The causes and cures for aggression are numerous but because of the inherent danger to you, your dog and other people please, seek qualified professional help immediately. If your dog is growling, snarling or snapping, address the problem now, don‘t wait for a bite to occur. The majority of serious dog bites and attacks are by intact male dogs. Neutering your dog is not optional! The cause of the aggression, whatever it may be does not change the fact that it can only be managed by you changing your own behavior. Correct the relationship, provide strong leadership and the aggression will be easier to deal with and manage to prevent bites.
See a sample Dog Wisperer method how to handle dog aggressive behavior :
Try not to rationalize your dog‘s behavior: "He doesn't like..." "He was scared..." "You shouldn't have... "
The reality is your dog could have chosen a different behavior to deal with the situation. He chose to threaten a human. This is always a serious problem, even when your dog is wonderful and loveable 99% of the time. The test of an aggressive dog is not what he does when he’s relaxed but how he handles stress. It's that 1% that’s dangerous!
Dog Whisperer: Calm Down!:
2. Jumping
We’ve all seen it. The over excited dog barreling across the room and planting two paws on someone’s chest in an unwanted greeting. Jumping is a common problem and one that can be annoying to not only you but to anyone you may meet on a walk or invite to your home. Dogs are not born with the knowledge of how to greet humans, so it’s up to us to teach them. Otherwise, you end up with an overgrown puppy knocking over your neighbors and splattering paw prints on your new outfit. Instead of scolding your dog for jumping up, try teaching him what behavior you DO want to see, then help him succeed by asking for that behavior before any jumping begins. Teaching a solid sit command is a great alternative. Make your point clear. Jumping gets him no attention, while sitting gets him plenty. Then practice, practice and practice some more. He’ll get it.
Dog Whisperer: Jumping Border Collie
3. Housetraining
Housetraining problems can take many forms. Soiling the floor or crate, marking the walls, and refusing to go outside are just a few examples. If your dog is a puppy you’ve got many months of housetraining left to go. Chances are good that any accidents your puppy may have are not related to relationship problems, they’re simply the products of a small bladder and not enough practice. Try not to get upset or frustrated when your pup has an accident. It’s bound to happen, what matters is how you deal with it. Housetraining puppies takes patience, time and plenty of rewards for eliminating in the right spot. Don’t worry, there is a light at the end of the tunnel and your reward for sticking it through is a well trained dog.
4. Marking
Marking behavior in an adult dog can often be confused for a housetraining issue when in reality it’s a leadership issue. Marking is a dog’s way of asserting himself as ‘top dog‘, he marks a space that he ‘owns’. In some cases dogs have even gone so far as to mark people! If that doesn’t scream leadership problem, I don’t know what does. If your dog is marking and he’s not neutered, plan a trip to the vet pronto! While neutering in itself may not totally resolve your marking problems, it will decrease your dog’s hormone levels which will make any training you do much easier, and in order to get a handle on this problem you have to provide training and clear leadership. A marking dog is a clear sign that he may be confused about his place in your pack. In the mean time, supervise your dog to prevent marking. If supervision is not possible, make good use of your crate. Allowing him to practice this behavior will only make it harder to resolve.
5. Leash Pulling
Getting your arm pulled out of the socket lately? You’re not alone. Hundreds of dogs are currently dragging their owners behind them at this very moment as they chase after a squirrel, rush to greet another dog and pull like maniacs to get to some unknown destination. Leash pulling, aside from making your walks a nightmare can also be dangerous. Some dogs pull so forcefully they damage their throats. Many owners have hit the dirt hard when an untrained dog caught sight of something more interesting and decided to check it out. Not to mention the fact that a hard pulling dog can wrench the leash right out of an owner’s hand and face the possibility of getting lost, hit by a car or stolen.
