My 15 month staffie bitch does not seem eager to defend herself from aggressive dogs, so i'm having to intervene to protect her and as she's the baby of the family i will always do, they say there confidence comes thruogh at about 18 mths, it's not that i want her to be viscous or anti dog friendly i've socialised her from a very young age and is really friendly with all dogs and plays well, but she's been attacked by a GSD and a lurcher we see regularly on our walks is really snappy with her sort of running up and nipping at her she used to lie down not wanting anthing to do with this sort of thing now she stands jaws facing but not attacking just keeping at bay sort of thing, this is my fist staff but i know a few people who have them so i'm familiar with the breed and i've got a few books on the breed (yes i've read them) and i dont want my staff to be nasty but i hope she'll put unruly dogs like the GSD whitch could have got real nasty had i not come to her rescue but if i have to keep doing this one day i could get bitten (a dounting thought!!!) i may be worrying about nothing but i met a ten month old staffie bitch the other day and she was trying to have a pop at her they were both on there leads so was'nt a problem but hilighted my concern. any advice from other staffie or bull breed owners would be greatful, Dave.

I would actually change where I walk your dog so that she doesnt have to meet this dog on her walk .
I would also speak to the other dogs owner . If it is making a nuisance of its self- which obviously it is ,then I would let him know .
I actually would not encourage her to be more aggressive .
If she is prepared to stand back and maybe warn the other dog off without a fight occurring I would be much happier.
I have a Staffy that is very dog friendly and that is what I would do should I be in the same position . I would not teach him to be more aggresive as what will it gain ? If they were to have a fight , either dog could be seriously injured, plus anyone intervening .
I would keep her away and not put her in such a position.
Lel

Hi,

I'd have to agree with Lel, change where you walk or talk to the other dogs owner. The last thing you want (believe me) is a Stafford that's aggressive to other dogs.

To be honest even if a Staff or other Bull breed is just defending itself from another dog the Staff/ Bull breed and owner will be blamed.

She sounds confident enough, just try not to let her get into situations where she'll be forced to defend herself.

Karen

hi lel, ido try and avoid any dogs that look dodgy or i know there trouble, i don't want her to fight but tell them to go away in staffie language she's of the eastaff line so could be still young at heart, her temperment is spot on and i dont think she'll ever start any fight, but as i said the GSD incident the dog gave no warning was on her like a shot this was a dog aswell whitch suprised me again she got cut/graze about five or six inches long this healed leaving no scarring luckily, as for the owner i said your dogs cut my dog to witch his answer was he was only ruff playing!!!? belive me i could of smackrd him one but he was an oldish bloke with glasses, she was definately to young then but i wished she had turned round and bit this dog right on the nose he may think twice before doing it again!!!
Dave.

Tell this man you will report him and his dog - the idiot
As Karen says , it will always be the Stafford that is blamed whether she starts it or not . It is good for a Stafford to have nice temperament and let other people see that they arent all dog aggressive .
Good luck but tell this fool that his dogs behaviour will not Be tolerated and he will be paying the vets bill should it be rEquired !!!
He is an idiot anyway as I'm sure he would be the first to complain should his dog require vetrinary attention if your dog defends herself !!!

Hey Dave,

Don't panic too much it will come to her, I had a Stafford dog who was brilliant with other dogs, played great but if they wanted trouble then Sam would ignore them, if they pushed their luck he developed a party trick of his own making that seemed to work, he'd flip them on their backs hold them down for a couple of seconds then let them go. Worked for him every time. I saw him flip only two dogs one a chow and one a largish X breed. Usually his body language was enough to stop them in their tracks.

Your bitch is Eastaff lines, who is here sire? My bitch is Eastaff on her sire's side too.

