Hi, All!

I house and dog sit on a regular basis at a home not far from where I live. There are three dogs - a Husky, Yellow Lab and an English Setter. Sometimes I give piano lessons at the same home.

Adult student came over for a lesson this afternoon. Yellow Lab attacked the Husky and drew blood! I was kicking the Lab to make him let go. My student was also beating him with his belt! Jake, the Lab, was obviously out to kill Princess the Husky! The scene was not good!

Eventually got Jake off Princess. I called the owners who are temporarilly in Florida. Arranged to take Princess to the vet.

Spent the afternoon at the vet hospital.

Question - Jake the Lab, has killed previously, a couple of years ago. Bit the head of a Lab puppy, who was to be a gift, and killed him. My thought at the time was that he was just being a dog. After today's incident, I'm not so sure anymore.

He was clearly trying to kill Princess today. It was scary!

Put him down, ship him out?

Opinions would be welcome, please!

Thanks!

I don't know. It's a tough call. Has he bitten a person? Maybe you should just keep him away from other dogs for now.

There are ways to train dogs to be social, and better "pack members". Will the family be willing to seek such training?

I will say that this is out of character for a Lab. From my experience.

Until the dogs owners get back, I would just keep them separated. Has the lab showed aggression towards humans?

Sad story Clough.
If I owned the dog I would probably go to bigger lengths than most people and just block off part of my house and yard and always keep him separated from the others.
At the moment I have 1 dog who cannot be allowed to run with my other 2 so I rotate them every few hours so they all get time in with us.

The next option would be to rehome the dog.
I know a lot of people either would not or could not rotate dogs all day so it's the most practical option.
The potential new owners would have to be fully informed about the dogs past, and his behavior.
He would have to go to a home with no other dogs, and possibly be muzzled when walked.

My last option would be euthanasia.
I would only ever do this as a last resort... if I had been ordered to by the police.
It's not the dogs fault he is aggressive towards other dogs... it's either lack of training/socialization or in his breeding.
It would take a short novel to write about dog genetics but basically bad breeders = bad dogs.

Okay! Tough call, I know! I've balled him out and he's been sulkng all evening. He knows that he's done something wrong.

Does he really understand what I'm saying to him?

It's a tough call, I know...

Just looking for some advice!

Thanks!

I'm so sorry that that happened to you:(
From your other posts, it's sounds as though these dogs have been together for a while, they should be getting along, but maybe that's a different house.

Not to make light of the situation, but I have heard and I could be wrong:rolleyes: that if you stick your finger or something up their rear end, bum, butt, bootie... they stop and drop what ever they are doing.:) I'm thinking this is a last ditch situation.:D

They do know when they are in trouble but unfortunately with a lot of dogs all that is forgotten in a few days and they are back to their old tricks.

My male Brody knows peeing in the house is naughty. When he is caught doing it he cowers in the corner. Yet a few days later he does it again.

Dog aggression is totally different then human aggression. Two situations. I had a male shepherd- mastif mix, grew up around people well socilized with other dogs. Best friends with our other dog Max. Played and played for hours, slept on the same doggy bed, shared toys. As he got older he was increasingly becoming more and more aggressive to humans. We were out camping and Slash met up with a chuwawwa, he was so gentle, very affesctionate towards this puppy. But as soon as the owner would come by, Slash would growl, bare his teeth, lung to bite. When people would come to my house he would act the same way, barking, and lunging. We speant a samll fortune with behaviour mod, and oiedience classes. But nothing helped. He eventually did bite. We had him out down the following week.

Seccond situation, my current dog Lady, sweetest girl you could ever meet, very affectionate with kids. She loves meeting people, very mellow around company and in the home with someone. Hates other dogs. Big or small. She savagly attacked my other dog Max, drew blood, was definitely out for the kill. The only thing that probably saved them, was Lady was wearing a harness and we were able to pull her off. She also is in obiedience, and training with behaviour mod. She has a need to be an only dog. Luckily Max lives across the street at my parent house. So in my opinion, this dog probably shouldn't be put down, but hopefully re homed in a single dog dwelling. But it's a terrible situation, and I hope the owners can make the best decision.

Spoke with one of the owners today. It's been decided to give the Lab away to a relative. The two larger dogs both want to be the Alpha dog, but there's really only room for one of that type here.

I hope that my terminology is correct! I know how to feed and groom, but am no expert on canine behavior.

Thank you all for your comments!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Sariss

Until the dogs owners get back, I would just keep them separated. Has the lab showed aggression towards humans?

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No, the Lab hasn't shown aggression towards humans.

But, Jake is always going to be like a little boy. He seems to never have matured like the other two dogs.

I hate to see him leave, but I think that it's time...

It really is the best thing for him and the other dogs.

One day you or the owners might be out shopping and come home to a blood bath because the dogs have decided to fight while they were out and there was no one there to break it up.

They shouldn't feel bad.
My mum had to do the same thing about a year ago now. She had a male poodle who just fought with all her other dogs. It was either kennel him alone or rehome him with another family.
He is very happy where he is now, we see him down at the local supermarket quite a lot going for his walks, and he absolutely adores their children.

I'm sorry that the decision had to be made. But, I agree. It's for the best.

Other than the fighting stuff, he's really an adorable dog! I have a lot of fun with him!

The dogs seem to be fine, now. I still feel uneasy, though...

Thanks!

Does he like cats?

*hint hint*

:)

Oh1 I am so glad they went that route! It definitely is the best decision!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by shazamataz

Does he like cats?

*hint hint*

:)

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Do you mean, like the cats that are presently at my home? My daughter has two, major cats that are absolutely beautiful that live in her room. She's living with me temporarilly. Plus, there's my old fart cat whom I've had for about 17 years. You wouldn't know that he is that old though.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Aurora_Bell

Oh1 i am so glad they went that route! It definitly is tghe best decision!!

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Thank you for your confirmation, Aurora_Bell!

Well, only two dogs where I'm house and dog sitting now!

Jake, the yellow lab is gone!

Kind of sad about that...

Princess, the husky is already acting differently... She seems to be even more assertive.