Aggressive dachshund

[TurqoiseJasper]

Long story....I have 2 dachshunds,3 sand 4 years, one has recently become very aggressive.
Completely vet check, no pain triggers. Behaviorist no help really.
After much discussion we have decided to neuter, very much aware that aggression will either improve, stay at the same level or increase. Euthanasia _will be the last option.
He's been on medication the last 10 days or so, Reconcile, which is the same as Prozac I believe.

He has bitten me twice already.
So the op was Tuesday, cone on.
He attempted to get on the sofa and I was behind him, encouraging him with my tone of voice. He turned and went feral, launched himself at me and bit.

Thank god my daughter grabbed the lead(he's on a long line at all times) and in the resulting kerfuffle the cone has come off.

Not a bloody hope of getting it back on. This really is his last chance I'm hoping that testosterone levels drop off fairly quickly, if not I don't know what I'll do, well yes I do I know what will have to be done. I'm upstairs in my room crying now.

I can only hope that he doesn't try and rip his stitches out in the night, and it'll be back to the vet in the morning I suppose to see if they can get one on him. Don't really know why I've posted this I'm just really upset, yet again.

I am pretty sure there are other medications you can try (if you are willing), however aggression can be a breed problem with dachshunds. (A lot of vets say that they are unsuitable for families with kids for this reason - and the fact that they are kind of a bad design, being an unsupported suspension bridge between four pillars, and are often in pain.)

Put him down OP. I mean this kindly

That's a nasty wound, I think sadly you know what's best for you all. You have tried your best

As part of my job I visit multiple homes daily. Whenever there’s an aggressive dog / somebody bitten it’s 90% of the time one of these.

So interesting points from @Fraaahnces

I’m so sorry OP this is really tough for you, sending support and hoping you make whatever is the best choice for your family xx

The kindest thing you can do is put him down. I'm so sorry but he cannot be trusted.

Why on earth were you trying to get a dog of a breed that should not be on a sofa to JUMP onto a sofa a few days post-castration??

Small dogs with long backs shouldn’t be on sofas anyway…the risk of damage if they jump is too high.

BUT dogs that have undergone surgery like castration should NOT be jumping. He’s in severe pain. His reaction was 100% predictable.

This is 100% on you. Honestly, re home them both.

As @Killingoffmyflowersonebyone says, a dog who is three days post-surgery should not be jumping on the sofa - especially not a tiny one like a dachshund - it's incredibly likely he's still in pain and lashed out accordingly and that's why you got bitten.

I have no idea what behavioural issues he's had in the past but I'm incredibly surprised nobody suggested a pain trial to you - I know you say he had a vet check, but many dachshunds live with a permanent level of underlying pain due to the way they're built - their backs are too long for their legs and they struggle constantly.

If this is the only time he's bitten then there's no way I would be considering euthanasia - especially considering the circumstances of the bite.

Reconcile wouldn’t be doing anything 10 days in btw - it usually takes at least 3-4 weeks to spot any changes.

I thought this too. He just needed help to get on and you were probably frustrating him by being there and not helping. I have a friend who has one of these dogs and she treats him like I treat my own baby ie. carries him on and off any slightly raised surfaces (including kerbs) as she says their little legs just can't manage it.
Poor dogs, it's so sad the pain animals go through in the name of breeding for particular aesthetic features.

I’m also not convinced the average vet is good at diagnosing chronic low level pain. I’d be tempted to take him to a McTimmoney practitioner. My dog was in pain and the vet said she wasn’t. The McTimmoney person immediately said she was taking weight off her back right leg (which I had thought was the problem), had hip pain, etc. she’s a lot better since her appointments.

So the bite was the day of the op when trying to get on to a sofa?I'm assuming you don't mean jump up but he has little steps to get up to the sofa?if you were standing over him with him in such extreme pain of the day I'm not surprised he's not himself.thsts very normal behaviour post op tbh.what pain relief is he on?I'd be making sure he had a proper safe place to recover and enough pain meds.id look more at his pain or get a proper behaviourist or rehome him,try dashund rescue.ending is life is not appropriate for this unless his pain is so high he will never be comfortable but I'd at least try looking at chronic pain properly.

I would get a second opinion from a different vet and a behaviourist. If a 3 or 4 year old dog with no previous aggression suddenly starts biting there will be a reason. If you are ready to put him to sleep after one vet visit then maybe re think dog ownership, sorry that seems harsh but I cannot fathom putting my dog to sleep after a couple of preliminary investigations .

