Help Needed! Gretchen is up to her old tricks again

[michelle23093]

Gretchen is up to her old tricks again. I got a trainer to come to my home and we did alot of things to fix the problems and she now has new problems. I cant afford another 1200 for behavior classs. Is there any trainers on here that would be willing to speak me with me and give me a few pointers. I am at my last leg with Gretchen and her biting. She got in my sisters car yesterday and wanted to go for a ride and she was ready to go home. it took us 45 minutes to try to choax her out and she wasn't coming out. everytime we tried to get her out she would growl and show her teeth. She finally bit my husband several times. she did this to me last thursday when she started chewing on a cup and I tried to take it away from her. I can't let her keep biting us. My husband is ready to get rid of her and let it be someone elses problem. I know if we give her away then she will get a owner who will have her put down if she bites them. not aggressive with the kids but she will sure bite us in a heart beat. she won't let me put the leash on her without a tug of war growling battle. she has completely did a horrible 360 and its is now not very good to have to lock her in the kitchen. she has no respect for me what so ever. I don't know what to do. any ideas?? Please please help

 

[bullmama]

Wow this sounds like a very tough situation. If it were me, I would get her on a leash ASAP and start making her work for her comforts, as it sounds like she thinks she is the ruler. Even just basic obedience stuff, like sit, stay... Feed her her whole meal while she performs these tasks.


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[Pati Robins]

Back to basic -start from nothing is for free ,let her work for everything -in extreme cases for toys , star from sit ,leave it and drop!
Sometimes a squirts water bottle can be used to redirect her behaviour if she still dont listen
Also make sure she got enough excursive -like they say "tired bulldog is a happy bulldog"
Have yiu had her health checked so see if the sudden change of behaviour isnt health related? Is she spayed? Perhaps shes coming into season
Locking her away wont solve the problem ,all of you got to pull in together and set up simple rules everyone will follow
No treats for nothing and if shes naughty time out
My few pits had a sudden change of character i put it down to them growing (kind of like a teenager stage ) and i started retraining them xx
Takes time and patience
Ps im not a dog trainer so i cant really help you apart from a basic advice

 

[michelle23093]

she has been fixed. she was abused in the past and it took forever to finally trust us and not for some reason she doesn't I guess or she wants to be my boss again. I guess she gets to much freedom. its hard to deal with at times. I have taken her to the vet and she checked out fine. Im not sure of her previous life or anything except the people before me. she gets laong great with my beagle and she loves the kids. she lays with them at naptime. she is just mean with us adults. She hates the squirt bottle. she will bite at me. I don't try that. maybe she was taunted with that before. I don;t know. its hard to know what she went through but regardless. we have had her since March and she has had a very loving spoiled life and she treats me like a bone. I am very stressed over this. I don';t know what to do anymore

 

[Jennifer Clark]

I agree with Lisa make her work for every comfort

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[Jennifer Clark]

Have you put her on her back and made her submissive sometimes in extreme cases this has worked.

sent from my Droid RAZR with love!

 

[Pati Robins]

Do you roughly know what triggers her aggressive behaviour? Is it fear inflicted or territorial (over a toy etc)
Removing the things that trigger her behaviour -if is fear -keep calm and make her used to the things that she fears , it takes time -basically you reward her by staying calm ,while she face "the danger"
I know is hard in a situation like this to stay calm ,but as you mentioned she was abused -so you are right here any form of punishment (water bottle wont work here -it will trigger her even more)
I would try and teach her some manners -start from basic commands -you tube is full of great videos that will show how to teach the things -maybe this will help with basic,and time out if shes out of controll
Here is some basics that might help pin pointing her behavior
Fear Aggression – This is best managed by using gradual exposure techniques; this involves de-sensitisation of the particular things the dog is fearful of. It is important to remember to replace the dogs fear response with another response; like anticipation of a food treat or play. Identify the fear that the dog has and take the appropriate steps to control them; Obedience training and positive re-enforcement. Use a muzzle or head harness if necessary to avoid any injury to the dog or the owner

Possessive Aggression – This can be managed by a simple verbal correction, i.e. “Leave” if it is repeated consistently. You need to identify the situations that aggression might occur and avoid them until the dog understands why he/or she is being verbally corrected.

