Dogs that start a fight

What do you all think? Is a Boxer a breed that commonly has dog-aggression issues?

 

According to Doggy body language whether the boxer is the aggressor or not the fact that his face is scrunched gives other dogs the impressiong that he is challenging them and will most often be considered by other dogs to be starting a fight...

Boxers are a bully breed and more likely to have dog aggression issues than non-bully bred dogs...

BOTH issues can be and are often a problem.

 

There was a fight at the dog park the other day that I only witnessed from a distance. I was busy getting my dogs on lead and getting the heck out of there! But from what I saw, the Boxer started it. The dog wouldn't let go and the idiot people were trying to pull them apart by their collars, so at least one of them got bit. As I was loading my dogs in the car, I saw a woman walking the Boxer to her car. Every time they passed another dog, the Boxer would lung at it (although it could be he has leash aggression). The woman had a bite on her arm and the last thing I saw was her and another man exchanging contact information after they had their dogs safely put away.

That particular park always worried me. There are too many people there that know nothing about doggy body language or proper, responsible dog ownership. There were a pair of dogs there one day that were scaring Nala and Nala was trying her best to run away and hide and they just kept pestering her - and the owners did NOTHING! I had to take Nala and leave. Now when I go there I avoid the common paths and generally go walking in the trees where other people rarely go.

 

Hello
I don't think that you can get a good answer on a general question like this. Look back at the boxer's heritage and what they were bred to do, and then through in some poor breeding and or poor socializing, poor dog owner skills and you are quite likley to have an agressive dog. Then, was the dog altered? Was the boxer used to being top dog, and the other would not submit, because the other dog thought he was just as much a top dog?
Hard to say...
Glad that it seems that both dogs were ok, dogfights are so scary...

 

If any dog I took to a dog park whether it was my own or one of the few hundred rescues Ive worked with, actually started a fight I wouldnt take them back there.
I dont know that Boxers are necessarily more likely to start a fight than a lot of other breeds, it depends on the personality. Ive seen more dog aggression in Labradors, Retrievers and Dalmatians than Boxers.

 

Oh, I know it depends on the particular dog and its owner. There are many boxers that go to a different park and they are all fine. I was just wondering if it is a breed that is known for dog-aggression issues because if so and you own one, you should be very aware of the possible issues, socialize the dog extremely well, and be hyper-vigilant for signs of trouble when the dog is off-leash. I don't think a lot of people are like this. The fact that the dog was lunging at everyone as he left the park seemed like it might have been a warning sign, although maybe he was just all out of sorts by then.

Anyway, I ran the poll because I can bet you anything that person will still go to off-leash parks.

 

I have not done a lot of research on boxers, but m neighbor has one that he got from a boxer rescue that is dog aggressive. He said that it can be a problem in the breed.
If my dog started a fight in the dog park, I would not allow her off leash there again. Well, off leash anywhere around other dogs until I had extensively worked with her around other dogs on leash, and determined she could be trusted. I probably would still not allow her off leash at the dog park, but perhaps in supervised smaller settings.

This is hypothetical of course, because I don't take my pit bull to the dog park and always have her leashed around other dogs. I do not want to find out what might happen otherwise...She's never gotten in a fight and i'd liek to keep it that way...

 

In my visits to the dog park with Duke I have found that Boxers do tend to be aggressive or at least they somehow trigger an aggressive reaction from other dogs. For one thing they tend to leap up and paw at the other dog. I believe this is where they got the name Boxers. I always give them a wide berth at the park.

 

I hate to stereotype dogs, but I do want to protect my own dogs. I always watch my dogs quite closely with a new dog and see what sorts of signals they are all giving off. And if I see a dog misbehaving with another dog, I try to keep away from that dog even if I have to leave the park.

