Is my dog people aggressive? :(

[Guest Anonymous]

Hey you guys. I was reading some of the useful links some people gave me about pit bulls awhile ago and I read a few things on aggression towards people coming from pit bulls.. although its rare, when it happens the dog should be humanely euthanized... it got me thinking about my dog..and maybe I'm just getting paranoid because I love her so much..

but I live in an apartment, and although she's very kind, gentle, and good around people and strangers, she does however display an obvious hate for my superintendent...she always lunges at him, growling and hackles up..does this necessarily mean I have a pitbull that is aggressive towards people? Are pit bulls "allowed" to hate certain people just like we are?

With others, she does not display this kind of behavior..occassionally she'll lunge at people, but its out of curiosity...this "hate" only appears when she sees the superintendent....and occassionally, when she's heard people yelling or screaming at someone/their dogs, she'll start to bark at them.

I'm wondering if anybody has any comments on what kinds of behavior is expected from a human aggressive dog..specifically a pit bull...I love my pittie with all my heart and I'm getting worried with all the things I'm reading. I think I'm just freaking out now...too many links at once... :o

I hope someone can post their comments...

[xavierandrea]

pitbulletta napisał(a):

Are pit bulls "allowed" to hate certain people just like we are?...

Sorry I have very little knowledge about pits but,
OMG I swear my guys hate certain people. There is this one guy & lady who visits one of my tenants and my guys go crazy when they see them.

[cheekymunkee]

I don't think all dogs have to like all people. My dogs are NOT human aggressive in the least but there are people they do not like. Munkee ignores them & Justice will just sit beside my daughter or I & will not interact with the person. There are very very few people my dogs do not like & usually I have noticed they have good reason not to & I shouldn't like them either.

Has he ever teased her? Does he knock loudly on your door & frighten her? Perhaps he reminds her of someone in her past who tormented her. There could be any number of reasons your dog does not like this man but I don't think she is human aggressive just based on what you have said. However, to ease your mind you may want to have her assessed or evaluated by an experienced pit bull person. Are there any people at a shelter or rescue near you that you may contact for advice? Personally, since it is the only person that she does not seem to like I would try my best to keep her away from him while trying to socialize her with other men who maybe resemble him.

Debby

[Guest Anonymous]

Yes that's what I'm talking about too. This superintendent, she can't stand him for some reason. Other than that, she really doesn't care about other people. Like I've mentioned, she'll occassionally lunge at some but not in a "I want to bite you" sort of way...more like "who the hell are you let me check you out" sort of way...

I do however, have a people aggressive Chihuahua.. sometimes I'm afraid that the Chi is gonna rub off on the Pit...I don't know if that occurs in dogs..

That's why I usually don't take my Chi out when the Pit is going somewhere...my Chi has actually bit me before...and he's had this sort of people/dog problem since we got him as a pup. I know this is terrible and please don't kill me, but he was purchased from a pet shop by my parents *who had no clue about shelters and mills at the time*..and I was quite young so I had no clue either (Thank goodness alot of the petshops here DO NOT purchase from puppy mills though!). My parents felt sorry for him because his leg was gimped and nobody wanted him..he was at the shop for quite a long time before we came along (he still walks funny by the way). He had "faults" that would never allow him to participate in dog shows..such as floppy ears, a brown nose and his gimped leg...

Anywho, he was aggressive since he was a baby...and there's really nothing we could do about it..we just try to calm him down when he gets worked up..which is usually for no reason..sometimes just walking up to him when he's sitting on a family member's lap will be enough to set him attacking your ankle...the pit bull sees this and usually just gives everyone a "you people are psycho" look...but I'm not very comfortable with her being around when he shows this kind of aggression..sometimes i get scared that she'll start to behave the same way...

Anyways..more comments are always welcome..I need all the advice I can get about the pittie...no hope for the Chi now... :(

[__crazy_canine__]

Well it seems to me that this isnt human aggression, if it was your dog wouldnt like new people or your friends. I bet theres just something about your super that she doesnt like.

In my apartment, a lady was walking her dog and I asked from a distance if I could pet it. She was kind of worried about it and asked if I was afraid of dogs. I almost had to laugh. Me? Afraid of dogs? HA! When I approached I did it kind of slowly because the dog was looking at me like he was going to lunge at me. The owner explained how his hormones must be going wild because he wanted to hump a lot. I was laughing inside my head about it, hoping he wouldnt do that to me. :lol: I let him sniff my hand and he didnt want me to pet him AT ALL!!! When I backed off I said, "Thanks anyway" and watched the dog as I walked away. The owner was holding his entire body trying to get him to calm down. He was trying so hard to lunge at me, whether it was to attack me or just hump me, :lol: :o I dont know.

