need help with two year old staff aggression to other dogs

Hi all need some serious help i don't know what to do. My two year old girl staff used to be fine with other dogs I could let her off and she would b fine wiv dogs not now she hit two in December and has started to go for other dogs on the lead I have tried training with clicker n distractions nothing gets her mind of other dogs when there around. But worse bit is she escaped the garden over the fence ripped her due claw she was so desperate to get to other dog and attacked it leaving the poor dog with puncher wounds and she did same today at my mums I am so scared she is going to end up killing a dog or having to have her put down I don't no what to do she is such a loving dog to people n kids she is also fine wiv my sisters dog and mother in laws dog can some one please help me I can't seam to find a trainer either

Hi there - is anything that could have changed her behavior that you can think of?

Please come and say hi

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

Only one time a while ago two little dogs were off lead and came up nipping her feet so imhad to pick her up but she was fine for ages after and her aggressiveness came to bigger dogs first but the two accidents were wig smaller dogs felling very helpless

Have you tried any distraction training with her, when your out teaching the 'watch me' command comes in very handy, and make sure you dog proof the garden. Is she in season and have you spoken to the vets about? x

Tried all distraction method she is to fixed on the dog yes I spoke to vet they said see a trainer finding it hard find one in Hertfordshire Worcestershire area that will help

We have a member here, Rach, that worked in rescue's and has worked hard with her dog Bis being DA I am sure she can offer some advise Xx

That would be great if she can how do I contact her I am new on here

I have sent her a message so hopefully when she is back online will clock it Xx

Ah thanks very much

Hello!

Definitely think you need to get a behaviourist in. This one looks great; http://www.alphadogbehaviour.co.uk/index.html

In the mean time, if you could answer a few questions that would be great; did you meet both of her parents? How are they with other dogs? When she's "going for" other dogs can you try and explain her body language/any noises that she's making? What's she being fed on? How much exercise does she get? And what sort of training do you do with her? How do you tell her off etc?

Hi yes met both dogs they are both pure staff one was pedigree with blue gene never saw them with other dogs but both were well behaved and had lots animals around such as cats. Roxys hair goes up on her bk and she growls and is fixed on the dog sometimes growls sometimes not she tries to get to them to. she is on beta dried food she gets 3walks a day any where in between 20 /30 min walks some times longer no shorter
I train her with clicker she sits and stays in garden til I say come she lies, sits, rolls over only in garden soon as dog walks by she off barking and as I said in previous had incident where she really wanted get to another dog n jumped fence n bite the dog a white Westin.
Also well walking she can be controlled to sit but she is always on edge watching dog (when its smaller dogs bigger ones she gets worse and is harder to get her to sit tried to distract she has none of it not even turning her away from the dog I use a firm tone with her roxy sit or leave it get her to sit and tap the nose and if she is stilt struggling to get to dog sit her down she is on a harness

Are you still in contact with the breeders? Might be worth giving them a call and asking about the general temperament of the dogs to give you a bit more of an idea of what you're working with. I only wish I had this information about my dog, but unfortunately she was a stray from a rather unsavoury background and I'll never know why she's such a little nutbag lol! The fact that she has actually attacked another dog now says to me that you would need to contact a behaviourist, with urgency! The one I linked really is fantastic, and if he can't help/is out of price range he'll be able to forward you onto someone who can.

Her exercise routine sounds fine, and love that you've clicker trained her. I'd get her off the beta food, it's horrible, the protein content will make her like a coiled spring too. I'd recommend burns if possible mixed with a little nature diet if she won't eat it dry (it's a bit bland, but the protein content is lower) failing that James Well Beloved is good, or even Arden Grange. It's practically impossible to comment on behaviour without seeing it, but from your description of body language it sounds similar to Bis. My dog is mostly fearful and would never approach another dog, but if they approach her she'll go in all guns blazing to get them out of her territory and has chased dogs off.

You need to be really careful in the garden though, if she gets out and bites again that could be a court case on your hands! I'd add in a halti head collar if I were you for more control, with a double ended lead attached to the halti and a flat collar. You will need to train her to wear the halti, but when I first started working with Biscuit this was a god send for me (she's been known to lunge and on a harness, with the lead half way down her back there's no way I'm holding her back!)

If you can't distract, it means you're too close to the other dog to focus. Biscuit zones out when a dog is within 6 feet of her, but (after years of work) she can *generally* sit and focus on me when they're 6 feet or further away. Only with the use of very smelly, and special treats however, if I try and get her to focus on her usual "boring" treats there's no chance. I use this recipe for training treats;
http://www.bdws.co.uk/2012/12/15/tuna-loaf-dog-treats/
But replace the tuna with mackeral as it's a stronger scent. She goes mad for it, and it's worked wonders for her training. She ONLY gets it when other dogs are about though, never any other times. I also wouldn't tap her on the nose, dogs don't tend to like being touched on the face as it is, you don't want to lose her trust by doing something horrible to her face!


Is the area that you walk her in generally quite heavily populated with other dogs?

Not heavily but jus few ppl walkin ther dog or even in ther own gardens I dont hav breeder contact details any more wish I kept them but after a year no problems I thought wouldnt need them

Ah no! Okay, well try and give the behaviourist a ring and read this in the mean time http://www.amazon.co.uk/Feisty-Fido-Help-Leash-Reactive-Dog/dp/1891767070 Great training manuel!

Thanks so much for all advice and one last question am.I looking for a halti head collar or halti harness

One of these
http://www.petsathome.com/shop/en/pets/halti-dog-head-collar

And these
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Halti-HTL-Training-Lead/dp/B000NDFU68

Make sure she has a strong, well fitted buckle collar on to attach the halti to aswell so that she can't get out of it!

The guidelines will be useful to train her to wear it
http://www.morrco.com/trdogtowemu.html

Most dogs don't like them at first, and they must be trained. The clicker will be useful for this If she gets on well with it and you like using it, you could progress to using a dog-o-matic which are more expensive, but generally seem a bit more comfy.

Good luck, keep us updated, and any questions at all just ask x