Aggressive At Dog Park

[Guest Al747]

I rescued my greyhound about 2 months ago and have been going to the dog park with him for about a month and a half. The first time we went, he was excellent with other dogs. We kept on going about 3 times a week until now, and he has started to be bad the last few weeks. He started to nip other dogs which caused them to scream, and chase them kind of aggressively. When we went to the park today he was the worst that he's ever been. He kept on nipping (hard) the leg of a smaller dog, and the owner could not get him off so they had to leave. After that incident, he bit (Not full force, but hard) the neck of a smaller golden retriever and held on for about 5 seconds while the retriever screamed. If I didn't catch him, he would have continued. This is unacceptable behavior and I don't want to bring him back to the park because he seems to get worse every time we go.

 

So, to recap:

 

-In the beginning, he was good. Behavior progressively got worse.

 

-He does this to dogs that are smaller than him.

 

-He acts fine as long as the other dog is not running. When they run, he chases them aggressively and starts to nip or bite hard depending on how the other dog acts.

 

What should I do?

[GeorgeofNE]

The simple answer to "what can I do" is stop taking him to the dog park!

 

Clearly his prey drive is taking over. He could easily kill a small dog without intending to, and you're setting yourself up for a world of trouble.

 

Greyhounds also have exceptionally thin skin, and frankly, I think you're lucky he hasn't been injured yet by a frightened dog turning around to nip him.

 

Perhaps find some greyhound-only playgroups where the dogs are suitably muzzled while they're playing?

[September]

Definitely stop taking him, that is an accident waiting to happen.

 

You need to read this also- Lexus .

[iluvgreys]

I agree with GeorgeofNE. Your boy is behaving badly and should not be allowed to continue. Contact your group and see if there's a greyhound-only play group in which all dogs are muzzled. Or perhaps you might connect with another adopter in your area that has a fenced yard and would allow you to bring your hound over to play. Again, all dogs should be muzzled for safety. Do NOT muzzle just your dog and take him to a dog park. He will be defenseless if attacked, and might still be able to hurt another dog through the muzzle if he's intent upon it.

[RobinM]

Welcome to GT.

 

The very first thing I would do is never take him to a dog park when there are small dogs there. It took us close to 3 months to learn that our Teddy is NOT other breed safe- no matter of size. He will attempt to kill any dog he sees. that was a pretty scary thing to find out, accidently!

 

Pleae be very careful with your boy- there was a recent incident where a GH killed a dog at a dog part in front of everyone dispite grown men beating the gh to release it. A gh is not going to stop when it gets going.

 

The other dog is dead and the GH was sentenced to death by the town. There happened to be a different outcome for the Greyhound but that was a long shot.

 

Please be careful for everyone involved.

 

I take Teddy to run at the local school field once in a while (it's enclosed totally) but more importantly, we walk Teddy 3 times a day- 30-40 minutes at a time. He also can go outise in back for zoomies if he wants.

 

ETA- someone else might file a complaint about you and the dog which isn't good for anyone either. I woundn't be too happy if I had the dog that was being chased by a gh. I would ask you to leave and if you couldn't control your dog, I'd make a complaint. It's not worth risking your dog over.

 

Make play dates with people on GT who live in your area. Much better idea!

Edited February 15, 2010 by RobinM

[JAJ2010]

Don't go to the dog park!

 

I NEVER run my girls with smaller dogs and am always very careful if we do have other dogs there. If they running gets too intense I stop it immediately. If you don't have the ability to stop it then your a danger to all other dogs out there. Usually we only run with other greyhounds with muzzles since we go at dawn, sometimes my girls run with my parent's dogs. But I personally know all the dogs and know how they will react in most situations. You should have left when you couldn't control your dog, not the other dog owner. Greys are bred to run aggressively. They need that competitive drive to win races. Most do not do well running with other dogs. He's only doing what he his DNA is telling him and your very lucky he didn't kill that smaller dog.

 

If your dog needs to run take him to the dog park when it is empty (usually 6:30-7am) and toss some balls for him to chase. You have to be very very careful at dog parks as they are very dangerous places...

[EnzaFerrari]

I think I am one of the few people who do take their dog to the park and both of us enjoy it. HOWEVER - I didn't do it until I had had Enza for at least 6 months. I didn't know her, she didn't know me, and I didn't know she'd react. I also only take her to the park that 1) is empty most of the time and 2) the one that I know everyone watches their dogs.

 

In sum, I think you can take your dog - but not right now and not when there are small dogs there.

