We have recently rescued a male staff approximately 18 months old who has not been neutered. He is a lovely, lovely boy with humans but our concerns have been raised as he has been aggressive towards our other dog - he has gone for her more than once and it seems as if he is spoiling for a fight, not just giving her a warning. He did not get hold of her but it was not nice.

Can this behaviour change or be changed or should he really be in a home where he is the only pet? While I really would like to keep him I am not prepared to put my other dog or my cats at risk. He came from a kennels that has a few spaces for Rescue dogs who were about to be put to sleep. We were told that he was stray but fine with other dogs and cats. Unfortunately, we have not seen that side of him yet, in fact the opposite. We really would like to keep him but not to the detriment of our other animals!

Admittedly he has only been with us for a day or so and I could be over reacting but his aggressive behaviour does seem excessive; although I accept that I could be wrong and it is him putting down his boundaries but the aggression when he has behaved like this seems excessive and I am concerned about the harm he may cause to our dog or even to our cats.

Can anyone help? How can this be addressed if it can or should we just accept he is not the dog for us and hope the extra information we can now give about him will ensure he goes to a home forever that he is suited to. Thank you.

I see your concern. It could be he was not socialized with other dogs, so at l8 months. He is still finding his way, trying to find where he fits in and doesn't know how. You do have your own long term pets to be concerned about and it is my understanding that this type of dog has to be a one owner dog and not consistent with other dogs in the house.

I would, if I were you, cut my losses and the need to find a place for him in your home, but as he is quite young, he should be somewhere where he is a one man dog. Maybe you should just try and find such a person who needs and can give a dog like this the attention he deserves.

If you want to go through the expense of having him neutered and see if that will change his personality, you could do that, but what if it doesn't ?

I am sorry I can't give you positive information and say keep him and see what happens, but you and I both know what is going to happen if he tries aggression again towards your other dog. Your other pet will not be able to stand up to him I am sure. He has youth, an inherent talent for guarding and strength and a collective memory for fighting.

Good luck

Tick

Thank you for your response and I totally understand and agree with the points you make.

I know in my heart what the answer is but it does not stop me, unfortunately, trying to find alternatives to our difficulties because he is such a lovely dog, apart from his behaviour to other animals in the home.

I would hate to see him put down because he geniunely has a lovely character and would make someone such a lovely companion.

The rescue home have said they will take him back. I suppose another positive would be that they now have more information about him that could eventually lead to the forever home he really does deserve. I cannot tell how sad I am.

If, someone has had a similar experience when introducing a rescue dog to their home, that started like ours and ended positively and can offer some suggestions and hope, we would love to hear from you. However, I suspect there are not many out there.

It certainly has put me off getting another dog, I have to say.

Thank you again tickle for your response and I think your right, Charlie Boy needs a home where he will be the only pet but I have to satisfy myself that I have done everything I can, before returning him.

Thank you again for taking the time to respond.

Tina, first, I want to thank you for saving this dog and giving him a chance at having a decent life. As someone who fosters & retrains all types of dogs that have been thrown away, it does my heart good to read about someone like you. I work often with the pittie/staffie breed. I am a bit short on time tonight but I wanted to respond to you before I signed off.

It has only been a day. He is confused. Yes, it is difficult adopting an adult dog that you do not know the history of but if you are willing to give him some time to adjust and work with him, you might be able to turn around the aggression. It just takes time and patience.

Yes, he should be neutered, whether you keep him or not. It will take a few months for the testosterone in his system to level out.

A big piece of the puzzle with any new dog is introducing it properly to the other household pets. It can be very tricky and should be done on neutral territory, such as a park. If that wasn't done, then any initial problems that arise are not surprising.

