Dog question

[johnboy]

You ever have a dog that you just didn't like? We have a 1.5 year old bullmastiff male that we got as an 8 week old pup and frankly, I really don't like him. We have had 2 other bullies (a male and female) so I'm very familiar with and love the breed but this guy makes it hard. I just think he is with the wrong family - a high energy dog in a low energy household. His redeeming quality is that he is very affectionate.

I've been struggling with letting him go back to the breeder who says they will take him and rehome him but I feel such responsibility for him that I have not been able to do it. Maybe a pride thing as I've never had this issue before. He can be a real sweet guy so I don't want to see him hurt in any way but I don't know if I can live with him any longer. We put him in a kennel for a couple of days to get some respite but after being back home for 20 min, my blood pressure is through the roof.

Still has his nuts so maybe that is the next step.

[Trav]

JB, I would go with the castration and see if that helps I don't think I could send him back. I will say I have always had a preference for female dogs. Do you have a treadmill, maybe you could wear him out on the treadmill.

[Thumper]

My ex-wife was like that ... not her fault really, but I turned her back in. ;)

[Hombre]

I am with Travis on this one female dogs seem to have less energy and better behaved. I had a German short-haired that was awesome pheasant and quail hunting but during the off season tested every last nerve.

[HideHunter]

At this point castration probably wouldn't do it.. I have mine done before 5 months and I'm a firm believer. In honesty... you have a really good "out". I'd take it.

[Chicken Dinner]

I've been around dogs I don't like. But, have never owned one. I pet sat my sisters hound this past weekend and she's got some habits I couldn't put up with long term. I've always had neutered makes as well. They're a little more strong willed the first couple of years. But, better dogs after that IMO. Personal preference I guess.

[johnboy]

This is not a 'bad' dog. He's bright, alert, friendly, intelligent, affectionate and full of energy. He is also determined, stubborn, excitable, wild and really over the top sometimes but never aggressive (small dogs attack him all the time and he just puts up with it). He is very much a high energy dog which is not what I expected from having two other bullies. They tend to be a little more laid back which he very much is not.

I picked him out of a litter of 10 when he was 4 weeks old. We had been watching the litter on webcam and thought he was a good middle of the road pup - not the most dominant but not the lowest on the totem poll, not the biggest but not the smallest, not aggressive but still stood up for himself in the puppy battles. Went to check him out and decided he was for us. Brought him home at 8 weeks.

As it turn out, he has a real need to be the boss. I need to be on top of him all the time or he tries to take over. A constant battle of wills and it wears me down. That's why I thought it was time to have the nads removed. Maybe that will settle him down some and remove the dominance drive. I have never neutered any of my male dogs and never saw the need to do so but this guy is different. I believe the science that says early castration of large breed dogs will have negative health impacts later in life, especially joint and ligament issues and cancer but he has about finished his growth stage so that should be ok.

I just can't bring myself to give him up as I feel totally responsible for him and don't want to see him bounced around from home to home. He is not easy to live with and I fear that he may wind up being abused by someone with less patience than me. So I need to figure out a way to civilize him.

[LJ3]

It's obvious you want to do the right thing for you and for your dog. I say whack the nuts and if it doesn't make him more compatible with your lifestyle, it sounds as if the breeder rehoming him would be best for you and your dog both. I mean, who would be i in a better position to make sure he got an appropriate home?

[Bwana]

What LJ said if you HAVE to give it a try but then again there is nothing wrong with calling "Uncle" every now and then.

[LJ3]

You could always just let Jimmy eat the dog. Works in Korea.

[BarryBobPosthole]

That'd be a snack for Jimbo.

John, what does your vet say about it? I've had some dogs that just had to grow up some before they mellowed out, usually at about four or five years. Some never do I guess. Most of my dogs have i'd say. We have a neutered husky that has really mellowed into a nice dog and he just turned five. He pushed the envelope a lot until then too.

Agree whats been said on neutering. It does have an effect, but not always as much as you want with a young dog.

I vote for keeping the balls!
Poor fucker.

BKB

[Captain]

This from a man famous for ball shooting deer-type animals..... :D

[johnboy]

I've been thinking about this for quite some time. Balls or no balls? I've had two other males (an Alaskan malamute and a bullmastiff), both big dogs and never even considered having them neutered. Just never seemed like a need for it. Castration does have a negative effect on their later health as has been shown in studies and I had planned to keep him intact but he is a real hand full sometimes so the issue came up. Almost seems to be cyclical - a pita for a few days then a sweet boy for a while so I think I'm just gonna wait it out and see if he settles down some more as he matures. Plus which, I just don't like the look of a male dog with no testicles. Seems wrong somehow. Guess I'm a male chauvinist pig. :snorting7218

[BarryBobPosthole]

Little does he know how casually his balls future was discussed and how close he came to the knife.

BKB

[johnboy]

Probably like a buncha wimmen sitting around talking about their husbands.

[LJ3]

^^^BAM!^^^

[Trav]

If he doesn't settle down in a few years I will take him. My neo will probably be gone by then.

[johnboy]

Yeah, the big ones don't live as long as we'd like, that's for sure. How old is she now?

[Big Muddy]

Jboy, you know I've got dogs, raised and trained 'em for hunting, and I've had my share of some good, bad, ugly, and crazy ones thru the years....I haven't said anything on the subject because I feel like you will work it out for the best.

This isn't set in stone, but as a general rule for big non-hunting dogs, I've learned that it takes a minimum of two years for the bigger dog breeds to "find" themselves, settle down, and learn their role in their human family.

About the only way to speed up that process is to put them thru obedience training....otherwise, you'll only get about 50% success with the neutering.

[Trav]

She just turned 9 and is showing signs of her kidneys not running optimally. I have her on some prescription Renal diet and it seems be working as her kidney numbers have improved dramatically. Other than that she is still in great shape.

[johnboy]

Totally agree with that, especially the "learn their role" part and that's why we're going to keep working with him. He has days at a time when he acts like a 'normal' dog then a few days of being a total asshole but the good periods are getting longer and the bad ones not so bad so maybe he's starting to figure it out. These guys were bred to be pretty independent so sometimes they just want to do it their way and we have to convince them that our way is better. He's a big pup but seems to be slowly growing up mentally so that's good.

We've been to a bunch of classes with different trainers and even sent him back to the breeder for two weeks for some work with their trainer who liked him but thought he was 'strong willed' - no shit, Sherlock!

Anyway, thanks to all for the advice. Sometimes you just need to talk it out with other dog people.

[johnboy]

Trav, you should get a few more years out of the old girl so don't look to be trading her in just yet. My bullies didn't live that long - 6.5 for the male and 8.5 for the female. Way too short.