My dog went for another dog - unprovoked. Advice please

[StrawberryMoonxx]

I have a 5 year old giant mixed doodle breed dog since she was a puppy. She has been trained and really well natured for her whole life, with zero instances of aggression towards dogs or people.

I have 2 young children. She adapted well to the new home environment with the little ones. She can be very excitable around visitors and food, but apart from that we love every aspect of having her in our family. She has a happy life and walked 3 times a day, very loved.

This morning, when we were leaving the house for our morning walk, she suddenly leaped down the drive, the lead coming out of my hand and attacked a dog that was walking past. The dog was completely innocent and walking calmly with their owner.

it was the worst thing I have ever seen. Had I not rugby tackled her to the floor (daughter in carrier on my chest) I fear she would have terribly injured the other dog. I feel horrendous about it and can’t stop crying. Incredibly upset for the other dog and owner. Thank goodness the other dog walked away after the ordeal. It all seems such a blur, I don’t really know. I apologised profusely.

please advise - I’m going to book a vets appointment to seek advice or if there’s a medical reason for this behaviour.

it has completely unsettled me and I am terrified about my two lovely daughters, as it was so random and completely unprovoked. Completely out of character.
please be kind with comments, I feel so so guilty and horrible about it all.

I see the internet idiots who think they can diagnose serious behaviour issues with zero knowledge and having not seen the dog in question are out in force again 🙄

As a trainer/behaviourist I can tell you there are multiple possible reasons for this behaviour and NO ONE including me has a hope in hell of working out exactly what it is over the internet. People telling you it’s definitely this or that on the basis of a written description are dangerous and naive - you wouldn’t catch a professional worth their salt doing so

my advice

1. Vet check as a matter of urgency, just to be sure it’s not pain related or similar. In rare cases, sudden behavioural change can be the result of a brain tumour (albeit extreme and unlikely) so ruling physical stuff out is always the starting point

2, behaviour assessment booked with a qualified,reputable behaviourist. Your vet may be able to recommend one.

Sorry if that sounds harsh, but mucking around with well meaning but totally uneducated laymen on these matters is unsafe.

But these uneducated lay people are saying that dogs can be unpredictable and that no-one can ever be certain that a dog will behave well or safely. Just like us they have off days - we can express our discomfort in socially acceptable ways. A dog having an off day cannot do that.

I am always wary of dog owners who say their dog would NEVER jump up/snap or whatever, because they simply do not know.

Is that aimed at me?
I totally agree with you btw. Dogs like people are unpredictable. My fully trained competition level dogs are still animals, and are still managed to be kept safe for those ‘just in case’ situation. That’s a basic dog owning requirement

My beef is with people diagnosing by internet without valid experience or a case history, nothing more.

I am not a dog expert at all but I do recall a similar incident with my family dog when another dog encroached on her territory. She totally went for the other dog and I remember being very distressed (I was about 13). Anyway the other dog was fine other than a minor scratch and our dog certainly never ever went for a human in all her happy years.

take her to the vet and perhaps a behaviorist if you’re worried but definitely don’t panic