out of control mastiff pup..help!!

[morrigan05]

i already make morrigan sit and wait for her food. a couple minutes go by and she will lay down. then she knows she can eat from the bowl until i say she can. when she goes in and out of the house, she does sit before she goes out. as far as going outside she does wait for me to go first. same as going down the stairs or anything like that. she is very respectful of me in those aspects.

i took morrigan to the vet yesterday and told the vet about her behavior. he sugguested that i giveher benadryl. so now she is getting benaryl and anti stress pills. there has only been one difference. she is still bouncing off the walls but she is listening to me better and following my commands right away. it seems like she is stopping to think instead of just reacting. any explanation for this? it seems odd.

i looked up her parents pedigree today. in her mother's and father's third and fourth generation pedigree, there are 4 dogs that are exactly the same. does that mean she is inbred? coz, i'm not sure. i plan on calling up the akc tomorrow and finding that out. i am also getting her registered tomorrow.

most papers have litter numbers and pin numbers on it. mine doesnt. is that normal?

 

[Cody]

Most purebred dogs are line bred. That is what breeders do to cement traits in their lines that they want.
Line breeding in a responsible way can benefit the breed, if the breeder knows their lines and what to expect. However it can back fire as well, it can also exaggerate unwanted traits, and recessive genes.
It should not cause a problem, unless it is constant father to daughter, brother to sister, mother to son. In most pedigree databases it will give you the info you want as well as the inbred % of each dog. I highly doubt it would be the cause of food aggression however.

 

[morrigan05]

for anyone still reading..morrigan has gotten more agressive..more snapping and such. then after a week or two, she started calming down. if i get her attention before i pet her, she is fine. no growling or nothing. now she just doesnt tolerate other dogs coming up to her while she eats.

 

[Ripsmom]

well, that in and of itself is pretty normal behavior, although some don't react most dogs will not tolerate other dogs approaching them while they are eating. so, are YOU able to approach her without reaction?

 

[Mongo]

well, that in and of itself is pretty normal behavior, although some don't react most dogs will not tolerate other dogs approaching them while they are eating. so, are YOU able to approach her without reaction?

I disagree with this. As food aggression is a COMMON problem, it is NOT normal. As "pack" animals they have to tolerate other dogs around. And just because she lets YOU approach her while eating doesnt mean she wont bite a little kid.

Im going to say this once again... I would consult with a behaviorist to get this under control

 

[Ripsmom]

I agree that just because the dog tolerates you doesn't mean she won't bite a little kid, and keep in mind just because you work with a dog (with or without a behaviorist) and seem to have food aggression under control you can never truly"get rid of the behavior" BUT a dog's lack of tolerance for other dogs around their food does not mean that they will lack tolerance for humans (although that seems to be the case with this particular dog) and even if you've gotten the behavior under control with YOU and other adults that doesn't mean she will not display it with others or children. The bottom line with a dog like this is never to assume that she will not display the behavior if you have kids around; this behavior is innate. However, it is easier to deal with a dog that is reactive around other dogs as oppose to the humans in the house.

 

[Ellen Sneve]

This might sound like a weird question, but is she the boss in your home? It sounds like she has a more dominant personality, and she isn't reacting with aggression due to fear. Is she the dominant dog between your mastiffs? I might sound bad in saying this but in all honesty, the first time it happened my puppy would be carefully and quickly put onto her back until she stopped struggling (a few seconds maybe) and was calm and then I would get up and walk away. Also I frequently take away toys, her food bowl, bones etc and mess with her and her food while she eats. Please don't think I am an abusive owner. I don't hit or physically hurt my dogs in any way. I just don't want a dog with so much potential power to ever think that they are the leader in my house.

 

[Ripsmom]

FYI, I would not recommend doing the above mentioned with this dog as you are very likely to get bit, and with some dogs if you are constantly taking things away from them it often reinforces the behavior because they learn that everytime they have something and you come along you will take it; rolling a puppy on its' back may and I stress may work on young pups but not as effective on a dog that is morrigan's age and size; especially since she has tried to nail you in the past.

 

[Ellen Sneve]

I was just saying that the first time it happened, it would be corrected and never escalated to this point..that is all.