There are people who are regulars at the smaller park I go to that have a couple of jack russells and a couple bigger dogs. The jacks are a pain! I love that breed in general, but these guys are never corrected for their behavior. These people "warned" me one time when I arrived at the park that someone was there with three very big dogs. I asked if they were nice dogs and the people seemed confused. Then a lady appears with a huge great dane, a russian wolfhound and a greyhound. They were all friendly, well-behaved, gorgeous dogs. The two jacks went running up to the wolfhound and were snapping at it from two sides and the poor dog was terrified. She tucked her tail and tried to get away but the jacks just kept going at her. The owners did nothing. I guess maybe they think since their dogs are small they can do anything they want?? So the lady with the nice, well-behaved dogs left the park.

Shortly after, someone else who had been there with me before the jacks arrived started having problems and he left as well. Funny how two little dogs can drive everyone else away....

 

Jamiya,
That reminds me of one Dog Whisperer episode where he was dealing with a small terrier that was very dog aggressive. The owner said, "But surely he's not a danger to any dog" and Cesar replied '"Yes he is, he's a danger to himself if a bigger dog fights back."
I'll bet that lady would have gone berserk if that Wolfhound had snatched up one of her precious 'babies".
I have always thought that the area reserved for small dogs in our dog park was a way to protect all of our big sweeties from the little terrors. LOL.

 

I was under the impression that the small dog area in our park was there to protect the little dogs from being trampled to death by the bigger ones... Hmmm...teeth and fighting didn't cross my mind nor did protecting the big dogs from the little terrors either... Hmmm... I've run into the Small dog can't hurt anything attitude with my big Mastiff's before... To them a small dog is a chew toy...no reason except size and fuzz and even the squeeky... So...it's annoying when I see them bounding towards us and have a few small heart attacks in the process... Never had a problem though...my big dogs know who's boss in all sits I guess...LOL

 

There is no dog park around here, but I'm not sure I'd take my little weenies anyway. Brie is fear-aggressive of her own shadow and would hate it. Zoey would probably be OK if everyone respected her and you know that's not gonna happen. She has tried to jump on my brother's American Eskimo and other bigger dogs.

And on a side note, the last bike ride I took I was accosted by 2 boxers. The female was scared of me but aggressive none the less. The male was barking and charging the bike that I had between us. Then he came around to my side and took a sniff and looked at me as if to say "what the heck are you"? LOL. I had my Mom's dogs at my house at the time, so I'm sure I smelled like 7 different animals. Needless to say, I had to walk the bike saying "nice doggy--go home doggy" before they would back off.

 

I'm glad ya'll brought up the small dogs attacking big dogs thing. This really irritates me b/c it happens to my dog (Indy - ST. Bernard) all the time. There is this pug that everytime we go to the dog park, just starts attacking Indy. Like crazy attacking him, not just nipping at him, but like trying to tear him apart. Indy gets upset b/c he doesn't know what to do. He tries to get away but this dog gets right up under him. It is such a double standard b/c if Indy acted that way with any other dog, all hell would break loose. THe owner doesn't really do anything, she will say "stop it" and sometimes go pick him up but still. Then, there are already some people who just dislike Indy b/c he is so big and don't want him playing with their dog. How am I supposed to tell Indy, 'oh, you can't play with the black spaniel over there". WTF. Indy usually leaves the little dogs alone, like he knows he can't really play with them. I don't know. I'm rambling just b/c this thing really gets on my nerves.

I don't really know that much about boxers, but there is one at my dog park who seems pretty nice. He won't play with Indy b/c Indy is too big, but he'll play nice with every other dog. But I have heard that they have a reputation as being aggressive, but then again so do ST. Bernards, etc so you can take that for what it is worth.

 

looks like im the only one who would let them off again. why you ask? well it depends on the circumstances. if the dog was provoked, annoyed or things got out of hand then yes i would let the dog off the leash again. dogs lose their cool just like humans and they cant be expected to put up with everything. there is one particular dog at the park who anoys the hell out of all of the dogs including kuma. its a blue heeler who consantly bites all the dogs legs. most of the time the dogs will attack this particular dog when it does not stop, even though the heeler isnt being aggressive. kuma has lost her cool a couple of times with this dog. she gives it plenty of warning to stop but it continues to nip her legs. unfortunately because she is bigger shes the one who gets the dirty looks. in a situation like that i dont think permanent leashing of the attacker is warranted. the dog who is causing the problem will still be of leash and will still go up to my dog regardless of whether she is leashed or not. also just because a dog is dominating the fight does not mean that they started it or werent provoked. alot of dogs will get worked up and snappy after a fight and that could be why it was snapping at the other dogs.

