lotsadogs .. a very sad story

but thats not what i mean .. i thought the thread is based on a large dog breed and warning signals..imo if you to own a large dog that has the potential to be dangerous..you need to be especially intune with bodylanguage and situations that 'something' may occur and if you are not sure to take precautions.

I thought it was a happy story

Personally I consider all breeds potentially dangerous. I consider very large breeds as potentially more damaging if they become dangerous.

I agree if you own a large breed ideally you will be totally in tune to your dogs normal behaviour, you will have excellent inter species communication skills, and you will take all necessary precautions to anticipate every possibly occurring event.

Unfortunatly not many people ever achieve that position.

the rott launched from a lying down position, a relaxed position, he would have had to sit up , stand up and then launch...with any breed lying down is a relaxed position...

I disagree. My dog drops to his belly as another dog approaches. He is FAR from relaxed, in fact he's absolutely rigid. When the other dog is within range he launches himself straight from the down towards their head, no sitting or standing before the launch.

This is not the same sort of down he's in when chilling out at home, there's no way he can launch straight into an attack from that position.

I disagree. My dog drops to his belly as another dog approaches. He is FAR from relaxed, in fact he's absolutely rigid. When the other dog is within range he launches himself straight from the down towards their head, no sitting or standing before the launch.

This is not the same sort of down he's in when chilling out at home, there's no way he can launch straight into an attack from that position.

one of mine can.......

I am sure Sarah1983 is right about her own dog who, in terms of temperament or physical agility could/would not launch from a relaxed down but that doesn't mean no other dog could/would.

I am genuinely curious, what percentage of the dog owning population do you believe can trully read their dogs? I know that there have been times when my dogs have caught me out with their behaviours! And on each occasion I have learnt soemthign from it. Mainly that I understood less before they did what they just did, than I did after. Have yours never caught you out?

One of the most powerful, lessons in dog behaviour came to me courtesy of a lovely old man and his equally lovely retriever who I watched get run over one day.

That awfull day , so stuck in my mind I was horrified to see an oldish retriever dog happily, seemingly "on a mission", step onto the dual carraigeway, which thankfully was slower than normal, several cars in front of me. I watched in horror as it was hit by one, then another, than finally another car, before dragging himself up and crossing the central reservation, dragging his limp back end across the other side of the road, luckily, escaping further injury.

Some not quite legal driving, some hazards and blocking maneuvers from helpfull motorists and I had crossed the other carraigeway and persued the dog to find it collapsed 30 yards down a lane. As I peered at the bleeding, semi conscious dog, pondering the best thing to do, an old man on a bike came speeding to me, defying his age he leapt off his bike and fell to his dogs side, his face contorted in pain, tears and anxiety, as he looked down at his bleeding, confused dog, gently talking and soothign him as he lay there so still. My heart went out to them both as the dog looked up slowly at the man and there was faint flicker of his tail.

LIfted gently into my car on a bath towel and off to the vets we went. The conversaation on the car brought an explanation. The dog was 10 years old. The man and dog lived in a caravan by the river. Everyday, twice a day, the man, sever arthritis in his feet, had cycled along the quiet riverbank to excercise his beloved companion. The path ran through an underpass, way beneath the road on which I had been travelling. They had done this nearly everyday, twice a day, since the dog was old enough to keep up.

but this day, inbeknown to the old man who was slightly in front of the dog on his bike, the dog had chosen to leave the familiar path, climb through a damaged fence , climb a steep bank, up to the noisy road above which the dog then attempted to cross, to meet his owner the other side.

Just because a dog has always behaved in a way, doesn't mean to say it always will. Is what I learnt that day Happily and amazingly given the accident, the dog had a few broken ribs and severe bruising of the hips and head, broken teeth, but was up and about in a few weeks. The old man, called me to ask me to visit him. It was a joy to see them reunited in their daily routine My heart sang a thousand songs. From now on the old man said, I will put him on his lead, before the road.

Thinking about it, he probably could launch into an attack from a relaxed down. Extremely unlikely to happen as he won't lie that way while out but not impossible. [/b]

He was attacked when he went belly up one day and he was on his feet fighting back before I could do a thing.[/b]

I think he'd have to scramble a bit to get his legs under him before attacking from his usual sleeping position though, on his back, wedged into a space too small for him with all his legs going in different directions

So, if I have correctly understood what you have described, he went from signalling submission to attack with no attack warning? (due to the other dog giving him no other option).

Iv seen male rotts 'stare' and kept my dog away - it seemed quite clear even though the 'other signals' werent there. Iv seen ones who were more relaxed and were fine.....the eyes can tell a lot in a dog. Rott or not.

I agree.