The most important piece of advice I can give you at the moment is, if you don't have a crate for Charlie Boy, get one. Use it at all times when you cannot monitor him. This will give you time to get to know him without placing any of the other animals in your household at risk. The second piece of advice is to speak with the rescue, your vet, a pet supply shop,. to get the name of a trainer who specializes working with staffies/pitties, german shepherds, rotties,. any of the breeds that are deemed difficult, and get in touch with that person asap. The trainer should be able to temperament test him and determine if Charlie will eventually fit into your household if given the proper amount of time and training or if he needs to be the only dog household.

Hi Jal, thank you for your response. I have to say it has given me some hope, I was just emailing the person who arranged the rescue, not to ask to return Charlie but to update her as I promised I would, she was aware of our concerns but also how attached we are to him, he is without doubt adorable and the downfall is his behaviour to our other dog, Izzy who is 2, a neutered, Staffie X and a dog we rescued when she was 5 months old - from an animal hospital as a result of the rescue homes refusing her. She is also adorable and not as obedient as we would have liked but it is work in progress and compared to what she was like, well there is no comparison.

We thought she was ready for a cannine companion and a bit like herm coming into our lives, finding Charlie Boy seemed like fate too. (It still might be, we have not totally gave up yet, especially after your post).

We did introduce the dogs at a local park which initially we were initially overwhelmed with, the dogs response to each other was better than we could have hoped for. In hindsight and now looking back at what we might have done better, it began to go wrong after we let our dog, Izzy off her lead as per some advice we had been given regarding the dogs meeting.

With reference to the crate, we have one, an extra large one, and as Charlie Boy is smaller than the average staff he has a lot of room and we are using it. This was another thing that I was apprehensive about; the first time I had used one was for, Izzy, our other dog. While she responded really well to the crate I was not sure it was the right thing to do for Charlie Boy, given his age etc. Although when he is in it he does not seem to mind too much and it has not stopped him standing his ground or showing his teeth and growling at Izzy at various times! But not all the time.

Contacting a trainer who might be able to assist us is next thing on the list and I think my brother has the name of a good one. Having Charlie neutered will also be a priority.

Thank you again for your response and it has give me some hope. Charlie Boy really is very lovely and he has been great with us (humans) and had we not had any other pets his arrival would have been, I suspect perfect. We have not quite given up hope that it might be perfect in the future and will give him time and get as much advice and support as we can, unless there is an adverse change that prevents us from taking this course of action.

Thank you again.

Tina.

My dog is the same, he is not a staffie, but aggression is aggression. Getting him neutered helped a bit, he no longer picks fights just because. He is still protective and dominate and will attack any dog who tries
To take over the "alpha role", he is fine with people, loves little
Kids, and he gets along great with cats, ferrets, and guinea pigs. I thought my dog didn't give a sign before he attacked. It seemed as if he would just attack, but after watching him fight over and over I realized before he is going to attack he ALWAYS looks at me looks at the dog, and then runs, there is more too it than exactly that, but from
An outsiders view who doesn't know my dog would see that. I can now tell him "leave it" and he does (thanks to the great advise I got here!) there is still a slight issue with female dogs coming onto the property, but he is getting better sloooooowly. It takes time, patience, and a lot of close calls to make it better.

I wish you all the best as good luck!

I own two staffies and have fostered a few as well. What a lovely breed. While some do best in a single dog environment, others excel with company. All dogs are pack animals in nature, it just depends on how they were raised first hand. My 5 year old staffy was a rescue, and she has very bad interbreed aggression.

I work consistently with her on behavior modification and building her self esteem through obedience classes. One thing I will HIGHLY recommend is to get him neutered. This will help some, but will not be the cure all. Aggression tends to build until around age 3. He may never be able to be in a multiple dog/animal family, and that is something you may have to come to terms with, however, at 18 months you may have a higher success rate at properly socializing her with other dogs, than say my 5 year old.

I am going to paste the same information I have provided to another poster in your situation.