Karen

Hi karen,

She's eastaff on the dams side,
right then;

sire,Knockon the Devil Himself at Kilvara

dam,Universal Girl at Kilvara

sire,Kilvara Demolition Man

dam,Madame Peugeot(my dogs mother)......sire,Pridestaff Kesscass(my doga father)

dam,Madam Evita

sire,CH Judael Both Barrels at Nozac

dam,Queen Salamasena

Eaststaff Guadian is my bitches Gt Gt Gt Grandparent, well one of them!!!

is this enough info you should be able to trace the rest of the way as you're familiar with these lines

p.s. Queen Salamasena is out of CH Spartan Victor, also the breeder took the line out this time so the fathers side is new blood in to the line,,. mmmmmm(puzzelled i am!!!!)

hope you can make sense of all this karen,
good luck let me know your thoughts on her line???? Dave.

Hi Dave
Gus has Eastaff Tallysman as a great grandfather and Eastaff Guardian as great great grandfather
do you show her at all ???
Lel

Hi Dave,

A really good solid pedigree, I assume she's black or black/brindle then.

I like both barrels and he produces some good dogs. Knockon kennels also produce good quality and consistent staffords.

Have you had Staffs before?
Mines a black bitch she's Eastaff on her sire's side he's Brystaff Simply the Best. She's called Sal.

Karen

no i dont but i am intrested in joining a SBTC i live in York so northen counties is the closest i think???
i would like to show her club level but really she's a family pet love to talk staffs to other owners when i bump into them on walks if there dogs are friendly enough..Her coulor is black with underlying brindle..couple of brindle beauty spots she looks black really but catch her in the light you can see it more and a white patch the size of a five pence piece on her chest she's a little bat eared but she's lovely... no this is my first but i bought a bitch with the option of breeding not sure yet just reading up looking at lines wont mate her till 3rd or 4th season but undecided the horror stories on here tend to put you of a bit you know and as i've said she's my baby if i do i will be keeping one of the pups then have her spayed because the breeder went out this time i can take her back into the eastsaff line if i wish... she has on her sires side CH Domino Flashy Lad and CH Rogue Saga as well i think she has good lines so she could be suitable for breeding a litter from??????
Dave.

Hi lel,

Eastaff Guardian was a lovely looking dog, tragically died young though, good solid lines, this may be my first staff but i've had John f Gordons book on the breed about 15 years or more..
dave

Whats her KC name Dave ( if you dont mind me asking )
Lel

no i'm not that secretive, Lel,.. her KC name is: The Duchess of Dudley Hill..(Maddie or Madison is her name!!)
Dave

Maddie - I like that :)

Lel .. Karen .. are you members of any SBTC then??

I'm a member of Alyn & Deeside SBT Club ( I'M in the Wirral) and I have also joined the Potteries and Notts and derby.
:)

northen counties is the closest to me i think still 20 miles or so away...shame!!!!

the wirral is that near Liverpool if so have you heard of mooskel staffs??
Dave

Have heard of them yes but dont personally know them ??

I only asked cause there out of liverpool i believe!!!

well thanks for all your advice you and karen gave me, so basicly i'm worrying over nothing then??? should be grateful she's dog friendly!!!

Take care you two, look forward to chatting again...
Dave.

Honestly Dave
never try to make her aggressive - enjoy her temperament and be glad that she isnt going to "start" anything with another dog .
As I mentioned before - just keep her away from idiot owners . Keep an eye out for other dogs and make sure she is always in your view.
Lel

He sounded brilll,just like a true staff,
mine's really good with the kids, all staffs are :)

Hi :)

Speaking as someone who does have a problem with an aggression prone Staff, I can simply say be VERY glad that your dog is friendly, you are lucky as apart from the odd encounter with another aggressive dog your walks must be pretty pleasurable and hassle free :)

My little lady is very fearful of other dogs and if one approaches will snarl and bark and lunge at them, we are currently about to pay alot of money to embark on one to one training for her to try to coax her out of it before she gets worse as she is only 8 months old. We have to keep her on a lead if other dogs are about and it is awful to see her get so stressed. We tried a puppy club when she was small and she was attacked by another dog there, hence the problem we now have. Theres nothing I would love more than to see her play happily with other dogs :)

