My dog is starting to turn vicious?

I have a half staff, quarter lab, and quarter pitbull. He is 5 years old and he hasnt had his balls chopped yet if that helps? Anyway hes always been so soppy, but the last 2 weeks hes slowly turning vicious. Yesterday my bf (who the dog has been with since puppy) put his head infront of the dogs head to give him a kiss, the dog snapped and went to bite his face, and hes never done that before, my bf always used to be able to kiss him on his head? And i tried it, cause normally he lets me do it.. his body language sort of looks uncertain as to what im doing, he never used to be like this. Hes growling alot more, and his body language is always 'uncertain' everytime we go near his head which he never used to do? Why is he like this, nothing has changed as far as im concerned? Do you think he might need his balls taken off. If he does, what will it do to him? Cause my bf says it will calm him down. Will it make him into a whimp dog? What are the good and bad things about getting his balls done? Thankshe went to the vet yesterday and they said he was perfectly healthy, will he turn into a whimp if he has his balls done, will it change his personality?well my bf is the dogs owner however when i moved in i took over, when he gets displined my bf normally smacks him which i tell him not too as i think its a bad idea

Get rid of it before it kills someone.

You should neuter him. Or get him checked out for rabies. Well he is some pitbull and they are known for fighting. Also you should call its me or the dog you can watch it on animal planet. or go online to www.animalplanet.com Also DON'T everput your face near a dog!!!!

He may have sore ears. Take him to the vet.

first get the dog neutered...being that he is unaltered makes him want to b the dominant one...second its not a good idea to put your face directly in front or above any dogs head or face...this is a sign of wanting the dog to b submissive and dogs dont take to this behavior...to the dog its intimidating to have your face directly in front of or above their head...its alright to show your dog that you like him but they dont understand that when youre putting your face close to theirs that its to give him "kisses"..

5 years? He should have been castrated at 6 months old. Yes it will calm his temperment, make him less aggressive, he wont wander in search of a mate, prevents tumors/cancer in the testicles and problems with the prostate gland which can be common at older age.

Please have him neutered. There is nothing bad about neutering. It will calm him down but he will not be wimpy. Never, ever, ever stick your face in a dogs face. They take that as a direct threat. I would also suggest taking him to a dog behaviorist a few times. If you do these things, I think he will be fine. Good luck.

From what you describe, I would be concerned that he may be feeling pain, possibly his ears. Pain can make a normally mild mannered dog snappy and apprehensive.Also, is there any possibility that your boyfriend may have either purposely or inadvertently hurt the dog?Alot of Y!A answerers will recommend neutering, however this isn't a magic bullet to cure all negative behaviours. If the dog is in pain or has been abused it won't help him at all.

Take him to the vet for a complete physical. Yes he needs to be neutered!!! Extra testosterone can make the dog higher risk and neutering will not make him a wimp. The vet can answer all you questions about neutering. A physical is needed to rule out any unnoticeable aliments. It won't hurt to take him to obedience classes either.

If your dog is already exhibiting this sort of behaviour then cutting his balls off won't change it. It's a common misconception that dogs are less aggressive if they have been castrated, especially if he is 5 years old. It won't suddenly clear him of testosterone, and he will ikely still chase after b*tches on heat. It is unlikely he will turn into a wimp. However if you think it will help you have nothing to lose, it's probably best that you have him castrated anyway. I think perhaps he may have been in slight pain, perhaps with a bit of an ear infection, when your bf tried to kiss his face (why he would want to do that is anyones guess) and now because you are both scared he might do it again he's picking up on your uncertainty.p.s. If you liked your dog 'soppy' then why are you worried about turning him into a wimp?

my lab has just had his balls off becuuse he used to be really hectick and a bit nasty with dogs. the vet said it might calm him or it might not; it has made him a lot better he doesant take any notice of uther dogs now and has slowed him down. so yes it probably will help

yes, get him desexed, it will make him alot more calm. Dog's are attracted to the smell of blood from a female dog is there one near you? Of course all dogs start to get more viceous as they grow up but it is quite strange him being 5 and doing this. Him being half staff, quarter lab, and quarter pitbull would make him a little more viceous, sometimes alot more. <-- that would also have an affect on him. Do you or your boyfriend play games that involve him to bite or go a little more psycho if so that makes a huge difference. Do you use a different perfume or do you smell different in anyway, he may not recognise you. All these thing would make a huge difference, although you took him to the vet they may have missed something and he could have something hurting him anywhere making him angry. Keep an eye on him for a while and add me and tell me how he's going. Brittany <33

So your boyfriend put his face in front of the dog's face and he got snapped at. Why oh why did you then do the same thing???? Did you want to get bitten?Getting in your dog's face is very dominant behaviour and it's not a smart thing to do even once, let alone you having a second go at it. Your boyfriend is correct in that neutering will calm the dog down somewhat. It sounds like this dog will benefit from less testosterone. Obedience training is the other half of that equation...the part you are missing. Neutering will not make a vicious dog into a mild mannered wimp. Are you planning on getting in your dog's face again, either now or after he's neutered? If so I would be making sure your health insurance is up to date. Tell you boyfriend to stop hitting his dog and take it to training. Hitting a dog is abuse.

