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Hi, first time dog owner here. I have recently(~2weeks ago) adopted a 6-7 month old pitbull mix puppy from a rescue and have been having issues with dog aggression. She is pretty good with human interactions and I have had friends come over to see her with no problems with aggression. However, when it comes to other dogs, she is always very alert and starts to bark continuously and lunge towards them, scaring other dogs and their owners. From reading up on what to do, I have been trying to avoid times when there are a lot of dogs around but I live in an apartment complex with many other dogs around so it's nearly impossible to fully avoid her seeing them when taking her out for walks or to go to the bathroom in the designated fenced area or elsewhere. Whenever she does see another dog I try to stay calm, not tug at the leash, and distract her to go the other way and ignore the other dog. I've tried to use good treats, calling out to her, using toys, etc but her head is locked and she will not leave the other dog alone or look in my direction. I have been training her on walks to pay attention to me and check back for what to do and she's doing better with that until she sees another dog and it's impossible to get her attention and I've had to just apologize to the other pet owner as they hurriedly usher their dogs away. The other dog owners have begun to be wary of my dog. I have also tried to to keep a good distance and just watch other dogs around like many forums and blogs have suggested but she just whines the whole time and it seems to just stress her out rather than desensitize her to seeing other dogs and I've mostly tried to stick to avoiding other dogs in general for the time being. She has had some close calls like for example when another dog was on the other side of the elevator doors and she barked, lunged, and almost jumped for them. The other dog squealed and ran away and I had to try and pull her back from going after them. I have asked the foster she was with before for some info regarding her upbringing and they replied with "Today I have 11 dogs and that doesn't give me much time to train and socialize. I just want to keep them out of euthanasia room" so I have a feeling she missed out on proper socialization in a crucial part of puppyhood or that she had a bad experience with another dog during this stage. I have been looking for daycare/training services around me to help socialize and train her around other dogs but many do not accept pitbull mixes at all. I would love to get a pitbull specific trainer to give one on one training but personalized training and care is very expensive and I will definitely have trouble affording that in the frequency that is required. I am going to take her to a trainer very soon to get a professional opinion but I could always use more advise. Will these issues get better with age? Is there anything I can do to improve this behavior? Is a large apartment complex with a lot of dogs a bad/stressful environment for a dog like this? Could this lead to lawsuits if this behavior continues?(I am getting a muzzle for her but she is getting bigger every day) I am a first time dog owner, am I in over my head on this one? Should I keep the option open for re-homing her to a better environment for her like a single household without a bunch of dogs around? She is a very sweet girl and I love her very much so I just want what would be the best and least stressful option/environment for her. I appreciate any feedback, thank you.
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