 

[morrigan05]

morrigan does think she is the boss of the house. not just with my other mastiff, but all the dogs. to get a better idea, this is what i have..11 year old lab/shephard mix that is 60lbs, a 2 year old husky mix that is 30lbs, melia..who is the other mastiff..she is 55lbs and 5 1/2 months old, and then there is morrigan. she is 6 1/2 months and 70lbs.

i have been reading up on some "leader of the pack" techniques and have tried some. she is doing better. i can see her expressions that she is thinking about what i am telling her. i am also not being as cuddly with her coz i heard too much cuddling also gives her control. i have been doing one word commands, and a pat on the head or something like that. i cuddle with her once a day at night. i get on the floor with her and pet her and massage her legs and rub her belly. she sure is getting to be a tank. she is very tall already. when she plays, she moves end tables, the kitchen table, and comfy chairs in the living room. she is very muscular.

as for her food issues..i put the bowl down and position myself in between the bowl and her. i tell her to sit and she does so. then i just look straight at her until she lays down. i move to the side of the bowl. she doesnt move. then i tell her its ok to eat and she will go to the bowl. she lets me pet her whole body. i do this for a minute or two and then let her be. when she is done eating, i call her to me. she will come and sit at my feet. then i pet her face and she does ok. maybe a couple grunts but thats about it. but yeah, while shes eating, if any dog comes up to her she will start growling. even if they are just sniffing her butt or something. if they dont quit, thats when she will snap at them. its only happened a couple times but it has happened.

also, with her toys. when she starts growling over them, i make her come to me. i tell her to leave it and she will let me have the toy. i put it on the floor in between my feet. she will sit and then after 2 minutes she will lay down. then i will throw the toy for her to play with. usually i have to do this twice and then she will play nice with the other dogs. she plays good with me all the time, just not so much the other dogs. that has only escalated to growling in the past. i never purposely take the toys away.

anyone ever have a grumpy mastiff? on nice days, morrigan goes in the outdoor kennel with the other dogs. i will bring her in several hours later. she will eat and play with the other dogs. after a while, she will come and lay by my feet. if the other dogs walk past her, bother her, or even i pet her, she will start to growl. its coz she is so tired. then i wind up putting her in her bed so she can be alone and knows no one can get to her. when i take her out of her bed, she is fine. her bed is an indoor crate with a fleece blanket in it along with a toy. it used to have one of those calming cartridges in it that puts off a nice smell but morrigan chewed it out of there. plastic and all.

so all of you know, morrigan has had 2 interactions with my neice. my neice is 7 years old. all she would do is go on her back and want her belly rubbed. this was at xmas time. my partner and i never plan on having kids though and dont plan to have her around my neice unless i am there with morrigan attached to a leash. i know of the potential dangers she could cause with children and i do not want that at all. i love my mastiff so much and by her not being around children, will protect her as well. any visitors or even my landlord who come around,..i forwarn them that she does bite and is aggressive. they usually will wait outside or just stay away from her. morrigan is protective. if she knows who you are, she is fine. she wants to play and lick. but for people she doesnt know, she barks. she only stops when i tell her that is enough.

---------- Post added at 03:49 AM ---------- Previous post was at 03:48 AM ----------

i also believe morrigan does not react out of fear. she does think she's boss and that everything is hers and that she controls everything. i have begun to see her respect me more. this will be a very long road for her and me but i know we can do it.

does anyone think spaying her would calm her down? i know she cant be spayed til shes fully grown. she needs her hormones to help her grow to her full potential right?

 

[morrigan05]

i also believe morrigan does not react out of fear. she does think she's boss and that everything is hers and that she controls everything. i have begun to see her respect me more. this will be a very long road for her and me but i know we can do it.

does anyone think spaying her would calm her down? i know she cant be spayed til shes fully grown. she needs her hormones to help her grow to her full potential right?

 

[Ripsmom]

just curious... are all of your dogs females? also, about the spaying...although I would strongly recommend NEVER ever breeding this dog because of her little issues... while we know that neutering a male can decrease aggressive tendencies toward other dogs and people, I've actually read in more than one source and have been told by a vet that aggressive females should be kept intact (provided it can be done responsibly) because they actually have the potential to become more aggressive after being spayed... something about the decrease in estrogen and increase in testosterone. Maybe some others could chime in if they've had any experience with intact females... I personally have never owned an intact dog for any length of time so I am only going by what I've read. I don't know maybe once she's matured and hopefully you have conquered the problem then maybe spay her then??

