Dog park behaviour. Harmless or aggressive?

[Lucy Dog]

Ever heard the expression "playing with fire"? That's what you're doing and is why I don't bring my dog to dog parks.

Sooner or later your dog is going to do this to the wrong dog and a big fights going to break out with your dog or another dog with serious injuries. Are you prepared for that?

You need to stop bringing your dog to the dog park and start working on training and other ways to socialize and exercise.

[codmaster]

Originally Posted by Relayer

I see that behavior sometimes at our park. While I will state that it could be potentially dangerous, it can also be important lessons that dogs should learn regarding pecking order. There is a very large 2 yr old GSD at our park who starts out his visits by pretty much doing just what the OP described to nearly every dog. He has never bitten any of the other dogs and has never seemed to actually want to fight. My Max, is a pretty brave little guy at almost 5 mos., yet he responds exactly as he should. He submits, licks and squirms and within a minute or so, Baron (the big guy) is totally nice to him. The same thing plays out with the other dogs. It could be said that as long as there are good body language signs, a little bullying can be ok. I'm not super happy that it happens, but dogs can often self regulate and learn how to get along in a group that way. Btw, Baron's owner is pretty quick to make sure Baron knows that when he gets a little too overpowering, the fun stops... he gets put on leash and has to chill out a little before he can mingle again.

As someone has pointed out, the problem comes when your confident dominant wanting dog meets another with the same attitude - then a fight will almost certainly break out.
We have that problem with our 2 1/2 yo male. Baron has always been a very confident pushy dog. Our behaviorist called him a pushy "bully"!
Most of the time he is great with other dogs (and cats for that matter); only with other large dominant males does he react. But you can see where he would not go well in a dog park depending on the mix of other dogs.

[cagirl]

You need to decide what you are going to do, or talk to a trainer, you are just going to get Dog park haters on your rear end with a topic like this

[gsdraven]

Originally Posted by cagirl

you are just going to get Dog park haters on your rear end with a topic like this

It has nothing to do with hating dog parks. The behavior described would be just as dangerous were it with a private play group.

I went to the dog park for a year with Raven (from 4 months until 1.5 yrs old) until SHE stopped enjoying being around all the other dogs and was getting picked on by dogs behaving like the one in the OP; they singled her out because she is submissive and it boosted their confidence.

The dog park can be great for the right kind of dogs; sadly a lot of adult GSDs are not the right kind of dog for a dog park.

[Lilie]

Originally Posted by cagirl

You need to decide what you are going to do, or talk to a trainer, you are just going to get Dog park haters on your rear end with a topic like this

I would imagine that it depends on the Dog Park. There are tons of folks on here that love to go to Dog Parks. I don't go, because I don't have the need to. If I were to go and the park was overly crowded or if there were dogs with aggressive behaviors there, I'd just pack it up and come back another time. I wouldn't let one experiance ruin it for me or my dogs.

[travistee]

We were at the dog park again today and the same thing happened with the same dog again.

Kiai does not do this to all the dogs in the park. In fact he is very gentle with them. Last time they were the only dogs there so we thought that may have had something to do with it.
Today he was doing fine with lots of dogs there. Then that dog came in.

This time we saw that the smaller dog came over to Kiai and growled at him. Kiai did not back off and it ended with Kiai's foot on the other dogs chest. If small dogs bark at him he backs away. That growl must have been a dominant growl that he felt he needed to respond to. ( see my original post describing what happened when he was the smaller dog)

We left the park.

I think that if a smaller dog wants to show he is dominant with a larger dog, then that is how they sort out the pack order. There was no biting and I think that if the dogs were left to figure it out on their own the other dog would learn not to try to be dominant with larger dogs.

One of the other people left also because she didn't want that dog to start up with her dog.

?

[PaddyD]

Why would you not neuter a male unless he was going to breed at least twice a year? It's not fair to him to torture him with natural needs that he can't satisfy. As for his behavior, I always leave the dog park when some macho male decides to take the place over, ESPECIALLY if his idiot of an owner won't control him. Dominant behavior is one thing but persistent rudeness and/or fighting is totally uncalled for.

[codmaster]

Originally Posted by PaddyD

Why would you not neuter a male unless he was going to breed at least twice a year? It's not fair to him to torture him with natural needs that he can't satisfy. As for his behavior, I always leave the dog park when some macho male decides to take the place over, ESPECIALLY if his idiot of an owner won't control him. Dominant behavior is one thing but persistent rudeness and/or fighting is totally uncalled for.

There are some potential health reasons not to neuter (as there are in favor of neutering) so it is not an automatic decision I don'r believe. And I don't think it is exactly "torture" for the male dog.

[selzer]

Originally Posted by codmaster

There are some potential health reasons not to neuter (as there are in favor of neutering) so it is not an automatic decision I don'r believe. And I don't think it is exactly "torture" for the male dog.

Agree completely.

[lizzkatris]

The standing tall with his tail straight up is very dominant. While he may not be the aggressor he very likely could be the reason a fight starts. I have a dog who also does this at the dog park. He is a little dog so I've been very involved in training him to have better doggy manners. While he's never been aggressive to another dog, I know that his behavior would be the cause of the fight. Unfortunately he will mostly likely end up on the losing end since he's only 18 lbs. I usually keep him leashed until I see his tail in a more relaxed position and he's calmed down from the excitement. After 10-20 mins I usually can let me off. If I see his behavior changing at all I leash him again and keep going. Make sure you catch him before it turns into anything, that way he's always set up for success. Also, A good walk before the doggy park is a great idea. It gets some initial energy out, establishes you as leader and doesn't unleash his built up energy on other dogs. It is also mentally stimulating. Just my opinion. I hope you find something that works for you!