So I have an older dog. She’s about 12 years old and a shepherd mix. That’s getting up there in age for her size. I’ve had her since she was 3 and for the longest time she was nice to my four cats. But as time went on she started getting well…bitchier with them. At first she would just growl if they came too close. Then about a couple years ago she’d randomly snap at them but let it go at that. Well recently, within the past week or so she’s suddenly started attacking them full force. I’ve had to break up three fights where she was just going after the cat. Luckily she hasn’t hurt them yet but I’m worried about what should happen if I’m not there to break it up. There’s been no changes in the house so I’m not sure what’s instigated this.
What’s worse is, she’s been growling at my daughter who’s only 10 months old. Not just a low growl either. A menacing growl that gets louder if my daughter gets closer. She doesn’t even have to be touching the dog. Just within like a foot of her gets the growling started. I’m worried about the cats and I’m worried a lot about my daughter but I’m doing major supervising with her. Never alone with the dog and if she starts looking like she’s going near the dog, I move her away.
Don’t know what to do since I can’t figure out what’s causing this outside of her getting crochety in her old age. I don’t want to do anything drastic but if she continues to go after the cats like this or god forbid do something even close to that with my daughter I might not have a choice. Any suggestions or insight?
Have you taken her to the vet? There’s the possibility that there’s something going wrong which is causing neurological/behavioral changes. You should probably do this sooner rather than later - my husband knows of a dog who started getting aggressive in his later years, and ended up biting the family’s young daughter. I can’t recall if they bothered with an actual postmortem exam or if they just assumed it was some kind of brain tumor or other problem that triggered it.
I haven’t actually seen the beginning of a fight yet but if it’s like her old habit of snapping, it’s when they get too close to her. Most of the time she completely ignores the cats.
As for the pack thing, I had thought maybe she was jealous of the baby or something but assumed it would have shown up before this.
And I haven’t taken her to the vet really since she’s acting fine anyway. She’s due for some routine bloodwork though so if I can get the money together soon I might bring her and bring this up.
THat ‘growling at the baby’ thing would terrify me. Growl at me, no problem, I’ll growl back. Snap at me, bite me, I’ll give you the back of my hand. Bite the baby…you’re gone.
I’m sure her vision and hearing are fine. I just find myself in a bad situation. I don’t want the cats to get hurt but I’ve had her almost her entire life. I just feel like I should try something to correct the situation, that I owe her that much. She hasn’t done anything towards the baby that makes me scared for her safety. It’s more of an “oh that’s not good…” feeling.
Someone suggested trying to get her to associate the baby with good things like food. But that’s not practical because she gets so excited when she sees a treat she’d trample the poor baby. I’ve tried verbally reprimanding her when she growls but it’s done nothing. She just stops for a second and gives me a look that seems to say “What did I do wrong?”.
Can you train her on the leash? We have an excitable dog who we’ve trained to not be so aggressive to the vacuum cleaner by doing the training while on a leash. We can control the situation that way.
Frankly, being unpredictable around the baby way outstrips the reactions to the cats (we have a dog, two cats and kids, so I know where you are coming from).
You could consult a dog trainer, but if you’re having trouble scraping together the money to take her to the vet it seems unlikely that you have the cash to pay a trainer. Your child’s safety must be the main question. To wait until she does something to the baby could be disasterous. I’m not saying you have to euthanize her, but definitely separate them until your child is older.
Generally speaking, no dog, of any age or sort, should be unsupervised with an infant. Period. That goes for silly little fluffy ones as well.
Vet check is indicated. One common reason for this exact behavior – growling and snapping at things that get close or disturb her – is when a dog is in constant pain.
If you “owe” this dog consideration – and I believe a dog is a family member – then IMHO you “owe” her two things here:
Constant supervision, and limited exposure period, to the baby. Don’t give her the chance to err.
Vet diagnosis, second opinion if necessary. If you don’t have a good vibe from your current vet, ask around, nearby dog people may have a good recommendation. Like a good mechanic or accountant, a vet you like and trust is well worth considerable trouble to find and keep.
Well I’ve made an appointment for her at the vet. I don’t have enough for the bloodwork right now but I can at least have a checkup to make sure there’s nothing obviously wrong. And as for the pain…I hadn’t even thought about that. She’s missed out on her groomer visits for about four months now and she’s getting a little matted. I’m sure that’s not comfortable and the groomer’s not too expensive so I’ll see about making her an appointment for that tomorrow too.
And for everyone implying that I should get rid of her right away for the safety of my baby, I understand where you’re coming from but I know she’s not a bad dog. Something’s going on with her and I want to give her the chance of getting better and not just toss her out. I’m taking measures to make sure they don’t interact anymore to keep anything from happening.
For goodness sakes, why is this even a question in your mind? It’s not a matter of *punishing *your beloved pet…for whatever reason, your dog is not well and needs to be treated immediately. And as much for your dog’s sake as for the safety of your child, it is better to treat them proactively…IOW, any signs of aggression need euthanasia, sorry to say.
I know why some of you are saying “Get rid of the dog” but you have to realize this is madness. Pets are family members. You might consider kicking out one to protect the other, but only as the absolutely last resort.
I agree with the people who are recommending checking her for physical problems. Pain makes critters grumpy, whether they’re people or pets. Also, canine senility can cause this sort of thing. And the problem seems to be getting worse over time, which indicates something pathological.
Please, please keeps us informed about how the vet visit goes.
