Some interesting stories about chow chows. When I was a teenager, lived for a while in a small town, and about half way to school always stopped at a friends house and we walked on together. Next door was a chow chow and my friend positively hated it and was terrified of it. The dog probably sensed that as there was no love lost on his side either.
Anyway I love dogs, so always just quietly talked to this dog every day as I walked by, not making any efforts to approach or pet it. My friend kept warning me that it would take my arm off if I tried.
After several months of this, one day as I was waiting for my friend to come out and was talking to the dog, he suddenly walked up to me, rubbed his head against my leg, so I started scratching it’s ears. My buddy came out of the house and nearly fainted.
From that day on the dog and I were great friends and I petted him every time I walked by. His owner was amazed and said I was the only non-family person ever to be able to touch it.
Absolutely. I have raised a few pit bulls and find that exposing them to different types of people when they are young decreases the chances they will react aggressively.
We had one beautiful female pit bull, probably the easiest-trained dog I have ever encountered. I trained this girl to shake hands, roll over, beg, dance, jump through hoops. She had 3 different vocalizations on command and would play dead to a pantomimed pistol and “bang bang”. Very loving, eager-to-please dog. I never encountered her until she was between 6 and 9 months old, so I never knew her early upbringing, except that she feared tie-out chains and was aggressive towards people with darker than olive complexions.
Now I have a 7 year old male, even more loving than the previous female, but not nearly so bright nor easily trained. I let him meet people of every physical description as a pup, and he shows no preference for skin color. He does love women more than men. I’m guessing it’s because my ex wife was the softie and I was the one who got to discipline him.
I have heard many second hand horror stories about Chows. A woman I used to work with had a sister that had a Chow. Had raised the dog from a puppy, never had a mionute’s trouble with it. One day, she was folding laundry, with the dog lying at her feet. She reached down to pet the dog, and it lashed out at her, biting her hand badly enough to sever a tendon.
I used to have a Doberman, many years ago. Sweetest, most loving dog in the world. I took her to the vet for her shots one day, we were sitting in the waiting room, waiting our turn, and a woman with several small kids and a filthy, ungroomed Chow came in. The Chow was barking, pulling on the leadh, and generally making a nuisance of itself, while my Kaci just sat calmly at my feet. The woman kept giving me and my Dobie really dirty looks, and finally, she just evidently couldn’t control herself any longer, and told me that Doberman Pinschers should be banned, that they were a totally unpredictable dog, dangerous to be around, and to mark her words, that beast would turn on me someday. :eek: I was just in shock, taken off guard, and before I could give her a piece of my mind, I was called into the exam room. I told Doc about what she had said (all the whilke Kaci was giving me, Doc, and the vet tech kisses), and he cocked an eybrow at me and said if he was a betting man, his money would be on the Chow to attack before any Dobe. He said they were without a doubt the most untrustworthy breed in his many years of practice.
As I said, I have a black female chow chow and I had another one before her. Very different personalities, the first was lazy and not too bright, the current one is quite smart and loves to run and play. I had the same experience with both of them when I took them to the groomer for the first time. I was told that “problem dogs” cost extra. Then when I picked them up I was told that I had about the sweetest chow chow ever and that I would not be charged the premium.
To be fair, my vet did tell me that chow chows are pound for pound the toughest breed that there is. Still, they love my chow chow there and they always let her run around the back area instead of putting her in a cage before I get her.
I raise my dogs well and try to socialize them. She still barks at new people but she calms down after a couple of minutes and eventually, for many people, will even pay them a little attention after a while.
Well, my trainer recommended that I let people give my dog a treat, or a toy and praise. She really stressed that the positive experiences had to happen early on, because it could be too late when the dog gets older. I really don’t know what you would do for a dog that was all ready aggressive, or fearful. I’d be interested in hearing the answer too if anyone knows.
I’ve had only two close encounters with Chow Chows.
My aunt rented a small house that, at one time had been the caretaker’s house at a saw mill. The saw mill was still active one day a week.
