# Chow Chow Owners?



## waterlilly (Aug 22, 2010)

Does anybody out there own a Chow Chow or a Chow Chow mix?
If yes, how is he/she with strangers and other dogs?


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## April (Apr 21, 2010)

I'm a groomer for 35 years. Bad. Crosses tend to be just as bad or worse than chows. They are one family dogs. Not good with kids and don't trust. Don't like being lifted . They also take off and roam if they get out. If you don't have one dont get one. If you do don't take chances leaving unattended with kids or strangers especially if on A leash or outside a store.
If they are socialized constant from the time they are babies they are better but a lot is genetic. The newer ones temperaments are better than the ones when they were popular years ago and were bred indiscriminately.


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## tony1928 (Apr 22, 2010)

My friend had a pair and they were only good with her and her family. We used to hang out every week and they still didn't really like the visitors. They are a good sized dog so I always was a little bit scared of these two dogs. I believe I read that they have been ranked as one of the most aggressive dogs...hard to believe when they are so cute from afar.


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## Clownloachlover (Apr 21, 2010)

second to what Tony said, I grew up next door to a purebred chow chow and it was one of the nastiest dogs I have ever dealt with. It used to get out of its yard all the time and scare the hell out of the kids as they went to school etc. It was picked up numerous times by the pound and was eventually forced to wear a muzzle to stop it from nipping people etc...it eventually got out of the yard again and was subsequently hit by a car and killed...not a nice way for any animal to die but it was a nasty mutt to begin with...and I truly am a dog lover! word of advice stay away from a chow chow


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## Clownloachlover (Apr 21, 2010)

aprils aquarium said:


> I'm a groomer for 35 years.


Sorry not to high jack this thread however what is the best way to trim a dogs nails? I have a beagle cross (lovable but stupid) that sounds like Fred Astaire on our hardwood floors?
thanks


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## effox (Apr 21, 2010)

There was an escaped Chow Chow around my neighbourhood, I've seen it before roaming, I tried coming up to it but it became vicious. Not a fan of that breed (I have "evil" dobermans by the way).

I can definitely see what the previous comment meant that if they get out they'll roam. because that's exactly what I witnessed.


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## katienaha (May 9, 2010)

My friend has a chow chow mix. She does have a small child but she doesn't leave them unattended. She is a groomer too and a very good trainer. She is able to give her dog some supervissed freedom and he will respond to her commands to return to her but it took many years to get to that stage


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## Mferko (Jun 8, 2010)

effox said:


> There was an escaped Chow Chow around my neighbourhood, I've seen it before roaming, I tried coming up to it but it became vicious. Not a fan of that breed (I have "evil" dobermans by the way).
> 
> I can definitely see what the previous comment meant that if they get out they'll roam. because that's exactly what I witnessed.


i love dobermans ive never met a mean one tho i like how they look mean


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## effox (Apr 21, 2010)

Mferko said:


> i love dobermans ive never met a mean one tho i like how they look mean


I won't hijack this thread but I'll end with saying that my doberman is a huge baby during the day and a huge boy (120+lbs and plays with 6 year olds GENTLY, and kisses babies hands in strollers) so you shouldn't judge a book by its cover. With that said, not all Chows are probably bad dogs.

Based on my only experience and other's comments leaves me to believe they're a difficult breed to deal with (dobermans are very tough in their own regard as well, so I can respect that. It's up to the dog owner to do proper disobedience training as Katie said.)


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## April (Apr 21, 2010)

Dobermans are great. Very gentle with kids and get along with dogs.


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## waterlilly (Aug 22, 2010)

We did adopt a rescue dog back in December. She is very well behaved, extremely loving, affectionate, always stays close by, definitely does not try to take off. I kind of believe that it is a Chow Mix but I am not positive. It has happened twice now that she tried to nip somebody reaching out to her. That of course doesn't mean she is a chow, I know. 
I was kind of looking for other dog owners who adopted "nippy"dogs and how they dealt with it. I don't know if it can even be dealt with if she is indeed a Chow. She has won our hearts, so giving her away is out of the question. We are more than willing to work with her.


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## Victor (Apr 21, 2010)

^ how old is the chow?


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## Lymric (Feb 27, 2011)

Chows are awful, I grew up with one, she bit me 4 times!! there was also a pure timber wolf, he was GREAT compared to her!!!!! iv also met a few others, they were no better!! and I am not afraid of dogs, and never show fear... i breed and train bandogge mastiff's, if you don't know what that is I will leave you to googe it, as it's a long explanation. The short version is, they are bred specifically to be guard dogs!!! and even they have a better reputation then chow chow's! (they're close to perfect if you ask me  )
like someone else said, if you don't already have one, DON"T get one!!!!