Getting to the point, while I was talking to her she said he was a lab mix. I commented on him saying he looked very much like an AmStaff, then she said "Yeah, my friend said that too." ((Its eyes were so beautiful, golden yellow they were almost creepy. :o His coat was short and not doublecoated like a labs would be, his ears were... I dont even know how to describe them, but like AmStaffs or pits or Staffies would be. You know where they like stand up a little at the base and then flop over to the sides. When they walk they flop up and down. Its so cute!)) She said her dog was aggressive towards other animals and sometimes people. From the way he acted towards me, it wasnt aggressive but I guess more curious, I wonder why? :wink:

Now I dont know that dog well enough to say it was human aggressive but he let me get close enough so that he could sniff my hand and didnt bite me, although he was going crazy trying to get out of his owners grasp. My point of that story was dogs react differently to different people (and animals) because they get different vibes from them. Whether its fear, hate, or love I think dogs can sense it and it makes a BIG difference!

Sorry I went on and on with that but I found the story kind of, um, interesting. :lol:

[izzy]

A member in here (i don't remember who :oops: ) has the quote "If your dog don't like somebody, surely you don't like him too" in her siggy. And yes Lola does, she hates my aunt and i don't don't like the lady too much, she hates dogs and cats so when she comes to my house is a torture for everybody. I don't know how is your relationship with that superintendent.

I think tour Pitt has the right to hate some persons.... saddly the law don't share my opinion, so be careful.

[Guest Anonymous]

Thanks for the comments you guys. I knew I was overreacting :o
I'm always worried about her and when reading things like that..about putting a people aggressive dog to sleep..I can't help but take it as its written. I guess the site should have included "but its ok if your dog hates someone....they have that right too." lol

Thanks you guys... *goes runs off to hug her dog* see? and you were all worried... :lol:

[cheekymunkee]

A truley human aggressive pit bull SHOULD be put to sleep, but from the sounds of things I don't think your dog is human aggressive. Does he wear a tool belt or jangling keys? Try to limit her contact with him as much as you can.

My Justice does NOT like people she doesn't know in her & my daughter's bedroom (they share), she doesn't act aggressive towards them but she will bark & carry on & put herself between my daughter (or me) & the other person until they leave or she decides it's alright for them to be there. One night a few months ago one of my daughter's friends was at her window trying to wake her up, instead she woke up Justice who stood OVER my daughter growling until she realized who was at the window. She would NOT have bit, she was jsut saying "hey, I'm here & I don't think you need to be"

Debby

[Guest Anonymous]

Yes the super does wear keys and yes he has teased her once before...

Now my last question is, if my other dog is aggressive towards people, will any of that rub off on my pit? (The Chihuahua is aggressive I mean).

[Guest Anonymous]

What about my Chihuahua..when its showing aggressive behavior towards people..and my Pit sees that...do I have something to worry about?

[Cairn6]

In my opinion if my dog who normally likes every person doesn't like someone I don't really trust them. I think they know more then we do on all sorts of levels. I wouldn't worry about it as long as you can keep him under control.

[cheekymunkee]

I wouldn't worry about your pitty learning that behaviour from the Chi. My mom had Chi's, one in particluar was NASTY mean to EVERYONE but her. My dad pitties did interact with the little snot but did not pick up any of it's nasty behaviour. IF your pitty does decide to pick up this habit be sure to correct her every time. She'll get the message that it's a no-no.

Debby

[Shenanigans]

My GSD takes aloofness to a whole new level, he's an outright snob with people he doesn't know. Unless he is doing therapy work, the person is older (usually the people we visit at therapy work) or the person is a child. Interestingly enough the people he usually snubs are some of the most boring superficial people in the world. My GSD has let nogoodniks know that they are not allow to approach me. Usually it just takes his serious look and raised hackles. He did growl once when a drunk was getting too familiar.

My Newfoundland is pretty much friendly to everyone. He's less friendly to some people, but everyone gets a tail wag. I would definitely be worried if there was someone he didn't like.

And definitely dogs can transmit their bad habits, there is almost always a general vibe, and if my GSD is on alert, my Newf will be too, it's pack behaviour, follow the superior.

Lunging is a definite no no, no way, nope, nada, don'teventhinkaboutitdog! behaviour that you need to check asap.

[cheekymunkee]

Lunging is a definite no no, no way, nope, nada, don'teventhinkaboutitdog! behaviour that you need to check asap.

So true!! Put her in a down stay when he approaches & let her know that even though she may have VERY good reason for not liking him, it is not acceptable for her to act out. It may take some work but she'll catch on.