now, dogs who make a habit of fighting at the drop of a hat do need to be leashed. in fact they shouldnt go to parks fullstop. it makes everyone elses walk a living hell. our beach visit last weekend was ruined by an aggressive dog. this dog was positively nuts. kuma was standing in the water staring out to see and this dog rushes up to her and attacks her from behind. when kuma turned around it latched onto her face! the owners didnt leash it up so it came back 20 minutes later to have another go. then 20 minutes later again it did the same to another dog. i was then informed it was attacking every 10th dog there. it was beyond me why they did not leash their dog yet i could tell they expected me to leash my dog just because she was bigger. kuma has a puncture wound on her eyelid and she was very depressed after that visit [serious]. ive only come across one boxer who was aggressive, and that was because her owner was a clueless moron [this was the owner of the malamute who wrapped the rope around kumas legs then my legs].

 

This reminds me of incident I had years ago at a dog park with my Canes

A few years ago my husband and i decided to take a weekend vacation and visit his sister. We at the time we only had the Canes and three Kelpies at the time (Chase was still alive around this time) and we took all five dogs with us. Our cattle hard was limited down to 9 and we had 11 sheep so the farm would be fine with out us for those couple days. Anyways to the point.

My sister inlaw Andrea owns two Border Collies and one Smooth Collie and owns a sheep farm. She also though takes her dogs to the dog park so they can socialize with other dogs. I decided to take Ginger and Ember when we went while my husband stayed at the place with my brother inlaw. It was a off leash park and with Ember and Ginger being so well trained i figured they would be fine off leash especially Ember who's very chill with other dogs. Anyways I was keeping a close eye on the dogs while Andrea and I talked pretty soon Ember came lumbering back over to me probley tired from playing with Andreas dogs and Ginger. As Ember came running up this lab mix jumps in front of him hair bristled, stiff legged, and stiff tailed snarling. The dog did not have a coller but I saw his family playing with him earlier that day. Ember being the pacisifist he is simply started to try to walk around instead of crouching or showing his belly (I have never known Ember to do this other then to myself or my husband). This dog did not like it and proceeded to attack Ember!!!

Ember fought back which I wasent surprised but i did'nt know how to get them apart. Finally a man came up with a pitcher of water and tossed it on the dogs and they actually stopped.... The owner of the attacking dog started to attack me saying "pitbulls" :roll: should'nt be aloud in an off leash park. The man who broke up the fight broke in and said no agressive dogs should'nt be aloud in this park period and that includes your dog and then i said "get your breeds straight he's a Cane Corso". The guy left angry with his bloody pet im not sure if they went to the vet or not but Ember did and required a few stiches.

It was the scariest thing i have ever witnessed and i will never ever go to an off leash dog park again or let my dog of leash at an off leash park again too risky. Not that i think Ember would try to start something or any of my dogs for that matter i just don't want my dogs suffering for my mistake. Andrea did tell me on several occasions that the man and his dog still go to that park and his dog is still a menace. Sometimes people are just idiots.

Side Note- i have nothing against pitbulls i grew about around and have owned them in the passed and think their great family dogs. I just wanted to show how easily other breeds are labeled "Pitbull" when their not :roll: .

