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My dog growled at my wife

25,582 Views | 194 Replies | Last: 2 yr ago by Bpriefert
RDV-1992
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I was out of town, so I didn't see it happen. But my wife said my dog Hilda growled at her, and she was scared.

I'm struggling with this because I love my dog, but can't have her scaring my wife.

Dog in question is a roughly 5 to 6 year old pit mix who is powerful, super stubborn and completely focused on me, but that is not violent. I've heard her growl at our cats, but the cats ignore her (they share a water bowl, sleep next to each other, etc.). I think she picked it up in the pound - she has barking displays with some other dogs, but when actually confronted she runs and cowers.

I think I either need to have the dog put to sleep, or arrange so that she is always at a kennel when I go out of town.

Opinions?
Picard
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Put it to sleep and never ever get another pit.

powerbelly
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Kill the dog. It shouldn't even be a question.
Wodanaz
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Your wife said she was scared and a dog is a dog. Lots of emotions can skew those facts, but it's a wrap on this one in my opinion.

Unless your wife is a b**** then they prolly both gotta go.
Howdy Dammit
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Pits aren't wired to be mans best friend. Get rid of it and don't have a bad accident on your conscience
AgLA06
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Well, I guess you now know the pack order in your house. And I don't necessarily blame the dog.
Beckdiesel03
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I'm a wife and a HUGE dog lover. We have 3. This is a big nope for me. It would take me a lot to make that decision but once this happens I'm out until the dog is gone.
GSS
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One incident, that you didn't even witness, doesn't seem to be enough info to put a dog down.
How long have you had the dog?
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Wearer of the Ring
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None of us ever want to read the "if only i had ..." thread.
FJB
AggieOO
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GSS said:

One incident, that you didn't even witness, doesn't seem to be enough info to put a dog down.
How long have you had the dog?



I'm in this camp. Our dogs growl sometimes, and it's not a huge deal. It's how they tell you they don't like what is going on. Every dog and situation is different, but there's not enough info here.

Maybe the dog is a time bomb. Maybe your wife should take notes from the cat.
PharmD4
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Probably just need to separate them, keep her outsidejust give her plenty of food and water.

Not sure what you should do with the dog though
F4GIB71
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I'm a big dog lover but never got the pit bull attraction. A friend's adult son had one that my friend had been around many times over a couple of years. The dog suddenly attacked my friend for no explicable reason. Another friend's young son was riding his bike in their neighborhood when he was attacked severely by one. Sorry, but see no redeeming value in the breed
RDV-1992
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GSS said:

One incident, that you didn't even witness, doesn't seem to be enough info to put a dog down.
How long have you had the dog?

I've had the dog for roughly 5 years.

I said in the OP that she's 5 or 6. But if I've had her for 5 years she's around 7 years old.

She's part pit, part lab.
KT_Ag08
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If this was a kid and not your wife it wouldn't even be the same discussion. It's no different.
brew82
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Instead of putting your dog down, you could take your wife to the vet and put her to sleep.
BCStalk
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Too many good non aggressive dogs that need a forever home. Put it down and get another. Don't get me wrong, I love my dogs, but the risk vs reward just isn't worth it with a known aggressive breed.
AggieOO
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KT_Ag08 said:

If this was a kid and not your wife it wouldn't even be the same discussion. It's no different.


My dog growled at my 2.5 year old about an hour ago. My daughter was hitting him with a Tupperware lid. Guess who got in trouble...it wasn't the dog.

Context is everything. The dog was voicing his displeasure with being hit with a plastic lid. He wasn't being aggressive.

If the OP had left the breed off his post, I'd guess he'd be getting some different responses. Either that or I I'm going to have a bunch of people telling me I need to put down my 9 year old weim, who has never bitten either of my kids.
Pepper Brooks
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Which one to muzzle.. so many decisions

trouble
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Was your wife hitting the dog with Tupperware?
powerbelly
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AggieOO said:

KT_Ag08 said:

If this was a kid and not your wife it wouldn't even be the same discussion. It's no different.


My dog growled at my 2.5 year old about an hour ago. My daughter was hitting him with a Tupperware lid. Guess who got in trouble...it wasn't the dog.

Context is everything. The dog was voicing his displeasure with being hit with a plastic lid. He wasn't being aggressive.

If the OP had left the breed off his post, I'd guess he'd be getting some different responses. Either that or I I'm going to have a bunch of people telling me I need to put down my 9 year old weim, who has never bitten either of my kids.


The breed matters.
AggieOO
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We can agree to disagree.

IMO, it's the individual dog, not necessarily the breed. I've seen aggressive dogs across all breeds, and also known lots of pits that were docile. But I know I won't change your mind, so go ahead and roll your eyes.
Martin Cash
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GSS said:

One incident, that you didn't even witness, doesn't seem to be enough info to put a dog down.
How long have you had the dog?

It's a pit bull. That's all you need to know. The breed should be exterminated.
CactusThomas
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AggieOO said:

]

My dog growled at my 2.5 year old about an hour ago. My daughter was hitting him with a Tupperware lid. Guess who got in trouble...it wasn't the dog.




