nearly a year and getting worse

Hello all

Well this past year has been a struggle.. theres been alot of arguements.

Mouthing is still extremely bad (she nipped my friends arm and bruised it) and weve tried soooo much. Walks are a nightmare too as she growls and hangs off the lead.
I dont know if shes maybe got some psychological issue?

She hardly eats unless its treats but vet said shes totally fine and eating enough.

Im worried too as tonight we start a class and iv heard mixed reviews of the man who runs it :-(

what are you feeding him?
How many time are you walking him per day?
Does he has a fix walking routine?
Are you being consistent with him in his training are you telling him off one min and letting him get away with it the next?

All good questions from Steve that will help us to help you a little more with your staffy

Yes if you can give us some of that information.

Also what are these treats he's having a lot of?

Maybe try going back to basics with everything training wise.

Would you be able to have a chat with the man running the class before hand to go through some of the issues ?

Thanks for replies
She is currently on nature diet/ natures harvest wet mixed with burns. Saying that she eats very little. Treats wise its things like jwb crackerjacks, antos mini bones training treats etc.
She gets around 2 hours walks a day now as she has to be kept on lead, shes decided bikes and joggers are interesting and fun to bark at :-(
She gets a walk during the day at the country park and a night walk round the streets and parks locally but she swings off lead havin a carry on, iv always just said no and pulled the lead so its directly above her.
The mouthing is so bad she jumps back and forward bitingmy hands and arms, we tried all advice given here, training spray, the training discs ......all sorts.
She was only pup in litter so never got much bite inhibition but a year!!!!!!!
Its a stress but it seems she NEVER settles down.

I would try to add another hour in an day so hour in the morning, hour after work or whatever and hour before bed same time everyday .

when she pulling you need to stop and make her sit! Say No every time she does it be consistent with her never let her pull one min and tell her off the next you will just confuse her.

If she barking at people you need to keep her on the lead probably all the time now becasue if someone report it you can get in trouble and they may seized her...


amazon sell these for £25 i paid something like £50 for my from pet at homes

I agree with Steve, dont confuse your dog. Shouting if you do any, means you have lost your dog. Only use firm voices. Pixee use to mouth when we had her, I did have a few brusies, each time she did it, we say 'No biting' and gave her a toy to bite on instead, we held it so she could mouth it and bite it. From there it got better and better. She does not do it anymore, but it took time and patient ok. So hang on there and keep trying. More walks too is needed, and that link from Steve is good, cos you can let your dog go further and have a little run in the open, just be aware when it runs out or you will get pulled over   as we found out.

sorry to hear you are having such a hard time with her but hang in there and try the advice posted above.

Hope the class goes well for both of you

Thanks so much. She has a flexi but it seems to make her more wound up and hyper. Will she never be able to get off lead :'( i dont know whats gonna happen at classes but my mum is so unhappy with her behaviours she seems to get worse.

As people have said before you need to go back to basics and be consistent She will get there! It is hard at times and they really know how to push you. If the trainer is good, he will be able to help you somehow. If you think she may be a problem at the class, just speak to him before hand to see if he can suggest anything!

With the class, dont think that you have to soldier on with it if it's not working. Presumably this is not a one-to-one class, there are several other dogs present? My Douglas never got on with this kind of set-up at all. We tried it once, but he was very anxious/aggressive in the presence of the other dogs so I put a stop to it after only one class. The trainer even agreed with me that it was doing him no good at all. I didnt want to set him up for something where it was pretty obvious he was going to fail. We still do plenty training, but the group class doesnt work for him.

He also was a bit bitey when I first got him from the rescue, but he doesnt do it now. He's older, of course. Maybe nearly three. The strategy used was only kindness and calmness. It has built his confidence. He goes off lead because he loves to chase after his ball, but if there are other dogs present I am very careful and he's likely to go back on. Fortunately, he never strays very far from me.

If we meet other dogs in the street, we tend to cross the road.

I think it's a good idea to work on problems if there is a chance of solving them. If there's not though, we tend to take a detour round them.

