another pitbull/staff thread

First off, I don't believe any dog attacks for no reason, so I'd appreciate it if this thread could stay on topic and not go down that path. For that reason, I ask if you havn't owned a pitbull or have directly relevant personal experience, please don't post.

Ok, so I know these dogs are very people friendly. That's not what I'm worried about. What I'm worried about is it snapping at other dogs. The situation is this: I have a 2 year old male Rottweiler. I sometimes also have a 2 year old male American Bulldog. Both are neutered and have lived together at times for weeks on end. Only twice did those 2 go at each other...the first time they were unattended and got into some food wrappers that were accidentally left out and I can only guess fought over them. The second time, a child put one of the bulldogs toys between the two dogs and they fought over the toy (both stayed very clear of the child and had zero intention of hurting any people)..but it was a horrible situation and I had to pry them apart.

Now both of those times I know it was my fault. I am always very careful to make sure both dogs recieve equal attention, food, and treats, and I am quick to reprimand any confrontational behavior...no matter how playful. However, obviously I didn't prevent those two situations...so I'm not perfect. Because of these two isolated incidents I am concerned about bringing more dogs into the mix. However, my gf and I are both total dog people and would love to adopt more. Today I went to the shelter and totally fell in love with a 7 month old female pitbull. I have about a week to decide if I'm going to take her.

I don't want to make the situation worse..at the same time I don't want to be scared to adopt just because of two isolated incidents. Obviously at this time, my dogs already have a sense of territory, however the pit puppy is a female. The 3 things I worry about are a) the female causing problems between the 2 neutered males. b) the rott or bulldog trying to dominate teh new dog in their territory. c) the pit attacking one of them because they are equally stubborn.

Thoughts???

Both boys are neutered and shouldnt fight over the female, they will see her as just another dog, not an object to reproduce with. There may or may not be some territorial issues, they are animals, it just happens. The female more than likely will not attack one of them, cant say for sure because I dont know your specific dogs. It helps if she is spayed. The only time my pits got violent towards ech other was when the female was pregnant/ a few weeks after birth. This was only because she was being protective. My advice is with introducing any new animal keep them seperated with supervision when near each other. If all goes well after about a week or two it should be gravy. Good luck.

I had a Pitbull and my mom made us give it away because it bit her one day after I got mad and kicked it. A friend of mine has a Pitbull and it LOVES to attack other dogs, but also I think it's a bit homo because it does other male dogs. They shouldn't have a problem with a little one unless one of them has a very bad temper or something. Hopefully it'll all work out for you.

Ive own a pit and have had some in the past. From my experience (sp) most pitbulls dont get to teritorial if they are introduced at a young age and they socialize alot with the other dogs. Pit bulls are very good dogs and usualy dont have a problem with others. With both of the other dogs being nuetured i dont see a problem but then again i dont know your dogs. In my expeirence male dogs usualy dont take female dogs as a threat but all dogs are diff. Its always worth a try and if it doesnt work out female pit bulls are pretty easy to find a home for.

I agree, the whole female aspect of the situation shouldn't be a problem with two neutered males. Since she is a puppy, I would believe that they would be protective of her rather than aggressive toward her on their territory. All dogs have their own personality, so you never really know how they will react until you test the waters. If it was older females and a young male pit, I wouldn't hesitate to reccommend you bring the puppy in since the maternal instinct of the females would likely take over. I've never been in a situaion where an "outside" puppy was brought into a home to live with grown dogs, but when a grown pit was brought to live at our house when we already had a 3mo old male terrier pup, they got along fine. There were a few incidents where they fought mildly (or played too rough) as the younger dog grew bigger and got more aggressive, but overall they were fine together. I think if you get this female, you'll find that she will take on some of the personality of the older males.

Our whole family has dogs and they go at it from time to time, even our fixed female. So it's just a matter of the mood and situation, it's going to happen, but usually not to seriously, eventually they will fall into their places in the pack and have little or no problems. thats my :2cents:

Remember, all dogs will have a pecking order, this goes all the way up to you, the alpha male, on down. Whether you realize it or not, one of the dogs is a hierarchy over the other. Introducing another dog, whether male or female, is going to create a situation where they will be testing this chain, constantly. Be it small snips, our larger outbursts. If you bring in a smaller, younger "weaker" dog, you can expect some sort of dominating behavior, and that will need to be watched carefully.