 

kyles, I totally see your point about maybe taking a dog back to the park 'depending on the circumstances' but in California (and most of the US I think)aside from not wanting your dog to injure another dog, its just not worth the lawsuit which has a lot to do with why I would not take a dog-aggressive dog that has already fought, back there, I dont believe that they should be on a leash either when they are surrounded by loose dogs as this can build up the frustration and make them more likely to fight, however I get the impression that the dog parks your talking about cover a very large area, the ones in this area are maybe 3-5 acres, completely fenced in with a few trees and picnic tables and benches.
That said, there are a lot of dogs around that have the potential to fight with other dogs and the majority of dog fights are more vocal than physically damaging and are often made worse by the owners intervening, although when it happens right in front of you your first reaction is to split them up and you never know how far the fighting will go so is it worth it to risk letting them sort it out themselves. Most people would say no. Should those dogs not be allowed at dog parks, as long as the owner has control off leash I dont see why they cant be there....the thing that most people dont see is often when a dog 'suddenly' attacks another dog, its not necessarily that dog that started the fight, the other dog may have already challenged it with eye contact.
My 55# 'trash can rescue' (psycho-pup...BJ) has gone through extensive socialization with people and dogs and Ive been hard on her, it was either that or a few cc's of the 'blue juice' a long time ago. She has put my 5# chi/fox terrier mix in the hospital 3 times, only for the fact that it was the chi that started the fight each time, BJ would have been euthanized...but theres that 'big dog in a little dogs body' syndrome again. The thing with BJ is that she wont quit, even if another dog is on its back and not fighting back she will still go at it. She is the only dog Ive ever had that will never set foot inside a dog park, lawsuits aside, I know my dog and I know she will seriously hurt another dog....or pick on the wrong one and be torn to pieces.

 

we dont have designated dog parks as you describe. it is just a regular park with a higher than usual number of dogs that go there. all the regulars are friends with each other. this would be about 15 dogs? we dont have small enclosed areas like you described. i dont think they would be very popular at all. the only place that there is a high amount of unleashed dogs is at the beach and there is rarely trouble there. at the park we all know who the trouble makers are so lawsuits are not a problem. not that they would be anyway, people dont sue over dog fights here unless the dog and owners are completely crazy. as i described, although kuma has been in fights in both places, there is no way im going to deny her of a fun time because shes had to defend [defend, not fight] herself against the odd trouble maker. but i do see your point though in wanting to protect your dog from would be litigation freaks. id be much more diligent in training and more uneasy about kuma being off leash in the US than here, although id still do it.

 

Yeah...it sounds like the dog parks in Australia are more like the ones in the UK, not designated areas specifically for dogs. The lawsuits are unbelievable, if theres a quick buck to be made theres always someone ready to jump on any chance they get and the lawyers are raking the cash in. (unfortunately the UK is rapidly becoming more like the US in this respect).
From what you said in your post I dont see any reason why Kuma shouldnt go to a dog park, unless I missed a post all he's done is defend himself, the fact that he is bigger than some dogs and can probably do more damage to a dog that attacks him is neither your fault nor Kumas. People who own dogs that they know will fight and attack other dogs are the ones that should not have their dogs running around off leash, like I said, thats why I wont take BJ to a park. Now had BJ been a stronger dog, and Im going to say it....a Pit 'type' dog with the same level of aggression that she has I think I would have put her to sleep long ago but she's not and I did, through intensive training get her to where she can calmly walk past a dog on the street without going balistic and trying to kill it. Its all about being a responsible owner, know your dog, its temprement and its capabilities and use common sense.

 

ive never met a dog that ihaven't liked accept Chow Chows they scare me..becuase hwen i was younger i was bit hard by one....i have fear of them im just very aware of them if there is one near me....i love the bigger breeds the ones that people call the "mean" not type of dogs that can be trusted....i think it has to do with their heritage how their parents nad so on were..and what they were bred to do...any who....i know what ya mean about the little dog napolian syndrome...lol....my pomy is the same way with my huskey mix...thank god my dog likes her...or she would eat her...but i wilsay this...my Pommy only 5 lbs...can hold her one again my 70lbs beast..lol....

 

I know what you mean Kyles, and I wasn't specific enough in the wording of my question. If my dog was PROVOKED and especially if she put up with it for a while and then finally stood up for herself that's another matter entirely. If it was one specific dog that she had a problem with, that COULD be another matter. But my question was what if your dog PROVOKED the fight. Not necessarily threw the first blow, but initiated the whole thing. See what I mean?