my bulldog has to wear a muzzle at times... not because of any laws... but because she has a vendetta with my coydog.... she's so used to Lady picking a fight with her when she goes out for walks that she has actually started to expect the fights.... not good, not good at all.... the bulldog isnt dog aggressive at all, she gets along fine with our other two dogs, but she litterally has an almost human hatred for Lady... i decided the only way to help Lady's chances of survival should the bulldog get loose is to muzzle her....
I dont like it at all, i especially dont like it because people see a bulldog with a muzzle and their thoughts automaticly turn to "of COURSE It's DANGEROUS!!"
Poor Kaydee hates the muzzle too.... she really doesnt deserve to wear it, but I havent yet figured out a way to prevent Lady from instigating fights with her. Lady is almost twelve years old, she's a bit senile, and thinks she's still alpha and tries to dominate the bulldog..... i'm just glad i live further out in the country where i dont have to worry about people nextdoor calling the cops and accusing me of baiting a bulldog with a weaker dog. Kaydee used to be beautiful but Lady has her face scarred up so she looks like a fighting dog.... i absolutely hate it...

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Don't worry about bitin' off more'n you can chew; your mouth is probably a whole lot bigger'n you think.

Hm. Yeah, my heeler mix, Lucy, has started to get VERY cranky with younger dogs. She is almost 6, and she recently had to have surgery for a hemmorage in her stomache, so I think she deserves to be a little cranky, haha. But, as long as we are in the house, she is fine with Gypsy. She doesn't tolerate any other dogs though, especially young dogs/puppies. If I take the dogs out to play, on the other hand, it kind of turns into a free for all. Lucy HATES to see Gypsy playing, especially with her soccer ball or football. It like...royally pisses her off, for some reason. She will constantly jump at Gypsy's face, trying to get her to fight. Sometimes I have to put Lucy away, and play with them one at a time. I'm sooooo lucky that Gypsy just thinks Lucy is rough play-fighting, lol.

Gypsy is a bit dog aggressive towards other large dogs. She doesn't usually mind small dogs or puppies, but she has gotten into one major fight, that scared the bejeezus out of me. Since then, I don't let the oppurtunity arrise for things like that. There is NOTHING like a pitbull fight.


Ket

tell me about it..... i mean my dog is an American Bulldog, all 80 pounds of her on a bad day... she has broken three collars, the last one was one of those huge wide kind with thick metal rings... well she bent the D ring into a horse shoe shape.... and then she some how managed to get loose from an actual chain.. keep in mind i dont like tying her up, and i dont anymore, not after this last time... i have decided to put Kaydee in the bedroom with the door shut, bring Lady inside and put her in the den, with the door shut, and then let Kaydee go outside and have the run of the place....
the last fight they got into i thought i had seriously pulled all the muscles in my left arm and all down the left side of my back because i had to litterally had to pick Kaydee up so she couldnt get more traction and pin Lady down.... i got them sepperated but then Lady, the dumb ass, decided she wanted to get even and jumped back on Kaydee.... that was when i couldnt pull her off... i had to get my mom to turn the water hose on and stick it down Kaydee's mouth..... it was nice to do that, but it made her let go.... of course by that time my muscles were screaming, and i could barely hold onto her... heck i couldnt even make a fist afterwards! But yeah after that last fight i decided if it happens again someone has to go..... i might get my uncle to take Lady for me, she's my grandmother's dog after all... or give Kaydee back to her previous owner.. i dont know which.... neither one deserves to be put to sleep or taken to the pound... its just typical female dominance/aggression. in any other breed they would work it out in a day who was boss..... but Lady wont give up her position..... and like i said, Kaydee has started to expect a confrontation every time she sees the old mutt.... I have a six month old son right now and it scares the hell out of everyone when these dogs go at it.... I know for a fact that Kaydee wouldnt harm a hair on his head, but i dont trust Lady. she's getting really wonky in her personality as she gets older.... neither one of these dogs are mean or animal aggressive.... they just hate each other lol
i'd like to see the Dog Whisperer put them straight lol

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Don't worry about bitin' off more'n you can chew; your mouth is probably a whole lot bigger'n you think.

I'm lucky in that department. Gypsy listens to me so well, I would probably be comfortable walking her off-leash on most occassions, if it weren't basically a death wish for her, where other people are concerned. I had to keep Lucy and Gypsy chained for about a month, because a tree fell on my fence -.- That was fun, let me tell you. I went out and bought a LARGE harness for Gypsy, double enforced nylon and all that rot, and she broke the nylon on the chest part on the first day. She didn't go anywhere, but she managed to break it. So, I had to put her on a choker, and I HATE those things. After about a week of that, I broke and bought a real dog kennel for them. They liked that much better, and so did I.

