Tips/advice - staffy jaws

Hi everyone

My gorgeous boy has the occasional tendancy to take a dislike to certain dogs and I have had a couple of heart stopping incidents where he has gone for another dog and taken hold of it around the throat. I am currently having some behavorist training as I got him as a rescue at 10 months old so am not sure of his background before that, and he never showed any signs of agression until over a year old, but this is something I have not heard of as uncommon.

I posted a thread on here sometime back on that subject and received some very good advice and tips from everyone and was very grateful.

He is now muzzled whenever off the lead and other dogs are about. I hate that he has to wear it and he is def not a fan of it either, but it's for my peace of mind and for his own safety and that of other dogs, as I just don't know if and when he might take things a bit too far. I couldn't bear the thought of him hurting/maiming another dog/beloved pet, or worse... and even worse than that losing him because of that!

About a month ago I was at a good friend's for the weekend and we were in a very stressful family environment. My friend, due to personal circumstances, has had to make the heart breaking decision to rehome both her dogs and one of the dogs was collected that weekend. Her other dog (a bull mastiff) was clearly confused and upset at the sudden disappearance of his mate and coincidently told my staffy off (pinned him down) for getting a bit too playful. He had never had an issues with this dog before. Given his size and weight my poor boy cried like a baby but was unharmed in any way and it was over in seconds. That said he tends to spin/chase his tail in times of stress, or if he has been reprimanded, or when his is wet(?) - he clearly doesn't like the feeling bless him. So he ended up spinning quite uncontrollably during our visit and I had to physically stop him from doing so on a number of occasions.

Anyway, on my return home and when he was collected for his daily walk by my friend on the Monday as soon as he came into contact with her black labrador, which he has been socialised with on a daily basis and has never had an issue with since the day I got him, he went for her immediately and took hold of her round the throat. Thankfully she was unharmed and had no lasting effect and my friend fortunately managed to release him pretty quick. I was mortified and very upset! They have literally slept curled up on each other on many occasion. We are not sure why he reacted like this so suddenly but have thought it could have been due to the stressful environment he had been in that weekend which was also not in his own territory. Any ideas/tips?

My other question is that regardless of how responsible/careful you can be around other dogs, my main biggest fear and concern is that if there ever is an incident again (that is out of my control) what are the most effective ways of getting a staffy to let go once it has taken hold, especially if you are a loan female! I know there is no such thing as lock jaw, but their jaws, and particularly my boy's, are so strong it is sometimes impossible to get them off. One dog he was seconds away from suffocating but fortunately 2 adults managed to get him off just in the nick of time.

He is generally ok with other dogs he knows well, but play can sometimes go a bit too far and there is always going to be that unpredicatability, which I am aware of and will always be vigilant about. He is still quite young (20 months).

Any feedback, tips or advice would be much appreciated!

Thank you

Lisa

Very interesting question and I look forward reading all of the responses espically from some of the members with years of experience raising multiple dogs.
My first instinct is to say that Dizzy being pinned down was very stressfull. He may be attempting to restore self esteem or his feeling of a pack heirarcy in asserting dominance over a dog her previously did not show aggression towards. The best method I know to mitigate this problem is to act like the dogs are meeting for the first time and do not have a long standing relationship. By this I mean that when Suki meets a new dog I don't just assume they will get along after a hello sniff. I will ask the handler if the dogs can walk together first. After a few positive interactions the dogs seem to bond and I will let them interact in play activity while still on leash.
The next step is short periods of off leash play. Small toys can cause problems because of accidental nipping incidents so a rope or other larger toy is preferable. Make sure that if one of the dogs is tired due to differnet energy levels the more energetic dog does not attempt to iniate unwelcome play activity as that can lead to an aggressive response.

Sorry for the long response and I'm afraid I might ramble on a bit. This was a huge concern for me with a power breed because while I am at work my wife handles Suki the majority of the time because I work alot.

You should also take care to ensure the play area is large enough to make sure one of the dogs doesn't become trapped in a corner or next to an object as this can also lead to an aggressive response. Let the dogs play for 5 minutes the first time and then make them sit until they are calm before interacting again. Increase the periods of interaction incrementaly as long as both handlers are comffortable and seperate the dogs immediately if the are any signs of over aggression (ie hackles being raised, dominant body posture, aggressive growling or barking, or excessive teeth bearing).

As for seperating the dogs make a point to remain close to suki at all times if she is playing off leash. I also make sure her collar remains on so I have something to grab onto. If the dogs are well socalized and both handlers are attentive they can be seperated quickly before things get out of hand. In the event things do get out of hand a water hose straight to the face will seperate things quickly enough. While this isn't always practical it works better than any other technique I know of.

As far as biting the neck goes this can sometimes be mistaken for aggression when dogs are just engaging in normal play activity. Not saying that is the case in your example but if in doubt being over cautious and seperating the dogs never hurt anyone and maintains peace of mind.

