Problems with an irresponsible owner of an aggressive dog.

[Heather & Jake]

This just really irks me so I had to vent and get it out somewhere where people would understand.  Has anyone else out there ever experienced doodle related dog aggression???

In our first dog obedience session three months ago, there was a rescued male Pitbull, about 3 years old, named Pluto.  At the very first class his owner tells us in her introduction that Pluto does not always get along with other dogs.  This immediately sets of a light bulb in my head... if you know your dog can be aggressive, why the heck don’t you have a muzzle on it for not only the safety of others’ dogs, but to not even take the chance of your dog attacking???  My parents have two dog aggressive female rescues, one of which is a Pitbull mix so I have nothing against the breed. They don’t go anywhere without their muzzles just to be safe.  I have also had two rescues in the past put down for being aggressive.  We live in a very strict county that does not take aggression lightly… I would know!   

Anyways, as the first class went on, you could tell there were two dogs Pluto did not like: my 6 month old puppy Jake, and Buster the huge black Goldendoodle.  He would get very tense around them and just stare us all down.  At one greeting practice he even snipped at Jake as we were turning back around but did not get him.  The rest of the class proceeded without incident.

The next week, about 20 minutes into class, out of nowhere, Pluto attacked.   We were taking a little break and we’re about 10 feet away from him and his owner, but Pluto just took her off guard and next thing we knew, he had Jake by the lower jaw.  Jake was screaming and luckily from my experience with breaking up dog fights we were able to stop it before it got worse.  We got Jake to calm down and had a look at his jaw, and it wasn’t too bad but it was punctured and swollen on the outside and inside of his lip; he was very fluffy at the time and I feel all the hair helped protect him.  Jake was a shook up and for the rest of the class and would not interact with any other dog just cowered behind us while Pluto was on the lookout.  No matter how far away, he had his eye on Jake and was pulling and trying to get back at him for more; luckily his owner was paying attention this time.  At the end of class it really bothered be because she didn’t even apologize!!!!

A few days later, our trainer called and asked how Jake was doing and what I thought/felt on the situation.  I felt that as long as Pluto wore a muzzle, I would be fine with him returning to class for obviously he needs the socialization.  But the choice was not up to me and he was kicked out. 

Last night we had our first session of the next level.  Because it’s now summer, we picked a new time and location to have our class which also involved a new trainer… lo and behold as we pull up, Pluto is walking in.  I thought since it is was a county run training program, and knowing how strict our county is, that he was kicked out for good.  Apparently not; he was just transferred to another class; the class that fed into the one we had switched to.  As we approach his owner shouts out a hello and remarks how big he has gotten and talks about how they kicked her out… still no apology.  And of course she’s being a loud mouth shouting over the rest of the class creating a scene and putting me in a very awkward situation.

As class proceeds, this time when we introduce all of ourselves, she asks that we all give her and  Pluto a wide berth because “he had connected with the fluffy guy over there before.”  No, he didn’t connect, he attacked and she’s now trying to make it out as if it’s not a big deal.  Pluto is still not wearing a muzzle and still has it out for my little guy 3 months after the first attack... he would not take his eyes off Jake the entire class, just stares him down and she had to keep correcting him to get his attention back. Thankfully my happy-go-lucky, submissive Jake doesn’t seem to remember or care, but needless to say we were always at least 15ft apart so he didn’t get a chance to “meet” Pluto again.

If his owner were to apologize and take the proper precautions with him wearing a muzzle I wouldn’t care so much but it really bothers me with the audacity of his owner putting other dogs in danger when she knows what hers can be like, and just thinking that staying far enough away is the answer.  She brings a muzzle with her, but what good is it if he’s not wearing it?  What, are you going to put it on after your dog attacks again???  If this trainer weren’t as good as she is I’d switch classes right now.

[Heather & Jake]

UPDATE:  So we had our second class last night... Pluto did not show up.  Apparently, after speaking with us last week and finding out that his owner straight up lied to her face and did not tell her that he had actually latched on, she sent his owner an email saying that he needs to wear the muzzle in class.  His owner never responded so we don't know if he just missed this weeks class or has decided to find another class.  Guess next week will tell... Either way I'm glad he was not there and he will have to wear a muzzle if he does come back.  The trainer is pretty pissed at his owner and couldn't believe her audacity since the whole training experience and partnership is one based on trust.

As for everyone's comments, thank you for your input and sharing your own experiences!  Since I have grown up with four aggressive dogs I'm well aware of the signs to look out for and with Jake I do implement a “no staring policy” with other dogs and immediately try to get his attention back on me.  I will admit, he is one of those super friendly dogs who thinks that everyone will be his best friend.  This was especially true at the time of the attack since he was only 6 months and just starting to learn that adult dogs won’t allow his puppy antics to carry on any longer.  However, Jake had never even  tried to play with Pluto since his owner always kept a little distance.  At the time of the attack Pluto was behind and to the side of us with Jake facing the total opposite direction, which to me was the oddest part of the whole thing since I don’t have any clue what set Pluto off at that instant.  Thankfully over the last few months Jake has also done a lot of growing up, learning to better read the social cues of other dogs; if they do not want to play he now leaves them alone.

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

Thanks for the update Heather.  It is too bad though that the owner may not be bringing this dog back to training. Both the owner and the dog need so much more training.   Again, a muzzle is a GOOD thing in my opinion. Even police trained dogs wear them in special circumstances for many years.  So sad they find this offensive.

Enjoy your Class!!!