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## Lymric (Feb 27, 2011)

oops sorry i didnt see the last comment from you... 
luckily it's never too late, and you CAN teach an old dog new tricks (even if it is a chow mix)  
as far as the dog nipping is concerned, you will need to know why she does it, before you can work on it successfully... ie; is she aggressive, afraid, or something else like maybe doesnt see too well and spooks when she sees a hand all of a sudden.


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## katienaha (May 9, 2010)

waterlilly said:


> We did adopt a rescue dog back in December. She is very well behaved, extremely loving, affectionate, always stays close by, definitely does not try to take off. I kind of believe that it is a Chow Mix but I am not positive. It has happened twice now that she tried to nip somebody reaching out to her. That of course doesn't mean she is a chow, I know.
> I was kind of looking for other dog owners who adopted "nippy"dogs and how they dealt with it. I don't know if it can even be dealt with if she is indeed a Chow. She has won our hearts, so giving her away is out of the question. We are more than willing to work with her.


my best suggestion to work with the current nipping, is to allow absolutely NONE of it. From NO member of the family. Harsh scolding (my favourite technique is to "throw" myself on my dog in a display of dominance, so my body is overtop of the dog and they have no choice but to submit to my angry tones...) and scold with the same phrase (whatever you use, no biting, no nipping, etc). and STICK TO IT.

In my experience, when a dog nips, they are showing their dominance, even just minutely, and it is not the dog's job to set the pecking order, it is your job, so whenever the dog "barges in" and attempts to establish pecking order, you need to step in and correct the dog for taking your place. This has also worked between my 2 dogs, when they growl at each other for silly things like food (which they both have lots of) I will step in and reset who tells who what to do in my house... in my home, it works very well.


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## April (Apr 21, 2010)

It could be a hand shy dog. Timid and maybe no socialized. Or. She's now taking cues from you. If you get nervous she will she senses it. Take her to school. Usually a trainer would take the leash then he's in control . Don't pet her saying it's ok. Give her lead a jerk and say no in a firm tone.
We get hand shy dogs in to be groomed. If we put our hand in the cage to get them out they would get scared and bite. We leave a lead on them and pull them out then once on the table they are fine to groom but also once we have them on the lead we are in charge.
Does she have straight back legs or a blue tongue? Small thick ears and a squarish short nose? Got a pic of her?


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## Saffire (Apr 26, 2010)

waterlilly said:


> We did adopt a rescue dog back in December. She is very well behaved, extremely loving, affectionate, always stays close by, definitely does not try to take off. I kind of believe that it is a Chow Mix but I am not positive. It has happened twice now that she tried to nip somebody reaching out to her. That of course doesn't mean she is a chow, I know.
> I was kind of looking for other dog owners who adopted "nippy"dogs and how they dealt with it. I don't know if it can even be dealt with if she is indeed a Chow. She has won our hearts, so giving her away is out of the question. We are more than willing to work with her.


The very basic thing to start with is to not allow strange people (people not living in the home) to touch the dog. Seeing as she is new to your family she is still trying to figure out who has control of situations that possibly scare her. The one thing you MUST do is remain calm during interactions with her and new people. Let her know you are in control of the situation by having the people ignore her - no touch, no talk and no eye contact. Once she gets the idea that you are in control and won't allow any harm to her she will get the picture. If, for some reason, some one does touch her and she nips you need to firmly tell her "no". Don't use agression but rather be calm and assertive. Aggression and nervousness from you will bring that out in your dog. They feel and react to everything we do and if they feel we need protecting then they have no qualms of stepping up to the plate. You need to assure her that YOU have everything covered.


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## kelly528 (Apr 21, 2010)

A close friend of the family had a chow... she was raised with two young children but was still a bit of a grouch. She was okay around dogs although she never played with them, but yes they are by nature aloof dogs who by my estimation do best in the company of adults who respect them. They weren't bred to be family pets. On the other hand, she once scared a bear out of the backyard so they are also very protective and courageous.

Dobermans on the other hand... if you want an intimidating guard dog who is a huge suck around the family, go for it. Another friend of mine had one. Not sure how he was with other dogs but he scared couriers witless that's for sure! He was a big goof though, and good with the kids. The US Army actually phased them out for German Shepherds because they weren't aggressive enough to make good military dogs!


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## waterlilly (Aug 22, 2010)

Wow, so many good comments out there, thanks everybody!

- Victor, they think she is about 3 years old. 
- April, I'll try to post a picture later. She does have a couple of purple spots on her tongue and I think she kind of looks like a chow/lab cross. 
- Saffire, both times she niped a stranger during our walk it happened while I was talking to them. I told them both that she doesn't do well with people.... 
they were both tall men and obviously wanted to prove me wrong  Both times I pulled her back and made her sit. It is not like she attacks everybody. She
gets touched quite often but I admit, after the last incident I cringe everytime somebody doesn't listen to me. 