Territorial Aggression – This can effectively be managed and controlled with firm commands and appropriate reward-based training. A bark-activated citronella spray collar is an effective tool, or a simple shaker bottle filled with stones also, used at the right time, can be very effective. This problem is best managed by de-sensitisation and by watching the behaviour of the dog, and counteracting it before the situation arises.


Lead Aggression – This can be managed in a few different ways, depending on the severity of the aggression. The first way is to use treats or a toy to attract the dogs attention when encountering a situation. Another option is to use a shaker bottle, or water bottle to gain the dog’s attention, enabling you to take control of the situation. Because this type of aggression is a lack of socialisation at a young age, another way to manage it is to gently, in a controlled manner, walk towards the dog or person, and allow the dog to interact. This should only be done if the dog is in the early stages of lead aggression, and not if the dog is showing signs of full blown aggression, i.e teeth bared and hackles up.

 

[michelle23093]

I have had her since March and she was horrible when I got her. I cried alot of nights. Im at that point now. I have been trying to use the leash on her but Im scared she is gonna bite me and she knows it. her bark and loud growl make my heart drop. she will purposly go and chew up my kids sippy cups. I can't even lure her with a treat till after she has chewed it. she will go hunt them down. its not like they are left laying on the floor. I know the best way is to keep her away from that stuff or keep things up but when you have kids its hard to do that. she will also go in there toys boxes and start chewing on their toys. I have bought bones, kongs, even went as far as buying bone marrow bones from the grocery store. I just want to control the agression and have her listen to me. she is a beautiful fun loving dog that scares me more these days.
what i would say triggers her bad behavior is my attention on anything other than her. she follows me to the bathroom, outside, around the house. I can't be in the other room and she not be with me. I don't know if she loves me or want to control me. I just want to be able to say no and its over

 

[Bazza]

Hi I feel for you, i can hear in your posts you are desperate, I am not much help though. As not overly experienced, Bazza is our first bulldog, we have had other dogs, but none quite like Bazza, We are pretty tough on him though. Stay strong and you have been give some sound advice. And I hope you can work something out because you sound like you are at the end of your tether. Thinking of you.

 

[Texas Carol]

Me too, I feel your sorrow and frustration deeply and I wish I could
do more for you but I can and will pray for all you've told us and hope
she turns around quickly. If you must rehome, please be kind to your
self as you've done your best and all you know to do and sometimes
things just do not work out. I hope tho, it does because you want it so
badly. Keep us informed & GOD be with you <3

 

[michelle23093]

She has a appt for go away in January for a few weeks for agression management. I'm stressed how I'm gonna pay for this. It's 1450. I have a month to save for it but it's Christmas time. I don't want to give her up but I do want to fix this

- - - Updated - - -

She has a appt for go away in January for a few weeks for agression management. I'm stressed how I'm gonna pay for this. It's 1450. I have a month to save for it but it's Christmas time. I don't want to give her up but I do want to fix this

 

[Texas Carol]

What a great person you are, Michelle, such a strong, caring woman

Will be praying GOD blesses your exceptional will in this matter.

I admire & respect your spirit and hope Gretchen responds quickly.

 

[2BullyMama]

She has a appt for go away in January for a few weeks for agression management. I'm stressed how I'm gonna pay for this. It's 1450. I have a month to save for it but it's Christmas time. I don't want to give her up but I do want to fix this

her following you is part of just being a bully, her growling! hitting and disobedience is due to her knowing/sensing your fear and apprehension. You need to gain confidence in yourself with her and make her believe you are the leader. Her going away for training is not bad, but in home with you would be more beneficial for all.

hugs and prayers to you for trying all you can to give her a good home

 

[michelle23093]

There are none locally that offer in home training so I have to opt for going away . He comes and works with us afterwards for few hours then makes several house visits to see how we are doing. He said he can't accomplish all he needs in a few hours a day so he works one on one with her for 2 weeks. I would prefer at home but he said she needs to learn obedience then lead up to respecting us and working for what she gets. It will be good for her and us too. Just saving process. At this point I've done absolutely everything I can do to make her fit in my family. I sure hope it works. I love Gretchen!!!!

 

[michelle23093]

All the trainers local to me are over 2 or more hours away so it would be very costly to get them to come and stay here several times a week. I have incorporated a lot of what he has told me on phone and it's working a lot. I still want her to go though.she needs this