[Guest MyCody]

Please listen to everyone's advice, DO NOT take him to a dog park!! I was at the hearing for the dog in RI that killed the small dog in the dog park and it was awful. She was just doing what comes naturally to some greys, and I would not let any small dogs near your grey, he sounds very unsafe around other breeds, that's just the way it is sometimes, not his fault, just his makeup.

 

Terry

[greyhoundlady]

As others have said - Don't go to the dog park. You have probably been lucky so far that nothing really serious happened. One of my greys is very animal aggressive and I know he will never change. He is under control when I walk him now because I followed many of the suggestions that the great folks here on this site have offered. The key is to get to know your hound's personality and adjust. I have two completely different greys - but I am so attached to my 'bad boy'. He has come a long way, but I understand who he is.

 

Good luck!

[Guest KennelMom]

too much, too soon.

 

Take a step back, go back to square one and slowly introduce him to pet life. Definitely no dog park for a long while (or ever...I think they're generally terrible places unless it's a controlled playgroup situation).

[Pepperjack]

Strange, biting necks and backs of legs is what Zuni does whe she is playing 'bitey face.' And only when the other dog is running around excited. I wonder if he's really bad at playing with others? It seems strange for him to be biting legs if he is truly small dog aggressive, instead of going for a fatal blow? Obviously I can't be sure of anything without witnessing him first-hand.

 

Regardless, a nice muzzled greyhound playgroup would probably be a better solution, if one is available in your area.

[Guest LindsaySF]

Agreed with GeorgeofNE and September.

 

You don't want your dog to be the next Lexus.

 

Also, please read this thread to see what can happen as a result of unmuzzled play.

 

Congrats on your new dog. Good luck.

[Guest Greyt_dog_lover]

My boy Bart was very similar the first few times I took him to the park. In hindsight, I was way too new to greyhounds to do that. My wife and I worked with our boy almost daily on recall using a sports whistle. We also immediately stopped Bart when he was too intense on play with the smaller dogs. I had many people there saying, Oh just let him play, he's playing. He was, but playing too rough and if I didnt stop it, it could have ended up badly. By always being close to our hound and constantly on top of him when he starts to play, we were able to stop the behavior before it realy had a chance to establish itself. You can curb this behavior, but it requires a lot of diligent work on your part, as well as recall. It is probably too soon for you to allow him to play with non-greyhounds right now as he is just too excited and could potentially hurt another hound or be hurt himself from a fearful dog. I do take both my hounds to dog parks to play, so it is possible to do, but I have had mine for years now and they are not fresh from the track. Good luck, you can make things work, but for now, I would refrain from the park for a while (3-6 months and some obedience classes too boot).

[Guest PiagetsMom]

Unfortunately, like RobinM, I've found out that I have a "breed snob" here. Ocassionally I board Mirage with other greyhounds, and I'm told he never has a problem with them. But, I've yet to find another breed that he doesn't have an intense reaction to. It started out especially with small dogs, but has escalated to "other" dogs. I work very hard on his leash reactivity when passing other dogs, and I wouldn't even think of taking him to a dog park or letting him off leash with other dogs.

 

Don't know if your pup would fall into the category of breed snob, but like others have suggested, a play group with other greyhounds might be a much better alternative to the dog park, at least for now. If you contact a group in your area I have a good feeling that they can likely point you to some information.

 

 

Good Luck!

Edited February 16, 2010 by PiagetsMom

[Guest mowreyAZ]

I agree with many of the other posts above. I only go to the park if I know it will be a) empty in the mornings or greyhound play date. I have one that loves everyone and everything but my tuxedo girl has a strong prey drive so if there are other dogs I let one play and keep my tuxedo girl walking on her leash. This way I can control her and she still get to greet everyone correctly and gets lots of time to sniff all the interesting smells. It took the tuxedo girl a year to realize that she could run and chase but she was a late bloomer and grew very strong both in looks and personality. And there is nothing wrong with not going and taking long walks, which allow for lots of bonding time.

[Guest Harry702]

I think I am one of the few people who do take their dog to the park and both of us enjoy it. HOWEVER - I didn't do it until I had had Enza for at least 6 months. I didn't know her, she didn't know me, and I didn't know she'd react. I also only take her to the park that 1) is empty most of the time and 2) the one that I know everyone watches their dogs.

 

 

Totally agree.

 

More than likely, your pup thinks he's playing. Greyhounds are known to be nippy and competitive (this is why they're muzzled at the track), and why would your brand new pup know that the dog park is any different? I think you need to take a step back and figure out if he can be taught to "play" in a way that isn't aggressive, or if it's really his nature to play rough, so to speak.