What about using a training lien so she can have a run around but you can get hold of her if you need to, like this


http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DOG-HORSE-TRAINING-LEADS-5FT-10FT-15FT-20FT-25FT-30FT-40FT-50FT-65FT-80FT-100FT-/140987430180

How did the class go?

Thanks everyone....soz for not being on quicker had a difficult week with a break up in the family!
Had first training class and it was a lecture without dogs so it was interestin....first class this week so will keep posted on how it goes.

Hopefully all goes good

Keep us posted we love to hear how your getting on   

rico24 wrote:Hello all

Well this past year has been a struggle.. theres been alot of arguements.

Mouthing is still extremely bad (she nipped my friends arm and bruised it) and weve tried soooo much. Walks are a nightmare too as she growls and hangs off the lead.
I dont know if shes maybe got some psychological issue?

She hardly eats unless its treats but vet said shes totally fine and eating enough.

Im worried too as tonight we start a class and iv heard mixed reviews of the man who runs it :-(

just make it easier (not fix) on yourself and her during walks have you thought about a cage muzzle, at least that way
1 she is no threat
2 she can not control the lead
3 knowing all of this may boost your confidence, confidence if key when control out of control dogs, the sense it down the line and that along can stop certain behaviours.
Cases like yours i love using the head halti, when used correctly on and off its an amazing tool when control pulling/lunging and biting the handler or others, again a good way to boost your confidence.
As for her behaviour if you have tried all you have tried giving each task a couple of months or longer to actually work? if so i would suggest a vet visit, drawing blood, doing a few tests in her behaviour.
have you looked at her parents temperament? or last owners behaviour?
all these can factor in, in her behaviour

just make it easier (not fix) on yourself and her during walks have you thought about a cage muzzle, at least that way
1 she is no threat
2 she can not control the lead
3 knowing all of this may boost your confidence, confidence if key when control out of control dogs, the sense it down the line and that along can stop certain behaviours.
Cases like yours i love using the head halti, when used correctly on and off its an amazing tool when control pulling/lunging and biting the handler or others, again a good way to boost your confidence.
As for her behaviour if you have tried all you have tried giving each task a couple of months or longer to actually work? if so i would suggest a vet visit, drawing blood, doing a few tests in her behaviour.
have you looked at her parents temperament? or last owners behaviour?
all these can factor in, in her behaviour

Sorry but what? Blood tests for behaviour, I don't think that would help at all. It has been said that she was the only pup in the litter the behaviour is bad but not unexpected if she hasn't learnt bite inhibition etc... I would not take your dog and stress her out with all sorts of tests unless she is sick. I'd suggest sticking with a trainer and making sure you are consistent.

Also, I wouldn't recommend a muzzle for bad behaviour the only reason I believe you should put a muzzle on a dog is if its human aggressive or dog aggressive. From what has been said above she's just a very excitable puppy (yes a year old is still a puppy) who didn't get the benefits of litter mates to teach her manners.

I'm sure you'll get there with her its going to take a lot of patience and consistency in her training

I wouldn't suggest a muzzle however the halti can be a useful tool to aid lead walking. However you do need to train her to wear it. Consistency is the key, it looks like you need to go back to basics. There are some handy training videos on the Dogs Trust website   

Also not an advocator of a muzzle necessarily although I am trying to desensitize Ledger with one as he needs his claws trimmed and it took 4 people in the vet to pin him down and keep the muzzle on him last time and figure if he is happy to wear one that's half the battle and one less thing for him to be stressed at but it isn't a quick fix they need lots of training to wear one so it's not seen as a punishment

Simple firm commands when it comes to the mouthing, when I rescued Ledger the obedience trainer suggested reacting with a single yelp as a puppy would if it was nipped by its mom/brothers/sisters and followed immediately with a firm low toned 'no' it works for us immediately stops him in his tracks

