Hank is now 15 months. He is a 65kg BB and has not been castrated (yet - we thought about studding him out). We are two 30 somethings with a 6 month old baby living in the suburbs. We love Hank to pieces but he has changed so much in the last few months that we are becoming more and more unsure of him. We are afraid that we are not what Hank needs and worried that we are creating a monster despite our best efforts. There is starting to be very little "good" about owning him. We don't want to give up but we are having trouble seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. I guess I am just hoping that someone out there can help to make the situation better or help us figure out if we should find Hank a new home.
Some background:
Hank gets 3 walks a day. 2 are longer (30 min +) and the third is about 10/15 min. Then a final pee/poo before bed. A couple times a week I take him to the dog park when it is empty and throw the ball around. We walk him using a gentle leader head harness (which he dislikes) and do not allow him to walk in front or to pull. At home we play search games with candy or toys to entertain him if the weather is terrible or he seems restless. We have thought about starting agility, or getting him a backpack or even try going running with him. Not sure if any of those are good ideas.
He is crate trained but sleeps in our bedroom, on the floor in his own bed. He is not allowed on the sofa or in any human beds. He knows all the basic commands and will perform them when food is involved. He is very stubborn and it can be impossible sometimes to get through to him. He is not food aggressive unless it involves very high value treats like meaty bones. So we have stopped giving him those.He grew up in the middle of the city and we moved out to the suburbs about 7 months ago. He has been exposed to all sorts of sounds and people and animals while living in the city. We have also been to puppy training courses to work on commands and to socialize him. But since the baby has come, we don't spend as much time with training as we should. He still gets his walks and we try as much as we can to be the pack leaders but obviously we are failing.
The problems:
For the past 4 months or so, if not on his gentle leader, Hank will go for other dogs. Lunge and bark and want to run for them. I am not sure if he wants to hurt the dog or what. It seems to be escalating. He has broken our wire fence running out after the neighbor's dog (he is never outside alone, this is with us outside with him). I had to pull him off the old man. He was going for the dog, but we worry one day it won't be the case. Luckily no one was hurt this time.
We used to be able to go to the dogpark and Hank was great. Now, he tries to dominate all the other dogs and even got in a fight recently. So no more dog park. We can't let him off leash ever, not even in our own backyard now (fixing the fence is not financially possible for us just now). He barks if anyone comes to the door or is outside the house. He won't stop until he feels like it. Even if he is in his crate with a blanket over him. We haven't found a way to stop him.
Until recently I would have said he was good with children, but he has started showing signs of dominance towards children visiting us. Thank god nothing has happened yet but at this rate, he will have to stay in his crate when we have visitors. Not to mention that we have a 6 month old baby. He is very respectful to her, but I am starting to become worried. Of course, she is never alone with him.
Basically our calm, lazy buddy has turned into a big, aggressive, protective beast that we can't trust. We need to find a way to stop this train wreck.
My questions:
Are his problems made worse by his age (the teenage years?)
Will he mellow or is this how he will be?
Do you think he is getting enough exercise? Or the right kind of exercise?
Will castrating him make a big difference in his behavior or aggression? Or will it create new problems?How important is it to have a big yard to run around in?
All things considered, along with the fact that we are not able to afford a new fence or a dog run or anything more than just food, poop bags, shots, etc for him just now (since I am at home with the baby)- are we able to give this dog what he needs?
If we do need to find a new home for him, how do we do that?
We don't want him going to the wrong type of person.
Is there any hope? Should we find a new home for him or will he be our buddy again some day?
I really appreciate any help. I feel so guilty and stupid. We went into this with all the best intentions. We did our homework and have tried from day one to be the pack leaders. Is this just a phase or are we complete failures?
Some background:
Hank gets 3 walks a day. 2 are longer (30 min +) and the third is about 10/15 min. Then a final pee/poo before bed. A couple times a week I take him to the dog park when it is empty and throw the ball around. We walk him using a gentle leader head harness (which he dislikes) and do not allow him to walk in front or to pull. At home we play search games with candy or toys to entertain him if the weather is terrible or he seems restless. We have thought about starting agility, or getting him a backpack or even try going running with him. Not sure if any of those are good ideas.
He is crate trained but sleeps in our bedroom, on the floor in his own bed. He is not allowed on the sofa or in any human beds. He knows all the basic commands and will perform them when food is involved. He is very stubborn and it can be impossible sometimes to get through to him. He is not food aggressive unless it involves very high value treats like meaty bones. So we have stopped giving him those.He grew up in the middle of the city and we moved out to the suburbs about 7 months ago. He has been exposed to all sorts of sounds and people and animals while living in the city. We have also been to puppy training courses to work on commands and to socialize him. But since the baby has come, we don't spend as much time with training as we should. He still gets his walks and we try as much as we can to be the pack leaders but obviously we are failing.
The problems:
For the past 4 months or so, if not on his gentle leader, Hank will go for other dogs. Lunge and bark and want to run for them. I am not sure if he wants to hurt the dog or what. It seems to be escalating. He has broken our wire fence running out after the neighbor's dog (he is never outside alone, this is with us outside with him). I had to pull him off the old man. He was going for the dog, but we worry one day it won't be the case. Luckily no one was hurt this time.
We used to be able to go to the dogpark and Hank was great. Now, he tries to dominate all the other dogs and even got in a fight recently. So no more dog park. We can't let him off leash ever, not even in our own backyard now (fixing the fence is not financially possible for us just now). He barks if anyone comes to the door or is outside the house. He won't stop until he feels like it. Even if he is in his crate with a blanket over him. We haven't found a way to stop him.
Until recently I would have said he was good with children, but he has started showing signs of dominance towards children visiting us. Thank god nothing has happened yet but at this rate, he will have to stay in his crate when we have visitors. Not to mention that we have a 6 month old baby. He is very respectful to her, but I am starting to become worried. Of course, she is never alone with him.
Basically our calm, lazy buddy has turned into a big, aggressive, protective beast that we can't trust. We need to find a way to stop this train wreck.
My questions:
Are his problems made worse by his age (the teenage years?)
Will he mellow or is this how he will be?
Do you think he is getting enough exercise? Or the right kind of exercise?
Will castrating him make a big difference in his behavior or aggression? Or will it create new problems?How important is it to have a big yard to run around in?
All things considered, along with the fact that we are not able to afford a new fence or a dog run or anything more than just food, poop bags, shots, etc for him just now (since I am at home with the baby)- are we able to give this dog what he needs?
If we do need to find a new home for him, how do we do that?
We don't want him going to the wrong type of person.
Is there any hope? Should we find a new home for him or will he be our buddy again some day?
I really appreciate any help. I feel so guilty and stupid. We went into this with all the best intentions. We did our homework and have tried from day one to be the pack leaders. Is this just a phase or are we complete failures?