The going for you as you tried to help on sofa strongly suggests pain, ongoing pain (spinal?) from before Op for neutering plus the recent pain from stitches. Going from 0 to 60 is maybe a dachshund thing, (I don't know the breed though,) especially if he has been trying to signal to you for a long time that he is in pain.

Im assuming a general anaesthetic, if so that can have an effect on them too, our dog woke me up at 3 AM growling and barking at the lampshade above my bed.

Definitely try a painkiller trial to establish if pain is causing the issue.

If he’s just had his op, could he still be in post op pain? Is he on any painkillers (metacam?)

I’m also amazed the vet didn’t suggest the castration injection rather than surgery to see how the drop in testosterone affected his aggression. Because at least that’s temporary and if it causes more problems it wears off in six months.

Recovery time is 7-10 days. Dog definitely shouldn’t be doing anything vigorous before then (which jumping on the sofa definitely is in a small breed)…so this was a disaster waiting to happen in many respects given how soon after the op it was. Even in a week or so the dog shouldn’t be jumping etc. He’s almost certainly in significant pain and very confused.

Hi @TurquoiseJasper this sounds a dreadful situation for you. Are you a member of any facebook groups for dachshunds? UK Minature Dachshunds is good for sensible advice (mainly!) and there are a couple of dachshund behaviourists often recommended- I know you’ve already tried, but worth a go with a breed specific one? Sharon Alton and Katie Saywell’s names come up and members have positive stories having worked with them. Also please consider rehoming via the Red Foundation or Dachshund Rescue UK before PTS, they will find a suitable place if you really can’t keep him.

If you don't have steps or ramp up to your sofa I'm going to say that poor dog has jarred his spine at some point and is in a lot of pain. Encouraging him to jump after an operation is really stupid so I'm not surprised he turned on you.

Get him back to a (different ) vet and get his spine checked out properly.

A qualified clinical behaviourist would have asked your vet to do full body x-rays to rule out pain, and possibly CT scan of the skull. Very often find spinal problems when this is done. Unfortunately the term behaviourist is not protected and literally anyone can call theirselves one. Personally wouldn't have neutered, especially at the same time as starting behaviour modification drugs. Ideally you would have tried chemical castration first. Sorry not very helpful now. Something must have happened to your dog given this is new behaviour. I'd probably try another behaviourist before euthanasia. Make sure they are on the abtc register.

I agree with the others that this sounds like a pain issue.

My dog was in a lot of pain post castration and there was definitely no jumping for at least a week.

These types of dogs are almost certainly in pain most of the time due to the exaggerated back and short legs 😥

Thanks for all your replies.
Some misunderstandings......

I said he was trying to get onto the sofa, not jump. There are steps and ramps everywhere.

This didn't happen the day of the op, but day 4.
I wasn't trying to help, I was speaking to him. Yes of course he's on pain medication.

To the poster who suggested I re-home both my dogs, please don't make bloody stupid comments.

More fool me for posting 🤣
Thanks anyway 😍

What pain relief is he on @TurquoiseJasper?

I would recommend talking to Dachshund Rescue before considering Euthanasia, they can either help you keep him at home or may be able to rehome him.

I'm not convinced by the Vet saying he's nut in pain either. My DSis recently adopted a Dachshund through Dachshund Rescue with known issues, the Vet of the previous family had said he was pain free, it was pretty clear once she had him that his behaviour was pain driven. Now he's in suitable pain relief and an exercise regime to build up muscle safely and a different diet, he's a different dog.

Can I just ask how much exercise he was getting each day before his recent OP?

It's great that you're using ramps and steps, but honestly, at four days post-op, a dachshund should be on floor level, not trying to navigate climbing up to to the sofa while wearing a cone and while he's likely to still be in pain and is also on a brand new type of medication.

Dachshunds already have really unbalanced skeletal systems, and the cone is just going to make him feel even more off-balance and disoriented - it sounds like he was a bit frightened and sore, and that he shouldn't have been in that position in the first place.

Keep him off the sofas and on the floor - you can come down to his level to give him affection for now.

Sorry just read your update abs have seen that he's on pain relief already.

I can see you're really struggling and probably quite shocked at the sudden bite abs worried about your DC too.

I'd still recommend talking to Dachshund Rescue or The Red Foundation. Sometimes they will take a DDog that had bitten and rehome him with people who are experienced with Dachshunds with known problems.

I can second asking in the FB group UK Miniature Dachshunds if you are thinking of keeping him at all too

Better than putting it to sleep for something that was your fault. And if your initial reaction is that, you’re not cut out for dog ownership - so better you let both go to better homes