Debs01 wrote:

just make it easier (not fix) on yourself and her during walks have you thought about a cage muzzle, at least that way
1 she is no threat
2 she can not control the lead
3 knowing all of this may boost your confidence, confidence if key when control out of control dogs, the sense it down the line and that along can stop certain behaviours.
Cases like yours i love using the head halti, when used correctly on and off its an amazing tool when control pulling/lunging and biting the handler or others, again a good way to boost your confidence.
As for her behaviour if you have tried all you have tried giving each task a couple of months or longer to actually work? if so i would suggest a vet visit, drawing blood, doing a few tests in her behaviour.
have you looked at her parents temperament? or last owners behaviour?
all these can factor in, in her behaviour

Sorry but what?  Blood tests for behaviour, I don't think that would help at all.  It has been said that she was the only pup in the litter the behaviour is bad but not unexpected if she hasn't learnt bite inhibition etc...  I would not take your dog and stress her out with all sorts of tests unless she is sick.  I'd suggest sticking with a trainer and making sure you are consistent.

not just blood tests but hormonal/brain chemical. allot have been asociated with these bahviours, al this nipping and lunging can be from anything from tooth ach to ear ach.
so i would suggest a vet visit. O.P said she has already done all that so i assumed she had stuck with it for over a year?


Also, I wouldn't recommend a muzzle for bad behaviour the only reason I believe you should put a muzzle on a dog is if its human aggressive or dog aggressive.  From what has been said above she's just a very excitable puppy (yes a year old is still a puppy) who didn't get the benefits of litter mates to teach her manners.  

I'm sure you'll get there with her its going to take a lot of patience and consistency in her training

Also as for muzzling i don't seem them as tool to just stop aggression and neither should anyone else really soon as someone see's a muzzled dogs they think bad..they shouldn't, I have used muzzles for things like curing rock/sticks/fecel obsessions. its just changes a habit and makes the dog rethink its next step rather than go with their normal behaviour, and it gives the owners confidence as well knowing they have control the dog picks up on this and tend to want to stay close to a confidence person where they wouldn't want to stay near an axious or nervous one like pulling away, chewing their leads.

O.P. i didn't see an age and if in fact your dogs is this young i wouldn't suggest vet testing but more dog socialising (with calm older dogs) and stick with a long term trainer.
as for jumping up and mouth, in doors distraction works best, teaching her, her toys are for chewing and not you, have you tried yelping? time outs?
teaching her a very strong leave command for outside during walks, teaching her have her mouth full with a toy/stick so she can not nip you.

sorry to hear your problems i have a staffy and a staffy x americans bulldog called chester and he to is a nightmare but is definietly calming down the older he gets hell be 3 in oct. i never let him off the lead but he has an extendable one so he can explore (he is not dog friendly and his recall isnt great) so having control always is a must! i adopted chester when he was an 8 week old pup from staffy rescue and he was really a little savage mouthing was constant with him and hurts we started yelping when he did it then turning away from him ignoring his bad behaviour and praising his good! it took persistance but did work. classes are a really good idea as u should get lots of advice on not only your dogs behaviour but also how u behave round your dog (they pick up on your feeling and will react to them) if u not sure about trainer look for a new one! chester used to bark at everthing he still trys to chase cars etc! sounds like your dog is a work in progress just like chester. persistance and routine are amust dog training helped for a while even just for some advice good luck dont give up it gets better   

Thanks so much everyone for all your help and advice. The class went ok on thursday and im happy as there is 7 dogs and most of them are bigger than her as the last class was full of tiny dogs and i felt they all looked at the'scary staffy' like she shouldnt be there.
We done simple walkin round class and sit but as usual she wanted to play lol.

I spoke to him about the play biting and he said we really need to stop tht as it WILL in his words lead to a bite. Its just playfull i can see that but it is bad its like 'oh im excited....time to mouth' my friend walked in and she was jumping up and the trainer said to ignore it but she nipped my friends stomache! Were going to keep going to training and trying our best she is still young shes a year in a week.
Would getting her speyed calm any of the behaviour? I feel rubbish she cant get of lead as she loves a run. Iv tried jogging with her but she wanted to get my feet. weve kept everything up for sooo long to stop it but shes so boisterous and thats with long walks etc.

