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Pet help

Superfly said:
No, not during the summer. It gets too hot and humid here, and he has really bad COPD. Just too hot for him.
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I understand. Obedience training is his next best opportunity to bond with the dog.
 
sangha said:
................That's a play bow
bulldog-play-bow.jpg


It's not aggressive at all.

Dog Body Language: What Does the Play Bow Mean?
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Indeed!

Dog obviously likes Elvis.;)
 
Superfly said:
*sigh*

OK. My bulldog Lily is acting weird toward my husband. He has been trying with her, because he knows I love her so much, but she snaps at him. He is trying to make things between the two of them better, so like earlier tonight, he called her and she just ran up to his lap and jumped up in the recliner with him. She got all excited to be in his lap, but then when he tried to pet her, she snapped at him. He got pissed and made me call her out of the chair.

He has never spanked her, or gotten physical with her in any way, but he has yelled at her because sometimes she's a pain in the ass. Honestly, I've yelled at her too, but she doesn't snap at me.

I don't know what to do. I don't want to have a dog in the house that acts that way, but I can't imagine having to get rid of her. He's always said he won't have a dog that bites, but he knows how much I love her, so he knows I am not getting rid of her, and he told me he'd never ask me to.

I have asked other English Bulldog owners, and all they say is, "They are tempermental. It's how they are." But that doesn't satisfy my husband.

Anybody have any bright ideas? And please, if you are going to be a dick, don't involve yourself.

Edited to add: This is not an all the time occurance. It happens from time to time, but he usually just leaves her alone, and she does the same for him.
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I can't say it'll help or work, but one way of discouraging unwanted behaviour in a dog is to use a water gun to shoot a jet at them any time they do what you don't want them to do. They'll get the message, eventually.
 
Superfly said:
Thanks again, y'all. We are discussing these methods.

We are going to, for the time being, let him feed her and let him treat-reward her. He's going to praise her relentlessly and not yell. If she barks or snaps at him, he's not going to yell or push her away. He's just going to give her a sharp "NO!"

Hope this works. Still looking into obedience classes. Not a big town, and the only real person I've seen to train dogs is in Savannah which is an hour drive, one way. The only other place is Pet Smart. Not to sure about them.
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If I might make a suggestion. If the dog growls or snaps, hubby should do more than say, "No!" in my opinion. He should get a lecture. "No! Bad dog! You are the worst dog on planet EARTH and I'm not going to stand for it. Shame on you! Get out!" Assuming you have a fenced yard, I'd order him out of the house for at least a half hour. When he comes back in? All is forgiven.

I love dogs. I've raised four German Shepherds. Now have a 5th mix whose a 9year old rescue. Last shepherd we got when he was six, others were very young. I have NEVER had a dog bite, snap or growl at me. Unless your husband teases him or scares him, there's something not quite right going on.

As much as it pains me, and believe me, it does, you need to watch him closely. A biting dog can be rehabilitated, in my opinion, and the food and treats thing will go a long way in that direction. But it would be a loooong time before I would trust that dog on my lap...either one of you. Too close to face.

I'm assuming this dog isn't a puppy. If he is? Then I would have different advice.

i love Canada John...but...the water gun? Not a good idea, IMO.
 
sangha said:
In that, no more reaching towards her. Not for any reason. And he stops going into her cage too. Again, not for any reason.

Also, some obedience "training" might help. I put "training" in quotes because he shouldn't try to teach her anything new. He should ask her to do things (in a calm sweet voice) she already knows because the purpose here isn't to teach her new tricks; it's to get her to have a positive association with hubby, particular with his hands.

Have himask her to sit. When she sits, he can drop a treat on the floor. After a couple of weeks of this, he can offer the treat in his hand, but without him stretching his hand out towards her. Let her come to him. Then, once she's fully comfortable with that (go slow), he can reach out a little bit. Then a little more. As time goes on, and he doesn't give her any reason to fear him or question his intentions, she will hopefully build a positive association between his hands and treats.



That's a play bow
bulldog-play-bow.jpg


It's not aggressive at all.

Dog Body Language: What Does the Play Bow Mean?
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Chagos said:
Indeed!

Dog obviously likes Elvis.;)
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Yes - that is EXACTLY what she does. She barks when she goes into that position, so we always thought she was being aggressive. Now we realize she just wants to play!
 
MaggieD said:
If I might make a suggestion. If the dog growls or snaps, hubby should do more than say, "No!" in my opinion. He should get a lecture. "No! Bad dog! You are the worst dog on planet EARTH and I'm not going to stand for it. Shame on you! Get out!" Assuming you have a fenced yard, I'd order him out of the house for at least a half hour. When he comes back in? All is forgiven.

I love dogs. I've raised four German Shepherds. Now have a 5th mix whose a 9year old rescue. Last shepherd we got when he was six, others were very young. I have NEVER had a dog bite, snap or growl at me. Unless your husband teases him or scares him, there's something not quite right going on.

As much as it pains me, and believe me, it does, you need to watch him closely. A biting dog can be rehabilitated, in my opinion, and the food and treats thing will go a long way in that direction. But it would be a loooong time before I would trust that dog on my lap...either one of you. Too close to face.

I'm assuming this dog isn't a puppy. If he is? Then I would have different advice.

i love Canada John...but...the water gun? Not a good idea, IMO.
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I can't leave her outside. She's an English Bulldog. More than 5 minutes outside in 100+ degree heat and 90+ humidity, and she will be at the vet. She has to stay indoors where it's cool, with the exception of going outside to the bathroom. It was almost 90 degrees at 1am the other day. :(

I don't know what is or is not considered a puppy. She's 18 months old.

And I'd say no on the water gun, too. I actually tried that about a year ago, as opposed to shock collars which I would never use, and it didn't work out so well. Just made her angry and it took a while for her to trust me again.
 
Superfly said:
Yes - that is EXACTLY what she does. She barks when she goes into that position, so we always thought she was being aggressive. Now we realize she just wants to play!
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The bark can even be a growl sometimes. Coupled with the pose it's an encouragement. "C'mon you guys, fun time".
 
Superfly said:
Yes - that is EXACTLY what she does. She barks when she goes into that position, so we always thought she was being aggressive. Now we realize she just wants to play!
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Make sure there is a tug toy available when she does that. My step daughter had an animal that was very skittish around men, and was having a hard time adjusting to me when she came to visit. She finally got into the mood to play, and we played tug for a half hour, and after that, her behavior and attitude to me was much better.
 
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