I have just taken in a 7 month old Bullmastiff Bitch, the problem is, she's so hyper and is nipping at people.
She has had, to my knowledge 5 different homes, mine being her 6th :(
I understand she's very unsettled and will not be very trusting, I have had her 2 weeks and already she is trying my patience.
I'm determined not to pass her on to someone else cause she's a problem dog, I want to give her stability and a 'forever home'.
she's very destructive,(£3000 worth of damage, even managing to rip up laminate flooring and chewing through a door)  and now she's turning aggressive.
The last person who had her said after 2 weeks in their home, it was the same, the dog decided she wanted to be the boss, or 'alpha bitch' as she called it and she couldnt cope with her.
So far I have managed to get her to walk better on the lead, and recalling is going quite well.
She was a great wee dog at first but now am terrified that now she's started nipping, she'll bite someone and will be destroyed.
I considered training classes, but there is only one in my area, and the don't come recommended :s
I can't afford the obedience training due to the damage, I have to fix on a rented property.
I'm fairly sure that its because she thinks she's gonna be kicked out by me, so is kind of getting her revenge on me before i get rid of her??
Can anyone help me??

She is still only a baby and the poor girl hasn't had a good start in life considering she has had on average a new home a month (she was at the breeders for the first 2 months of her life). The chewing etc is normal pup behaviour albeit a little extreme in this case. How long do you leave her alone for? I would also read the brilliant article that you can find on here called "The bite stops here".
You are comendable for taking this girl on and trying to find answers to help her rather than giving her away. Good luck with her and her training, you will get there.

Look around for another training class - ours is affiliated to the KC and does the Good Citizen Scheme - they only charge £2 per class.
I'm afraid you're going to need an awful lot of time and patience with this young pup - spend time getting her to trust you and hopefully she will then improve in all other areas - I wish you the best of luck - give us updates on how you're getting on.

Hi Lauralee

you are doing a wonderful think taking tis girl in you will need a lot of patients with her but she can be turned around she is still very much a baby and you need to start the training from scratch you could try clicker training or take a look at the at this site

http://www.k9deb.com/nilif.htm

where do you live i live in the hertfordshire area if you are any where near we could possible meet up you could meet my dogs and could try to help you.

Bullmastiffs can be very trying and push you to your limit, you can not dominate this breed they will just become more stubborn and will not take kindly to a forceful hand, they do however react well to food tasty treats and reward they are a very loving and affectionate breed that need to be around people, if you are leaving her in the day to go to work or even to take kids to school you would benefit from buying a large create so that she can not do any further damage while you are out.

i do hope you can work with this poor girl as she had been through a lot already years ago i had a rescue collie when we went to see him he was the dog hiding in the corner of the kennel he can out quiet and well behaved when we took him home he was great for the first two weeks then the destruction started he chewed the carpets the wall paper off the was and the dinning table he took another couple of weeks to settle in i think he was expecting to be going back to the kennels as this is what had happen so many times he was my first dog since leaving home and was the best dog on earth until was eventually lost him (to the rainbow bridge).

i there is any thing i can do to help you please feel free to PM me

I fully agree with what Benson67 has said and thats some relaly good advice as well :)

Just wanted to  commend you on taking on this girl and refusing to give up on her like the previous 5 owners, no doubt they had their reasons, but well doen to you for trying to better this girls life and offer her a forever home xxxxx

> and now she's turning aggressive

I really very much doubt the nipping she is doing is anything to do with aggression, it is normal puppy play-biting, but because she has had such an unsettled and inconsistent life so far she has not yet learnt to control this where humans are concerned.

the destructiveness is part of being a puppy but probably also a symptom of her insecurity.

You really need to start from scratch and treat her as if she were an 8 week old puppy, and not have expectations of her beyond that level.

Because of her size I think you will need to use positive but firm non confrontational methods.  The NILIF program combined with positive reinforcement and rewards for desirable behaviour is the way to go.

Here is the 'Bite stop' article http://www.jersey.net/~mountaindog/berner1/bitestop.htm and also a range of NILIF (Nothing In Life Is Free) search results http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&q=NILIF&meta=

Remember calmness all the time when dealing with her, if your losing your Patience leave the room and don't start again until you are clam, poor mite has had a disrupted life and Will be major acting out/attention seeking, and needs to learn to trust and chill.

I had a bitch pup back at 8 1/2 months, a smaller but stocky strong breed and she was a major playbiter mouther, thought anytime I tried to tell her off it was a huge game.  She is now an 8 1/2 year old.

I truly commend you for taking on this dog and for not wanting to pass on the problems to someone else.  I have no experience with the breed you have but I took on a problem dog 5 years ago.  He was 4 but had had at least 4 or 5 homes by the time I took him, the one before me for only 3 months.  His problem was true aggressive rage when it comes to other dogs and he had issues with children, feet and newspapers - nipping when he felt like it and also fighting and biting.

It took my dog about 18 months before he finally realised he was staying with us long term and we went through trainers, one to ones and behaviourists.  These had little effect really individually but with our own constant training and vigilance he has turned into a great dog.  He still hates dogs, he still has little patience with children but he is understanding our commands now and listening to them.  We have learned how he operates and manage his behaviour accordingly.

