My dog bites due to severe aggression. How long for antidepressants?

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I am sorry you are experiencing this with Bongo, but this is a serious matter. He is not even a year old and what you are describing is very worrisome. A veterinary Behaviorist is the best thing for you and Bongo as you will get the best outcome. Just having him on Prozac is not enough, you need to work and train him daily. Biting your owner, even TRYING to, is unacceptable behavior. I don't think it is territorial aggression that is causing him to not want to go in his sleep area. It could be fear or not wanting to do what you ask. I would suggest, for your safety that you lure him in the sleep area with a special toy, treat, or Kong stuffed with food. Or attach his leash and walk him in to the room after his final walk of the night. If these things do not work, place a basket muzzle on him before forcing him in the room and then remove it. Bongo is not an easy behavior case and there is no easy fix. A behaviorist is your best option so you can manage his behavior in a safe way. I wish you the best!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I am sorry to hear about Blue, but you are not alone! This type of behavior is usually related to fear - fear that is so extreme that the pet has no choice but fight or flight. It often leads to aggression. The bad news is that an expensive trainer may not be able to help Blue anyways because her fear level is so high. The good news is that there are several great anti-anxiety medications that can make a HUGE difference in Blue's life. Not only will they reduce fear (and therefore aggression), but they will make whatever training you try MUCH more effective. (Pets cannot learn when they are scared). My favorites are amitiptyline and trazadone, but there are others available. Talk to your vet about what is available and reasonable to try for Blue. I hope this helps and best of luck to you and Blue!

It sounds like Bongo has some generalized anxiety issues as well as some aggression issues. You have already done some good things to help get this behavior in control. Neutering will definitely help even though you may not see the effects of immediately. Trazodone is a great drug but works mainly for sedation and not as much to relieve overall anxiety. I would recommend speaking with your vet about starting Bongo on an anti-anxiety medication like Prozac. This may help him as well. I would also recommend working with Bongo on routine/common commands and exercising him frequently. Both of these things will help him feel more relaxed and secure. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.

I would recommend a few different things for Annabelle. The first is getting a trainer to come to your home and see what the triggers are for her. That way they can help you learn how to deal with it and hopefully redirect her. There is medication that may help. Understand that it may take multiple medications, multiple trials and it can take time for medication to fully work. Your veterinarian will be able to prescribe medications to see what would be best for her. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hi there! I'm sorry to hear that you're having this problem with Buffy. It's not unusual for behavioral issues to take a few weeks to show up in a newly adopted dog - there is often a "honeymoon period" while they're still getting comfortable and adjusting to their new home, before these issues start to emerge. Aggression towards other dogs and humans is a complex behavioral issue that's difficult to address properly in a forum like this, but I can try to give you some general information that may be helpful. Treatment for aggression issues is generally based on identifying what situations tend to trigger the aggressive behavior - then either finding ways to avoid them, or working with the dog to teach her to respond differently using reward-based training techniques. If this is something you want to work on, I would recommend making an appointment with a veterinary behaviorist who can evaluate Buffy in person and help you put together a detailed treatment plan to address her aggressive behavior. For now, if the aggression only happens with dogs and people she doesn't know, I would recommend keeping her separated from visitors for now until you are able to get a more detailed plan in place to work on the problem. You can search for a board-certified veterinary behaviorist in your area here: www.dacvb.org

Poor Walter. In some cases you are correct, the opposite effect is achieved and the pet becomes what we called paradoxically aggressive. This is not considered a normal side effect that will go away, but instead an adverse effect which has to do with how the pet metaboilzes the drug altogether. I would recommend discussing with your vet to stop the medication and try an alternative aggression medication at this time. If he has inter-pet aggression, then I would consider trying Clomicalm or Prozac (Fluoxetine) as an alternative. Also don't forget that you have more success controlling behavioral issues with pets when you do both medical therapy + behavioral modification training with an animal behaviorist. https://iaabc.org/consultants Best of luck with Walter and I hope you can get his behavioral issues resolved soon.

I am sorry to hear about Bongo! A basket muzzle does allow for drinking but they cannot eat with it on. Try feeding him in a closed room to prevent anyone bothering him (and getting hurt). I would recommend a plastic basket muzzle instead of metal to prevent injury. Much more important, is to get Bongo on some anti-anxiety medication. This can be LIFE-CHANGING and I have so many great success stories. There are many great medications available with little side effects that are safe for daily use. My personal favorite is Trazadone but there are several great choices. Do yourself (and Bongo) a huge favor and talk to your vet about your options. Training is often needed with medication, but training alone will not work for these types of cases. Hope this helps and best of luck to you and Bongo!