1-Year Adopted - Small Dog Fixation

One year ago, we adopted a ~8-month-old pit bull mix female from our local shelter. We were told she was "seized" without any other information. She was extremely friendly and sweet and required only a short acclimation period to our home and our 1-year-old Mountain Cur. She is EXTREMELY gentle with people and has never, ever tried to harm a person. I don't think she is capable of it. She sleeps in our room every night and is very people-centric: Always interested in what we're doing, and wanting to be by our side.

Of note, however, is that we believe she was seized from a dog fighting operation (took us a few months to come to this conclusion). She has extreme fear aggression toward men, especially older ones, and most especially older men holding anything in their hands (e.g. canes, sticks, etc.) who are wearing a baseball hat. In addition, she is fixated on dogs - especially dogs that are barking/freaking out - but reserves a very special fixation for small dogs (less than 10 pounds). It's like she is in another world when she fixates; she doesn't listen, she tenses up, she salivates, the hair bristles instantly all the way down her back, and she attempts to "charge." This has really only been an issue when she is "on leash" and doesn't have freedom of mobility (see next paragraph). We have avoided a certain part of our block on walks because she freaks out when we go by a small pug that lives there. She even pulled me off my feet one day and dragged me several feet before I could regain control of her. We have tried various methods to get her over it - acclimation, repeated exposure, treats, discipline - nothing works. I am to understand from my brother, who is in law enforcement, that small "feeder" dogs are often used to train new dogs in the dog fighting world.

Despite the issues, we have been taking her to a local dog park for the last year, and we thought it was working. We were very cautious at first - keeping her on a short leash - but then over time worked her up to off-leash and now she runs freely. She plays nicely with the other dogs - even the small ones - and runs around with the Cur. She doesn't bristle up or anything. It's all just very normal, regular dog play with waggly tails.

Today at the dog park, she bit a small dog on its head and caused a puncture wound (small). It wasn't big enough for the owner to be upset about, but the cause of this was unclear. It happened in less than a second as (all) the dogs were swarming the entrance when the owner was entering with two more, including the smaller one. She did not attempt to kill it, which she could have done in a heartbeat. I was not there but my wife said that in less than a second, our dog went from curiously sniffing the smaller dog to mouth on its head and the smaller dog screaming in terror. My wife said she let go and immediately went to the "submissive" down position as soon as my wife put her hand on our dog's back.

We're scared. Does anyone have any advice on how to deal with this? I don't know if it was an accident or if it was intentional. This is the first time she has ever drawn blood but we're concerned there could be more, and we can't allow her to be around other dogs now.

Thanks in advance for any insight you can provide...

Hi there, welcome to the forum.

Well done on rescuing the poor girl, she must've had a terrible life before you got her!

When the latest incident happened, were you just coming in to the park or leaving? You say the dogs were swarming the entrance?

Hi Caryll, thank you so much for responding!

When it happened, my wife and our dogs had already been in the park for a little while, so not upon entering or leaving. The entrance to the park is double-gated, and typically when owners arrive with new dogs, many of the dogs already there "swarm" the entrance (stand near the gates) to check out the new arrivals ("swarm" in a "curious" way). There are usually anywhere from 5-15 dogs at the park on a typical day. When the small dog arrived with the owner, a small group of dogs, including both of ours, went to "welcome" the new arrivals. Upon entering, our dog was engaging the larger of the two new arrivals in play, and the little dog then approached our dog... split second later, screaming with our dog's mouth on her head.

It sounds as though the excitement got the better of her. If she'd really meant harm there would have been a lot more damage done!

Maybe in future, if you're near the entrance, try to keep her away from any mass greetings. Let newcomers settle a little before letting her greet them to reduce the excitement levels.

It doesn't sound as though she's aggressive, more doesn't understand doggie manners & gets carried away.

P.S. Come and introduce yourself and maybe post a couple of pics of your girl!

https://staffy-bull-terrier.niceboard.com/f7-new-member-introductions

Ok will do... any advice on how to get her off the small dog fixation, though? We're not convinced this issue won't happen again someday with another small dog and there is definitely an issue there, just unsure how to fix it.