When you have them together again, you want both dogs to expect "good
things" to happen when they're in each other's presence. Let them sniff each other, which is
Normal canine greeting behavior. As they do, talk to them in a happy, friendly tone of voice
- never use a threatening tone of voice. Don't allow them to investigate and sniff each other
For a prolonged time, as this may escalate to an aggressive response. After a short time, get
Both dogs' attention, and give each dog a treat in return for obeying a simple command,
Such as "sit" or “stay.” Take the dogs for a walk and let them sniff and investigate each other
At intervals. Continue with the "happy talk," food rewards and simple commands.

One body posture that indicates things are going well is a “playbow.”
One dog will crouch with her front legs on the ground and her hind end in the air. This
Is an invitation to play that usually elicits friendly behavior from the other dog. Watch
Carefully for body postures that indicate an aggressive response, including hair standing up
On the other dog's back, teeth-baring, deep growls, a stiff legged gait or a prolonged stare.
If you see such postures, interrupt the interaction immediately by calmly and positively
Getting each dog interested in something else. For example, both handlers can call their
Dogs to them, have them sit or lie down and reward each with a treat. The dogs will
Become interested in the treats which will prevent the situation from escalating into
Aggression. Try letting the dogs interact again, but this time for a shorter time and/or
At a greater distance from each other.

Here is a great link to look over, any other questions feel free to ask!

http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/dogs/tips/introducing_new_dog.html

Here is the link for the other thread, if you wanted to have a look.

https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/dogs/socializing-dogs-other-dogs-495316.html

Hi, thank you for your post. The information you have included is very useful and helpful. In fact I have spent most of the day reading up about rescue dogs and their integration into homes with other dogs and I am sure that I read one of your posts on a previous thread - I remembered the "playbow" and have been telling my partner and son about it.

Well, things have not got any better but we are still managing to avoid the dogs having any physical contact. We are finding out more and more not only about Charlie but also about our first dog Izzy, who it must be said may also be contributing to the problems we are having, much more than we initially thought.

Charlie continues to be a well behaved dog, apart from when he is raring up to Izzy, although he is responding to checking from one of us when he behaves like this. We have also noticed that he also responds far quicker if the response we give him, is calm and reassuring. We suspect from his body language that although he looks as if he is behaving in a challenging and aggressive way (we think) he is actually very scared and uncertain about Izzy and what she is capable of, who by the way is much bigger than him and of course far more confident in the home. Both of their responses and behaviour towards each other appears too much worse when others are around: such as: my son. When it is just me and them and Charlie is in his crate and Izzy on her lead they both calm quicker; not sure if this is relevant or not. Basic stuff really which seems to be constantly changing.

We have spent most of the afternoon looking for a dog behaviourist and hopefully we have found one. We have spoke to her on the phone and it sounds as if she knows her stuff and from what she asked and said it would seem Izzy's role in this is about to be uncovered. She says that she will observe us with the dogs over a period of a few hours and then tell us whether she thinks Charlie and Izzy will warm to each other and in time become good pals and/or companions. She says that if nothing else her involvement could, if we follow her lead, improve Izzy's behaviour, which we did not think was a real problem until we spoke to her. Anyhow, fingers crossed, the money we are spending will be well spent and prevent further upset and upheaval in the future; although we accept we still have a long way to go and her input will not be a quick fix. She will be visiting us, all adults in the home and dogs on Wednesday evening.

Thanks again everyone for your responses, help and advice, so very gratefully received. Any further responses, comments and suggestions still welcome and will continue to be eagerly received.

Please keep us posted on Charlie and Izzy's journey, I hope that all goes well. Remember dog aggression may never be cured, but you may be able to learn their triggers and be able to live in harmony. I have put a lot of faith in the behaviorists and trainers that I have been seeing, and have been making great strides. It's a long journey, but so worth it in the end if you are able to live peacefully in one home. Here's hoping for the best!