What do you feed her ?, sometimes a dogs diet and nutritien can affect their behaviour too, a good quality food may be the answer ? Our list of recommended foods below:

http://staffy-bull-terrier.com/dry_food

My boy Harry did everything you describe when he was that age and I
was tearing my hair out.  Please believe me when I tell you it will get
better but it takes a lot of time, patience and kind training.
Mouthing does not lead to a bite, (although it can hurt) but you need to
teach her not to do it and the best way to start is to give her something
to hold in her mouth when she greets anyone and to not allow her to interact with the person until she is calm.  Not easy, I know.
As for getting spayed I don't believe that will make any difference in her
present behaviour, she is young and boisterous and has learned what she
is doing is getting a reaction. They like any reaction, even being told off,
and this is why you were told to try and ignore it.  Eventually she will
realise that sitting calmly will get your reaction.
Also, she will be unable to learn whilst she is hyper so you need to find
a way of keeping her below threshold before training her.
Making her use her brain games are one the best ways of tiring her, beats
jogging or physical exercise which can 'rev them up'.
Don't give up, I know its frustrating and at times very embarrassing, but
like children, they do grow up  

Thanks lizzie tht was a really nice post. Its gd to know its not just mine!

Shes fed natures menu and nature harvest wet with some hills kibble now as she wastes everything else and refuses to eat tried loads of diets.

Iv noticed too tht shes acting wary of some things and the hckles go up...today we walked past lots of buggies and nothing but then 1 seemed to really spook her?!?! Sane last week with a woman in a padded jacket facing away?!?!? Any ideas.....vetsaid they can go through a fear stage

I cant get Pixee to walk pass road signs on footpaths, they totally spook her out, we have to cross over to the other side, and often where I live, there is only one footpath, so we end up in the middle of the road.

That buggie, was it a different colour, did it make a different noise? As to padded jackets, they look big to dogs, so I wonder if she felt threated by it.

chester used to bark at buggies even growl a little which is obviously embarrassing! and plastic bags even large rocks but the older he gets and the more we go out and about the better hes got if he growls at something now i take him over to it for a sniff then hes ok! any jumping up or mouthing just turn your back away from dog and ignore until they calm down really praise the good behaviour ignore the bad on the whole but your not alone in having a highly strung staffy! i also use a water spray gun which really works well, most of the time now all i have to do is point it at chester and he stops but keep trying different thing if something doesnt work theyll b someone on here that has another solution

Thanks for advice
The buggy was one of those big silver cross ones so was quite big....shes such a woos she didnt wany to walk past a man with sunglasses on today!!!

Im sure we will get there with her i really appreciate all ur advice.
Its hard to ignore the mouthing as she jumps at my arms when i turn away.

Hi just a wee update
We r really struggling with the behaviour the mouthing has gotten so out of hand she just keeps coming at me, if i ignore she keeps nipping and its so sore. We r at the end of our tether as nothings changing!!!!! This has been over a year of it and its worse. Out on a walk she want to swing frm lead, go for my shoes. Now dislikes "some" bikes and joggers!?!?!?!? Vet says theres no health issue and suggested a natural calming supplement. We tried it for a bit and no diff whatsoever. Training classes have been chaos too she wants to play and wont listen in the class.
I love her to bits but my god shes testing us. Shes so dominant and mouthy.

how about a one to one dog trainer! so no other distractions and they should come to your house i know more expensive than classes but you seem at the end of your tether! all the problems ive had with chester i research and research to look for different reasons and behaviour that may help. chester has a dominate side so we try and keep this repressed by things like hes not allowed on furniture or bed he sits and waits until i tell him he can eat, going for walks he is always last out and last in the door (what sort of lead do u use?) a halti is good as staffies have strong necks and a halti (or dogmatic) helps with control and pulling i use a dogmatic but i have it attached to chesters collar also as sometimes they can pull halti off! i continually have to re-enforce everything with chester! they pick up on your body language and feelings and i know this definetly effects how chester behaves with me so be strong and assertive! chester will be 3 in oct and he is only just starting to calm down. i hope you get this sorted soon but id defo get someone in to help (which is what i did firstly with chester before we started training classes and they were a great help on some of the things i was doing wrong aswell as chester) keep posting updates as lots of help from this forum!