The house was within the fence around the mill. The mill owner had a Chow Chow to protect his interests, which, when the mill was not operating, was loose in the yard. Visiting my aunt was a hazardous undertaking. The Chow Chow would hear the gate from a half mile across the mill yard. If I didn’t make it to the door before the dog got to me, I had to stand perfectly still, looking straight ahead, until my aunt or uncle would come call him off. Surprisingly, the dog obeyed anyone living in the house.
The other Chow Chow I’ve known was Rita. Rita climbed into my friend’s car one day and wouldn’t get out. They tried to coax her with food, no luck, then they tried to push her out, she turned around and climbed over them, back into the car. Finally they just took her home. The friend lived in the same neighborhood where she adopted them, so they put up posters and would walk her in the neighborhood, so her original owners might see her. But no one came forward. Rita was the sweetest dog I’ve ever known. I’m basicly afraid of all dogs. I was bitten numerous times as a child. I was never afraid of her. Even though I didn’t live with my friends, she took me as part of the family, I think.
She live with them for 12 years. Her age, when she showed up was estimated by the vet as 4 or 5 so she may have been as old as 17 when she died.
The last year of her life, she went blind and nearly deaf. My friends moved a half day’s drive away, so I saw her less often. The last time I saw her, she growled at me. I was heart broken. Finally she walked over and smelled my hand, then licked it. That was the last time I saw Rita. I still put flowers on her grave when I visit my friends.
Early puppyhood socialization is critical. If the dog was not properly socialized, steps can be taken to deal with it, but no way to completely fix it.
What I suggest is a series of baby steps. When you encounter people of other races on your walks, you could ask them to give the dog a treat. (I carry some in my pocket for just this reason*.) Praise the dog lavishly for being polite and friendly. After a series of positive encounters, you may want to see if you can find an African-American groomer, and take the dog in just to be brushed. (Not a bath or a nail clip-- you want it to be very pleasant.) Take along some boiled chicken or bits of cooked steak, whatever treat your dog finds super- yummy and stand there feeding it to the dog while the groomer is brushing. The dog should love it, and start to associate black people with good things.
Secondly, make sure you’re very comfortable in the situation. Dogs are extremely sensitive to body language and can sense if you’re the least bit tense. If a stranger walked up to you and you were nervous about what the dog would do, the dog may take that nervousness as fear of the stranger and act to protect you.
One of my dogs was a pound rescue, taken away from her mother right after birth. She was sickly, so I wasn’t able to get her socialized as intently as she needed. She’s shy and skittish around people, so I give strangers treats to feed her so she won’t be so afraid. It’s a long process.
As far as dangerous dog breeds go:
There is a range of dog behavior/reactions. 1 is very mellow, 10 being extremely agressive. Each individual is different, but you can breed for a smaller range.
This means that maybe a beagle’s most extreme reactions would be 1 - 3, while an equally stimulated Spaniel might be at 6 - 9. Individuals vary of course, but not far from the range of each breed.
Chows are up there on the range (I don’t know for sure, but I’ll generalize and say 7-10), not dangerous per se, but occasionally unpredictable and bother by things that wouldn’t phase other dogs. This can’t stop it from being a great pet though!
There are exceptions. I have a pure-bred Jack Russel Terrier, which are often nicknamed Jack Russel Terrorists because of their frantic behavior and boldness. My dog’s brothers and sisters were extremely bold and a bit ferocious-- they killed about twenty chickens one day, and once nearly killed a neighbor’s dog (which was four times their size.) The breeder describes them as “nuts.”
The dog he gave me has a shy, sweet temperment. He must have been absent when they handed out the Boldness Gene, and he somehow missed out on the High-Energy Gene as well. (He’s part cat, I think, because he spends the majority of his time curled up on my lap.)
Being fixed also has a good deal to do with temperment, especially in males. It’s always best to fix them early, before they are sexually mature.
Every chow I’ve known has been exceptionally intelligent, even those that were improperly socialized. As an average, I’d have to guess that they’re one of the smartest breeds out there, second only to working shepherds and cattle dogs. Having been bred as working and particularly guard dogs, they can be prone to more aggressive behavior, but good socialization and an assertive owner can mitigate this.
I’ve known a coupe of Samoyeds; one was calm, but the other was not what I’d consider a good dog for children; nippy and excitable. Neither impressed me as being especially intelligent, but that’s a very small sample.
