Hello Hello. I used to avidly post on here for support, help, advice etc...Well. After Hurricane Harvey we relocated in Texas and our dog Apache is now 2 years old this month. If anyone cares to remember our issues with Apache...I'm sure that can be done easily on here
Well.... this should not come as a shock to many of you... we kept having recurring issues with him. Food aggression, growling when my oldest child would walk by, ( I notice if he was laying in his "spot" he would just randomly low growl at her. not okay. ) He was being very dominant. Not ALL of the time...sometimes he would act puppyish and very loving. This is all confusing because as you all know We have had him since he was 10 weeks old.
The breaking point was...when my husband was at work ( and my husband told me to pop him and be dominant. big mistake)
He low growled at my daughter...when she was walking by in the living room..I wasn't allowing that so I got up walked over to him and grabbed a folder, rolled it up and popped his nose and said NO SIR loudly.....he then showed his teeth and started growling at me...So I repeated popping him a couple of times...(please don't be too judgy on me..I am NOT a trainer.) and he got up and kind of lunged at me, and acted like he was going to bite me ( teeth on my hand) but he didn't penetrate my skin....you could say it was a bite, but he didn't actually bite. Make any sense?
I call my husband crying and very upset....mainly because I thought we would have to get rid of him and the whole ordeal was terribly upsetting. I love him dearly. But...in that instant I saw what can happen. I can't allow it to happen in our house. I just...thought that was our last day with Apache. Heartbreaking.
I had talked to a trainer who also lives in Texas...and that was when Apache was around a year of age...we talked and talked on the phone, but I never followed through.
My husband called him when this happened...explained our situation...and he came to our home and picked our dog up that same week...he dropped off a video for us to watch, about his training etc...and he did muzzle Apache because Apache was being very aggressive ( to be expected since he's had no training and he entered our home).
This was 8 weeks ago now....I have to stop myself from calling because I know he's trying to help and it's a real process. He did tell me on the phone when I called today...that he's making progress but it's a slow process and it takes time.
He used to train k9 dogs primarily and now does basic obedience mainly. I used to think I could never send him off...but I had.no.choice. I can't just get rid of him...he is our dog and we love him dearly...I am so worried...worried he's aggressive still and won't come back with progress...worried that he will still growl....it's just all heartbreaking because I figured after 8 weeks his progress would be phenomenal. I was told...in a nutshell...he is doing better...but it's taking time. He said he is aggressive...and it's taking work.
I hope I made the right choice. I honestly didn't have another one. Do you think...he will come back better? I just miss him so.
Well.... this should not come as a shock to many of you... we kept having recurring issues with him. Food aggression, growling when my oldest child would walk by, ( I notice if he was laying in his "spot" he would just randomly low growl at her. not okay. ) He was being very dominant. Not ALL of the time...sometimes he would act puppyish and very loving. This is all confusing because as you all know We have had him since he was 10 weeks old.
The breaking point was...when my husband was at work ( and my husband told me to pop him and be dominant. big mistake)
He low growled at my daughter...when she was walking by in the living room..I wasn't allowing that so I got up walked over to him and grabbed a folder, rolled it up and popped his nose and said NO SIR loudly.....he then showed his teeth and started growling at me...So I repeated popping him a couple of times...(please don't be too judgy on me..I am NOT a trainer.) and he got up and kind of lunged at me, and acted like he was going to bite me ( teeth on my hand) but he didn't penetrate my skin....you could say it was a bite, but he didn't actually bite. Make any sense?
I call my husband crying and very upset....mainly because I thought we would have to get rid of him and the whole ordeal was terribly upsetting. I love him dearly. But...in that instant I saw what can happen. I can't allow it to happen in our house. I just...thought that was our last day with Apache. Heartbreaking.
I had talked to a trainer who also lives in Texas...and that was when Apache was around a year of age...we talked and talked on the phone, but I never followed through.
My husband called him when this happened...explained our situation...and he came to our home and picked our dog up that same week...he dropped off a video for us to watch, about his training etc...and he did muzzle Apache because Apache was being very aggressive ( to be expected since he's had no training and he entered our home).
This was 8 weeks ago now....I have to stop myself from calling because I know he's trying to help and it's a real process. He did tell me on the phone when I called today...that he's making progress but it's a slow process and it takes time.
He used to train k9 dogs primarily and now does basic obedience mainly. I used to think I could never send him off...but I had.no.choice. I can't just get rid of him...he is our dog and we love him dearly...I am so worried...worried he's aggressive still and won't come back with progress...worried that he will still growl....it's just all heartbreaking because I figured after 8 weeks his progress would be phenomenal. I was told...in a nutshell...he is doing better...but it's taking time. He said he is aggressive...and it's taking work.
I hope I made the right choice. I honestly didn't have another one. Do you think...he will come back better? I just miss him so.