The Dog Whisperer tip:
6. Running away
Ah, the sweet smell of freedom. Its’ allure is strong and the rewards are plentiful. The urge to roam the town leash free is a hard one to ignore. It can however, be controlled with proper training. Every dog is capable of having a solid recall, weather you have a beagle, basset, greyhound, or any other breed. The dangers of having a dog that runs off are many. Cars, animal control, unhappy neighbors, other animals that may be aggressive, the list goes on. If your dog is taking a neighborhood tour without you, then there’s a good possibility you haven’t done any training and/or haven’t done any leadership exercises. Dogs stick with the pack, and most importantly, the leader. Become that leader and you’re on your way to having a Velcro Dog.
7. Selective Hearing
If your dog ignores a command he already knows then he has selective hearing. He’s making the choice to ignore you and go about his business. That falling leaf or patch of grass is far more interesting than you and he’s very clearly telling you so in dog language. Maybe I didn’t say it loud enough? You may wonder. Nope, your dog can hear your whisper from across the room. He herd you say sit, he just didn’t do it. But he was so excited…. Sorry, he still has brain cells when he’s excited. You just don’t have access to them yet. Being happy to see you or eager to greet another dog is no excuse to ignore a command. That’s what training is for, right? It’s to control your dog when it really counts, not just in the living room when he’s relaxed and focused.
8. Destructive behavior
Have you come home to a tattered book, frayed rug or punctured sofa? Perhaps fido took a liking to your Manolo Blahniks and decided to redesign them for you? Congratulations, you have a destructive dog. And what’s worse is that he cowers when you find the evidence, he must know he’s done something wrong, right? As much as we want to think our dogs know exactly what damage they’re causing, your dog doesn’t think like that. He’s chewing your shoes because they have your scent on them, or ripping the sofa because it’s fun. There’s no malice or spite behind these actions. His cowering is in response to YOUR behavior. You’re no doubt upset at the evidence you’ve found and your dog can pick up on that, that is what causes him to slink away and cower, not a sense of remorse. Destructive behavior is often the result of no exercise and a lack of training. A dog who is secure in his place in your pack and has had adequate exercise is less likely to redecorate your home while you’re away. If this behavior continues after training and exercise have been provided, then your dog may have Separation Anxiety which often requires further training to overcome.
9. Resource guarding
This is the dog who resource guards, snaps, snarls or bites when someone tries to take away something of value. Value of course, is in the eye of the beholder. A Kleenex may be a high value item to your dog. In general anything he has, and wants to keep is high value. Food, paper, toys, random inanimate objects, the lists is endless. If your dog is displaying this behavior, don’t wait, get help now! This is not a behavior that will go away on it’s own. But he only growls around his favorite toy, can’t I just keep it away from him? A true resource guarder will transfer his aggression to another object if the original item of desire is gone. Even if your dog truly only shows aggression when he ha his green ball, who’s to say someone else won’t find that green ball and bring it out? What if your kids decide to give fido his favorite toy and then attempt to take it away later? In short, the risks are too high to simply put a band-aid on the problem by not giving a certain toy or treat. The aggression needs to be treated at the source and that means altering the way you interact with your do to change his behavior.
10. Counter surfing
A dog who counter surfs is one that always keeps an eye out for goodies on you kitchen counter, coffee tables and anywhere else food may reside. Dogs are opportunists, and if food is available, they’ll eat it. Some owners believe their dog knows what they’re doing is wrong because of solemn behavior once caught, but this situation is the same as a dog who is destructive while you’re away. He’s reacting to your body language, your anger at finding the pot roast missing, no a sense a shame or guilt. Curing counter surfing successfully depends on how vigilant you are at training and keeping all food out of paw’s reach. If you have children or other people living with you this can be especially difficult as there’s no telling when someone might accidentally leave food out. The best way to be sure your dog doesn’t have his nose in the cookie jar is to supervise him well, block off areas to the kitchen and do your best to keep all counters and tables clear. There are various methods of training a dog not to counter surf without practicing prevention, but the old saying ‘an ounce of prevention goes a long way…’ holds true. Even the best training may fall by the wayside if a particularly tasty treat is within reach and no owner is present. Set your dog up to succeed by supervising him and you’ll stop missing food items.
“And The CRAZY Thing Is, It’s The Dog Owner That Allowed These problems To Start In The First Place!”
