Muzzle question...

Yeah, I kept him leashed almost the whole time we were there. In fact, he was leashed when he bit that dog! :roll: I kept him right by me, leashed, the whole time because he was going berserk. I would just let the dogs come to us if they wanted to and I would let Buster sniff if interested, but he'd rather try and eat the others! :roll:

The only time I let him off, there was a bunch of dogs by us, about 5 and a couple were big but really friendly. I let Buster off since Peepers was being very social I was hoping Buster would be. But as soon as I let him off he went up to the biggest dog, I'd say about 100 or more pounds :shock: HUGE dog, and started barking visciously at him. The dog first just looked at him and then I think he wanted to show Buster who was boss. So he turned to start to chase Buster, and Buster started crying like he got hit by a car! :lol: :lol: It was actually pretty funny!

I think what I will do is just keep bringing him with us. I don't think keeping him home will help either. Maybe he'll learn that he can't explore and have fun if he acts that way.

from my experience at the animal hospital some dogs have to be muzzled by the owner before they even get the dog in the door and it puts them on a higher "defense" alert mode. if he is barking and growling at other dogs and lunging to bite them to me he isn't happy there a muzzle isn't going to stop how he acts while there just won't be able to bite, another dog will be able to see his aggression and may even attempt to put him in his place because of how he is acting. i dont' think muzzles are cruel, heck i whip them out whenever i have to do a nail trim on a "questionable" dog i just don't think they should be a part of excersise and play (most muzzles inhibit the ability to pant fully.)

henry the basset hound:
there was this old basset hound named henry, he was about 10 years old well the owner had a baby and when that baby became a toddler he walked up to old man henry who was asleep on the couch and pulled his ear well henry nipped the child on the hand (didn't break skin or leave a bruise.) the owner got mad and scared and she went out and bought a muzzle which henry lived in day and night for 2 years only getting it off to eat dinner and a few times when water was offered to him. then it was put right back on. he could barely pant, couldn't eat on his own or drink and was unable to bark. well he was brought in to us to be euthanized because the owner was pregnant again and thought after 2 years that he can't live in a muzzle any longer. other than a staph infection henry was healthy as ever for a 12 year old basset. so we got him signed over to us and we sent for the basset rescue who came and picked him up, we got an e-mail saying he is doing just fine. i know you are only thinking of using it at the dog park and henry's situation was very different. i just had to tell his little story and use it as a reason why i hate muzzles for "every day" reasons. they don't solve the problem which would be correcting the dog's initial behaviour. maybe someone could give you some advice on trying to change his dog aggression. maybe even contact some trainers for suggestions....

I agree with Angel518, at a dog park, rendering your dog defenseless is going to make him more stressed out. If Buster cannot handle being around the dog park, I think it is in your best interest to leave him at home until he can handle it. Being there obviously stresses him out, and muzzling him while he's there would put him over the edge I think. Ritz gets nippy at the dog park too, and gets stressed to the point where he's running around foaming at the mouth and drooling. We won't be taking him until he's ready again, it's not worth it to put him in a stressful situation where he might hurt another dog.

If you want to continue to allow him to explore and socialize, perhaps you can bring him to the park during non-busy hours, or consider finding a small dog park where he doesn't feel as intimidated. My chihuahuas have a totally different personality when interacting with big vs small dogs, and I can't imagine teaching them to socialize with huge dogs right off the bat.

Keeping him on a leash at the dog park may be good to keep him restrained, but bad because he cannot run away if something comes charging at him, and if he bolts, the leash can easily get tangled in a mess of hands/feet/dogs. We recently had a dog come in with multiple bite wounds; the owner had kept it on a leash at the dog park, and it was attacked by another dog, it couldn't run away so it sustained heavy damage, however the owner also was injured, the leash had wrapped around her leg and she was pulled to the floor by her Rottweiler, and dragged around by her ankle in the middle of the pack of fighting dogs. If it were a small dog park, I would maybe consider a leash, but if the park is mixed (you mentioned a malamute), I would definately reconsider.

Good luck! -Nate

P.S. what a sad story about the basset hound =(