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Unruly American Pitt Bull causing havoc

I have a 10 month old American Pittbull. When I first got him, every one told me it was a bad idea. We adopted him from an unloving home so I didnt listen. We walk him, train him, play with him and generally treat him like part of the family. He is very loved. We just got a great dane pup and the APB has gone nuts. Firstly he will not leave the puppy alone, continuoulsy pushing it down. He also will not listen anymore, jumps on beds and chairs and generally has become a huge burden. I realise this is a dominance issue, what do I do? I have tried talking, ignoring, shouting, restraining, leashing him. Do I Get rid of the puppy? I have a four year old daughter and a baby on the way and I cant have a dog that thinks it can do what it wants. Im at my witts end and need help.


Asked by Member 1059910 on Sep 29th 2011 Tagged behaviour, pittbull in Behavior & Training
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Kolbe

The dog sounds untrained. Don't make it about make-believe dominance issues, that's not gonna fix anything and just tries to place blame on a dog that doesn't know any better/doesn't understand the rules. Shouting at him teaches nothing. The dog is 10 months old, full of energy and needs actual training and exercise -- it has nothing to do with his breed. I highly recommend signing up for a weekly positive reinforcement-based obedience class, in addition to regularly scheduled daily exercise. I would also recommend picking up these 2 books, "The Power of Positive Training" by Pat Miller, and "Before & After Getting Your Puppy" by Dr. Ian Dunbar. Dr. Dunbar also has a nice website here: www.dogstardaily.com Good luck!


Kolbe answered on 9/29/11. Helpful? Yes/Helpful: No 1 Report this answer


Toto, CD, RN, CGC

In addition to what Kolbe said it bears reminding that unless the Great Dane puppy is trained, you will have an even BIGGER problem, pun intended.
I really can't imagine having TWO large breed puppies if I were pregnant and had a 4 year old...I am not sure there are enough hours in the day to provide proper training and care to the two puppies AND the two babies.
I would also like to stress again that this is NOT dominance... it is lack of training. Your training rewards are way less exciting than playing with the other puppy at this time and unless that changes, it will only get worse.


Toto, CD, RN, CGC answered on 9/29/11. Helpful? Yes/Helpful: No 2 Report this answer


Buddy

It sounds like you have your hands full 2 large breeds, a baby on the way and a 4 year old. I would take one of the dogs to the shelter. You have too much to cope with.
We adopted a large mixed breed dog he got on ok with some dogs and with others he was a nightmare. He was so unpredictable in his behaviour, if he saw a post man he went wild. One dog he met he just wanted to kill it every time he saw it.
When we found out a grandchild was on the way someone told me to take the dog Bryn back to the shelter. Very good advice and we did with a long list of his problems. We had Bryn a year


Buddy answered on 9/30/11. Helpful? Yes/Helpful: No 0 Report this answer


Starbutt

may I ask why you got a great dane pup? the dog you had was fine, not all dogs need another to be happy. I WOULD NOT TAKE IT TO THE POUND unless it is a no kill shelter I would try to find it a home FIRST. The APB I can't say but yelling at it is not right it is like yelling at a baby that doesn't know anything. IF you are having a hard time coping this is not for you the stress on you and your unborn well it ain't good. Give it back top whom ever you got the Dane from and be glad to have the one dog. It seem it is good with your 4 year old when the new baby is born it will be good with it to. BUT don't ever leave the dog with alone with childen EVER please you can't trust it there are stories of a very good dog that when left with a baby or small children hurt them and give stitches not to say your dog would and forget the APB breed this is wrong thinking ANY DOG IS NOT SAFE with small children or babies.
Good luck wish I could help you out
Rhayden


Starbutt answered on 9/30/11. Helpful? Yes/Helpful: No 0 Report this answer


Wyatt

Wow you have your hands full! To start, both dogs will feed off of your energy so if you are frustrated and an emotional wreck you are going to find them acting out more. The best thing to do is hire an animal behaviorist to come view your dogs in person, diagnose what is going on, and then give you "homework" to work on. It will require patience and effort, but it is worth a shot! Better to fix things now then when the puppy is older and you have a baby to deal with too. I do stress that if you are not up for putting in the effort of training, you should probably give the puppy away to a home that can give him the attention he needs. Hope this helps, good luck!


Wyatt answered on 9/30/11. Helpful? Yes/Helpful: No 0 Report this answer


Bruno

I think you should take back the Great Dane puppy... any breeder worth their salt will take back any puppy they bred, unconditionally. Or find him another home, if that's okay with the breeder- Danes are always popular.

I say that because you sound overwhelmed. Like Toto said, there are just not enough hours in the day. I'm sure you feel bad about it, but chalk it up to a learning experience, take back the puppy and maybe try again someday when your other dog is more settled and your kids are older.


Bruno answered on 9/30/11. Helpful? Yes/Helpful: No 1 Report this answer


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