[mastiff504]

I don't know what to do about him anymore. I have 2 Shih Tzus, a boy and a girl. My boy was the first dog I ever bought. I've always grown up with big dogs and these were my first little dogs. I bought Prince when I was 18. I really didn't know what to look for in terms of buying a dog. I really just wanted a sweet little lap dog that I could love. I went to the breeders and they only had one dog left. I went with my younger sister. He didn't want to be around me. When I held him he growled, he didn't want me to hold him. He wasn't like that with my sister. I asked the breeders if that was normal, they said yes, and that he didn't know me and it should pass. Not knowing about temperaments, I went ahead and bought him. In the car ride home, he didn't want to be around me. He was only 5 weeks old and was growling like a full adult dog.

Over the years, he stood the exact same. When I touch him, he growls and snaps at me. He's only nice when he wants treats, but after he gets his treats, he returns to his same behavior. My mom has a strong liking to him. He worships the ground my mom walks on. He's never bitten her or snapped at her. He'll let her touch him and pet him and wouldn't dare try to bite her. BUT, the thing is, she spoils him so bad. She gives him treats constantly. She feeds him table food. But the thing with the table food is, he will DEMAND the food from her, and she'll give in and feed it to him. No matter what she eats, he'll get some of it because he'll bark and bark until he gets it. She let's him sleep in the bed. Even when she tells him to get down, he'll refuse and stay on the bed. He never went through formal training, but he knows all the commands. When I call his name, he'll come, but he growls the whole walk over. My mom tells me to leave him alone, but he is my dog and I can't just leave him alone. I pay for his food, vet visits, grooming. I don't make much contact with him though because he hates being around me. If I touch him, he growls and snarls.

He used to bite me when he was a puppy. He stopped the biting for a few years. Well yesterday, he comes and sits on the sofa as I was laying down. So I figured he wanted to be next to me. I was petting him and he jumps up and bites me in my face. My lips were bleeding and I was scared I needed stitches. When I went to pull him off of me, he grabbed my finger and bit my nail off. His tooth went straight through my nail and it peeled off. I feel so much hatred for this dog right now. My mom actually DEFENDED his actions. I'm bleeding all over and she's saying, "well you know how he is". I feel I shouldn't have to be fearful of my dog. I am the human, not him. There is no excuse for him attacking me. I wanted to bring him to the no kill shelter right then and there, but my mom refused. I told her if she wants him to stay, then she can't spoil him anymore. He feels like he runs the house and I don't want him feeling like that anymore. She got extremely mad at me and threated to kick ME out of the house.....OVER A DOG!!! Even the groomers refuse to deal with him. He has been banned from the 2 Petcos, 2 Petsmarts, and 3 private grooming stores in the city. The groomers refuse to deal with him. Only one groomer will touch him, but she'll be covered in bite marks. My mom refuses to believe that he is aggressive, and I'm fed up with him. Is he just a bad dog? I really don't know what to do with him anymore. My mom tells me if I get rid of him, then I'll have to get rid of my girl as well. My mom already admitted that she doesn't care too much for the girl. But my girl doesn't have any issues, she's never even growled at a person in her life. I feel my mom is making this situation worse with him. I really don't know what to do anymore.

[Yogi]

A couple things first of all. The breeder was an idiot letting pups go a 5 weeks. At that age they are NOT totally weaned. They have had no proper socializing and litter mate interaction or the standard bite inhibition which is taught by the dam. Pups should realistically never go til 10 to 12 weeks. She lied when she told you he would get over it.
Your mom is making the matter worse. The constant giving in has only created a little tyrant that if does not get his way is like a spoiled child.
The dog needs to be in training and you need to assert yourself as the boss not him. Do not be afraid to discipline a small breed. Failing to do so creates the problems you are facing now.

[mastiff504]

Originally Posted by Yogi

A couple things first of all. The breeder was an idiot letting pups go a 5 weeks. At that age they are NOT totally weaned. They have had no proper socializing and litter mate interaction or the standard bite inhibition which is taught by the dam. Pups should realistically never go til 10 to 12 weeks. She lied when she told you he would get over it.
Your mom is making the matter worse. The constant giving in has only created a little tyrant that if does not get his way is like a spoiled child.
The dog needs to be in training and you need to assert yourself as the boss not him. Do not be afraid to discipline a small breed. Failing to do so creates the problems you are facing now.

You are very right, all the dogs I grew up with were never brought home until about 12 weeks, you are so correct about that. The thing is, my dad was the one who always handled getting the dogs. We weren't on speaking terms with my dad at the time. I wish I would have known more about buying dogs back then. I had just graduated high school and didn't know much about buying dogs. I bought my girl when she was 10 weeks and never once had a problem with her. She is sweet, she listens, she doesn't demand anything from anyone, she is sociable, and have always received compliments from groomers about her.