I suppose what my post is trying to say to you is don't give up.  It will take time, maybe a long time and test your patience to the limit but you can make a good pet out of this dog if you are committed to it and it seems you are :)  Be firm, be consistent, give constant training and it will all come together.  Let us know how you get on :)

CG

Hi, you have done a good thing taking her on but don't try to make up for her past, she doesn't think you are going to dump her again, thats not in her logic, dogs live in the now and her actions are that of a disturbed child , the destruction sounds like a separation issue and the nipping is attention seeking, you could also try changing her food as a high protein diet can cause hyper behaviour like in kids, get in touch with the Bull mastiff club and speak to the experts on the breed about diet and be firm with her, you can't make up for her bad past but you can give her rules to live by which will make all your lives easier, best of luck.

I took in a large 'problem' rescue bitch and after a lot of hard work she is now nearly a darling (except for the postman!)
The most helpful thing I did was see a V.good Behaviourlist who advised me how to go about training her. I know the initial cost may seem a lot but believe me it paid dividends, I learnt how to deal with situations (when she went through a 'guarding stage' and 'dominant with other dogs' stage)
I wish you the best of luck and endless patience.
A good tip for the chewing is never feed her a meal as such but put her meal in a big bone/large kong (i.e. dried food soaked and then stuffed in) it keeps them at it for hours and mind occupied instead of thinking about distruction (if she hasn't anxiety separation issues)

Hi  Everyone,

Thanks for all the great advice.
She is only ever alone for maybe 2 hours in total a day while I'm out everyday things, shopping, school run, etc etc, I dont work, which is why i took her in, as I have the time and just about enuff patience to spend time with her and hopefully get a trusting relationship built up with her  i now put her in the utility room when i go out, where there is nothing she can bite or chew, except the toys i place in there for her, she has food and water in there and bedding so she doesnt see it as punishment, punishment so far has been the silent treatment, as I still dont know her personality properly, and with her being so unsettled worried she may become a little defensive.

I must say as far as kids are concerned she is absolutly fantastic, I have a 3 year old who Maisie, my dog, Is fiercly protective of, she will sleep at the foot of her bed on the floor, and if we're in the garden maisie will bark at passers by aswell, she does make a great guard dog in that respect, but I'd love for her to be a family pet before a burglar alarm :) its like they have a special bond, so I'm not worried at all about her biting the kids, its adults she goes for :|

She used to pull alot on the lead but I have managed to get her to walk nice now. She has loads of chew toys but prefers doors, furniture and whatever else to chew on lol

I have a large cage that takes up a lot of the garden so she has plenty of room to move about but she howls and this disturbs my neighbours, (who just dont like animals).

I've completely trawled the forums and every site on the internet to do with bullmastiffs, biting and dog training lol and it is helping, its just the hyperness and aggression. sometimes it is playbiting, and when I shout OW! she stops and licks my hand.

I'll definately try the idea's given on here, she is a great wee dog when she's calm, and can be very affectionate. so I keep lookin to her good side lol
Thanks again xx

What are you feeding her?

Hey Paxo

I'm feeding her Eukanuba Puppy and Junior food.

well i had silmilar problem with my bordeaux bitch i got her at 7m old had had one previous owner but was abused very thin to the degree of being able to count her ribs back bone sticking up and pins were also sticking up through severe under nurishment also had no muscle tone as had never been for a walk (told by previous owner) she was also very nervous if she saw some one 50 yards away walking towards her she would turn and bolt in the opposite direction with me clinging onto the lead she also when i first got her she demolished my kitchen regardlss of weather i was with her or not well i know i will sound harsh but i was told by someone who trained police dogs to get a bunch of keys and every time i caught her doing something she shouldnt like chewing to throw the key not at her but on the floor near her and after the first few times all i had to do was shake them and she would stop i also made sure that all good behaviour was praised i am now pleased to say she is 18m old my kitchen and all my furniture is intact and she is a loving outgoing dog although she still has a fear of sticks and boots instilled by previous owners but the only thing she does like to do is nibble my fingers or nip my bum gently if i am ignoring her and she wants to go out which my friends neo mastiff also does to her. i also now rattle the keys when out for a walk and she will come straight back for a treat so they work both ways.

> she still has a fear of sticks and boots instilled by previous owners

The poor thing, that is just awful, I can't understand how some people tick, it really makes my blood boil :(

She may learn in time that these things wont hurt her anymore.
I got a dog from a shelter when he was 4yrs old, to start with if we touched his ears or tail he would scream and cower, over time he learnt that we wouldn't hurt him and now enjoys an ear rub, it must have taken 2 years to gat his trust on this (I wouldn't let a stranger near his ears though). He also used to scream and duck if I threw anything near him (eg, if he was near the washing bascket and I threw some washing in it), he also learnt that this wasn't scarey anymore.

It really sound like you have made great progress with her, well done :)

Well been a couple more weeks now and dog is doin great, I tried the putting the dinner in a bone thing, but she buried it lol so that doesnt work, lol

She hasnt been chewing things as much, i think maybe cause she's more settled now, she gets really hyper round people (even stealing a drunk mans kebab) lol

Been watchin dog borstal n got the bottle with stones, thats worked quite well for her, and also the 4 times a day grooming has built up a little bit more trust between her and me, she gets distressed when left alone so just now am doing the going out for ten mins n coming back n making a fuss of her then out for longer n coming back with trats n more fuss
She actually seems a much happier dog now.

Keeping up the praising good behaviour and ignoring the bad, going well so far

But thanks again for all the advice
xxxx

Great progress, onward and upward as they say. :D

that is great hope it continues D i'm sure all will be well in the end. congrats