Would you stop this?

[Simms87]

Tonight I took my 12 week old cc puppy groot to my sons baseball practice to socialize with people and just get him used to being out and about... He did great with little kids grown ups doing awesome on the leash just being a great pup... When an older (but smaller) rat terrier walked by groot stayed seated while the other dog sniffed him but then the dog lunged at him. Groot immediately was up barking and growling to defend himself. The other dogs owned backed him off and apologized but groot stayed pointed and eyes locked in on the dog till it was well out of sight... I didn't do anything to call him off as I feel like it's fine for my dog to stand his ground but in your opinion should I have done anything? How would you handle that situation I definitely don't want me dog starting anything but should I have not let him stay focused until the other dog was gone?

Sorry if that was long winded or hard to understand...

 

[Mag-Pie]

I wouldn't allow strange dogs come up to sniff my dog, you never know how stable or unstable they are...

 

[Mag-Pie]

Here is a great article from leerburg.com that you might find helpful. It goes into detail as to why I would not allow strange dogs to come up, and it's to avoid possible future problems. Hope this helps!

Leerburg Dog Training | My Dog is Dog Aggressive: What Can I Do About It?

 

[mountainfila]

If you do nothing to correct your boy from lunging now, you are in for a big surprise when he hits 100 plus lbs and lunges and grabs little rat terrier. And also second what mag pie said about keeping strange dogs away, unless you know the dog , this is when the majority of a puppies learning takes place because they are an empty slate, so correct that behavior because it is not ok to lunge back at a dog, by doing nothing teaches him its ok to act aggressive and then we will see you back here in 8-9 months asking how stop him from going after every dog he sees. Take charge, make him sit as you are shooing the other dog away, it lets him know you got this.

 

[nerdybirdy]

As the alpha it is better for you to protect your dog as a pup, stand between thedog and yours assertively, even if its opposite side of the road have your pup on the side away from the dog and tell it "back" or "away" in a gruff tone.its more the tone of voicethan the word, but it shows your dog you will protect it as your young ( imagine a child coming up to your child and yelling in his/her face, you would tell that child off. Same with dogs to a point. I have clapped, yelled and stood my ground before, obviously dont get inthe middle of potential fight however if you can catch a dog being stand offish and stop it from happening do it! (Im aware it may sound controversial and a bit mad but you are the alpha, you protect thd pack)

And if its on lead tell owners before they get too close.

Keep yours short leashed when walking by and give praise when he ignores or does not react tothe other dog. Or when sitting again short leashed and prote twith either your leg slightly infront. It is hard to explain through writing a lot easier to show or speak what I am trying to explai.

 

[Simms87]

If you do nothing to correct your boy from lunging now, you are in for a big surprise when he hits 100 plus lbs and lunges and grabs little rat terrier. And also second what mag pie said about keeping strange dogs away, unless you know the dog , this is when the majority of a puppies learning takes place because they are an empty slate, so correct that behavior because it is not ok to lunge back at a dog, by doing nothing teaches him its ok to act aggressive and then we will see you back here in 8-9 months asking how stop him from going after every dog he sees. Take charge, make him sit as you are shooing the other dog away, it lets him know you got this.

As the alpha it is better for you to protect your dog as a pup, stand between thedog and yours $#@!ertively, even if its opposite side of the road have your pup on the side away from the dog and tell it "back" or "away" in a gruff tone.its more the tone of voicethan the word, but it shows your dog you will protect it as your young ( imagine a child coming up to your child and yelling in his/her face, you would tell that child off. Same with dogs to a point. I have clapped, yelled and stood my ground before, obviously dont get inthe middle of potential fight however if you can catch a dog being stand offish and stop it from happening do it! (Im aware it may sound controversial and a bit mad but you are the alpha, you protect thd pack)

And if its on lead tell owners before they get too close.