My mom never really wanted anything to do with our dogs growing up, she always made it clear that she wasn't a dog person. But she took such a strong liking to Prince immediately. She is creating such a problem and refuses to realize it. She gives him treats for no reason at all. Even when he's bad, he'll get a treat. I tell her to stop but she won't listen to me. I tell her that he is my dog and he needs to learn to respect me, but she justs tells me to leave him alone and accept him for how he is. I think that I am correct for not wanting to accept him for how he is, because this isn't acceptable behavior. I went out of town for a month, came back home and rubbed him on his head as I walked by because I hadn't seen my dogs for so long. He showed me his teeth and tensed up and I pulled back because I was scared he'd attack me. I really think something is wrong with him mentally. He is like this with me, sometimes my sister, my best friend, and every groomer. When children ride around on their bikes, he barks and growls at them. I'm at the point now where I wouldn't feel comfortable having him around my children when I decide to have some.

Today I gave my girl dog a treat because she brought over a toy that I asked her to bring. Prince came running over and started demanding a treat. I told him no and he growled at me and walked off. I looked at him today and just wanted to bring him to Animal Rescue of New Orleans. I care for him, but the way he attacked me was just too much. He refuses to respect me.

[cigwyllt]

Aside from the fact that this dog has never seen you as his owner you have the problem that you are not allowed to take charge. What about your bitch? Has she bonded with you, does she behave for you?

I know you bought the dog but it sounds as though he sees your mother as his owner and it seems she sees you as her child and is not allowing you to take charge of him. I think you need to have a serious talk with your mother. Explain that the dog is dangerous and she could end up losing him if his aggression continues. I can't honestly see what you can do with him if your mother continues to undermine you. If your mum agrees that he is your dog I would strongly recommend getting help from a behaviourist. You have no relationship with the dog to speak of and you need help to build that.

PS -
Before I wrote the above you had already posted. Obviously your girl is fine. The other thing to consider of course is that the sort of "breeder" - using the word in its loosest sense - that would release a pup at 5 weeks would not be breeding for the good of the breed and would not consider the temperament of the parents so you could have a real struggle on your hands.

[mastiff504]

Originally Posted by cigwyllt

Aside from the fact that this dog has never seen you as his owner you have the problem that you are not allowed to take charge. What about your bitch? Has she bonded with you, does she behave for you?

I know you bought the dog but it sounds as though he sees your mother as his owner and it seems she sees you as her child and is not allowing you to take charge of him. I think you need to have a serious talk with your mother. Explain that the dog is dangerous and she could end up losing him if his aggression continues. I can't honestly see what you can do with him if your mother continues to undermine you. If your mum agrees that he is your dog I would strongly recommend getting help from a behaviourist. You have no relationship with the dog to speak of and you need help to build that.

Yes, I have a bond with my girl. She is the sweetest dog. She listens to my commands and knows to respect me. I do feel like I have no relationship with my boy. He refuses to spend any time with me. He follows my mom around the house constantly. What's bothering me with him, is the fact that he choses to be aggressive with me. I can understand him not forming a bond, but to attack me for just touching him is what's wearing down my patience with him. He hasn't left my mom's side since he attacked me, except for coming to get a treat when I gave one to my girl. I told my mom that I will have to send him to a behaviorist or get rid of him. She's rolling her eyes and saying he doesn't need it. I want to pull my hair out because I'm so frustrated, lol. Is it possible to get a temperament test done on him? I know that shelter's give the rescues temperament testing, but could this be done with a pet? I think that if someone else explains to her that he is a temperamental dog, then she may possibly see where I'm coming from.

[cigwyllt]

A behaviourist (not a trainer) would be able to make an assessment of his temperament. If your mum would be with you for that it could make all the difference. I do hope you can get her on board.

[mastiff504]

Originally Posted by Yogi

A couple things first of all. The breeder was an idiot letting pups go a 5 weeks. At that age they are NOT totally weaned. They have had no proper socializing and litter mate interaction or the standard bite inhibition which is taught by the dam. Pups should realistically never go til 10 to 12 weeks. She lied when she told you he would get over it.
Your mom is making the matter worse. The constant giving in has only created a little tyrant that if does not get his way is like a spoiled child.
The dog needs to be in training and you need to assert yourself as the boss not him. Do not be afraid to discipline a small breed. Failing to do so creates the problems you are facing now.

I thought I had quoted this post earlier but I guess it didn't go through, lol. I agree with everything you posted!!! All my dogs we had growing up were 12 weeks old when we brought them home. I wasn't on speaking terms with my dad at the time I bought Prince, so I didn't really know what to expect when buying a dog. I thought I could trust what the breeders would tell me. I had just graduated high school and was blindly going into buying a dog. A year after I got Prince, I bought Precious. But I knew to wait awhile before taking her home. She was 10 weeks old when I took her home, and never once had any issues with her.