Thanks for your replies 'jstaff' it is much appreciated. I totally agree with what you said about Dizzy having has his nose put out of joint as such when he was pinned down by the mastiff and like you say, may have been reasserting his authority again with a dog he knows well. Also with regard to what you said about energy levels, the mastiff was indeed in no mood to play that day and altho they have played together like naughty school children, this day he was pretty much saying "get out of my face".

You are right about body language and I am getting more and more aware of the signs now. Dizzy does tend to be on the defensive whenever he meets/greets certain dogs he doesn't know, whereas the other dog is usually wagging its tail saying hello, and Dizzy will have his tail bolt upright and stands very stiff.

Dizzy did go thru a stage of collar/neck grabbing in rough play but I always put a stop to it. When he went for the black lab he def meant business as the move was agressive and he didn't let go!!

I would love to be able to walk him off lead without a muzzle without being totally tensed up and checking my surroundings constantly to see if any dogs are within safe distance - which is usually as far as the eye can see! But I know this is a breed which does require you to be completely on the ball at all times. That said, I wouldn't change him for the world!

Suki is a lovely looking dog by the way. Does your wife get anxious with her around other dogs if she is off the lead?

jstaff wrote:The best method I know to mitigate this problem is to act like the dogs are meeting for the first time and do not have a long standing relationship. By this I mean that when Suki meets a new dog I don't just assume they will get along after a hello sniff. I will ask the handler if the dogs can walk together first. After a few positive interactions the dogs seem to bond and I will let them interact in play activity while still on leash.
The next step is short periods of off leash play. Small toys can cause problems because of accidental nipping incidents so a rope or other larger toy is preferable. Make sure that if one of the dogs is tired due to differnet energy levels the more energetic dog does not attempt to iniate unwelcome play activity as that can lead to an aggressive response.

I think this is excellent advice! Always take your cue from both dogs' body language before you let them off lead to play.

However, I don't want to put a spanner in the works, but please bear in mind that there are some staffs who will never get on with other dogs. I've had one, and I know other members on here have as well!

My old boy Bandit would only play with one or two dogs (sum total for his whole life) after the age of about 12 months. He was very dog aggressive & no amount of correction and/or training ever stopped that. We just had to learn to keep him on lead around other dogs & warn other owners if their dogs were coming too close & off lead.

Dempsey is a different matter. He is dog dominant (well, everything dominant really!) and as long as a dog is totally submissive he will play perfectly well. I never take chances though, and watch him constantly when he's playing. The slightest dominant behaviour & he goes back on lead & that's the end of play time!

I think the trick is to know your dog & its body language inside out. Never take chances and if he's one of those dogs that cannot abide other dogs near him, then just accept it, and keep him on lead around other dogs.

yeh reading your dogs body language is a massive one , my dog shady has some issues with other dogs namely dogs that are bigger and dark in coloour . so he goes on the lead if i see any coming . smaller dogs he's good with but i never let him go to far from me off the lead anyway ever . also the other thing im lucky with is the fact that if he has a ball thats his only focus another dog comes near big or small he will move away from them - i guess he must think they want his ball , and nobody gets his ball apart from me ( when were back home on the doorstep)

I agree with what has been said and watch his behaviour and body language very very closely, i would personally go back to basics even with dogs he may know well and previously been fine with and act as if it a first introduction.

Its typical behaviour im afraid I personally wouldnt muzzle as they cant defend themself but will still challenge other dogs. Im a woman but dont let mine off lead and expect that others dont let theres off if they dont recall.

Lis wrote:
Suki is a lovely looking dog by the way. Does your wife get anxious with her around other dogs if she is off the lead?

Not at all. They normally go to the same dog park and all of the dogs have been properly introduced. The handlers are all very experienced so everyone is comfortable. The handlers also helped with Suki's initial training so she will respond to their command as well. Basically it's like her extended family.

I would be cautious with the muzzle becuase Dizzy won't be able to defend himself and as Caryll says there will be some dogs that just won't interact well with other dogs. Since Dizzy was a rescue dog there may be other serious incidents in his past that you aren't aware of that are contributing to the problem.

Good luck with Dizzy.

Thank you very much everyone for your very helpful replies and advice. It is very much appreciated

The extra behaviour training has helped already in the fact that Dizzy now has a bit more respect for me as 'top dog' as opposed to being just 'his mate' and who thought he was the boss of my house! With a bit of deranking and daily training I have seen improvements in my relationship with him already which has been rewarding. I know Staffies can be very stubborn so perseverence is the key.

I too have thought that whatever may have happened to him before I got him may have had a detrimental effect, but unfortunately I will never know for sure.

Dizzy does love to run with a stick or a ball, so I think when in safe areas to let him off, I can keep him focussed with balls/toys to play with also.

I will definitely learn to read his body language more effectively and when and if he plays with a dog he knows well, I will be keeping a very close and watchful eye and stop play when necessary.

He doesn't show agressive signs to all dogs, there have just been these 3 incidents, but I am now even more conscious because of what has happened and of course want to prevent it from happening again.

I have been interested reading all this too as Winston pushes Jethro around..and pushes the puppies around at puppy school... he is very dominant.. so different to Jethro at that age...