Please help us with JOLIE MOO!

[Dallas23]

I have an English Bulldog, her name is Jolie Moo and she is nearly 1 year old.
The last 2 months she has begun showing agression towards other dogs, smaller in size then herself.
Last month she was sleeping on the floor and her bone was about 1 foot in front of her, and my chihuahua walked in the room about 6 feet from her, becuase he was scared of her... he kept a distance always...
She lunged out of sleeping, and bit him on the head killing him right in front of my eyes.
This was devastating for my GF and I to lose our lil baby.... and also, Jolie moo is usually the best... she is mellow and sleepy and so cute it is just unreal. Everyone loves her and she loves everyone usually... Since the incident she has snapped at 2 other small dogs that gave us a lil fear of "what if" she did it again? Or what if she bites our baby when that day comes that we have them....

What should we do? Do you think giving her to a family with no dogs or kids is the best option? I couldnt stand losing another dog, ( we have 3 more...) and living in in fear all the time that she may snap??

But at the same time, she is our baby and we love her so much.... I am at a loss....
she killed once... will that mean she will do it again or be agressive now forever with small dogs?


This was our baby, Charlie the red chihuahua.... rest in peace lil man....my heart aches for him.

[Imani's Mom]

I am not expert by any means, but if this aggression came on suddenly out of the blue, with no known trigger, and no way it could have been caused by any of her experiences, I would say get her to a vet in a hurry to be tested for thyroid issues, and all tick-borne diseases (lyme, etc.) as both can cause aggression issues, and I would hate to see you pass her on to someone else with a medical issue you could have managed with medication, and take the risk of her harming someone else and having it come back on you, because you knew about it and rehomed her anyway.

You don't say how or when you aquired her, but if you bought her from a reputable breeder, you would be under an obligation to contact the breeder to take her back before you COULD rehome her, and it may just be a hereditary issue causing it, and your breeder may have some answers to help you out.  Good luck.

[lindar5928]

This is only my personal opinion. Your dog is showing signs of aggression to other dogs. He needs to be in an environment where he can't hurt another animal or God forbid a child. If you have a place where he would be happy without competition, I strongly suggest he move to a new home. Living in fear is not good for you or the dog. Good luck

[chaos270]

First rule out medical problems.  If it's not medical and you really want to keep her I'd suggest hiring a behaviorist to help you determine what method of training would work best for her.  But in the mean time keep her seperated from your other dogs.  I will warn you if it is a behavioral problem it may be a long hard road to retraining.  As a bulldog she will be very stubborn.  Look at other aggression threads for training solutions such as NILF and dealing with dominant dogs (The Dog Whisperer/Cesar Milan techniques).  Good luck and keep us updated. 

[Dallas23]

I had no idea that the health issues could cuase aggression, I am absolutely going to look into that before jumping to a new home. I will also look into contacting our breeder to see if this could be in her genes ect.

Thank you all for your advice, this is a very hard time for my family and I guess it is hard to think straight and not purely based on emotions.

[Good Hope]

So sorry to hear about your dog. I would definitely contact the breeder. Does your contract have a stipulation for health and temperment issues? Any guarantee? The breeder should take the dog the dog back and rehome if necessary. If there are no underlying health issues, correctible with meds, I would consider returning the the dog to your breeder.

Please let us know what happens.

Deena 

[Imani's Mom]

How are things with Jolie Moo now?  Any news?