A to Z French Bulldogs

Are dogs capable of holding a grudge? I seriously doubt it, but lately it seems as if they are giving us their absolute worst behavior. Ever since we left them for 5 days over Thanksgiving, they have been little monsters.

The fighting continues, and is escalating. Previously it was Abby who got spooked or worked up about something which would evolve into a brawl. We could separate them and calm them and they would go back to snuggling and snoozing together.

Now it is Zoey who is picking fights and unable to have her attention redirected. Today her target was Rosie – she kept going after her for no apparent reason. The problem is that Zoey is as big as Ro now so the fight is unfair. Once she lunges, Abby joins the melee and it is 2 on 1.

It is taking longer and longer for both of them to “get over it” and focus on something else. It seems like they spend alternating time in their “time out pen” with the other one having some fresh air in the yard.

I don’t care how many episodes of “Dog Whisperer” we watch, it is hard to stay calm assertive when they are snarling at each other.

All hope is not lost – tonight we meet the lovely folks from Bark Busters. Hopefully they can give us some advice and discipline methods that will diffuse this trend.

Some people have told me that the “good old methods” of yelling and hitting are what we need. I can’t imagine trying to curb their aggressive tendencies with violent behavior on our parts. I know bullies are stubborn, but there has to be a solution.

The scary part is that they are still considered puppies. I am told the adolescent phase (1-3 years old) is even worse!

I want my cute snuggly puppies back. 

Tags: fighting, French Bulldog, Training

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 9th, 2009 at 5:09 pm and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.