My Westie was attacked some months ago by a Dalmation and some people have said to me since that it because westie's are white - is there any truth in this?

By the way I am not anti-Dalmation because of this - my brother has the most fabulous Dalmation! Although I have to admit they cant be in the same room as each other as the dalmation will just go for my Mack!!

I must admit alot of dogs do give Mack alot of attention and I am beginning to wonder if dogs do indeed dislike white dogs.

I am interested to hear of your views on the matter.

Gillie

More often it seems to be black dogs, rather than white ones, that others take a scunner to. There are certain dogs who seem to be natural 'victims' - maybe they give off the wrong signals, whether hormonal or body language ones. Has Mack been castrated?

yes he was castrated last May (2004)

Some castrated dogs seem to confuse others because they give off ambiguous scent messages, which can sometimes trigger aggression. :( How long have dogs been 'picking on' Mack?

as you have said that, jeangenie, I think that you have hit the nail on the head! Walks with Mack were lovely before last May. All dogs would come up to us and the dogs and owners would all say hello, the dogs would have a little sniff of each other and we'd all be on our way.

However walks are now problematic! Mack is ok with local dogs he knows, indeed there is an older female lab who licks the top of Macks head (which I think is lovely).

Big dogs are a problem! The Dalmation who attacked Mack was with his owner. I remember it very clearly. We were walking in a wood and there was a dip, so Mack and I walked down the dip and I saw a woman jogging with a Dalmation on a lead. The woman didnt notice us but I noticed that the Dalmation was looking with interest at Mack. I got Mack close to me. Then they passed us. About 20 seconds later I looked back and noted that the Dal was still looking at Mack. Suddenly it broke free of his/her owner and before I could do anything was standing over Mack and was was on his back. The woman did absolutely nothing, and when I dragged Mack away she just walked off! I wasnt too pleased, I can tell you. Mack was very upset and I thought there was blood but I checked him over and went straight home, let him rest and checked him again. He was ok.

It was as if the dalmation sensed something about Mack he didnt like. As I said earlier my brother has a 7 year old Dalmation, Ace. Ace was fine with Mack when he was a small puppy, but ever since Mack has become an adult, Ace just snarls at Mack and to be honest we dont allow the dogs to get togther anymore, as it was just an awful thing to see.

did the dalmation actually attack him?  its hard to tell from ur statement?

my dog takes a disliking to certain dogs, but not certain breeds.  I think it depends on individual dogs experiences.  For example my dog was attacked by a staffie when she was little, and sometimes now she will growl at any dog that even looks like that dog. 

oops - yes I know what you mean jenny - i got carried away with myself!

Yes the dalmation kept biting Mack on his tummy and back, although he did not puncture the skin (thankfully)

What you are describing is not initially intended as an aggressive attack but an amorous one, and sadly is a side effect for some castrated males, especially if they were done young or are naturally not very assertive (butch).

They appear to other entire males to be a bitch in season and they are attempting to mate with him.  Of course the recipient of this attention gets frightened or cross and a spat ensues.

That is very interesting, Brainless. I am trying to think back to the event, and whether this seems plausible. Yes I suppose it does. Unfortunately the dalmation was quite nasty and snarling at Mack from the start, there was no trying to be nice from the start, then turning nasty.

It was a frightening experience for Mack and myself. However I suppose all experiences, bad and good, shape us all, including Mack. I will know what to do in the future - pick Mack up and walk!!

Hi Gillie,

It sounds like your Westie has got the same problem as our Bichon, Feminisation Syndrome.  I have exactly the same problem with large uncastrated dogs.  Even small dogs that we met before he was castrated are showing greater interest in him than they did before.  It is a great worry isn't it because we have a large dog which I think is a pointer around the corner from us and it won't leave our dog alone.   It gets out on its own a lot and if I happen to be walking our dog when it is roaming around on its own it is absolute hell because it keeps jumping on him and at one point a few weeks ago it looked like it was going to grab him around the back of the neck.  I broke a stick off a tree and tried to keep it away, which worked for a little while then the dog decided that I was playing and decided to grab the end of the stick.   I reported the dog to the dog warden when I got back because this dog is a damn nuisance when it is out on its own.  It happened again the other night when my partner took him his late night walk about 10.30pm.  The dog was with its female owner and she had him on a lead but when he saw our dog she just couldn't hold him back and had to let him go.  It really annoys me when someone takes on a large dog like this and then cannot hold it when need be.  She says he is fine with her husband but doesn't take any notice of her.  I ended up bathing our dog because he was absolutely black where her dog had jumped all over him with its big muddy paws.  I have also had trouble with a male uncastrated labrador, which is a lovely dog but will go to any lengths to get to my dog and its owner has trouble holding him back when it sees us.   I dread meeting an uncastrated dog when I am out with ours, I sometime wish I had not had him done now because I knew nothing about this before he was done and being a small dog he cannot defend himself like a big or medium sized dog can.  We used to have a german shepherd dog which we had castrated but I suppose the situation wouldn't have arose with him because no dog would dare come near him and jump on him.