It sounds like Lady might be in pain..? I know thats why Lucy is always semi-aggressive towards the other dogs. She actually tried to bite my bro yesterday, and that was a major no-no. But, he shoved her on her side that had the surgery, so it probably hurt like a son-of-a-bitch. Of course, alot of times when they get old, they just kind of get tweaked. I would suggest getting Lady a check up with the vet, just in case. If there is no medical reason, it would probably be safest, for all concerned, human and animal, if one of them found a new home, or at least you could figure out a working system of seperation, where they both still get enough excersize and play time, and such. Do you have crates? Those are wonderful, wonderful inventions! I use them, and I would swear by them!


Ket

Kaydee listens pretty well off leash, it used to be i could prevent an altercation by just saying "Kaydee NO, COME!" and she would do a U turn and come back.... but these last few times have been when i was in the house and she was tied out and broke her collar. and dang, i learned the hard way not to put a harness on a dog.... i havent had problems with Kaydee chewing anything, but dogs in the past always ate their harnesses. i have a weird little harness for her. i was told its a weight pull harness, which is what i wanted, but i dunno... its just weird... the only padding on it is on the breast piece... i can walk her with it and she does great, she'll wear it all day long without noticing it which is good, and i've had to tie her with it briefly with no problem, but i get nervous and end up bringing her inside because i'm afraid she will eventually destroy it lol
And i hate chokers too... my cousin suggested a pinch collar to TIE her with!!! that made me flinch at the thought... Kaydee, being a bulldog, is excitable and she's figured out that if she throws her weight all at once into those cheap collars she can break them, most times its always the D rings.. i've even tried her on a choker and she broke it in the middle of the chain. What confuses me is i have a hundred pound male shepherd with a cheap red walmart collar and that thing will probably last him his whole life time lol but i've only had Kaydee about eight months and have had to get her four collars in that space of time.... i probably should just break down and start shopping online for the stuff designed specificly FOR bulldogs.... because petsmart isnt cutting it.....

and i think you're right about Lady being in pain. she's old for starters, she's my grandmother's dog, found as a puppy during a winter storm ages ago, thats why we think she's coydog.. she just wandered in from no where, in the middle of the woods, plus she's very aloof, she paces like a caged animal, but then her doggy side is very springy, bouncey, she's obsessed with toys, always has a ball in her mouth... but when you throw it for her to bring back.... she runs the opposite direction... you throw it right, she runs left... and if you really want to confuse her... just throw it between her feet, she goes nuts trying to find it..... but she doesnt do that all the time. most times she fetches perfectly... so i wonder if she's cross eyed or blind in one eye, or has some kind of head trauma. before we got her she was kept with my grandmothers rotti in a fenced back yard, in the middle of nowhere, all by themselves, for four years. my uncle or cousin would go up on the weekends to fill up the automatic feeder and check their water and that was all they got for attention.. neither my uncle or cousin likes dogs, and i wonder if one of them kicked her a good one because shes very friendly.
and the pain thing you mentioned, yeah she has sore spots on her. she likes to roll over onto your feet and wallow on them to scratch her back, but last time she did that she hurt herself and tried to bite ME for it! she's also bitten my husband when he tried to grab her collar (she's head shy) and she bit him on the rear when he stepped out the front door and onto her.. fortunately she didnt break the skin, but she did put a hole in his jeans.... If she wasnt my grandparents dog, and meant so much to me, i would probably have no problem finding her a new home.... but she's such a weird little character that i worry someone would put her to sleep.... my aunt suggested as much last time she saw her which kinda pissed me off....
She's definately due for a vet check soon, but that scares me because she goes berserk when you put a leash on her... i mean like wild horse that's just been roped and ridden for the first time, she leaps into the air, flips, falls down, tries to run, chokes herself, just all out panick... most times i dont even need a leash for her, she's very well behaved (though she isnt trained worth a damn) but she does listen well... i think she's a unique little dog, what ever she is, but she's either got a death wish or she's completely insane!!

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Don't worry about bitin' off more'n you can chew; your mouth is probably a whole lot bigger'n you think.

you mentioned crates.. i dont think i could put Kaydee in one and expect her to stay.. we usually put up the baby gate in the kitchen and let her stay in there during the day.
Lady would probably do fine in one, but i dont know how i'd get her in it lol
we do have a kennel outside, but i'm afraid that would just be Lady on a silver platter for Kaydee...

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Don't worry about bitin' off more'n you can chew; your mouth is probably a whole lot bigger'n you think.