Here I am back again looking for advice
 

Hi Everyone
Here I am once again, looking for advice from the pros. I have a neighbor who lives up the road from me who has a Yorkie and now Wallee's mommy. When I first got Wallee and he was able to take his first walk outside, I was walking him up towards their home. They were excited to meet this new yorkie on the block and brought their yorkie out to meet Wallee..Of course, Wallee being a very young puppy went into the dog's face. His reaction of course was a nip that sent Wallee running behind me crying. Wallee was bitten a second time a couple weeks later from a friend's dog so I knew he had to go to puppy school to learn to socialize. He has as a result turned into a very great dog around other dogs.
The other dog up the street however (who has had multiple leg surgeries and who has been attacked twice I have to say) still has a real "hate' for Wallee..If we see him on walks he will lung at Wallee and try to bite him. I also witnessed him run out of his house and attack my friend's Duck Tolling Retriever for just being on his porch.
The owners of said yorkie are great people and yesterday she brought him and Rosie down to our house when she heard Wallee out in the yard. Luckily we had another dog here visiting who also has been known to have issues at times so she decided not to come in. Her reason for coming here was that she thinks if she brings this dog into Wallee's territory he will learn to be around him. Well, while she was talking to me on the other side of the gate, Wallee came up to investigate. First thing that dog did was lung at the fence growling.Wallee on the other side of the fence bowed down in total submission. He then got up, ran to the back yard and never returned while I was talking to the girl.
What my real question is after this long post is, do you really think it will be safe to bring this dog into my yard around Wallee? I don't think that dog will ever learn to like Wallee and I do not want him to attack Wallee and hurt him and then make Wallee turn agressive. Please tell me what you think of this situation.
Thanks

I wouldn't let a dog near Draco that lunges and growls at him. Sounds like that dog is poorly socialized, and is the one that needs training. Perhaps you can offer where ever Wallee went to get puppy socializing to your neighbors dog. Tell them you don't feel comfortable with their dog until they've seen a trainer that could help with that issue.

Draco is very friendly, and I take him to the dog park often. But we'll leave if I find there is a poorly socialized dog there who's owner will say "they don't like puppies" or "they get jealous when I pet other dogs" Why bring your dog somewhere where they're sure to run into these things that bother them, right? Or correct the behavior and train them to be okay with it.

I'm not a big fan of socialization and have never socialized any of my/our dogs. Why risk exposing your dog to other dogs that you have no idea of their background, shots, communicable diseases. temperament? Now this puppy we are getting will need to be socialized as we will be training her as a service dog, whole different requirements.


In your case the neighbors dog already has a problem having already been attacked by other dogs either its fault or the others. This could also be the reason it aggresses Wallee. Socializing is always a risk that a puppy can get nipped or worse, both owners need to have control/trust of their dogs. My dogs although not socialized in the norm most here would think, would always accept a person or pet if I said "OK friend". I made it a point after every burlap session to call the dog off and "OK Friend" , then let the agitator/aggressor play with the dog. I did this with dogs also, but only with dogs/owners I trusted.

I walked my Peek A Boo with a neighbor and her dog, well kind of... we had to stay about a block away in the beginning and slowly over two weeks, decreased the distance between them. Finally we were able to get the dogs close enough to each other where they wouldn't bark but we could at least carry on a conversation! They were still weird about being in each other's yards though, although they usually tolerated each other. You could also try letting each dog sleep on a T shirt then switch shirts so they get used to each other's scent, from a distance.

Nope, don't take chances with your baby around a biting dog. It's up to that woman to have raised a well-behaved dog or rehabbed a dog-aggressive animal from an attack and if the dog cannot be helped by her back to normal behavior around other dogs, she should keep him away from them out of pure concern for those babies that could get hurt. It's crazy to expect others to offer up their dogs for her dog to keep aggressing toward when he's clearly making no strides forward. Likely she's not a strong pack leader or very good at helping him with his problem or he wouldn't be so fearful, protective or dog-aggressive himself. I'll bet you can offer Wallee up as his guinea pig every other day and he never will get better. She needs to hire a dog behaviorist to train her how to help her dog herself. Until she brought a calm, well-behaved, muzzled dog down to visit Wallee and he stayed well-behaved for several visits, I'd not entertain visits with that dog. He's obviously just as uncomfortable around other dogs as they are around him the way he is now and he will probably be happier if she quits trying to force the issue until she gets some professional help for him. Right now he's dangerous and could bite or attack at any time.

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup: I agree, do not allow the aggressive dog anywhere near Wallee. It is not your responsibility to train the neighbor's dog using Wallee as a potential victim. It is the neighbor's responsibility to train their dog, and until the dog is trained, don't let it near Wallee!

I think it's your responsibility to protect your baby and this dog has proved more than once he will bite. I would not use my baby to "test" him again...I think you've been lucky so far, I don't think I'd push my luck any further. Imagine how scared your little one must feel after these episodes. Just my 2 cents! Good luck!

No and not necessary.

Thanks everyone..that is what I really felt in my heart. I am sorry that her poor baby has been attacked already but never want to put my little boy in harms way. I have worked really heard to teach him to be social on the streets when we pass others so he does not instigate anything. I don't go to dog parks as I don't like the idea that just anyone can go there whether their dogs are utd on shots or anything. That plus I am not comfortable with my dog with dogs I don't know.
I just don't know how to break it to her. I feel bad for her, but like you said, it is not fair for Wallee to fall victim to her dog's fears.

Blame it on your vet. Tell her the vet said your pup is having some fearful issues and has suggested that you keep you baby away from any aggressive or very active dogs for the time being! A little "white lie" to protect your baby never hurt anyone and may save him in the long run!

I'd simply tell her you are scared Wallee will get scared again or bitten and will react by becoming dog-aggressive himself and you no longer are willing to take that chance with him. Tell her how he acted when he got scared this last time and she'll understand if she loves all dogs and not just hers. Tell her the price is too high and she really needs to seek the help of a dog behaviorist who can teach her how to rehab her troubled dog or keep it from other dogs as the way she's doing it now is not working for her dog and especially not for Wallee, who is your responsibility. When you're done, smile and say, "I just knew you'd understand how important this is to me". And if she comes walking toward your house in the future with her dog, put Wallee and Summer in the house and visit with her without your dogs.

No Way ! would I trust an attacking dog around my babies. You could tell her that you have spoken to some trainers about the situation & they don't recommend it. She needs to call in a trainer for her dog & stop trying to put yours at risk.

That's a good approach, and it will save the friendship. If you want to keep it completely honest, you might bring the issue up with your vet, so he or she can sign on to this. I'm sure your vet would agree that it's in Wallee's best interest not to be around aggressive dogs, for psychological AND health reasons.

I'd want her to know I take full responsibility for my dog's well-being and safety and not make her think you need the vet's word in order to keep your baby safe - or she may think there's a chink she can work on to weaken you in the future. Stiffen your spine and let her know your dog's health and safety is your responsibility and ONLY concern. Period. And then smile really big.

Good point. Except I don't think that I could smile. However this goes down, let us know what happens, and know that everyone at Yorkietalk has Wallee's back.