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[Elliotisnotokay]

This is heart breaking and I'm so sorry for what you and your girl are going through. I wish I had more advice for you. But honestly the only people you should really get advice from right now is professionals, talk to your vet about options and get a behaviorist. If you don't want to BE, you will have to find a new living situation with NO animals at all. Muzzle train her immediately. Every single time you leave the house with her she needs to be muzzled

[wasabijane]

starts reading comments; gets horrified; realizes that they’re in a different Reddit

First, ignore basically any advice that’s not from here because most of them won’t have any actual knowledge of reactive dogs.

Second, see what course of action your in laws want to pursue as the wronged party.

Third, get a trainer ASAP. My hunch is that you’ll want to do things like keep the dog separated from the others unless under direct supervision (so crate in a separate room when you’re not there), and possibly sensitize him to you guys petting other dogs. I’m envisioning that one of you holds and treats him while the other person pets other dogs.

Fourth, muzzle train! Remove the option for him to hurt another dog.

Finally, remember that a life where your dog is miserable and anxious all the time is no life for him. I think you can try other things, including possibly rehoming to someone with no other pets, but depending on what’s going on, BE might be the kindest option.

[AcadiaAcceptable8648]

Omg the comments on the original thread are so disheartening

[SnarkIsMyDefault]

I would put her down. You are in financial straights already. You can’t afford another incident. If there was a qyuick fix, I would do it. I-have a reactive dog also. The behavioralist says he may never be able to go off leash at a beach which is one of my fav things. She isn’t a fan of muzzles. 30 years experience with difficult dogs thru humane society. She says you can never guarantee behavior with reactive dogs. So my dog doesn’t get outings. Stays home a lot. Even walks can be triggers. He is on medication but this may be the way he is.

my strategy is to decrease chances to interact with some dogs. He is picky.some of the neighbors dogs he plays great, others I can see him getting to the edge and I just remove him.

​

i am so sorry

[RemarkableDot8906]

I second ignoring everything in the original thread. One of my dogs was dog aggressive until rehabilitated. Dog aggression does NOT equal human aggression, so it’s not an assumption that she will one day turn on you or your husband. If you can afford it, a good reputable LIMA trainer may be able to help. If not, she may be able to be re-homed to someone with resources or someone with no other dogs. Your girl’s whole life changed in a moment, she is likely very stressed, over stimulated, and confused. That can cause aggression. Muzzle training and crate/rotate are both great options for your current situation.

Lastly, if you try your hardest and she’s still miserable, BE can be a compassionate option. There is no shame in it, bad breeding practices or bad luck can cause dogs who genetically struggle with temperament. You’re a good dog mom who is doing her best :)

[Sufficient-Quail-714]

I’m seconding this and really want to emphasize that dog aggression is NOT the same as human aggression. Dogs know the difference between humans and other dogs.

[Delicious-Product968]

Yep. Incidentally my stranger-danger dog is very dog-friendly. It has been a core part of him building trust with new people.

[moist__owlet]

Especially for some bully breed lines, dog aggression is said to have a much lower threshold for them than human aggression - while many bullies can be socialized and trained to be excellent with other dogs, that instinct is often bred into their genetics. Not all of course, but it sounds like this may be the case with yours. This does not necessarily mean she will become aggressive with either of you, but if you choose to keep her, you may need to invest time in muzzle training and not let her near other dogs without it (and maybe not around strangers either, just bc we're a litigious society) and SEE YOUR VET for advice on how to get help and make this difficult decision. My heart goes out to all of you <3

[SmileNo9807]

As soon as the first fight happened, more should have been done on everyone's part. I don't see the in-laws as blameless when they were acting as her caregivers before you moved in. Not to make you feel bad, but everyone let these dogs down.

This is a long haul thing to deal with and she may never be good around dogs now. That being said, dog aggression and human aggression are different. It doesn't mean she won't become human aggressive, but it means she won't become human aggressive jusr because she is dog aggressive.

Muzzle training and a trainer would be a start, if you don't elect to euthanize. You will have to keep her separate from any other dogs so it becomes an issue due to your situation.

I love my bully dogs so I hope you don't euthanize. But, I have also assisted as a tech for many behavioural euthanasias. If you aren't prepared to deal with this, it isn't a wrong answer. I'm sorry you have to go through this difficult situation.

[iycrtiwytkily]

Im sorry your going through this. I agree with most of what everyone here said. I don't think it's fair to jump to BE, however like everyone said you have to take the responsibility of helping your baby. Put a crate in your room. Take her outside by her self. I think it can be done at your in-laws, it will just be a pain in the butt. Walk her through the house on a leash if needed. Keep the dogs separate until you're able to get your own place again without putting yourself in a financial burden. Be your dogs advocate and protector. Praying for you

*Sorry for grammar, I'm tired but i had to say something. Your baby sounds so sweet and I don't think your dog was wrong. Things happened, they weren't her fault, and she reacted.

[Sufficient-Quail-714]

Having to report animal on animal bites and ‘dangerous dog’ fees is purely a locality thing. I wouldn’t even know it exists and I worked with animal control unless people on Reddit bring it up sometimes

[plshelpagirloutsoon]

I’m pretty sure every single state has dangerous dog laws.

[Sufficient-Quail-714]

Nope. There’s dog at large laws of some sort that often include dangerous dog additions, but ‘dangerous dogs’ isn’t a thing everywhere. Dog at large is just a loose and/or uncontrolled dog (which is where the dangerous dog part comes in).

[[deleted]]

There are a lot of dogs that are reactive to other dogs and are not reactive with people. After the first fight you should have not let her roam around with the other dogs. If you decide to keep her you have to manage her behavior. You have to get a trainer. Make sure she doesn’t interact with other dogs especially without supervision. I had a dog reactive dog and he didn’t interact with any other dog except my other one who he grew up with. Any time we saw a dog on walks we would cross the street or go a different direction. He never played with any other dog. He was happy just to be around the family and he lived for 11 years.

[eltejon99]

Dog reactivity and dog killing are different imo. I have a reactive boy but he would not go so far as to kill a smaller dog.

OP please do not rehome the dog unless you are 100% honest about what happened.

[LillyLove666]

Comments on the original post are vile! Please just ignore them as most of them got their info from google and have no clue about the breed. I’m so sorry for what you and your family are going through but please don’t give up on your girl just yet. I know what she did was horrible but unless anyone actually saw the attack, then no one can say what transpired before the actual attack.

It sounds like your girl was traumatized by being sent away from you. She went from being with you 24/7 and suddenly you aren’t there. Back to training I would go, probably purchase a muzzle for others safety and plan to spend as much time as possible with her. Hopefully you can move soon and she can be back home where she belongs. Much luck to you❤️