I never believed in neutering because of agression.The only thing that will cause me to neuter a dog is if he is ill & that is the last resort.I prefer keeping my dogs intact I like the idea of affording them the privilegde of keeping their own balls(then again I breed rottweilers).Since he has never exhibited this behaviour my advice to you would be to take him to the vet to see if something has him in any kind of pain or discomfort hence causing him to act out...if it turns out not to be that then try getting a trainer to come & give you their synopsis & show you what can be done...OR watch the DOG WHISPERER I know you know of the show & you probably do watch it as well..Cesar deals with these situations regularly,he is a genius & his techniques DO work.

Never hit a pitbull they can turn on you both you should get him fix see if he will stop being vicious it might work it might not It good to get a male dog fix can stop them from spraying.If your bf keeps smacking the pitbull that pitbull can bite your bf.I should know old woman old a pitbull the pitbull turn on her and it kill the old woman i see it on the news about 2 years ago she didn't do anything to the pitbull you might need a dog trainer to come to help you with the pitbull.

Pitbulls are bred to be aggressive, having his bits, off at his age will not much alter his character, that has already developed, he would probably be a bit more docile, and he would tend to run to fat.As for hitting him, that is telling him that the way to attain dominance is through physical strength, one day he might try out how he fares in a fight with his attacker, by then it will be too late.

Sounds to me like a dominance issue that is finally rearing its head....Not to sound harsh, but if your boyfriend thinks it is effective to "smack" the dog for "discipline".....I can feel fairly safe in assuming he doesn't have a real thorough understanding of dog behavior. If boyfriend is the one who's raised the dog from puppyhood with that sort of mentality....and now the dog is growling and challenging his primary "owner".....yeah. Sounds like a dominant, intact male dog who lacks real leadership and is beginning to think he's in charge. Major behavior modification time. Towering over a dog's head is regarded as "challenging" or "dominant" posture by a dog...the fact that he's reacting by growling or looking uncertain when you bend over & mess with his head, is a classic sign of a dominance issue. I mean this in all kindness, but I would suggest both of you need to do some serious research and get a better grasp on dog behavior. You say you don't think it's a "good idea" for the boyfriend to smack the dog- but honestly, do YOU know the best method to correct a dog's behavior? If you have the money I would highly reccomend working with a private trainer....if even for 1 or 2 private sessions so someone can explain the basics to you. Call around to vets, rescues & animal shelters for reccomendations on a GOOD trainer so you're not throwing money away on a scam artist. If you can't afford a private trainer, look into group Obedience classes. I think you would both benefit from having a professional who can answer questions & explain things. Until then, start by Googling "dominance aggression"....read the information and see if it fits your dog's behavior. Then Google "NILIF" or "Nothing in Life is Free"....this is a simple, non-confrontational behavior modification program you can start in your home NOW.Neutering is *not* a magic solution to dog behavior problems. It may slightly even out his energy level but you will STILL NEED TO WORK WITH HIM. That being said, for his health and other reasons, neutering is a good idea. It won't turn him into a "whimp" or otherwise drastically alter his personality.

When you went to the vet, did you make sure that you told the vet what you were concerned about? That he'd been getting progressively more agressive over a period of time? There is a possibility that he could be in pain. Neutering won't fix all your problems magically, but it may help with some of them, in terms of removing some potential drive for the behaviors, but if things have become a habit for him, it may take some time still to break him of the habit. My gut says (assuming he was *carefully* checked for pain by the vet), you've probably trained him to be uncertain with your discipline techniques. I suggest training, and working with him on a more positive level to try to improve his confidence in you and himself (yes I know that sounds pretty 'airy fairy', but it helps!).

Many dogs don't like people right in their faces. It can be seen as a threat to them.It does seem strange that he has changed recently though, especially as he is an adult.My immediate thought is that something happened to him, maybe something you don't know about. Pit bull/Staffie type dogs are very sensitive and will use a lot of aggressive-looking body language to keep objects of fear away.I think it is important that you get the help of a professional behaviourist. You need someone who understands dogs and has lots of experience with all kinds of problems to look at your dog and see what the best way to help him would be. A good behaviourist will then use positive reinforcement to improve his behaviour. If they use punishment, show them the door straight away and find someone decent who will actually help your dog.I would leave off neutering until you have seen a behaviourist. I honestly don't think his behaviour in this instance has anything to do with that, but it would definitely be beneficial to get it done. It won't turn him into a wimp. It might calm him down, and will at least stop him from impregnating every bitch he can. It also eliminates the risk of testicular cancer, and may make him behave better around other male dogs if that is an issue.I do think vets can miss things, so don't rule out a medical problem.Remember, your dog HASN'T bitten. Snapping is not in the league of biting - it is a method of getting something to back off without being too forceful. If a dog tries to bite chances are he will, as dogs are much quicker than our reaction times.Good luck. I hope he is OK.