please can someone give me advice on my new half staff half american bulldog?

[SusieCarmichael]

hi all,

on saturday we took on a 9 mnth old half staffie half american bulldog, he's very good, seems to love my 4 yo dd, loves the staff we already have (even though she's not too keen on him)

he is very responsive, listens when you say no, comes straight away when called etc

however, he is not very good with strangers... i.e i was outside with him today when postman came, walked up the path to the house to give me a letter.. all fine until the postman turned to leave at which point the dog turned and barked and stood in front of him and wouldn't let him leave. he calmed down as soon as i said no and went and held his collar

basically i know its not a banned breed but i am slightly worried about my dd. obviously i haven't left him with her unsupervised but would like to be able (in the future) to basically trust him enough to leave him in the room with her as i do with the staff i have already

if you've got this far then thanks for reading and any advice you might have is greatly appreciated

We never have had our dogs on teh sofas etc or upstairs. We simply put the dog in another room adn shut the door or took dd with us. ALso used stair gates for teh dogs. No hassle and did this for years.

thank you rainbow, neither dog goes upstairs and only reason they are allowed on sofas is because they are leather and won't get dirty/smelly, we have a gate on the kitchen door and the staff (being a very little staff) has a cage if and when she needs to be put away

i now understand never to leave dd with this dog so thank you all for advice and i am going to look at training classes

I take the dog with me he is 8 months now and is happy enough to follow me because I could be being boring and cleaning I could be getting treats or a lead he never knows .

Nothing to say on the breed no experience but I did think it was a different dog to a pitbull which is the banned one I think I thought abd were more like a boxer shows how much I know.

I have the possible the most non-aggressive dog ever and I never leave her alone with my four-year old.

'possibly'

tbh, my dog tends to follow me when im doing things around the house. putting washing away etc.

and slushy they are different to pitbulls. there a few different types of abd, and some can look similar to boxers. in my experience boxers tend to be a bit more excitable, but that is imo.

he follows me everywhere slushy

There you go just encourage the dogs to follow you and they won't be left alone with your dd. Good luck hope it all works out for you .

Thanks mumatron Have now researched boxer and abd and see they are quite different you learn something new everyday.

tbh i would of loved a boxer, but i knew more about abd so stuck with them.

gigantaur sorry to go backwards but what did you mean by this? 'but they are essentially pitbull terriers that have been re branded.'

does that mean they are in the pit bull family?

i must of missed that post. exactly where did you hear this gigantaur?

i really dont think scdaremongering like that will be helpful to anyone.

the majority of 'bully types' old english bulldogs, american bulls, bull mastiffs and pitbull terriers are decendant from the same type of dog.

that does not make them a 'rebranded pitbull' in any way shape or form.

or did i miss the fact that abd have only been around for the last few years??

pitbulls are still around in this country, alot of the time passed off as other breeds. but you should not tar a whole breed with same brush.

Did you introduce the dogs on neutral ground? usually that can help introductions to go smoothly. Agree with Vallhala, use your lungs! They come in handy with grumbly dogs, they need to know that you are the boss and there is no point in fighting among themselves for the position. Also, get him castrated, it isn't a cure-all for behavioural issues (although it doesn't seem like he has any?) but it will help in general with calming him down and his attitude towards others dogs, especially other males, but if he was bullied in his previous home by another dog it doesn't sound like he is an aggressive dog.

It is silly say X breed is a child eater, it all depends on how they are raised, nothing to do with breed.

I lost the will to live reading some of this thread but the way to deal with a guarding dog when people leave is to make sure people leaving have treats and to drop the treats as they walk away from the dog on the floor. Dog will look for treats and learn not to guard the person.

This is quite a common reaction by many dogs and can be trained away very easily.

my BM and DDB both bark if someone knocks at the door, and the DDB is quite territorial until she gets to know someone. this wouldnt be a reason for me to rehome as TBH when my husband is away so much i like having the security of them being here.

they are good with the kids, although the boy BM has had his moments, but was firmly put back into place! it was hormones as he is the softest thing ever.

i wouldnt rule out any dog because of breed, but you have personal experiences which sway you one way or another, i would never ever have a doberman as i was attacked by one as a kid. but every dog is different.

good luck, keep on top of any sign of 'attitude' and enjoy xx

SeaShells I don't understand what you mean by 'did you not research the breeds'?

I did a lot of research on dog breeds before I got of each of the three dogs I have owned with children. American Bulldogs can do well with children if they are socialised well with them.

Growling is the dogs way of telling you he is not happy with something. Had he wanted to attack he would have done so.

Get thee to training classes and a behaviorist if necessary. Many of the better trainers who run classes will do one on one if they believe it is necessary.

NEVER leave any dog alone with young children. EVER. No matter how much you trust them. Any dog can turn under the right circumstances. What if you child bit the dog? How are you to know he won't defend himself.

Shinyandnew - exactly, you researched the breeds and American bulldogs CAN do well if they are socialised well - the key socialisation period is under 10 weeks, it becomes more and more difficult to have an effect on behaviour the older the dog gets and by 9mths, as many posters have pointed out, the dog is reaching puberty, testosterone flooding its system and it can be a real turning point. Many dogs are rehomed at this point, because "oh he's just playing/mouthing/play growling" becomes less and less managable.

My point is that if you are getting a dog with young children, it is easier all round to avoid needing a period of time where training/behaviourist is necessary, as the dog will still be unpredictable, and that settling in period all the more fraught.

I am not advocating getting only puppies, but just that there are other breeds/mongrels without known dog-dog aggression etc that would perhaps be a more sensible option.

And yes, "more people are bitten by golden retrievers" always comes up, and I have dealt with more aggressive chihuahuas/yorkies/GSDs than staffs (who tend to be very soppy unless you are having to stitch them up for the 3rd dog fight that year)

I would prefer to be cautious, due to personal and professional experience, and get frustrated by the number of dogs given up on due to unrealistic owner expectations in the first place.

hi, update for anyone interested.

he has been with us for a week now and is behaving very well, still barks at people outside who come near the house but is very friendly with anyone who knocks on the door and comes in so thats a big relief

has so far been brilliant with all the children in and out of the house (obviously under supervision)
my other dog has definitely warmed to him and has stopped snapping (unless he steals her food) my little staff got pinned down by a neighbours alsation a couple of days back and had quite a gash in her head and he was licking it better for her and she let him!

so thanks again for all the good advice i got

oh and dp is going to go to training lessons with him