Debby

[Guest Anonymous]

I'm SO sorry if this has already been said!! I totally appologize, or if any other conclusions have been made, but I wanted to stick in my two cents and I'm at school and the bell's going to go soon and i won't have enough time to read it all!

But my umm... theory I guess, is that this person may not be trust worthy. Dogs can sense things us people can't, and usually if my dog doesn't trust someone, I don't either :wink:

But just in case, I'd watch her a bit more, but of she's good with other people, odds are that it's just this one person you should be suspicious of.

[courtnek]

I have to go with Shara and K....dogs know things about people that people dont know. They have some kind of 6th "sense" which tells them not to like someone....he may dislike the super because he is invading your territory (they dont understand lease agreements :lol: :lol: :lol: )
or because maybe you dont like him, and he senses it. or there may really be something sinister about the Super. (like K's milkman). I will always go with my dogs judgement in these situations. Does this guy make you nervous? Does something about him feel "wrong"? Those are usually the tell-tale signs that people have. Not as efficient as dogs. I had a guy come here once pretending to be an AC officer. Both of my dogs hair stood up on end and they SNARLED.....not growled, snarled. Full facial teeth view,
hackles up, etc. They would both bark and sometimes growl when a stranger came to the door, but not like THAT. I slammed the door in his face and called the cops. Turned out he had escaped from the mental home and the cops were looking for him. So I tend to trust the dogs judgement, even over my own.

A retired older gentleman came by this afternoon asking if I would like to pay him to trim my bushes. Neither dog even got up.

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

[Guest Anonymous]

Well, there is bad news and good news. The bad news is that, of course, your pit bull has demonstrated that she is people aggressive. She snarls, lunges and growls with her hackles raised. That is aggression. If it were directed at a potted plant, she would be potted plant aggressive, but it isn't. It is directed at a person. So she is people aggressive.

The good news is that aggression directed toward people (or toward other animals) need not necessarily be an automatic death sentence for any dog, if the dog has an absolutely responsible owner, committed to keeping it alive. The key here is not whether or not the dog will bite (most will, given the right circumstance) , but whether the dog is DANGEROUS to people and/or other animals.

The artificial distinctions that lots of the posters are attempting to draw here (for example, that she likes some people so she is not aggressive) are kind of silly, when you think of it. Hardly any dog is aggressive all the time to everybody and plenty of little old ladies enjoyed petting Bane (the dog who massacred Diane Whipple in an apartment building hallway). Does that mean that Bane wasn't dangerous? The pit bulls who went on a rampage and killed the woman in Colorado lived with a bunch of children, apparently without hurting any of them.

Even a HIGHLY aggressive dog can be kept safely if the owner is willing to make the sacrifices necessary to do it. Some "wolfdog" people live safely with animals who would dearly love to kill them and are physically capable of doing so. Of course, such dogs (or whatever) generally live extremely constricted lives in what are essentially zoo enclosures (but rarely as nice). Many highly dog aggressive dogs live lives being shuffled from one crate to another, or tied virtually all the time on chains so they can't get at other dogs. But I would argue that neither of these existences is really kind to the dog.

Dogs that are potentially dangerous to a smaller subset (in your case, a subset of one) victims can, I think, sometimes be kept alive responsibly because it is reasonable to expect that you will be able to prevent your dog from acting on her aggression. This isn't because they are not dangerous, it is because they can pretty much certainly be prevented from acting on their dangerousness.

Lots of pit bull people have this strange little ritual that they go through. They pontificate that it is a hard and fast rule that any pit bull that shows aggression toward people should be immediately put down. But then when a pit bull DOES show aggression toward a person, they immediately start making excuses, like the most pathetic owners of snappy pomeranians. Probably the superintendent is a serial killer in his other life (prove that he isn't, huh? I knew you couldn't do it) or maybe he just looks like somebody the dog had a bad experience with. Or maybe the dog is protecting the owner. Plus have you had a complete physical done on the dog and consulted every "behaviorist" who will take your money?

I don't know why they bother with the charade. Just admit that pit bulls who are aggressive with people might need to die or they might be able (if the owner is committed enough to prevent harm) to go on living. Just like pit bulls who are dangerous toward other animals. It is a hassle all around and the owner of a dog who is demonstrably dangerous (toward people OR animals) needs to be 100% responsible, but that is just reality.

primrose


[/b]

[Guest Anonymous]

Alright thanks you guys... I'll watch her again over the next couple of days/weeks and see how she reacts to the guy and correct her on the hurling.... thanx :)

[Guest Anonymous]

pitbulletta napisał(a):

Alright thanks you guys... I'll watch her again over the next couple of days/weeks and see how she reacts to the guy and correct her on the hurling.... thanx :)

Actually, you better plan to watch this dog (and more, to physically restrain her) extremely carefully for the next decade or so, not just the next couple of days/weeks. She has given you an indication that she is aggressive.

