[BADOG]

MY WIFE AND I HAVE A TWO YR OLD FRENCH BASSET, LATELY SHE HAS BECOME VERY TERRITORITAL TOWARDS OUR CHIHUAHUAS. SHE HAS GOTTEN TO THE POINT OF GRABBING THEM AND SHAKING AND LEAVING CUTS ON THEM. WHAT CAN WE DO TO SOLVE THIS? THE CHIHUAHUAS JUST WALK OVER TO HER AND SNIFF HER OR JUST ANYTHING AND SHE ATTACKS THEM.WHAT CAN WE DO? WE LOVE HER AND DONT REALLY WANT TO GET RID OF HER FOR FEAR SHE MIGHT DO THIS TO OTHER DOGS.

 

[SophieB]

We've always had Bassets and sometimes another rescued breed too like we have a Cocker Spaniel with our Bassets but have never had any problems... in fact more often than not, the Bassets have ignored the other dog in the house!

It sounds territorial but I wonder if the other dogs sometimes sneak up on the Basset when you're not looking and give him a nip and he's putting them in their place! I can't imagine a Basset hurting anything... in fact, quite the opposite as they're so docile... maybe it's the French in her!!!

Mikey and others will be here later with some good advice! My advice would be to get another Basset so your Basset doesn't feel outnumbered by what my husband calls "whipper-snappers"!!!!

 

[Tuesday]

Maybe something happened. I don't see any basset being aggressive for no reason. Try hiring a dog trainer to see if they can help figure out what caused this and how to fix it. For now, keep them separated. I hope there is a solution. Good luck!

 

[BADOG]

tempermant

yes, we thought that, she has to deal with three chihuahuas so i guess that could be it. we are just worried she will hurt our nieces and nephews if she isnt made to realize her actions. right now we just put her in time-out in the garage. im worried though if she will feel punished for doing whats instinctive. we have two australian sheperd puppies someone dropped at our house last sunday morning, so that may be part of it. she seemed territorial towards our female chihuahua before though. we are going to consult our vet tomorrow about it. we have a friend who is taking the puppies to their house tues. though.

 

[Mikey T]

yes, we thought that, she has to deal with three chihuahuas so i guess that could be it.

The fact that the chihuahuas come back is a good indicationthey are not scared and is the situation is exactly as Sophia portrayed see
He Just Wants To Say "Hi!" Aggression or appropriate response to rudeness? Far too many dogs suffer because handlers & trainers don't know the difference between the two.

ALSO how old are the puppies? Generally puppies younger than 16 weeks are given wide lattitude in their behavior by adults it is called "puppy license" but as the puppies mature sexually (younger in smaller dogs) that licence is taken away and the puppies are routinely hasseled and put in ther place.
see Social Hierarchies

It was apparent that adult dogs, bitches especially, showed leniency towards young pups in social situations. The termination of this 'puppy license' is cued by rising testosterone levels in male pups at four- to five-months of age, which reach a peak around 10 months (4-5 ng/ml) before declining to adult levels (1-2 ng/ml). When puppies approached adolescence, they were continually harassed by adult dogs. Male adolescents were especially targeted by adult males. This stressful phase of social development is mercifully short, because the pups quickly learn to display active and exaggerated appeasement in order to allay harassment by adults, i.e., the pups learn their station in life before they become serious competition on the social scene

Puppy license and adult behavior–STOP SEPARATING PLAY.

Humans are REALLY bad at reading what’s happening with dogs. We ignore really bad stuff and we stop, even punish, perfectly normal behavior

...But then at some point, say at twelve or sixteen weeks, even earlier for the quick maturers, the little soft fuzzy schnookums-wookums becomes a growing dog, and her little games start to involve using her teeth in a real and deliberate way. And instead of bumbling into the adult dogs’ heads and falling over, she’s lying in wait and then barreling over and jumping on their heads.

The adult dogs decide they’ve had enough, and they begin to punish her for this rude behavior. If she jumps on them they roar, they knock her with their mouths, they send her ki-yi-yi-ing into the next room. When she has play interactions with them they don’t hold back anymore; they pin her and knock her over and she yelps and rolls away.

The human says “Oh no! Poor Gladys! They’re being rough with her!” and they begin to supervise the play. Every time the adult dogs get “rough” they are stopped or disciplined. If they continue to “victimize” the puppy they are totally separated; she plays alone and they play alone.

...THIS IS SUCH A BAD IDEA.

Puppies learn from adult dogs. A vital and absolutely incontrovertible role of a healthy adult dog is to teach the puppy how to be a good and polite dog. The adult teaches–yes, by physical punishment, though that punishment is not cruel–how to interact with other dogs, how to live in a pack, how to ask permission, how to back off, etc. If you stop that from happening, not only does the puppy grow up with SERIOUS issues that will hurt her chances of being a normal dog who can get along with other dogs, you build resentment between the two dogs. If the adult dog is never allowed to complete a lesson, he will try harder and sooner the next time. If he’s stopped again and again, pretty soon he will decide that the only way to deal with this is to remove the puppy from the picture entirely.

SHE HAS GOTTEN TO THE POINT OF GRABBING THEM AND SHAKING AND LEAVING CUTS ON THEM.