We LOVE pictures... just sayin'... :)

I echo AB's sentiments. Keep us posted. I think you are definitely on the right track with this behaviorist. I was wondering how much the original 4 legged residents were contributing to the issues you were encountering. Usually the problems do stem with the ones who have been there the longest but we don't notice it because we are focusing our attention on trying to acclimate the new addition. Keep your chin up along with your determination. ;)

Update:

Charlie is booked into the vets on Thursday for an initial check up and to be neutered. We have taken some advice both from this forum and from the dog behaviourist (at the time we made the appointment for her to come and see us) and began taking both dogs out at the same time on leads and meeting up during our walks; we have now progressed to meeting v nearer to the house and taking the walks together - it seems that on every walk more progress is made (and touch wood, no incidents or signs of aggression from either dog).

The more we get to know Charlie the more adorable he becomes and already his presence is having a positive effect: Izzy and the cats who once only tolerated each other are getting on better than ever - and all credit to Izzy given Charlie's arrival and the upheaval it has caused combined with her spoilt and defiant streak she appears to be coping really well.

Tonight we learnt some else. Today we purchased a dog gate and put it between the room where we have been keeping Charlie and the hall and kitchen where Izzy is spending more time. As soon as Charlie saw Izzy on the other side - off he went, barking, snarling and lunging towards her. I was on the side with Charlie and gentle pulled him back and stayed close to him while telling him no and talking to him in a soft, reassuring voice. My son stood on the other side with Izzy who had a bit of a go back but seemed to be more confused and unsettled by his response. However, it soon became apparent that Charlie was actually frightened and when he stopped as I had asked he wanted to be comforted and reassurred but as soon as he looked at Izzy he reared up again, while she sat with my son holding her collar and reassuring her - until finally Charlie stopped, would not look at Izzy and then hid behind me.

It seems every day we learn something new and we are really very hopeful, but accept that it is still very early days. However, the dog behaviourist has said that if she feels we will not be able to sort things out she will tell us on Wednesday evening! I am feeling very optimistic and so much better than a few days ago; although we have not really even looked at socialising Charlie with the cats yet.

I just wanted to give an update just in case someone else finds themselves in our position and while my initial reaction when Charlie first showed an aggessive side was to return him, I am so glad that I did not at that time. Even if we don't get to keep him, which will be the last resort, at least we can say we tried and have no regrets. Returning him at the first hurdle may have relieved my concerns but it certainly would not have eased my conscious. Although we know there is still a very long way to go before things settle, if Charlie stays, the past few days have taught us a lot about ourselves, our animals and the importance of patience and the knowledge that has followed.

Thank you again to those who responded; your response also encouraged us to hold on and not to make rash decisions based on anxiety and fear and gave us hope that things could/might get better, so very much appreciated.

What an amazing post! First off, I just want to say thank you for sharing this with us, and secondly, thank you for being so patient with your problem child. He truly is lucky to have had a chance with a great home with you and your family.

Aggression is almost always fear based, if you can get passed this hurdle, than it sounds like you will have a great family pet. I wish you nothing but the best of luck with you and your new boy. Please keep us updated. We love to hear success stories, and even if Charlie doesn't end up with you, you are giving him the best possible start with a new family.

P.s. In case we haven't mentioned it, we LOVE pictures! :D

Thank you Tina! I am echoing AB's response yet again. We truly do appreciate the amount of work you are willing to put into doing everything you can to make this work along with the fact that you have returned to keep us posted.

I am very optimistic about your appointment with the behaviorist. :)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi,

Where do I start:

The visit from the behaviourist went well. Wow, have we got a lot of work to do! While on the whole the assessment was OK, we as a pack and showing, paricularly our Izzy who's boss, has not been as consistent or as it should have been or is. Although we are hoping this will change once we have managed to be consistent in relation to the changes we have been advised to make.

I have to say we all learnt a lot last night. We did not realise by wanting to love and make our Izzy feel loved and special, particularly after her very bad start in life and being badly treated and abused by others; we were perhaps in some ways doing completely the opposite.