For the record, two of the most violent and unhinged dogs I’ve known were cocker spaniels; one of the little bastards nearly ripped off half of my lip one day. And I’ve got scars on my hand from childhood attack from a dalmation/retreiver mix. And yet, no one is railiing to ban these breeds. Go figure.
My chow-American Dingo mix would have fits whenever he saw me in a knitted cap. I guess I became totally unrecognizable to him. He just barked and cowered away from me though; he never offered to attack.
My father owned a chow chow a long time ago. (Long before I was born).
The dog played in the yard and kids would come by and play with it - even to the point of going into the yard. The chow chow loved this and he was practically the neighborhood mascot. He never hurt a child and I’m guessing the dog just loved all the attention. Everything went very well until the day a parent came by to take a child home. From what I was told, the chow chow did not like that one bit and although no attack occurred, the parent knew it would be unwise to proceed any further. My father had to defuse the situation and everything turned out all right.
As some have said, chow chows have strong “family” attachments. I guess this dog came to regard the neighborhood kids as his “family” and did not want “strangers” approaching.
I used to nanny in a household with a chow chow, and that dog took a liking to me instantly, treated me like its owner, shunning her real owner.
Anyway, the dog minded me very well, but was VERY protective of me also. Once, a friend came over and we were sittin’ in the back yard visiting. Denise was sitting to my left, and to her left sat my chow chow. Denise was telling an animated story, and while talking, she quickly and momentarily stood up and moved toward me and then just as quickly sat back down, never touching me at all. But the dog bit her in the calf in that very short period of time, and then sat right back down again as if nothing had happened. In fact, Denise didn’t realize immediately that she’d been bitten, but a second or two later she looked down at her calf and saw blood. She said, “You know, I believe your dog just bit me.” Craziness.
I loved that dog, but she was trouble because she was so loyal and protective. Long after I left the house, I heard that the owner had her put to sleep, because they couldn’t find a safe home for her. I imagine she was afraid of what might happen when other children came over to play. Sad, though. That was a great dog (except for the biting thing).
I don’t mean anything bad by it - but I have had both a dachsund and an Anatolian shepard who would bark furiously at anyone with a darker complection. Neither of them cared one bit about caucasions. But a black man/indian woman/mexican kid - and they would get furious and bark and bark and bark.
My old shepherd mix would do this too, so I read up about it. It seems some (many) don’t accept something “wrong” on their people. Many dogs hate halloween for this reason. He probably thought you were under attack, and that he had saved you with his threats.
American Dingo?
I worked for a time in a grooming shop. One groomer refused to take chow chows at all (she specialized in poodles, and was occasionally bitten by senile old ones). The other groomer specialised in large breeds, but had only ever been bitten badly by chows and chow crosses. She said they’d be quiet one minute, and have your hand crushed the next, with no warning. She called them unpredictable and volatile. I’ve never had any desire to disprove this.
Again, just a data point. But I would not choose a chow for a pet, when there are other really good pet breeds like oh, golden retrievers. (I have never owned a golden, but I’ve never met a golden I didn’t like.)
A friend of mine breeds Chow Chows and has for many years. Her dogs, while typical Chows in that they are wary and aloof with strangers, are neither aggressive nor unpredictable. They are intelligent, independent animals, and like time to get to know you. They certainly don’t appreciate the kind of full frontal hello that, say, a Golden Retriever enjoys.
There are doubtless many poorly bred and poorly socialized animals of the breed out there, and if you’re interested in being owned by a Chow Chow you would be well advised to seek out a good breeder. Pretty much anything that is very cute and fluffy as a puppy can be guaranteed to appeal to puppy millers, and I doubt that Chows have escaped.
I own Neapolitan Mastiffs and they seem to be similarly “impassive”, but it’s really because of their particular physical anatomy that they don’t appear to respond like other dogs. They do, in fact, but it’s subtle and you just need some familiarity with them to read it.
My parents had a chow-lab mix that was a GREAT dog until he hit sexual maturity, at which point he started selectively biting visitors. He probably would have been all right had they gotten him fixed but they refused to do that and ended up giving him lead poisoning instead.