And remember, even if you correct the manifestations of the behavior so she no longer lunges at people, that does not mean that her underlying temperament is changed. If the lunging is the result of aggression, (and you were unclear about that) she may well still be dangerous if given the chance.

primrose

[Guest Anonymous]

*deep breath, deep breath*

Okay, primrose, you MAKE MY BLOOD BOIL BLACK! I will flat out say that I hate you, but this is WHY!
You are RUDE, extremely rude in this post in my opinion, and your facts are totally wrong. Judging by your post you are going from your own opinion and no true facts, and judging by your post you know VERY LITTLE about actual human and dog aggression.

She came here asking for some advice, and what people thought, and we gave it to her straight. If we thought the dog was aggressive then we would say so, but the majority here who have personally delt with aggressive dogs, and done their homework (which you appear to have not) are all in agreeance (sp?) that this dog is NOT human aggressive. It is possible for her to develope it from this one person if it is not corrected, but PBL seems to be full commited to correct this, and control it. This is ONE person that the dog doesn't like. I had a lab who wouldn't hurt a soul, but he pinned the health inspecter to the door at my school and wouldn't let him in. I personally believe there was reason he did this. I also had a different do who was flat out aggressive. It took her FOREVER to get use to my boyfriend and actually like him, and it took a LOT of work, as well as a few other people, seeing them every day, but there were some people she'd known all her life who she NEVER liked and even though she was aggressive, I went with her instinct, and the more I found out about these people, the more I didn't like them either. Now Hazel was REALLY aggressive towards both dogs and people, and I have never met a dog who was full out "Aggressive" who only reacted to ONE PESRON, EVER. My lab acted aggressivly to the health inspector, but he was NOT aggressive.

Do some research and post from actual facts before you being to type with your faulse accusations and untrue facts. Stop making it seem like wild animals and pit bulls are all blood thirsty killers. :roll:

[__crazy_canine__]

WAY TO GO HAZEL!!!!!! :D :D :D You took the words right out of my mouth, so glad you could say it before me so I didnt have to blow my head off from anger! :evil:

[courtnek]

thank you Mei. Prim's posts appear to not like Pit's but the facts are the facts. A Pit showinng aggressioin needs to be monitored. it may be nothing, as I said, some dogs dont like some people. but unfortnately, these dogs need more "watching" for their benefit...

:D

[__crazy_canine__]

Sorry but I dont think Primrose has the right to say PBL's girl IS people aggressive just because the dog didnt like one person. One! I get the point to take percaution, Im all for that but we dont have enough proof to say that her dog has human aggression.

Yes, her dog should be watched carefully for the protection of people, other animals, and the breed. I agree with that but Prim, you really are getting under my and other people's skin! Please I am begging you so I dont go away to the madhouse, PLEASE stop being arguementitive (sp?).

Again Im sorry just posted my opinion and letting you all know that I am getting really angry with guests. Primrose, you make some good points but some thigns you say are just not neccesary at all!

[cheekymunkee]

Lots of pit bull people have this strange little ritual that they go through. They pontificate that it is a hard and fast rule that any pit bull that shows aggression toward people should be immediately put down. But then when a pit bull DOES show aggression toward a person, they immediately start making excuses, like the most pathetic owners of snappy pomeranians. Probably the superintendent is a serial killer in his other life (prove that he isn't, huh? I knew you couldn't do it) or maybe he just looks like somebody the dog had a bad experience with. Or maybe the dog is protecting the owner. Plus have you had a complete physical done on the dog and consulted every "behaviorist" who will take your money?

You post this, but on several posts on THIS thread she was advised to limit her dog's contact with this man, put her dog in a sit stay & work with her in regards to lunging, jumping & growling, have it evaluated. She was also told that a truly aggresseive pit bull SHOULD be put down. All dogs have a tendencty to not like a certain person or type of person. She has stated that the super has teased her dog in the past. If this dog were *human aggressive and a danger to people & the breed I would be the FIRST person to tell her to put it down, the dog doesn't like the super. Why is it alright for SOME breeds to not like a person but a travesty if a pit bull doesn't like someone? You don't like pit bulls, we get it, we don't care. One more thing, not ALL of the people who posted advice or opinions to her ARE pit bull people.


edit: *Perhaps I should state an all out human aggressive pit bull, not one that has shown a dislike for someone & is in need of some training to correct bad behaviour.

Debby

[courtnek]

Go easy Deb. I agree with you. But the aggressiness of Pits nowadays unfortunatley means you have to watch them more closely then other dogs. For their own good..

we dont want them banned. Better to watch, and control. them