We have not observed any dominance issues in the home within the "family pack". From day one she was asked to sit and wait before exiting or entering the house, getting on or out of the car, when crossing the street or getting her food. And all those commands, she just does them. There has never been a "power struggle". She really is a great dog, doesn't bark in the house, doesn't beg for food, heck, she goes in her kennel without being told when we sit down for dinner. We never got our other dog (nova scotia duck toller) do do any of these things! She listenes extremely well, which is why I didn't think taking her to obedience lessons would be necessary. She is a total cuddlebug and is happiest if somebody is petting her. 

I really appreciate everbody's input and tips! Thanks guys!


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## kelly528 (Apr 21, 2010)

Saffire said:


> The very basic thing to start with is to not allow strange people (people not living in the home) to touch the dog. Seeing as she is new to your family she is still trying to figure out who has control of situations that possibly scare her. The one thing you MUST do is remain calm during interactions with her and new people. Let her know you are in control of the situation by having the people ignore her - no touch, no talk and no eye contact. Once she gets the idea that you are in control and won't allow any harm to her she will get the picture. If, for some reason, some one does touch her and she nips you need to firmly tell her "no". Don't use agression but rather be calm and assertive. Aggression and nervousness from you will bring that out in your dog. They feel and react to everything we do and if they feel we need protecting then they have no qualms of stepping up to the plate. You need to assure her that YOU have everything covered.


Yep you can train her out of this. Just make sure she gets the respect she needs when interacting with new people, and praise her lots when she behaves herself so that she associates people with praise and respect, not obnoxious personal space invasion, and she should do great!


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## waterlilly (Aug 22, 2010)

kelly528 said:


> Yep you can train her out of this. Just make sure she gets the respect she needs when interacting with new people, and praise her lots when she behaves herself so that she associates people with praise and respect, not obnoxious personal space invasion, and she should do great!


Thanks, you sound very convinced! I won't be doing any clicker training soon since she has demonstrated yesterday that she is petrified of the clicker sound!


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## aimnhigh (Apr 28, 2010)

It sound like she is reacting to those guy's who insist on petting her and she knows you told them not to,
I would just tell people please don't pet her, she is in training,
and if there is some one who you want her to be friends with and there is a issue, have her special treat and let them feed her, but don't push her, let her go to them for the treat if she wants it, and she will find her common ground


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## Elle (Oct 25, 2010)

> both times she niped a stranger during our walk it happened while I was talking to them. I told them both that she doesn't do well with people.... they were both tall men and obviously wanted to prove me wrong Both times I pulled her back and made her sit. It is not like she attacks everybody. She gets touched quite often but I admit, after the last incident I cringe everytime somebody doesn't listen to me.


This kind of (dumb people) behavior REALLY chaps my butt. You don't ever touch a strange dog without permission. Ever. Our dog is a rottweiler cross, and while she is very well trained, she is protective of me and standoffish with a lot of strangers. She's never nipped anyone, but I don't like strangers touching her, and certainly not without asking, especially children. I have in the past physically barred people from touching her, usually small kids whose parents think it's cute to let them run up to strange dogs and who get annoyed when Pweshus is told "Don't EVER touch a strange dog without permission!" and prevented from getting near her.

Next time somebody ignores you and reaches for your dog, I'd physically put yourself between the dog and the idiot to stop them; even push their hand away if you have to. Stay calm while doing it to to prevent agitating your dog, but as pack leader it's your job to protect the dog from what she might be seeing as an "attack" by a stranger. Telling them that the dog was abused (even if it's not true) and is afraid of strangers and might nip may get the point across if they are too clueless not to listen the first time.


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## DeeB (May 12, 2010)

My family has a Chow mix. It's only a quarter Chow though. Mum is a Chow x Spaniel and dad is a Dalmatian.

He has never bitten anybody nor display any physical aggression towards other dogs and people, although he is standoffish with strangers, especially inside the house. He barks only when the doorbell rings and never outside the house. And he is great within the family. Very affectionate and loving. My family thinks he's great.

If your dog is nipping, try food to keep her either distracted or as rewards when she doesn't nip. I found that food was a great motivator when training my dog and when I wanted to reinforce my commands. Chows are known to be willful so it's easier to 'persuade' them to do something. Bring her out to parks to socialize her. Start with letting her get used to people's activities. Go at times with less people and work up from there if you think she's doing better. Also, have you tried using a Halti? It will offer you more control if she decides to nip but please don't use it to wrench the head back like I've seen some people do. I find that it's more for redirecting the head a little bit so that you refocus the attention back onto you. I hope it works out for you and your dog.

And as a side note, keep an eye out for skin and allergy problems as the breed is known for those.


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