He goes to the vet regularly. I give him Cosequin regularly just as a precaution because he plays hard. If that dog is sick, he's been sick for five years.
I've trained hunting dogs for years, and I've observed the breed. Now that I've actually owned one for seven years now, I can state that the only thing that's wrong with that dog is that he's a pit bull. Every male pit bull I've encountered behaves just like he does. The only difference is he's had the benefit of one-on-one training. But, like all the other male pits I've seen, he's a Jekyll and Hyde who walks on four legs.
To me, they are obviously not a breed you would want for a family dog. Mine even gets along well with and plays with other dogs in the kennel. But, he plays rough, and has to be put out in the kennel with dogs who outweigh him by 20 lbs or more.
You might argue that he should have been neutered, but I can tell you from experience training other dogs that's no guarantee the uncontrollable aggression will stop. A good example is my two best hunting dogs that were German short-hair pointers who were brothers, and were neutered. It didn't matter. Both of those dogs would fight anything in the kennel, and had to be carried in separate dog boxes when you transported them. They would literally fight with anything else you put in the back of the truck.
Our dog likes to be petted, but only if he initiates the contact. The only family member he will not bite hard is my wife. But, even my wife can't touch his legs or feet, or do anything to annoy him or he will instantly grab at her hands. But, because of the strength in his jaws, even that can hurt. He's unbelievably smart, obedient, entertaining, and protective of the family. He's just not a good pet. I've never seen a male pit bull that was, and I always blamed the owners. It's not the owners, it's the breed.
I'm droning on about this now, hoping to convince others who are considering taking on a pit bull for a pet to reconsider, and look at another breed. Pit bulls require a lot of attention and exercise daily. And, by exercise I mean more than just walking. We own a 160 acre ranch, and I can't even imagine seeing our dog trying to survive in a small yard. He would literally explode. And, they can hurt you playing with you, without even trying to hurt you.
I only ask that you run the tests.
Many vets only go by what you say and look no further.
The tests are not overly expensive and “5 years” is of little or no bearing.
Both low thyroid and tick borne diseases can take years to fully manifest.
Thyroid is almost always a slow progression and Lyme, particularly, can “hide” in the bone marrow and spleen and show no symptoms until some other issue kicks it into action.
Could be the stress of age, a change of weather, lousy food or just a bad day.
I would never argue for neutering because it’s been proven that neutering exacerbates fear aggression exponentially by removing the testosterone that gave the dog the little courage it had, to start with.
A mildly aggressive dog can become a constantly terrified fear biter.
Contrary to peta-pushed propaganda, neutering has little or no positive effect on “aggression” and the verified health risks of removing a vital part of an animal’s endocrine *system* are not worth it.
“But, even my wife can’t touch his legs or feet, or do anything to annoy him or he will instantly grab at her hands.”
My parents had a Chow who was a “real badass”.
He’d nail anyone who touched him, so naturally, I did a thorough touch exam.
I told him to take him to a vet, ASAP.
His back was out of whack and his knees were totally shot. All his “badassery” was him reacting to the agony of just being alive, let alone being touched.
He was given an NSAID for the pain he’d endured for years and lived the rest of his life as the sweetest dog ever.
Why anyone would not give their dog the benefit of the doubt and at least *check* is beyond me.