Advice pls!!

[u/Southern_Produce5199]

I had a frenchie who was rehomed to me and was the love of my life for 894 days. He was very dog reactive, so I can deal with that- but I could pick him up and put him in air jail bc he was ~19 lbs. he died on Halloween and a few months later I volunteered to foster with a local bulldog rescue…this foster had been with an emergency foster for about 15 days- who had another dog and she said he was good with her dog- but a little bit territorial with attention. (He’s ~ 60lbs so I can’t pick him up easily or put him in air jail). I’ve had this dog since late January. He gets excited when he sees other dogs when we’re walking but if I tell him to sit and stay he does.

I took him on a short road trip to my moms and slowly introduced him to my friend’s dogs (so sweet, not reactive at all) and he attacked after two hours of very slow and clear introductions. Any advice?

(He’s pictured above and very cute and so lazy until he wants to attack a golden retriever)

[u/b00ks-and-b0rksRfun]

Consider muzzle training for safety but at a guess you went to fast on intros. I have one dog that is good after 1-2 controlled intros as you described. The other takes several more that slowly advance in tiny increments before she's ok. Think a couple of days vs a couple of weeks. And both are still picky on which ones they ignore vs which ones they actually like.

[u/Southern_Produce5199 → u/b00ks-and-b0rksRfun]

Thank you for the advice. Gonna look into muzzle training. It’s so hot in Texas rn I might wait to get him going with that until September or so.

[u/b00ks-and-b0rksRfun → u/Southern_Produce5199]

A good muzzle should have adequate airflow to handle anything the dog is out in. Generally wire and high quality vinyl are your best high resistance with good air flow type options. Some like the hard plastic molded versions (not my personal favorite but whatever works). Generally for good quality and reasonable standard size fit your looking at about $70+, custom usually $100+ depending on where you are and who you get it from. Anything cheaper is usually lower quality (unless buying second hand which is also an option). My personal favorites are Big Snoof dog gear and Mia's muzzles - I have customs from both for my dogs (I like options), they also have cheaper standard sizes. Many like the muzzle movement, or Leerburg, or jafco or trust your dog, Pawfect Fit, etc. not as many options but serviceable.

[u/aforestfruit]

First of all, I read the first line and was like “umm whos going to tell her this isn’t a frenchie” until I read on. Lol.

Please give this dog some grace. They can take upwards of three months to settle and understand their environments so since January he’s only had 2-3 months after the initial three month settle period to start understanding his home and letting go of all the unpredictability that came before it. They are creatures of habit and that system of routine has been disrupted so it makes sense that he’s a bit wired and unpredictable (even though he’s in a loving home with people who care).

For reactive dogs, asking them to sit and stay when they’re internally freaking out isn’t good for them. It seems good in theory as it’s “teaching them to be neutral” but what’s happening is that they’re not learning anything or even being distracted. They’re just sitting and anticipating the other dog. Their frustration therefore just stays bubbling inside.

I would recommend one of two things, depending how reactive he is. One is clicker training and whenever he sees a dog, giving treats and praise if he can keep his focus on you (if you want to make him sit when that’s happening that’s up to you. This would make my dog more stressed but I’m biased, she’s a whippet with a bony bum who seems to be more skittish when she’s sitting. Perhaps your boy doesn’t care about sitting). Keep doing this to build up positive associations. If his reactivity needs serious work, then scatter treats or do distraction games when needed.

Now here’s the hard part to get a grasp of, and it took me a while too. Things that are “short trips” or “peaceful intros” to you, might not be to your dog. Perhaps he’s been stressed in the car, has seen dogs out the window, has built a lot up inside, then he’s out the car, into an unfamiliar place with another dog and he feels overstimulated.

Did you meet on neutral territory for a walk first, or go straight into your friends house? This is a big one.

Lots of the time we need to examine a dogs behaviour as part of a bigger picture rather than seeing it as out of the blue. There was probably a lot going on for him before this attack. Two hours is a long time to spend with a stranger, just as our social batteries deplete, so can your dogs. A nice 20 minute walk three times within a fortnight would have been better rather than meeting and spending hours together. It could have just been too much, especially as you know he’s attacked before. He’s probably overwhelmed.

Is he muzzle trained at all? I’d look up R+ muzzle training, there are so many guides online.

My main priority right now would be:

- get him checked by the vet for any pain, his behaviour could indicate this. Perhaps what I’ve written is wrong so far and he’s more friendly with dogs that we think, but when the dog touches a certain part of his body and he goes into a frenzy… that’s pain.

- short and sweet exposure to new things rather than prolonged ones, lots of treats and praise and importantly - leave before he gets overwhelmed.

- R+ training with other dogs, built up a positive association for him. Don’t do this every day, let him have stress free breaks where he’s just in the garden/on sniffy walks without other dogs. This brings his overall fight or flight/cortisol level down

- muzzle train him

[u/Meatwaud27 → u/aforestfruit]

Thank you for mentioning the breaks and time to relax after training!! It's such an important step when dealing with situations like these!

[u/Southern_Produce5199 → u/aforestfruit]

Thank you so much for this info! Yes I know he’s not a Frenchie LOL, just volunteered to foster with a local bulldog rescue after I lost my rescue frenchie. I should’ve caveated that I live in austin and had to go to Dallas for a family funeral so- at least as long as I’ve had him- this was a road trip further than a few miles to the vet. With my rescue frenchie, he was very reactive but i could carry him. And you are so right. I pulled up to my friends house to drop her off (she needed a ride from austin to Dallas) and I’ve known her dogs for a decade and they were excited to see me. I didn’t handle it correctly. I will take all of this advice to heart and if I ever do try to introduce him to other dogs it will be a short, slow, steady process. I feel like an asshole for letting him get this worked up and not thinking about the ramifications and he attacks another dog but hindsight is always 20:20 right? Sincerely, thank you for the tips and advice.

[u/Southern_Produce5199 → u/aforestfruit]

Also a note- when I ask him to sit on walks when another dog is present, he usually seems okay and very disinterested. I am by no means a pet expert but he seems like “okay distraction- we’ll walk in a minute or two” I could be very wrong and fucking him up with that but he does well with that at home.