My mom is really making him worse. I tell her that constantly. Right now she's sitting down feeding him baked chicken. I told her yesterday and today to STOP doing these things. Today, my sister had him on the sofa holding him like a baby. I told her to put him down and to stop treating him like he is a human, she refused to put him down. I really think this dog feels like he is the ruler of the house and above everyone in it, except for my mom. Am I wrong to feel a dog shouldn't think like this?

[cigwyllt]

Of course you are not wrong. People at the top and dogs at the bottom. I don't think there is necessarily anything wrong with nursing a dog like a baby - I do it all the time with my Jack Russell - but he also knows that he has to get off my chair when I tell him and he can only sit on my knee if I let him - he can't jump up and down as he chooses.

To be honest though I think you are fighting a losing battle - until everyone in the family follows the same rules you are not going to get anywhere. Why would he want to respect you when your mum allows him to get away with attacking you as he did? You are obviously a responsible, knowledgeable owner but you are being undermined the whole time.

[bully202]

Im suprised you have kept him so long i couldnt not stand my dog to act like that towards me you are his master and owner and if he cant come to that conclusion he shouldnt be in your home but only after every method has been tryed ive read alot of the training and bonding articles off the Leerburg training site google it its really helpful on show you how to become boss of your dog

[vm smith]

Originally Posted by mastiff504

I don't know what to do about him anymore. I have 2 Shih Tzus, a boy and a girl. My boy was the first dog I ever bought. I've always grown up with big dogs and these were my first little dogs. I bought Prince when I was 18. I really didn't know what to look for in terms of buying a dog. I really just wanted a sweet little lap dog that I could love. I went to the breeders and they only had one dog left. I went with my younger sister. He didn't want to be around me. When I held him he growled, he didn't want me to hold him. He wasn't like that with my sister. I asked the breeders if that was normal, they said yes, and that he didn't know me and it should pass. Not knowing about temperaments, I went ahead and bought him. In the car ride home, he didn't want to be around me. He was only 5 weeks old and was growling like a full adult dog.

Over the years, he stood the exact same. When I touch him, he growls and snaps at me. He's only nice when he wants treats, but after he gets his treats, he returns to his same behavior. My mom has a strong liking to him. He worships the ground my mom walks on. He's never bitten her or snapped at her. He'll let her touch him and pet him and wouldn't dare try to bite her. BUT, the thing is, she spoils him so bad. She gives him treats constantly. She feeds him table food. But the thing with the table food is, he will DEMAND the food from her, and she'll give in and feed it to him. No matter what she eats, he'll get some of it because he'll bark and bark until he gets it. She let's him sleep in the bed. Even when she tells him to get down, he'll refuse and stay on the bed. He never went through formal training, but he knows all the commands. When I call his name, he'll come, but he growls the whole walk over. My mom tells me to leave him alone, but he is my dog and I can't just leave him alone. I pay for his food, vet visits, grooming. I don't make much contact with him though because he hates being around me. If I touch him, he growls and snarls.

He used to bite me when he was a puppy. He stopped the biting for a few years. Well yesterday, he comes and sits on the sofa as I was laying down. So I figured he wanted to be next to me. I was petting him and he jumps up and bites me in my face. My lips were bleeding and I was scared I needed stitches. When I went to pull him off of me, he grabbed my finger and bit my nail off. His tooth went straight through my nail and it peeled off. I feel so much hatred for this dog right now. My mom actually DEFENDED his actions. I'm bleeding all over and she's saying, "well you know how he is". I feel I shouldn't have to be fearful of my dog. I am the human, not him. There is no excuse for him attacking me. I wanted to bring him to the no kill shelter right then and there, but my mom refused. I told her if she wants him to stay, then she can't spoil him anymore. He feels like he runs the house and I don't want him feeling like that anymore. She got extremely mad at me and threated to kick ME out of the house.....OVER A DOG!!! Even the groomers refuse to deal with him. He has been banned from the 2 Petcos, 2 Petsmarts, and 3 private grooming stores in the city. The groomers refuse to deal with him. Only one groomer will touch him, but she'll be covered in bite marks. My mom refuses to believe that he is aggressive, and I'm fed up with him. Is he just a bad dog? I really don't know what to do with him anymore. My mom tells me if I get rid of him, then I'll have to get rid of my girl as well. My mom already admitted that she doesn't care too much for the girl. But my girl doesn't have any issues, she's never even growled at a person in her life. I feel my mom is making this situation worse with him. I really don't know what to do anymore.

Move out. Take the bitch. Leave the dog and let your mom deal with it. You obviously have more than a dog problem in that house.

[cj*knows]

i totally agree with the last post, if your mum is so keen to be involved with the dog, let her take him on, move out and take your little girl dog with you! Let your mum get on with it.. if moving out isnt an option, let mum take over and stay out of the dogs way. good luck