Having an aggression prone dog places great restrictions on both you and your dog. If you train them to be aggressive in defence, can you be sure that it will not back fire on you and send your dog aggressive in inappropriate situations? Enjoy your friendly little dog, and be glad, justy try to stear clear of the problem dogs you mention. Good luck :D

Helen

I do sympathise with you Helen.
It must take the enjoyment out of walking her :(
I do think its nice for them to be able to run free for a while but even though Gus is friendly I still have to be aware of others on the walk .
Good luck with Ruby :)

Thank you Lel,

You are right is it terribly difficult at times, especially when we went on holiday! She was even worse out of her own environment. We are going camping for two nights in September as well so I must confess to being a little worried how she will be if there are other dogs in a tent near by. Its that or putting her in kennels though and I dont really want to do that.

Shes worse if shes on a lead but then I dont dare let her OFF the lead either, so its a vicious circle (so to speak!)
At the moment I do let her off the lead if other dogs are not near by, but if I see one coming I have to pop her lead back on.

On Monday I am taking her to the vet for a check up and for him to refer me to David Appleby who has a pretty good reputation as a trainer. Its £75 a time to see him, but if he can help settle Ruby before she is adult I shall consider it money well spent :)

Helen

Hi Helen

Just a quick thought, but if you put her back on the lead when you see another dog (which is fair enough and responsible) it would be best if you also practice putting her on and letting her off at different times on her walk, or she may be getting the message that other dogs are a worry to you esp. if you sound a bit tense or nervous as you call her back.

If you let her on and off at all sorts of times, some when no other dog is in sight, it will be indiscriminate and she won't be learning the wrong thing, do you see what i mean? As i said, just a thought until you get better help :)

Lindsay :)

Hi Lindsey

Yes that is a very good idea and you could well be right! Thank you :D

Helen

hello scooby,
i have an eighteen month old staff named taz. He is extremley friendly with all dogs, wanting to play with them all. when he was a young pup he got attacked in the park by two staffs, he never fought back and i worried about him getting bullied. i thought that this incident may make him weary of other dogs and the next walk we went on i was on guard. taz didnt seem affected by the attack( he wasn't hurt) he continued to want to play with other dogs. now he is older he is sti;; very playful but he has learned to read other dogs body language and if there is a non-to-pleased-to-see-taz dog around he is content to ignore this dog and search for one who wants to play.
i wouldnt worry about your dog being afraid her confidence will grom and she will read other dog signals. Taz has gotten himself into a situation with my brother-in-laws staff who is a few months younger than taz, his name is patch, he isn't a dogs dog! i was concerned taz would be bullied or maybe hurt by patch because he is so carefree and not at all confrontational, however when patch pushed his look taz let him know it, (not through a fight) but he held him on the floor for a good few minuites. i think he was letting him know that if he had wanted to he could have hurt him, he growled a little, it did the trick! dont worry about her let her find her feet- i'm sure she will be fine.

the last thing you need is to have a confrontational staff. it really peeves me when me and taz are in the park, i see people pick up there littler dogs and tuck them under their arm, or grab their childs hand etc, it makes me want to shout HES NOT NASTY!!!!!!! but i surpose better safe than sorry, because i know of staffs that are evil with other dogs and it makes walking them a nightmare-don't encourage her to fight back-let her find her own way! good luck

Your right - the last thing you need is a confrontational staff. Mine is very unpredictable with other dogs and cannot be trusted. He loves people but unfortunately hates dogs.

I have to be constantly on my guard, he stays on the long extendable lead where I know other dogs are going to be about, fortunately I live near the moors and so he is allowed off the lead in areas where I am certain there will not be dogs so he can have a run.

Enjoy your dogs friendly temperament, im sure she will be able to look after herself if ever needed.