 

[mastiffluva]

I have five dogs. I got my first purebred Englsh Mastiff when she was 7-1/2 weeks old. As she grew she became food aggressive going after the other dogs food. Because she outgrew everyone, she became a tyrant. I can't tell you how important it is for you to get an experienced mastiff trainer in, not a generic dog trainer. Mastiffs are a unique breed. They are not average dogs. When this dog was 7 months old, my bichon walked near her food bowl, not even going for it, and the mastiff attacked. She almost decapitated the bichon. Aggression in a mastiff is dangerous. We had to give her away. Hindsight is 20/20 but I can say I got another mastiff three years later. When the same signs started to appear, I had a trainer in so fast. Now she is 1-1/2 years old and fantastic. Good luck.

 

[Cody]

I have question as well, not to be judgmental, but why 2 Mastiff pups at the same time?
Mastiff pups need a huge amount of socialization and training. I know personally I wouldn't have 2 pups so close together. I want to be able to put the work into one before the next comes, so they can aid in the training of future pups.
I highly suggest you get a trainer with mastiff/working breed experience to help you out.
You and your partner need to be getting them out all the time, working on training and socialization.
I wouldn't recommend rolling her either. Is ok with young puppies, but in older mastiff pups/dogs, you risk losing. Most people do not do the roll correctly any how. It should be a fear of god correction. A good trainer will be your best bet. I would also ask for referrals when looking at trainers.

 

[Ripley]

1-800-Cesar-Millan

 

[Cody]

Ever seen Cesar Milan roll a working breed
And there is a reason he doesn't. He uses calm energy to gain/earn respect. You will never see him rush in to dominate a large breed like he does the small. He values his face

 

[morrigan05]

out of my dog family, there is only one male. he is neutered and 12 years old. the question about 2 mastiff puppies..morrigan i originally bought for my spouse. under a month after we had her(when morrigan was 6-9weeks old), my spouse decided that she was too much of a dog for her. we had planned on getting me my own previous to morrigan. i told my spouse that i would take her instead. so i did and now i have her and love her. my spouse has always wanted a mastiff. so i got her, her own mastiff. at the time morrigan was around 5 months old. so that is how we managed to wind up with 2 mastiff puppies. thier age difference isnt a big gap because..i dont know why. it just sort of happened that way.melia-other mastiff pup- is 3 weeks younger and about 20lbs lighter. she absolutely loves morrigan. morrigan will growl over toys with her and ya know her snapping at the food bowl. melia just sort of backs off until morrigan approaches her. believe it or not, my spouse and i will take melia out and leave morrigan at home. of course morrigan does fine. melia is a different story. melia will get ancy after about 2 hours out by herself. she is wanting and will sometimes look for morrigan. we will be in a pet store or at my mom's usually. melia will actually look sad. i mean she gets a little depressed. she will just lay at our feet the whole time we are at my mom's or she will constantly want to go out. so even though morrigan is mean to melia sometimes, morrigan is a security blanket for melia. we know we need to work on this behavior.

on a different note, i took morrigan to get weighed today. she will be 7 months old on the 17th. she weighs 70.4lbs. mainly in muscle. i will take pics soon and post them so yall can get a better idea of her size.

on another note, my brother has a male english mastiff. he is a brindle and will be 9 months old on the 17th. he weighs 110lbs. him and morrigan play every now and then. she tires him out, lol. they have played with each other since morrigan was 8 weeks old.

also, i would like opinions on the comment bout spaying my dog..mentioned previously, might it make her more aggressive?

thanks for all your responses!!

 

[Cody]

Melia doesn't see Morrigan as mean. That is a human term, dogs aren't "mean" to each other, there is a reason for their actions.
From what you write, honestlty, I don't read aggression at all. From how it sounds here, you and your partner are not pack leaders to Morrigan,she has taken on that role. And judging from how you explain Melia's behavior to her, she sees Morrigan as the leader as well, and defers to her as such.
The best thing you can possible do is get an experienced trainer/behaviorist to come in to your home and teach you guys how to fix that. It sounds like you have a drivey, dominant female and she is ruling the house. I mean no disrespect, but this can turn into a very volatile situation if it is not properly addressed ASAP.

 

[Ripsmom]

Ever seen Cesar Milan roll a working breed
And there is a reason he doesn't. He uses calm energy to gain/earn respect. You will never see him rush in to dominate a large breed like he does the small. He values his face

LMAO Cody

 

[Mongo]

Ever seen Cesar Milan roll a working breed
And there is a reason he doesn't. He uses calm energy to gain/earn respect. You will never see him rush in to dominate a large breed like he does the small. He values his face

LMAO! True Story!