Only pup's in litters can often be extremely problematic. It sounds like you're (understandably) really stressed too which she is picking up on. I agree with "willowthewisp" and think you should get some one to one. Where in the world are you?

Thanks for the advice yeah its a big stress as its hard to include her with the younger family members as she may mouth them.
Im in scotland i know a few but heard mixed reviews on all!?!?
I never realised how an only pup would be sooo different.
Its funny how shes so dominant and mouthy but has zero food aggression, i can take anything from her.

I'll have a look around for you and ask my lecturers for any recommendations. It's a major difference, especially when it comes to frustration tolerance and impulse control. If you think about it, pups in larger litters have got to learn from a very young age how hard they can bite (through playing with other litter mates), to be patient (through waiting their turn in feeding and for cleaning) and a whole host of other emotional controls. This sounds awful, but I've actually known of breeders considering putting single little puppies to sleep, or at least using props (teddies etc) to try and prevent problems such as these in the future. You're not alone in this, and your lady actually is different to other dogs! But it's not impossible, though I so recommend working with a professional with her.

I would say that her mouthing problem is simply due to this lack of learning, rather than a dominance issue. The dominance theory came from wild wolf interactions, not domestic dog interactions, but even the highest ranking wild wolves don't use "dominance" in the ways that we have been wrongly advised to!

Do you use time outs? Does she have a safe space, like a bed / cage or comfy area you can take her and safely leave her to calm down? I found with my boy ( who had many of the same problems) that the more I interacted and told him off for bad behaviour the more it happened. I had to use short time outs, putting him in a doggy proofed room and closing the door for a minute to let him know that behaviour led to him being separated from me and no attention. I sometimes had to do this ALOT but it was only for very short times and he caught on pretty quick that mouthing = no attention = no like= no mouthing!

Thanks so much all of this help and advice is greatly appreciated!
She has a crate for naps and night but we put her in the hall on her own if she gets too hyped.
Thts a shame tht some r put to sleep.
As much as shes very naughty i totally love her and shes so gd with other dogs and she is affectionate she sits onthe couch beside us and chills out.

If you're in Scotland, this guy is qualified, is very thorough and knows his stuff:
http://petbehavioursorted.com/
Mat Ward.

A lot of the things you're describing, my dog did when he first came from the rescue: mouthing too hard, biting his lead, nipping people's ankles, even drawing blood. The only solution in his case was absolute calmness, kindness and consistency. He doesnt do these things now, but the change didnt occur overnight. One year is very very young, she needs time to mature. Everyone makes mistakes when they're young, especially dogs.

Thanks will defo check him out.
Yeah a years nothing really, its all playful i honestly dont think its aggressive.

yes this sounds so much like chester in certain behaviour he was taken away from his mum to early and that is where they learn alot of "how to behave" with mum and siblings! chester was like a little savage when we first adopted him and he can still get carried away if im not on top of things and hes 2 and a half-ish! i agree be persistant it can be very tiring and sometimes u feel like its not working but 1 year old is still a baby! if chester starts to get carried away i use a quiet voice slow hand gesters and tell him "calm,calm" and he settles down continuous consistance and routine and it just takes time keep at it! even now every walk i have to tell chester "heel" for the first 15 mins or hes off pulling where as willow i say once to and shes good as gold! ask around for a good trainer (friends of friends with dogs) where did u adopt him from go to them and ask for a good trainer recommendation!

I got her at 7 weeks old so its been over a year of trying.
She just gets nippy wen hyper and my big sis was visiting and got it. She gets wild.

have you added another hour walk to routine? when you walk and she been playing up have you dont what i have said?

saying this it wont be an quick fix becasue you have allow it to go on for to long