I have had dogs almost all my life and did not realise the importance of having some rigid rules and boundaries; although it is fair to say I have never allowed a dog to behave badly deliberately and would and have never tolerated one my dogs being aggressive or a bully; just did not realise that some of the things we allowed them to do were/could have been contributing to them pushing the boundaries.

While, if I am honest, I was disappointed that the behaviourist did not come in with a magic wand, assess our Iz and then our Charlie and says do this, this and this and hey presto two happy, well behaved dogs who want to be together and good companions (that would be too easy) I accept that anything worth having is perhaps worth waiting for and working hard for, but not too hard I hope.

I have today received an action plan and other very useful information from the behaviourist. While we are still unsure that Charlie is here to stay, if he has to go, perhaps the lessons we have learned and hopefully will continue to learn from the behaviourist and from Charlie and Izzy, may be put to good use in the future. If and when we decide again to get another dog. In saying that it will not stop the heart break if our Charlie cannot stay.

Last night, we realised a lot of things about the way our Iz and Charlie were interacting and thought possibly that it was Izzy who was winding up Charlie. This morning I am not so sure. Charlie is at the vets, being neutered and micro chipped. Its not the vets we use for Izzy but another that was recommended by a friend. While in the vets and giving what information I could about Charlie, another dog appeared on a lead. Well, for whatever reason, in hindsight my slow response, thinking it was our Iz who was Charlie's problem, anxiety about Charlie's op etc etc... before I knew Charlie was rearing up to other dog, in the same way he does with Izzy. Initially, I just tried to talk him down and pull him back. Then remembered to stand between him and other dog, while speaking to him, this eventually calmed him down and the other dog left. I was really embarrassed but this was increased by the looks I got from the other people in the vet, particularly one or two members of the staff - not sure if it was meant or my paranoia but just got the feeling they were thinking - what is she doing with a dog like that - it was not about to put down for no reason! (I am not denying that this is not one of my fears/thoughts either, but is now getting neutralised by good things that I have seen in Charlie and that there are no bad dogs just bad owners).

I am now beginning to wonder if Charlie has a problem with other dogs, maybe cats in enclosed places such as the home, given his response to the other dog at the vets; particularly as outside, apart from one minor incident, even when walking with Izzy he seems fine - no problems at all, yet. He even tried to chase a bird yesterday without growling or snarling but as soon as I called him back he obeyed. I have to say if that was my Iz, her response would not have been as quick as his; I am ashamed to say. However, as I keep being reminded it is early days yet and Charlie is most likely still on his very best behaviour.

Charlie's plans for the future are still not firm - we need to find out a lot more about him yet I fancy and while some of what we know already is a concern, it is teaching us not to take anything for granted. Although, trying to juggle this with our fears and anxiety that are raised when Charlie goes off, and multiplied by our previous experience of owning an aggressive dog, prior to Izzy's arrival, whose aggressive behaviour and instinct to protect by attack,through no fault of hers but mine; given that I chose to manage this behaviour instead of addressing it, which I did for most of her life, she was nearly 14 when she died two years ago this month; is not as easy as it sounds.

I can assure you, I am not a Saint, far from it: I was bought up with animals, cats and dogs in particular and by a keen animal lover, who taught me an animal who comes in to your home is for life and did not ask to be there and therefore it is up to the owner to do all they can to ensure the animal settles in, in a way that is best for the new arrival and everyone else. In saying that I would never keep an animal who threatened the safety of my other animals or get another animal and bring in to a home where I already had a pet who would harm another animal.

I now anxiously await the vets call to say that I can collect Charlie! Thank you all again for your kind comments and encouragement. I will let you know how things go. I will also post some pictures, it is one of my goals to post a picture of Izzy and Charlie together! So, it might be a long wait! Lol.

Any ideas about why Charlie may be so aggressive in the home and other enclosed areas (towards, dogs only so far) much appreciated.