Corgi gets overexcited then aggressive-any suggestions?
Hi Corgi Lovers & Experts! I have 2 cardigans, siblings that will be 2 in January. The male, Kirby tends to get excited very easily and if I don't catch it quick enough to correct him, he then becomes aggressive (i.e-gets excited at the front door, his sister Kota happens to be next to him so he turns his attention to her, and nips at her.) This morning, I was in the kitchen, the 2 cardis & my golden retriever were in the living room, less than 15 feet away from me. I do not remember hearing any noises that would indicate that they were playing (if they are playing, I watch closely to avoid escalation). All of a sudden a fight broke out--not sure if the golden went after the cardi & he was defending himself, or if the cardi instigated. I could not get them to separate. By the time I got to them, Kirby was latched on to the golden's ear and WOULD NOT let go. My husband finally had to pull his jaw open to get him to release. There was a lot of noise and carrying on, but neither dog drew blood. Of course now I will keep a closer eye on them, but any tips from the trainers/experts out there on how to quickly and safely get them apart if this should happen again would be greatly appreciated! We do have the pet corrector (we call it the shush-moster), but I was afraid to use it this morning because they were so focused/involved that I was afraid it would not have the desired impact and I didn't want to lessen it's effectiveness in other situations. Please help!
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Jane Christensen on
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I have had this issue with Livvy and it's not fun. When the activity increases so does her aggressiveness, she wants to be in control.. She has gotten better and I have learned that I must watch her eyes (she will start staring/glaring and also lift her lip but you can't see this unless you are right there) I also will keep her in another area when I'm gone as I have found that too many dogs at the door when I come home will also set her off. Maybe keep him on a leash also? I have had to literally lift Livvy off another dog and she has in the past drawn blood but always goes for the back leg so I know how frustrating this can be. I can thankfully say that things are much better after working with these issues but I still watch her. I don't know what you mean by a shush-monster but I have used a bark collar (I put it on her only when they are running outside and only for short bits)on her as she also barks wildly when doing this. I very seldom have to use this now and if I do she has figured out that she can bark but not wildly. I don't know if this helped but at least you know you are not the only one.
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Permalink Reply by Sandy Stickney on
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Hi Jane! Thanks for the support! The "shush-monster" is a can of air like this. It is very effective for getting their attention if I am coordinated enough to use it at the right time. It has helped us w/ barking at the door, respecting door space, manners (keeping 4 on the floor, greeting calmly), and does help me stop Kirby from escalating from excited to aggressive, if I happen to have the can near me. I just don't know if it's loud enough to stop a melee once it is under motion. I was screaming my head off like a lunatic (I know I probably looked and sounded ridiculous, and it was not effective AT ALL!) and they absolutely ignored me. I understand that I am supposed to be calm and in control, but boy, is that easier said than done in the heat of the moment. I am afraid that if I use the pet corrector during this episode and they happen to ignore it because it isn't loud enough over the barking/screeching, then it will cease to be effective in other training areas. I would like to try making some loud noise to get their attention, (louder than the air can), but I other than screaming at the top of my lungs, I don't know what it would be. The trainer that helped us use the pet corrector (shush-monster) started out with a fire extinguisher to get their attention. It was very effective, and I suspect would stop them in their tracks, but, I am hoping for some more practical solutions. Thanks again for your feedback! It does help to know I am not alone!
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Sandy...I've gone running out of my house screaming at the top of my lungs...good thing we live in the country or they probably would have called the cops to come take me away:)
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Unfortunately, I have done that too....and I don't live in a rural area! Luckily they don't dash out doors anymore due to some intense training. But before that, they had such a grand time slipping past me, no matter how slight the opening may have been, and then frolicking gayly (and deafly) in any direction EXCEPT for back to me (all the while I am chasing behind them screaming like a maniac!)
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Permalink Reply by Jane on
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I've heard throwing a blanket over them or spraying them with a hose (if outside) can work, but I've never tried it. My two don't fight thankfully! I would maybe keep a leash on him in the house so you can correct him if need be. Maybe just a short 3' one?
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Thanks for the suggestion Jane! It usually happens in the living room, where I happen to have a throw handy, so I will have to give that a try. We used to keep him on a leash when he was just a lil' pup, but we have given him a lot of freedom as he has grown up (obviously, a little too much freedom!) I may have to hook him up again for awhile as you and Jane have suggested.
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Permalink Reply by Karen Dadisman on
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Is he neutered? What about the Golden, is he neutered? I'd keep the two of them separated unless I were in the room with them.
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Hi Karen, he is neutered. The golden is an 11 year old spayed female. It took her awhile to warm up to the puppies, but she will play with them. We have always been weary of the golden because she can attack without giving too much advance warning. I do keep an eye on them when they play because they have had a few "disagreements" where the play was normal & then someone got accidentally hurt, then retaliates; or sometimes the golden can be grumpy, so if she looks like she's in a mood, I will intervene. Every once in awhile, I happen to not be paying total attention, like in the incident in my post. My female corgi is pretty easy going, but the male is pretty high energy, and I do my best to keep him in check, because he quickly goes from excited to aggressive. He doesn't seem to do it with strange dogs, just dogs in our house (he has done it with the golden and also his sister.) I don't worry about it so much when it's the 2 corgis, because the fight is a little more fair, and they have always just been who-can-be-the-noisiest contests. (Although I stop them if they start to get too ramped up also.)
I worry when Kirby and my golden get into it because I am worried someone is going to get hurt. The corgis are crated at night (to keep them from accidentally wandering into one of the other dog's beds), and we crate them if we can't keep an eye on them. This morning, they just happened to be out of sight on the other side of the kitchen bar, and one or both of them had been with me in the kitchen just seconds before.
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Permalink Reply by Bev Levy on
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I have had this issue with Sparty and our doberman. The dobe tends to get over excited and Sparty decides to take control. Actually since no blood was drawn it was probably all posturing not true aggression. I would recommend googling Nothing in Life is Free for ideas on how to take control. The air can might have worked so keep that in mind but the best thing is to learn to recognize the stare or stiffening so you can intervene prior to an attack.
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If I do use the air can, I may have to make sure I get it as close to their faces as possilbe. I liked Jane's suggestion of throwing a blanket over them, which if it happens again, the blanket is probably closer and easier for me to grab than the air can (we have 2 cans and they never seem to be in the right place at the right time!)
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My worry about the blanket is that it might escalate the attack, a thrown magazine (not at the dog, in the air) might have a better distracting effect. I started to call out to Sparty whenever he got "the stare" and if he did not refocus I leashed him to me in the house for a while. Now he responds as soon as I call him and I also do not allow Misty to race around the house as that seemed to cause it the most.
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I can usually stop it before it starts, but once it starts, the corgi of course is only focused on the task at hand, and at that point it usually takes me and my husband to get them apart. Clapping hasn't worked, yelling hasn't worked, I don't usually have any magazines around. I have tried slapping my hand against the back of the couch (leather), which does work to get their attention if they haven't reached the aggressive level, but doesn't work once they are fully engaged. Of course since the last incident yesterday morning, I have had my guard up a little more and while they have played a little, I immediately stop them when Kirby starts getting even a little bossy. I have used the "enough" command with him since he was a little pup, and he does respond to it in the lower energy levels. He is definitely a high energy guy, and he normally regulates himself by frapping (a lot!), but I may have to step up his exercise and get him a little more worn out as lately he has been quite bossy.
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