Dog Training Basics

Posts Tagged ‘canine aggression’

Are you just plain fed up with the aggressive dog behavior your pooch is displaying?  Join the crowd.  Aggressive behavior in dogs is the most serious dog behavior problem that you’ll face as a dog owner.  

However, canine aggression is preventable if you understand why your dog develops aggressive behavior.  Read on to learn more about this common problem.

Your Dog’s Aggressive Nature Is Instinctive

Aggression is a valuable behavior in the wild.  A dog needs to be aggressive in order to hunt for its food.  It also needs to be able to defend its kill from other animals.  An aggressive dog also defends its territory and its mate.

In the centuries since dogs were domesticated, people have selectively bred most aggressive tendencies out of dogs, but a few do remain. And since dog do have sharp teeth capable of doing people serious harm, it’s necessary to recognize aggressive behavior in dogs and deal with it effectively.

Too many dog owners don’t know that there is more than one type of aggression in dogs.  The two most common are aggression towards strangers and aggression towards family members.Not only do these two types of aggression in canines have different causes, but you need to deal with them differently as well.

Aggression Towards Strangers

This type of dog behavior is very easy to recognize.  You dog may react in one of two ways:

Your dog will startle at the smallest sound, and will be jumpy and nervous.  You’ll see that he’s on the alert, acting fidgety, and pacing around while barking and whining.

Or, on the other extreme, he’ll be very quiet, sitting in one place without moving, while staring hard at whatever it is he’s suspicious of — whether it’s a visitor or your unsuspecting mail carrier.

The main reason a dog is aggressive around strangers is because he’s not used to them.It’s necessary for your dog to learn that strangers aren’t alway something bad.

Aggression Towards Family Members

Your dog may show canine aggression towards members of your family for two reasons.  

First, he’s defending something that he thinks he owns from a person he considers to be a threat.”Resource guarding” is the term for this type of behavior.  

In the wild, only the dominant individual acts aggressively to guard resources.  So obviously, your dog thinks he’s the pack leader, not you, when he displays this kind of aggressive dog behavior.

The second reason is that he’s unhappy about how you, or somebody in the family, is treating him.  

Discover How To Handle Aggression In Dogs

You don’t have to be at the mercy of your dog, and you shouldn’t be.  If your dog uses aggressive dog behavior to control you and get his way, this is a very unhealthy situation, as well as being potentially dangerous.  There are many emergency room visits every year because of dog bites.  You don’t want this happening to you or a member of your family, or anyone else your dog interacts with.

You can learn how to handle aggressive behavior in dogs.  You need a dog obedience course which includes a complete owner’s guide to rearing and training your dog to prevent canine aggression.  Be sure to read testimonials from other dog owners who have purchased the course to see how satisfied they are with the material.

Do yourself and your dog a favor and learn more about controlling aggression in dogs.

Let me ask you a simple question.  Do you know the triggers for fear aggression in dogs?  If not, then you need to read this article to learn more about this type of canine aggression.

Fear Aggression In Dogs

This is one of the most frustrating types of dog behavior problems.  Your dog may not hate all strangers; just certain ones.All men may be the object of his displeasure, or he may zero in on men who wear hats or who have beards.  He may absolutely detest kids under five, but older children are fine.  He may be fine with strangers outside the home, or he may bark at anyone who walks by the house.  

You can use dog behavior modification techniques to desensitize your dog to strangers.  But in order to do so, you need to identify exactly what it is about a stranger that’s scaring him.

Common Triggers For Canine Aggression In Fearful Dogs

Men often seem more threatening to a nervous dog than women do.  They’re bigger, their voices are deeper and louder, they may have beards or moustaches, they may wear hats.  Men have a more direct way about them.Another reason is that they make eye contact more directly, also.  Sometimes a man may remind your dog of someone who scared him or abused him in the past.

Just the presence of children is sometimes enough to send a fearful dog over the edge.  Their voices are high-pitched, and they move quickly and unexpectedly.  They’re sometimes attached to scary things like skateboards and roller blades.  Small children may come with noisy toys, which can be terrifying to a dog who’s nervous to start with.  

Kids also have a tendency to grab dogs with no warning and hug them.This behavior can be dangerous with an unfamiliar dog.  Most dogs don’t like to be hugged anyway.  Teach your children never to hug a dog, especially one they don’t know.