Keep yours short leashed when walking by and give praise when he ignores or does not react tothe other dog. Or when sitting again short leashed and prote twith either your leg slightly infront. It is hard to explain through writing a lot easier to show or speak what I am trying to explai.

Groot never lunged. He was doing what was asked of him sitting while the other owner let there dog sniff which I have not read the article provided but from what y'all say I can understand why and this is my first mastiff so maybe there are different rules but with my other dogs (lab, labradoodle, little yorkie mutt) they go to dog parks go on walks what ever no problems with strangers or aggression I don't think grot was wrong for standing up and barking I would never encourage him to attack but I also don't want him to be attacked. I guess I raise him the same way I do my son. "Better not start it but always be ready to defend yourself your sister and your mother"

 

[nerdybirdy]

I can let Zeus play with all kinds of dogs in a park, or have friends dogs come over but you need to keep an eye and train consistantly however amastiff rarely initiates a fight however you can bet they will finish it. Which is not what you want as it could end very badly if not death for the other dog once groot is fully grown. By all means they need to know how to defend themselves, but you dont want him to retaliate then have him labeled as aggressive simply for sticking up for himself against a smaller dog, which happens far too often.

 

[fixitlouie]

You did great. Dog dod too

 

[Mag-Pie]

this is my first mastiff so maybe there are different rules but with my other dogs (lab, labradoodle, little yorkie mutt) they go to dog parks go on walks what ever no problems with strangers or aggression I don't think grot was wrong for standing up and barking I would never encourage him to attack but I also don't want him to be attacked

Personally, I would NOT take my CC to a dog park, way too many irresponsible dog owners and unbalanced dogs running around unsupervised out there. That's just asking for trouble. As far as mastiffs go, indeed there are different rules, their sheer size and strength requires you to be responsible not only for him, but also for everyone he encounters. As already mentioned, though many mastiffs will not start fights, they will surely finish them... so it is in your best interest to train him to not be reactive to others, especially the small dogs. Something to always keep in mind.

 

[nerdybirdy]

We stopped dog parks once zeus hit about 8 months as other dogs saw him as a challenge, however with getting our second puppy in a few months Im going to avoid the dog parka all together, simply because there are too many dog owners who cant control their dogs an/or think they can let them off leash to run riot, then use it for their own social needs. we socialize him in ways that are safer for him and other dogs. If you do have 3 other dogs he will get how to interact with smaller dogs with your help

 

[DennasMom]

As soon as the other dog was under control and moving away, I would have redirected Groot to something else that he could get rewarded for... such as a "look at me!" I would not have let him fixate on the impolite behavior or the movements of the other dog.

This is your puppy, so your rules... remember that anything you let your dog get away with is something he will try again, and by allowing it, you may also be reinforcing that behavior. Since you did not object to his obsession on the other dog being in the area, you essentially told him that was what you did want him to do.

As a young puppy, I tried to help Denna learn to "leave it" and ignore bad behavior... I did not want her to think it was up to her to determine what 'threats' were worth pursuing. I wanted to let her know that I would 'handle it' and that she could count on me to take care of her. But... that's my take... Denna has learned to ignore most impolite doggie behavior, but she still has her limits, too.

 

[nerdybirdy]

As soon as the other dog was under control and moving away, I would have redirected Groot to something else that he could get rewarded for... such as a "look at me!" I would not have let him fixate on the impolite behavior or the movements of the other dog.

This is your puppy, so your rules... remember that anything you let your dog get away with is something he will try again, and by allowing it, you may also be reinforcing that behavior. Since you did not object to his obsession on the other dog being in the area, you essentially told him that was what you did want him to do.

As a young puppy, I tried to help Denna learn to "leave it" and ignore bad behavior... I did not want her to think it was up to her to determine what 'threats' were worth pursuing. I wanted to let her know that I would 'handle it' and that she could count on me to take care of her. But... that's my take... Denna has learned to ignore most impolite doggie behavior, but she still has her limits, too.

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