If the intent whas to harm the pups thier would be pucture wound on them not scrapes. The fact there are no puncture wounds actual shows good bite inhibition. on the part of the basset.
How to Assess the Severity of a Dog Bite

are just worried she will hurt our nieces and nephews

\Why? has the dog done anything to a human to warant that fear? Dog behavior is very context sensitive. If the behavior only occurs with other dogs that that is what it will continue to do.

she seemed territorial towards our female chihuahua before though

I am going to guess teritorial is not the right word here. She is protective of her posessions. ie. where she sleeps, her body, toys, food etc. Does she engage in the same behavior with human? What is the dogs reaction if you where to grab for the food bowl while she eats? Reactions in these contexts is not teritorial aggression . It is know as resource guarding which again is a normal behavior. Being a normal behavior does not make it an acceptable one. Also keep in mind because a dog will guard from other dogs does not mean it will do the same with humans a lot depends on the dogs expected out come. For example: if the dog expects that a human will put in a special treat in the food bowl when they grab for it, it is much less likely to defend against its being taken than a dog with the expectation that they will loss the contents. This is the basis of most behavior modifcation programs for resource guarding. For a more complete understanding I suggest:

MINE! - A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO RESOURCE GUARDING IN DOGS

a fair review of the book

How can one deal with the dog that aggressively covets food, objects, its owner, resting areas, or even its own body? This is the topic addressed in Jean Donaldson's Mine! A Practical Guide to Resource Guarding in Dogs.

Donaldson presents resource guarding as a normal, adaptive behavior and rejects notions that resource guarders are not "nice" dogs or are "dominant aggressive". Instead, she focuses on a behaviorist approach to conceptualizing and remediating such behavior.

In a nutshell, this primarily involves classically counter-conditioning a "conditioned emotional response" where an owner's approach is associated with high-value food treats, rather than representing a threat of loss or punishment. Initially this is done in the presence of little provocation, but incremental advances proceed until the dog can happily be approached when in the presence of whatever he formerly guarded most fiercely.

we are going to consult our vet tomorrow about it.

Be aware that most vets have no behavioral training. I am not say don't use a vet as a resoure but realize the limitation. Most are however able to recommend a good behaviorist to work with you.

add'l resourses in finding a behaviorist

Find a counsultant IAABC

Directory of Certified Applied Animal Behaviorists

Find a diplomat ACVB

 

[SophieB]

I didn't realise there are 3 Chihuahuas!!! I can't ever imagine a Basset Hound hurting anything, especially your nieces and nephews, in fact, quite the opposite is true of Bassets (unless someone treats them really very badly and even then they would be too soft to retaliate)!!!

Mine and my family members' Bassets have been all brought up with babies and children and none of them, including rescues of unknown origin, have ever put a foot wrong! Just have a look at these videos to see the Basset nature with young children and babies!

 

[Kirska]

I have an 18 month old nephew that comes over and Anabelle is only dog I've ever had that allows babies to hit them, pull on them, etc etc and not even seem to notice. I think the temperament of bassets is one of their strongest assets so this thread surprises me too.

 

[SophieB]

MY WIFE AND I HAVE A TWO YR OLD FRENCH BASSET, LATELY SHE HAS BECOME VERY TERRITORITAL TOWARDS OUR CHIHUAHUAS. SHE HAS GOTTEN TO THE POINT OF GRABBING THEM AND SHAKING AND LEAVING CUTS ON THEM. WHAT CAN WE DO TO SOLVE THIS? THE CHIHUAHUAS JUST WALK OVER TO HER AND SNIFF HER OR JUST ANYTHING AND SHE ATTACKS THEM.WHAT CAN WE DO? WE LOVE HER AND DONT REALLY WANT TO GET RID OF HER FOR FEAR SHE MIGHT DO THIS TO OTHER DOGS.

Having read this again... I'm sorry but I find it hard to believe without video or picture evidence.... and anyway, bassets are very soft mouthed dogs and when ours are playing and enjoying a bit of rough and tumble with each other, they sometimes grab one another with their mouths, but their teeth seem to be covered by their gums.

Our Bassets are so soft-mouthed that whenever they lift eggs from where my friend's hens have laid them, they can carry them in their mouths without even cracking them and I can't imagine them leaving 'cuts' on your other dogs! Have you got any pictures of your Basset 'shaking' the little dogs and pics of their 'cuts' or is this a joke?

 

[Mikey T]

It is never good to assume an individual dog will act like that norms of the breed. Individual frequently do not fit norm. I own a basset that I would never trust with a small child though she is the best dog I have ever owned with other dogs. She is capable as demonstrated on a number of occassion of putting holes in humans. Just another reason to to not to as problen in a dog v dog diad is related to a human v dog one. They are seperate interactions and little can be assume in the way a dog reacts to other dogs is how it will react to humans as well.

unless someone treats them really very badly and even then they would be too soft to retaliate

While abuse is often sited as a reason for inappropriate behavior especial fear based aggression it is not ussually the cause, simply poor genetics (not breeding for temperament) and poor socialization account for the bulk of it. In the case of the dog mentioned above the breeder is well known to rescue groups and they see a lot of her dogs with similar temperaments.

 

[Soundtrack]

Just wanted to mention that some dogs do not have appropriate response to puppies, and also that when there is such a size difference injury could occur even if the larger dog does not intend to do so.

My family used to have a lab/shepherd mix who broke the skull of my 12 week old Basset puppy. The same dog also killed a 6 week old kitten who went in his bowl. This was a dog accustomed to living with other dogs and cats, but was definitely possessive. Whether he intended to harm the puppy or not is unknown, but the result is the same.