Any dog finds it threatening if someone makes prolonged eye contact with him.  This is especially true with a nervous, fearful dog.  Avoid looking a strange dog directly in the eye.  Look down or to the side instead.

Someone who’s just walking down the street fast or very slowly can be scary, too, especially if they appear to be coming right at your dog.  Anything out of the ordinary can be unsettling for him.

Odd movements like somebody waving their arms around, or jumping up and down, will also get a fearful dog’s attention.If the stranger brings unfamiliar smells, like beer or cigars, your dog may be scared, too.

Sometimes it’s not something as obvious as any of these things. You’ll need to spend some time watching your dog and making notes of which trigger, or combination of triggers cause him to display fear-based aggression towards strangers.

Dog Behavior Modification Can Help

Punishing a dog who displays canine aggression towards strangers doesn’t work.  Dogs learn by associating things.  So punishing a dog who’s already aggressive towards strangers only serves to teach the dog that strangers really are bad.  He gets the idea that if a stranger shows up, he gets punished, so he gets even more aggressive towards new people.

What you need to do is to desensitize your dog to strangers.  You do this by associating strangers with good things, like tasty treats.  Dog behavior modification is a long, slow training process that can’t be rushed.

A good dog training course can be worth its weight in gold when working with a fearful dog.  When looking at courses, you’ll want to choose one that has lots of good testimonials from dog owners who have used the course material.  It’s also important to find a course that includes a free consultation with an experienced dog trainer.  Another essential feature you’ll appreciate is a dog owner forum where you can ask questions, and talk to other dog owners who have solved the same problem with their dogs.

This is the easiest way you’ll find to to deal with fear aggression in dogs.

Visit No More Bad Dogs to learn more about fear aggression in dogs.

Let’s face it, as a new dog owner, you probably haven’t thought too much about puppy socialization.  However, this is a very important part of dog training.  Many cases of canine aggression could have been prevented if the dog’s owner had only known how to socialize a puppy. 

Why Is It So Important To Socialize Your Dog?

When you expose your dog to lots of different people, different animals, and different places, he learns for himself that new sights, sounds, and people are fun, not scary. 

Socializing your dog is easier while he’s still a puppy.  You may not know that the best age to socialize a puppy is when he’s between the ages of three and twelve weeks.  A young dog who has good experiences with new people, other dogs, and even cats will be much friendlier and less fearful of people.  This helps to prevent aggressive dog behavior towards strangers when he gets older.

Remember that it’s never to late to socialize your dog.  It may take a little longer with an older dog, but you can still use canine socialization in order to help your pooch overcome a fear of strangers and be a happier, more trustworthy friend.

What’s The Best Way To Socialize A Puppy?

Actually it’s not that difficult to socialize your dog, if you’re willing to make a little effort.

Many dog trainers suggest a puppy preschool.  This is a series of group-training classes for puppies and their owners.There are usually around 10 puppies and their owners, along with two or three dog trainers.  During these classes, the puppies start to learn basic dog obedience commands like sit, stay, and others.

However, the obedience lessons aren’t the most important things your pooch will learn at puppy preschool.  The play sessions are where your puppy learns essential social skills.When the play sessions are happening, the puppies are let off their leashes and allowed to interact with each other.  Why is this important?

First, your puppy is learning how to interact with other dogs. 

Second, since there are other dog owners and a couple of dog trainers present, this means lots of unfamiliar people, too.  This is a great way for your puppy to learn not to be afraid of new people.

Third, it’s a controlled environment.  The dog trainers make sure things don’t get too wild.

Don’t Stop Puppy Socialization Too Soon

Many dog owners make the mistake of thinking that since their dog has been to puppy preschool, their puppy is now socialized.  This mistaken idea can lead to problems later on. 

It’s important to continue to expose your young dog to new faces, new animals, and new places.  Sometimes puppies who seemed to be well socialized at a younger age “forget” those early lessons.  By the time your dog is between eight months and two years old, he may become fearful of people and start showing canine aggression towards strangers.

Here’s some food for thought:  even though your puppy has learned basic skills during his first few months, it’s important to keep reinforcing puppy socialization lessons throughout your dog’s life.