oh gawd! what do i do about this???

Windmill wrote:
I teared up. Not even joking.

I always seem to find weird animals that turn out to be amazing smile

Axiom wrote:
Mum2onebub wrote:
thats awsome chick to hear how much you helped that dog and gave him a real chance you should be really proud of yoursef smile I just think the word dominance doesn't mean being cruel or violent towards your animals and wanted to offer another side.
Woah I'm really suprised to hear thats all they need one of the guys at the spca was amazing and taught me so much and has helped me with my dog so much.
I respect every on of your ladies opinions Its nice we all have somethig to brig to a conversation from our experiences smile
I think the staff were really concerned when they sold him to us. They even suggested that we should leave him at the shelter a bit longer and visit him a few times before taking him home - at that time I didn't even realise how bad his behavioural problems were (they basically implied that the elderly couple couldn't cope with him because they were after a lap dog). I said that I was happy to take him home that day... but when we got home his problems became clear straight away - it looked like he had the dog equivalent of autism (I'm not exaggerating). I think even non violent dominance would have made him even more withdrawn and aggressive. I just saw him as this eccentric little creature that had a spark in his eye and I wanted to get to know him. He's lucky that he ended up with us - but I think we're even luckier.

Thats so cute sounds like its a perfect match for both of you smile

Wow things took off while I was gone! Noddy, your plan sounds great. I wish you all the best of luck with your doggy and i hope thats the last you see of that kind of behaviour! Super sucky situation to be in but you seem to have your head about it well smile

As axiom previously "guessed" I am a vet - so cleverly disguised by my username! tongue I have worked in the same practice as a board qualified veterinary behaviour specialist (so a vet who has done a residency in behaviour) hence being so passionate about behaviour and management - we see it when it all falls apart. I think there is a big difference between having control over your dog and having a dominant relationship with it - control is good, dominance is bad. Dominence is successful sometimes, but very dog dependant - for example, many breeds such as german shepherds don't respond well to it, hence why a lot of them seem nervy and snappy - where as when they are trained through positive reinforcement they are much more well balanced. And attaining control via positive reinforcement tends to be much more successful and predictable than dominence methods - and very little can go wrong. If dominance training goes wrong, it tends to result in the euthanasia of the pet, and an owner or two hurt. Hence why we don't recommend it. The science behind it has been disproven and we have a better method - so why use it?

Sorry if I seem very black-and-white about the whole thing - of course animal behaviour isn't like that - but at the end of the day, when you talk about dog behaviour, your talking about an issue that can very well mean the end of that animals life. Most of the time when advising clients on behaviour managment, we have very little room for error, we only have one shot to get it right. And rightly so - aggressive animals are dangerous for everyone. But thats why we're so dead set on what should be done and how things should be handled - because you have one chance to get it right, and if it all goes wrong, there's no turning back.

Lastly, I just wanted to say that its so lovely to hear the personal pet stories that you ladies have smile Some days I come home from working feeling completely drained and as though I am the only person out there fighting for the animals. It truly warms my heart to hear the stories of other people fighting for theirs smile

This discussion has gone a little off topic, but has still be an interesting debate. If you would like to continue the discuss dog behaviour and management, feel free to start another thread.

Thanks for participating. smile