Yikes
GSS
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Martin Cash said:

GSS said:

One incident, that you didn't even witness, doesn't seem to be enough info to put a dog down.
How long have you had the dog?

It's a pit bull. That's all you need to know. The breed should be exterminated.
It's a pit bull/Lab mix, that he has had for five years.
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AggieOO
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CactusThomas said:

AggieOO said:

]

My dog growled at my 2.5 year old about an hour ago. My daughter was hitting him with a Tupperware lid. Guess who got in trouble...it wasn't the dog.




Yikes


I agree, she shouldn't have been hitting him.
drummer0415
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Put your dog to sleep, then go adopt another pit, and put that one to sleep too. Keep repeating until all the pits are gone.
03_Aggie
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I'm gonna need to see a picture of the dog. If this thing looks like a lab then I think we need to go ahead and lump them in with the pits and started the extermination.
AeroAg1
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RDV-1992 said:

I was out of town, so I didn't see it happen. But my wife said my dog Hilda growled at her, and she was scared.

I'm struggling with this because I love my dog, but can't have her scaring my wife.

Dog in question is a roughly 5 to 6 year old pit mix who is powerful, super stubborn and completely focused on me, but that is not violent. I've heard her growl at our cats, but the cats ignore her (they share a water bowl, sleep next to each other, etc.). I think she picked it up in the pound - she has barking displays with some other dogs, but when actually confronted she runs and cowers.

I think I either need to have the dog put to sleep, or arrange so that she is always at a kennel when I go out of town.

Opinions?
I'll go against the grain here but why did the dog growl? Food/water scenario or did she just run up to the wife and growl out of the blue?
powerbelly
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AggieOO said:

We can agree to disagree.

IMO, it's the individual dog, not necessarily the breed. I've seen aggressive dogs across all breeds, and also known lots of pits that were docile. But I know I won't change your mind, so go ahead and roll your eyes.


The breed matters. Different breeds have different abilities to cause harm. I have a Rottweiler and the first time he is aggressive towards my family will be the last. Pittbulls are no different.
SMM48
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I woulda shot that sob in the back yard. Growling at my wife..yeah bullllsh$:&
03_Aggie
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powerbelly said:

AggieOO said:

We can agree to disagree.

IMO, it's the individual dog, not necessarily the breed. I've seen aggressive dogs across all breeds, and also known lots of pits that were docile. But I know I won't change your mind, so go ahead and roll your eyes.


The breed matters. Different breeds have different abilities to cause harm. I have a Rottweiler and the first time he is aggressive towards my family will be the last. Pittbulls are no different.


What about labs? He said it is part pit and part lab? Maybe it's like 5% pit and 95% lab.
powerbelly
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03_Aggie said:

powerbelly said:

AggieOO said:

We can agree to disagree.

IMO, it's the individual dog, not necessarily the breed. I've seen aggressive dogs across all breeds, and also known lots of pits that were docile. But I know I won't change your mind, so go ahead and roll your eyes.


The breed matters. Different breeds have different abilities to cause harm. I have a Rottweiler and the first time he is aggressive towards my family will be the last. Pittbulls are no different.


What about labs? He said it is part pit and part lab? Maybe it's like 5% pit and 95% lab.


It's a dog from the pound. I doubt he has any idea what is, but it's enough pit to lead with that
AggieOO
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powerbelly said:

AggieOO said:

We can agree to disagree.

IMO, it's the individual dog, not necessarily the breed. I've seen aggressive dogs across all breeds, and also known lots of pits that were docile. But I know I won't change your mind, so go ahead and roll your eyes.


The breed matters. Different breeds have different abilities to cause harm. I have a Rottweiler and the first time he is aggressive towards my family will be the last. Pittbulls are no different.


I don't disagree that different breeds have different abilities to cause harm. But a specific breed doesn't automatically make a particular dog aggressive, which you obviously know as a rottweiler owner.
03_Aggie
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powerbelly said:

03_Aggie said:

powerbelly said:

AggieOO said:

We can agree to disagree.

IMO, it's the individual dog, not necessarily the breed. I've seen aggressive dogs across all breeds, and also known lots of pits that were docile. But I know I won't change your mind, so go ahead and roll your eyes.


The breed matters. Different breeds have different abilities to cause harm. I have a Rottweiler and the first time he is aggressive towards my family will be the last. Pittbulls are no different.


What about labs? He said it is part pit and part lab? Maybe it's like 5% pit and 95% lab.


It's a dog from the pound. I doubt he has any idea what is, but it's enough pit to lead with that


I mean nobody is throwing out part lab without it looking somewhat like a lab.
cupofjoe04
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AggieOO said:


Context is everything.


I agree with everything in your post, for sure.

But I would contend that breed, and that breed's history, is part of the context. Without knowing the wife, the dog, or what actually happened- people are giving advice based on the context we have. And with pit in the mix, that changes things.
 
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