I got some bitch deodrant tablets from Pets at Home a few weeks ago (they can be used for just normal doggy smells as well so would be quite safe to use on your dog) and you have to give them one tablet about 30 minutes before you take your dog out and they are supposed to stop unwanted attention from other dogs.  I have used them about 3 times now but haven't met any other dogs other than bitches who don't bother with him anyway so I don't know if they work or not.  They were only about £2.95 for 40 tablets so I thought I would try them.  Think they were Johnsons make.

Do you find that dogs always want to lick your dog underneath because this is what happens with ours.

Hi Anna

Wow it just sounds like you are taking Mack out for a walk!!!

I know what you mean about not knowing about this side of things after having a dog castrated. This makes sense why my brother's dalmation is nasty with Mack now and seemed ok with him before!

Gillie

Is your brothers dog actually being nasty with Mack or do you think he is just interested him in a sexual way like a dog is with a bitch for example.
We have a jack russell cross up the road from us who is known for being a bit of a nasty dog and him and our German Shepherd absolutely hated each other.  This dog now absolutely loves our Bichon and wags his tail at him and sniffs him, he isn't nasty though but it is a nuisance especially with large dogs because I am terrified of them breaking his legs or his back when they jump on him.  If you put feminisation syndrome in the search you should come up with something.

Ace (my brothers dalmation) just snarls at the sight of Mack! We just dont allow it to go any further to be honest!

Oh dear, poor little Mack.  Yes not a good idea to let them get together then.  Is Mack quite a softy?  Our Bichon is although he was one year old last week and seems to be getting a bit of sense in his head now.  Last week I had just let him off the lead when he saw a woman with 3 dogs who I used to see when I had my German Shepherd and I haven't seen her for ages and thought she had moved house because she has a son who used to be in a famous pop group so I thought he might have bought her a better house or something.   Anyway she has two border collies and a mongrel  (all rescued dogs) and one of the collies is very timid and one is quite snarly and snappy and used to have a go at our GSD, and Benji our bichon went running up to her dogs but stopped a few feet away as if to weigh up the situation and her large mongrel didn't move but must have given him a signal not to go any closer so he just came back to me and we carried on our way.   I was quite impressed with him doing this really.  Does your westie have any skin problems because I know that westies are quite prone to them or are you one of the lucky ones that have escaped them.

I am afraid Mack has suffered with every westie thing going- skin problems and CMO (jaw problem). The CMO didnt progress too far ( thankfully) but it was a worry. He is my first Westie and I didnt know what to expect. Despite all of his illnesses, which arose before he was 12 months old, he is a wonderful dog.

He is a quiet little dog; I suppose that is due to his upbringing. He is my little boy and is very special. He is spoilt rotten and his human grandparents look after him when I am at work, so he is never alone. In all of his 3 years he hasnt spent more than 3 hours alone!

I would love another westie but I am not the one who looks after him during the day, so I am lucky to have a dog when I work full time! Maybe when I retire (some 35 years yet though!)

i must admit my dogs the same for some reason she hates westies,shes only a mini dacs but im sure she thinks shes bigger than she is! i always keep her away! i rearly dont know why shes like that but ive had her 5weeks and so far shes bit 1 on its nose,and got off her lead and attacted 1 i couldnt appolojise enough to the owners! and any walking past she goes nuts and starts barking at them. shame rearly as i think there loverly dogs!
sarah x

I have a white Boxer and have yet to find another dog that doesnt like her!  I was once told other dogs may take a dislike to her a) because she has a cropped tail and b) because shes white.   Still waiting for the elusive white dog hating canines.

Phew! Thanks for that Rox, Im due to pick up my white boxer pup in 2 weeks. Thought I was gonna have to paint some spots on him.

black dogs seem to suffer more colour predujice than white ones