Red alert! Red alert!

[GAbeachBum]

OK. I have a problem. Lily, my 9 month old female, is very, very stubborn. We were trying to get her out of her crate today, and she refused to come out. We tried to give her food, treats, toys, love - everything. She refused to come out. She does this often. We don't know why she does this, but she just does. She's very babied, and we've never yelled at her, swatted her or anything. Well my husband gets irritated because we'd tried coaxing her for 10 minutes, and she just sits at the back of this big crate, and looks at us. He reaches in to pull her out, and she snapped at him and almost bit him. She has done that to me once before, but I love her so much that I never told him. She didn't break the skin on either of us, but he is furious now. He used to train dogs in the military, and he is so angry with her now, that he got upset and went to bed.

Help. Is this normal with Bulldogs? My other bulldog, Elvis, is so chill, and laid back. He would never even dream of biting anyone. It's too much like work. But Lily is extremely hyper, and high strung. I am scared. He has always said he won't keep a dog that bites him. I am terrified. I know he won't make me get rid of her, because she is family, but he has always loved her too, and I don't want him to not care for her anymore. I don't know what to do.

 

[rjisaterp]

I am sorry to hear you are having problems with Lily. But I have found this out firsthand on on this forum....Bulldogs are stubborn.

My Bentley (extremely OCD) would not come out of his crate and just sat. We tried coaxing him out as well and we stopped and left his door open and he eventually came out of his crate. Jewel is like Elvis...laid back and easy going and now is not a morning person. She comes out of her crate eventually and we take her outside.

I know this is not a soulution to the behavior you are experiencing with Lily but some of the more seasoned veterans will chime in and hopefully provide some insight or a solution to your issue.


Thank your husband for me for his military service.

 

[GAbeachBum]

thank you, Roger, and I certainly will thank him!

 

[boxorox]

She was most likely stubborn at first and then scared. I doubt she snapped out of aggression, but snapping out of fear is probably worse, because it's unpredictable.
My bulldog pulls the same crap all the time(No biting so far though). In Ruby's case, she is 9 months and skittish(hates loud or unfamiliar noises). If she gets startled while in the crate, she will refuse to come out(which is a battle of wills).
Try to allow a little time and stimulus for her to come out on her own. Maybe place a treat on the floor 1 foot out side the cage and walk away. That usually get's Ruby up and moving. When Ruby realizes people are up and going about their business without her, she can't resist.....

I think the biting was out of fear. I am concerned I may experience it at some point too. I know the task is to help foster confidence and trust in the dog, but that is easier said than done. **following this thread for suggestions on that**

 

[2BullyMama]

One thing to always keep in mind... a lot of dogs, when in their crate BY CHOICE, want to be left alone and will come out when ready. We actually treat the crate like their safe zone.. if they go in and are not directed to do so, we have learn they just want to be left alone and have some quite/alone time. Reaching in and trying to force her out is probably the worst thig to do... she is seeing her carte as her safe place and she was scared which is why she snapped.

As someone else mentioned.. leave the door open and she will come out when she is ready.... unless you NEED her out for a potty run or something esle... do not worry, she will come out in time.

Also... use this training tool with her... it will help her understand you/hubby rule the roast. http://www.englishbulldognews.com/f...ioral/33985-life-free-training-technique.html

lastly, thank your husband for his service!!

 

[bullmama]

My little man also takes a moment to come out of his crate in the morning. Funny thing is he cries to go out, but when we open the door he lays down and rolls on his side and looks at is all cute. For him, it's part of the daily game. We tell him he's so cute, then I sit in front of his crate and say "Come here Bubba", "want some loves?" Once I do this, he gets up and jumps into my lap as deep as he can and burrows himself in. Then I carry him outside like a baby, he won't follow me so it has to be done this way. It's part of the routine. So for him, it's a game we play, that was never intended, but is something we unknowingly "taught" him to play. Or shall I say, he taught ME to play.

Sometimes he will lay there and do his cute rollovers and paw at me for 5 minutes! It's cute as hell. No wonder he trained me.

 

[GAbeachBum]

ok well he's OK this morning. He was upset last night, but I read everything to him that yall said, and he took one look at those big brown eyes this morning, and hes smitten all over again. He also learned a valuable lesson about not reaching in to take her out of her crate. Thanks, yall.

 

[yulia]

It seems like this behavior will not go away and may get worse, unless something is done about it and the situation is turned around 180 degrees in the dog's eyes. Snapping is a SERIOUS issue and in my opinion requires a serious attention. If it were me, I would immediately eliminated crate from the picture (so she does not have that small space to get all territorial about) and started re-building my relationship with the dog as an owner-dog not as a mother-daughter (this type of relationship does not work with most dogs; dogs are not designed to be our "children", it does not make them happy dogs, it developed multiple behavior issues and make them uncertain and nervous).

 

[BuddercupKelly]

Funny how well we are trained by our bulldogs, their cuteness is our reward. LOL

- - - Updated - - -

So glad to hear it. It's hard to stay mad at a bully for too long.