Bit another dog completely unprovoked

[tenofwolves]

Hello, 

So I know this is a Greyhound forum, but I have an Afghan. 

I brought my Afghan home 3 weeks ago. We live in an apartment in Houston, TX. He is an intact 18 month old male. AKC champion. 

He has had no prior negative interactions with humans or other animals. He is completely neutral to other dogs while out on walks, even dogs that are barking or lunging. He can pass a fence of angrily barking dogs with little reaction. He did not react to a Yorkie that he met off-leash through a chain link fence, even after it began barking at him. 

But today, he bit another dog. 

I had just groomed him at a self-wash station at the pet store and was in line at checkout. A family's kids wanted to pet him, which he was fine with, since he likes kids. The family's dog (appeared to be a border collie mix) was interested in him, so I let them meet at face-sniffing distance. They sniffed neutrally for a few seconds. Suddenly, my dog launched like a cobra and bit the dog in the face for no apparent reason. He did not growl or posture or raise his hackles before the bite. The other dog did nothing to provoke him. I immediately pulled him back and he disengaged and was no longer aggressive. 

The other dog had a very small cut from the bite under his eye. I was mortified. I will absolutely not be allowing him to come that close to another dog while on leash again. 

Is there anything I can do to help him overcome this apparent leash reactivity? It came to me as a complete surprise. His behavior is quite calm and neutral otherwise, and he is much better behaved than a lot of the dogs I encounter. Is it due to him adjusting to his new home/owner? 

I have ordered a muzzle and am considering a behaviorist. 

Thank you! 

[Time4ANap]

With no growl and no warning, i'm going to ask the question - Could this have been play?  We have dogs who play "bitey face." Injuries can happen during rough play, so  I think the question bears asking - did your dog think he was playing with the other dog? 

[tenofwolves]

5 minutes ago, Time4ANap said:

With no growl and no warning, i'm going to ask the question - Could this have been play?  We have dogs who play "bitey face." Injuries can happen during rough play, so  I think the question bears asking - did your dog think he was playing with the other dog? 

Oh no, this was definitely not play. I've had dogs that play bitey-face forever and it definitely did not appear playful. He made a noise during the lunge that sounded similar to a growl, but did not show any signs of aggression or discomfort before the lunge. I am super confused by it

[Time4ANap]

10 minutes ago, tenofwolves said:

Oh no, this was definitely not play. I've had dogs that play bitey-face forever and it definitely did not appear playful. He made a noise during the lunge that sounded similar to a growl, but did not show any signs of aggression or discomfort before the lunge. I am super confused by it

OK - just making sure.  We have seen greyhounds get labeld as "vicious" or "aggressive" for just doing dog things, so wanted to make sure there was no confusion. My thought is that the other dog made some kind of move or action that your dog perceived as a problem. It could have been something as subtle as a lip curl that no one saw, but my thought is that your dog acted on it since there was no warning prior. Obviously, with your dog being new, maybe the  whole event of going to store and groups of people with a dog overwhelmed him as well.  For now, you know that you will need a little more control of him in public situations and around other dogs. Fortunately, the injury sounds like it was minor. There are a few people here who are more experienced with behavioral issues, so hopefully they will chim in. Good luck. 

[mansbestfriend]

Hi tenofwolves. Your new Afghan hound sounds like it has learned (for whatever reason) to suppress its behaviours/emotions. I'd suggest getting in contact with a good dog behaviourist in your area who uses only Positive Reinforcement meathods. They can assess your situation firsthand and offer advice about the most appropriate management and training. Cheers. 

[greysmom]

I also urge a consult with a good certified animal behaviorist in your area.  They are there and can observe your dog in person, while we're just responding to your description of an unwitnessed event.

Couple thoughts...

Number 1 - He's a show dog.  He's been trained to not react to other dogs in the ring and to keep his mind on what he's doing.  That doesn't mean he doesn't actually have reactions to other dogs, just that he's been trained not to show them.  It could be that he's really not OK with other dogs, and as he settles into home life, he's relaxing the fences around some of the training as it's not reinforced.

Number 2 - He's an intact, adult, large breed dog.  There could have been something about the smaller dog that triggered a prey response in him.  Unless you have a reason to keep him intact, talk with your vet about options for neutering him.  It could just be a case of too much testosterone.

Number 3 - Was the other dog younger?  Very active?  Jumping on him or around him?  Being pushy about sniffing/smelling in private places?  It could be a case of an older dog disciplining a younger dog for being an idiot.  The bite/cut could have been completely accidental and not on purpose given the disparity in size between the two dogs. 

Number 4 - The smaller dog could also have been giving off idiot vibes that irritated the older/larger dog.  Unless you witnessed the complete interaction, start to finish, and are an expert in dog body language there could have been clues that you missed that ended in your dog reacting.  This is where the behaviorist can really help.

Leash reactivity is usually caused by a higher level of anxiety than I think your dog would/should have towards other dogs.  It's always a possibility in these kinds of situations, but not the primary one, IMO.  There's a very good training book by Patricia McConnell called "Feisty Fido: Help for the Leash Reactive Dog" that may offer you some insights and help going forward.

[BatterseaBrindl]

I do agree with advice given but just adding that Border Collies have a tendency to stare …and won’t back down.  
Many dogs… including our Galgo… take that as a challenge. 

[zimsmom]

Good advice above.  My greys lead a sheltered life.  I never left them near any dog unless they have been introduced multiple times.   And in a situation like this (I have used the washing center like you) I muzzle all the time.  Sorry this happened.  Hopefully just an isolated incident.  

[Nadine]

Very good input in the other answers. I like to add a second thought, too. Afghan hounds are a very old breed. They are genetically very close to wolves which means that their genes are very old, very original dog. Approaching another dog nose to nose is very impolite. Staring at other dogs is also very impolite.

Your dog with the oldest genetics met a fairly younger dog, one of those who often (due to their breeding) stare at others in the most impolite ways (in dog speech). This situation triggered something in his very old behaviourism. Afghans are wonderful dogs but you need to understand that they are not your average neighbourhood pooch ( plus oriental sighthound breeds are always guard dogs, too).

[Apollo_the_Grey]

Congrats on your Afghan, they are amazing dogs.

Intact males can be a little sketchy sometimes.  If there was a female in heat anywhere nearby, he could have been in "i'm alpha and I need to find her" mode, or there could have been some slight movement, posture that you didn't see.  Most of all, face to face meetings are really tough for dogs, as they are completely confrontational.   Show dogs also respond to the "other end of the leash."  If  the lead is taut and there's a tiny aggressive posture, that could lead to a dog skipping the warning steps (posture, growl, teeth baring, air snap) and going straight to bite.  It's not common, but I've seen sighthounds do this a bunch.  

 

Greetings in a pet store, can be confined and give your hound the feeling that there is no "flight" and only "fight" as the opt out.    It becomes even more of a "one option only" as he's on a lead.  (And I'm not even mentioning all the hundreds of sounds and smells that are crowding into his brain.)

Lots of good advice on this thread, the only thing I can say is be patient, and it's okay to say "No, I'm not confident in my dog meeting other dogs right now."  Until you get to know your boy more and he gets to understand what's expected of him as well.

 

 

 

 

[Banjoman]

I go with BatterseaBrindl on this one, it could well be that the Collie was eyeballing your boy and he objected to it.

The only dogs my first, intact whippet disliked were Collies for that reason, he was a dominant dog and wouldn’t take them staring him out.