see what a little bundle of fun and love he is with us, and of course if I see her again I'll try to make amends and attempt to explain the staffy idea of play.

Reuben , I have exactly the same thoughts when I am fighting to reclaim the bedclothes and wake up with a pair of testicles in my face whilst the other one is licking me to death. Worst case scenario is me and you won't change the world