 

Harry loves the dog park, but he's never shown the behavior you describe. If he ever showed a hint of that kind of behavior, his park privileges would be revoked indefinitely.

[Guest Bang_o_rama]

Bang will nip at the ears of any dog that tries to steal her tennis ball during dog park romps. Since she is extremely docile, I have to think it is normal dog play. We uh-uh her anyway, so no one gets hurt, and she promptly stops. For a while.

 

Other than that it is lucky she IS so nice to other dogs, because a few animated dust mops have used her face for a treadmill, barked in her ears and generally displayed a Napoleon complex around her. And no, owners, it's NOT cute, it can get YOUR dog hurt or killed and some other dog put down by the authorities.

~D~

[PrairieProf]

Basically I agree with the others -- I take Beth to the dog park because it's one of the few places for her to run, but at empty or non-busy times. She also can get ramped up and too intense for many dogs -- not only small dogs (whom I now NEVER let her loose with, even though she's fine with them on leash) but also submissive dogs and puppies (under a year, say) -- "nippy and competitive" puts it very well, and of course greyhounds can catch everybody else in a flash. She doesn't seem good about obeying other dogs' signals to back off when she gets excited. With other large, confident dogs she can play well. So I encourage you to find places or times where your grey can run solo, and a greyhound playdate or other carefully selected opportunities for socialization - I believe that's really important, but it's sort of a balancing act with safety. There are also things in some areas like hound hikes; or a good training class also provides an opportunity for some controlled socialization with other dogs. I won't say I don't find the limits kind of depressing when I see all sorts of other big dogs apparently playing benignly with little ones, but I guess it's just a trade off for the general wonderfulness in every other area of having a greyhound.

[Guest kar]

I only have one grey I can take to the dog park and I've had her since she was a puppy. The other two just do not do well with other dogs - One of mine scotch nips my other two greys when they run - he is either in a muzzle - or he does not run with them.

[Guest FastDogsOwnMe]

My question is, after the first time he bit a dog, why did you stay? Please don't let this end tragically for your dog or another. Dog parks are scary places. I still find ways to go, but I always error on the side of caution.

[Guest Al747]

My question is, after the first time he bit a dog, why did you stay? Please don't let this end tragically for your dog or another. Dog parks are scary places. I still find ways to go, but I always error on the side of caution.

 

Before this happened, the 2 of them were in the process of running and they ended up pretty far away from me. I ran there ASAP but it took me 5 seconds to get there.

[Guest FlirtyMyrtle]

I have to add that even my lurcher who I have had from 16 weeks old gets over exuberant around little dogs and she has been well socialised with small dogs from day one. I will let her greet small dogs and play if they and their owners are willing, but always remove her as soon as she starts to get too much. She thinks she is playing but the little ones don't know this. Because she is a Border Collie x she first tries herding them and then the chasing and rolling them starts...

[Guest Al747]

So, If I shouldn't take him to the dog park, then where else can he run? I don't have a big yard and I don't know of any large fenced area around here...

[Guest Shana]

Do you have any fully enclosed/gated outdoor tennis courts, or hockey rinks (not in winter) around? Are there any schools in your city where the feilds are fenced? You may have to drive a bit if there is one.

If you can manage to find a time in the day when the dog park has no one in it, there's an option. That may mean going to bed earlier and waking up earlier.

Have any friends or family that have large backyards/securely fenced acreage that you could borrow for a couple times a week?

Several people have mentioned greyhound only play groups... call up your adoption group for info or if you didnt adopt him from a group, call up one or two near you and they should be willing to let you know what the scoop is.

You need to think, there is a way to let him run.

[Guest Al747]

Do you have any fully enclosed/gated outdoor tennis courts, or hockey rinks (not in winter) around? Are there any schools in your city where the feilds are fenced? You may have to drive a bit if there is one.

If you can manage to find a time in the day when the dog park has no one in it, there's an option. That may mean going to bed earlier and waking up earlier.

Have any friends or family that have large backyards/securely fenced acreage that you could borrow for a couple times a week?

Several people have mentioned greyhound only play groups... call up your adoption group for info or if you didnt adopt him from a group, call up one or two near you and they should be willing to let you know what the scoop is.

You need to think, there is a way to let him run.

 

We have a crapload of tennis courts around, but isn't that kind of dangerous? And are the school fields open to the public?

 

I'll try and get some info on the grey only play groups.

 

Thank you for your help.