I need you help on a very big decsion!!

We have talked all day about getting Chewy a Mussel (sp) (incase that isn't spelled right, the thing that goes over a dogs mouth to keep it from biteing people). This is the 4 or 5 time he has attacked Teddy. And he attacked Buddy once. Well We left it at we would talk about it again but tonight Chewy attacked Teddy over a piece of foil that smelled like ham. He woudl only have to wear it while inside and while we are still here, which is only 2 or 3 more weeks. Once I move out he wont have ot wear it at all unless we come over to stay fro awile, which is doubtfull (for him). So is a Mussel (sp) a good idea? If so know any good kinds for us to get?

Thanx,
Ash

ps: Its either this or Chewy is going to have to spend all day outside tied to one of our trees and then sleep in his crate inside at night. :(

The answer to one question is "Muzzle".....for the correct spelling, anyway. As for whether you situation is desperate enough to warrant getting one, I guess we have to leave that one up to you and your family. I would certainly use it as a last resort.

That's my humble opinion.

Oh, we were just looking at those tonight--there's a lot of children in the neighborhood, and sometimes Kito snaps at them--I thought maybe it would be an option, just until he gets used to them, and only for short trips outside, and maybe at my mother in laws house, because she has a pom that weighs all of 1 pound, and he wanted to eat it BUT, when I saw them at Wiscoy here in State College I couldn't imagine putting one on him:( so we didn't get it
In your situation, especially since it is only for a short while, I would probably get one

Hey Ash,

I have to use a muzzle on Smudge only for a different reason. Smudge needs one when he is kenneled otherwise he stress barks and it's not good for either of us. If it wasn't for the fact that Chewy attacked Teddy over a piece of foil I would just say it's part of her nature, but that sounds like more of a possesive thing then nature thing.

I'm not going to tell you yes or no about the muzzle though, it's something that you have to decide about on your own. I know it was a hard decision for me to make with Smudge and I still don't always feel great about it, but I had a choice of either muzzling him when he was in a kennel and letting him bark when he's outside (he doesn't bark all that often outside) or get him devoiced something I really did not and do not want to do. But all I'll say is do what you think is best for Chewy.

Really I'm doing whats best fro Chewy and Teddy. Chewy grabs Teddy by his throat agressively and scares us all to death. One day he is going to do it when we aren't home and will kill him. And that to me is the worst thing that could happen EVER. Chewy attacks Teddy over a bunch of things. But I never thought abotu the whole posive thing. But the only ting is he doens't attack Teddy over going near his crate or playing with his toys. I think his more possive ness is he grabs his toy or other things from teddy and gives him this look like that is mine excuse me. Chewy has to be crated alot now because of this and I hate to see him like that. he knows why he has to eat in his crate and why he is put in there. He is starting to get out of contorlle and attacking Buddy was horrible. Imagine if that was 5 pound Hoss, he would have been dead. I dunno...I still would like some more sultions to our problems but he is getting out of hand. Can anyone think of anythign else we can do? I'm goiing to have to cal la trainer and make my parents pay for it. But what else can we do?

Ash

Maybe you can try to keep them seperated. When the more dominant of the two enters a room the other must leave the room. Actually that could be part of the problem, maybe Chewy is confused about the pack order as far as things go with Teddy. Chewy might think he's more dominant but Teddy isn't getting that message or maybe he's getting mixed messages from you and your family about his place in the pekking order. I think calling a trainer is probably your best course of events though because they might be able to see hands on what is happening with Chewy and help you think of ways to correct the problem.

So is Chewy only aggressive to Teddy over objects--like food, toys, etc.? Nebo is food aggressive with DOGS, not people. He also does not like them going near his toys, but he's not quite as bad as he is with food. He has bit at Smokey a few times for going near his food. He even kind of grabbed his ear/head once (he spent the rest of the night howling in his crate over that one) My best answer was just to not let them be around eachother when eating. If I can see Smokey or Reggie getting to close to Nebo when eating/chewing on a toy, I get them away. My dogs still do not get along well (although Nebo is much better with them, Reggie still always growls at him for everything) but our house still remains pretty peaceful. I never let them outside alone together, as Nebo tends to start running at full speed and chasing them, and I always supervise them if they are in the same room (of course Nebo is supervised all the time anyway as he is still a pup and gets into everything).

As far as the muzzle....I agree that it is for you to decide. But, we use muzzles on dogs at work all the time (grooming) and the kind we use are pretty nice. They are black, soft, and fit all around the muzzle except for an opening in the front. They snap in the back and stay on very well. I believe they are about $10 at Petco, although I've seen them cheaper in a catalog. This type of muzzle does not allow the dog to bark, or eat/drink. But if the dog can eat, the dog can also bite.

I really think Chewy might be developing some "issues" that need to be resolved soon...he's still very young. I think it would be good to maybe see a trainer, or at least get him into a basic obedience classs. Just having Nebo in the puppy kindergarten class helped him out quite a bit. I plan on getting him into the basic and advanced classes also. A well-trained dog is much better at becoming a respected family member. :)

They are watched pretty much all day. Expessially Chewy. Alot to times we don't really think about it. They aren't aloud in the same room with food and Chewy is fed everything in his crate, including snacks. It used to be Chewy attacked over his food, so we made him eat in his crate. But then he attacked over snacks, so we made him eat in his crate. But like a the whole foil thing that smelled like ham, we never even thought. So I guess it is our fault. I get out of school early tomrrow and plan on calling her sometime during the day. The only thing is I don't know if she does in home training and that is the kind of trraining we need. If she doesn't I plan on asking her if she knows any traners in the area who do. So lets hope. The whole muzzle thing was just an option that was brought up today and I thought I would suggest it to you guys to see what you thought. Of course, I hate the idea as much as any of you. My mom seems to liek the idea alot. Well, I mean, Teddy is her dog but. She said it was either I got him a muzzle or He would have to become an outside dog or in his crate all the time till I moved. So the muzzle was sounding better then haveing an outside dog or a dog who was locked up all the time.


Ash

I think muzzles should be a LAST resort. I have seen them cause more anxiety-related issues than they solve. However, no one can say when it has reached "last resort" status but the people who are actually living with and dealing with the dogs.

My sister has two dogs that HATE each other and would tear each other to pieces if given the opportunity. They have cost her many, many hundreds of dollars in vet bills, and many sleepless nights. She now keeps them completely seperated at all times. She split her yard in half, and keeps them in seperate rooms in the house. It is a nightmare, but worth it to her, as she gets to keep both dogs. Each individual must make their own decisions, with the dogs' best interests at heart.

BTW ... lovemyshiba ... you have a shiba inu named Kito? I have a jindo named Keito! Small world! :)