Please help

Hi everyone... We recently adopted a mini pincher who is genetically blind in both eyes. The first couple of days were great. Now he is lunging at my other dog (who was abused before we got him). He has gone to bite him several times. Emilio (the mini pincher) has bitten my husband several times (broken the skin at least 4 of the times). Today Emilio lunged at me for no reason. I am at a loss of what to do. I want this to work but my husband is already getting a little annoyed and apprehensive. I emailed Little Shelter to see if they have any suggestions.

Any ideas or insight would be helpful.

Thanks for reading this far.

Re: Please help

When he lunged, was it during a quite moment? it could have been he was startled by either you, your husband or dog approaching.

If you know your new dog is food driven, maybe you can try to walk by him but talking to him in a soothing voice and when he approaches calmly give him a piece of turkey or something that is extremely tasty to him. But make sure the reward is only used as a training treat.

some resources
http://www.ehow.com/how_7562_live-with-blind.html

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/living-with-a-blind-dog.html

http://www.petfinder.com/pet-care/living-with-blind-dogs.html

I hope it works out with your new pup, but dont feel bad if it doesnt because its stressful having a special needs dog. You have to think about quality of life for your family and your special needs dog. You're doing a great thing giving him a home

Re: Please help

All dogs can benefit from training, especially ones that have special needs. One of his needs is for you to learn how to integrate him into your family and work with his disability.

Dogs challenging each other (and you) for dominance is a natural instinct. He's in a brand new place with brand new people - it's no wonder he's acting out. He's scared, and it sounds like he's exhibiting fear aggression. There are lots of reasons for dog behavior, you need to learn how to identify them and how to react ahead of time. As a dog owner, it's not always going to be easy, and it's up to you to figure out how to make it work.

Don't give up on him. Get a good trainer asap, don't wait. Show him how to be a well behaved member of your family and everyone will be happier.

Re: Please help

Posted by greenfreak

All dogs can benefit from training, especially ones that have special needs. One of his needs is for you to learn how to integrate him into your family and work with his disability.

Dogs challenging each other (and you) for dominance is a natural instinct. He's in a brand new place with brand new people - it's no wonder he's acting out. He's scared, and it sounds like he's exhibiting fear aggression. There are lots of reasons for dog behavior, you need to learn how to identify them and how to react ahead of time. As a dog owner, it's not always going to be easy, and it's up to you to figure out how to make it work.

Don't give up on him. Get a good trainer asap, don't wait. Show him how to be a well behaved member of your family and everyone will be happier.