The next thing you should be looking at, is what will the long term effects of a third dog bring. Are you even allowed to keep three dogs in your city, county, etc? For instance here, anything over two dogs requires a kennel license. I would say take every bit of that week to make your decision, so that it is not based on the novelty of a new puppy.

:2cents:

Kris just hit the nail on the head. They're going to work out who's top dog. Don't forget that you and your girlfriend are part of the mix too. They'll push you down the foodchain if given the chance.

Just don't baby that puppy in front of the other dogs. Its a huge mistake a lot of dog owners make. The other dogs will get jelous. Also, don't force the other dogs to do things - they'll get over their initial huff.

When you bring the other dog home. Introduce it to the house without the other dogs present. Do it for an hour or so and after the pup seems comfortable, put the pup in a crate/carrier and let the other dogs out. Do not introduce the puppy. Let them find it. They'll be more excited by the discovery then by you sticking it in their faces. If the aren't aggressive after a half hour or so, let the pup out and supervise the interaction.

From there you'll know how your other dogs will behave.

Then, as the dog matures, the pecking order will become the fight.

Sorry, but I think a few bad ideas have been posted here so far. Yogs & Kris are on the right track, but if anybody out there seriously thinks a dog is homo and attacks another dog because it enjoys the act of trying to kill, you probably shouldn't be giving advice about this. Dogs are not people, do not have human emotions, and should not be treated like they do. If a dog repeatedly does something terrible, it's only because nobody has ever told them not to in a way they understand.

You cannot allow your dogs to look at you as anything but the unquestioned head of the group, and they should have no choice but to do as you say no matter what you're doing. In as small a group as you're talking about the humans need to be united at the top, and dogs are all of equal rank beneath you. You are Lieutenant Dan, they are all PFC Forrest Gump. No favorites, no special treatment for anyone. If they are fighting amongst themselves for things like food and toys, it means they are fighting for dominance over each other and probably don't take you as seriously as they need to. Fights like these are NOT inevitable, they just need to get the message that they get toys and food on your terms, not their own. You worked & paid for it right, why should they get to control it?

Dogs are social animals and there is no reason that they should not be able to be around other animals, even if they are not used to them, without being aggressive. But that being said, I think the last thing you should do is bring a new puppy into this situation as it stands. The puppy will not be in any immediate danger, but it will almost certainly increase the tension between the other two dogs. If you are not the unquestioned pack leader who the dogs trust to protect the puppy, the dog who percevies themself as that leader will try to protect it instead and grow territorial over it. If both dogs think they're competing for the top of the food chain as seems to be the case, the puppy will probably only intensify this competition. It certainly won't instantly make this any better, nor can you count on anything just improving in its own as the dogs get older.

I don't think it's such a bad thing to make dogs do things they don't want to do. If you let them dictate what is and is not okay, you are automatically submitting your will to theirs. If your dogs don't like being around other dogs, the only way to fix it is to confront it and get them accustomed to it. If you take them into a situation where trouble has come up in the past, creating a different outcome and showing them that you do not agree with their habitual behavior is what will make them respect you as a leader. They may raise hell for a while, but provided with consistency and repetition they'll get the idea. Just know that your dogs are reading you the whole time, and if you are uncertain or not 100% confident that everything is going to be okay, it probably won't be.

All dogs, but especially powerful breeds like pitbulls & rotts, need plenty of daily exercise, social contact, and strong leadership to remain mentally balanced. Aggression is imbalance, antisocial dogs are not happy dogs. Nothing you will do once will keep your dogs happy forever, so you can't ever completely take your eye off the ball. Nature abhors a vacuum, and if dogs feel a lack of leadership at any time, the strongest ones are going to try to fill it. Never lose your temper or sound angry with them. Reprimands and corrections should be firm, calm, and cannot stop until the dog does what you want it to. Things like making lots of noise and constant pulling on a leash excite the mind and intensify unwanted behavior, calmness and quick redirection of attention curb it. Take them for lots of walks together (they follow you, not pull you along with the leash), encourage them to meet other dogs and be social, and don't add another animal to the picture until you're sure that you've got the ones you already have controlled & happy.

Appreciate the responses, I ended up passing on the pitbull due to other stuff in my life (unfortunantly), but my girl picked up a pug mix a few days later and things have been going just fine with all of them. But we both agree a pit is in the future, when the time is right.

I bought Pitbull stands for my bike: they're awesome.