AGGRESSION TRAINERS

If your dog has aggression issues, you definitely need professional help. Don't be fooled by amateur and hobbyist dog trainers into believing group obedience classes will help. They almost always make it worse. Giving an aggressive or dominant dog food to train it is extremely dangerous.

Most dog trainers are completely clueless.

We seriously doubt that Food-Bribery can do anything to get dogs like this, or any truly aggressive dog under control.

Food-Bribery makes many dogs even more aggressive and dominant.

People tell us most "Positive Reinforcent Method (Food-Bribery-Clickers)" dog trainers end up telling them that their dog can't be trained and should be put down. We think every dog no matter how aggressive should be given a chance to live if the owner can contain and control their animal safely.

We don't understand how Food-Bribery trainers can hold themselves out to the public as anything other than offering a service that consists mostly of teaching the easiest, most docile and submissive dogs cute pet tricks.

Before you hire a dog trainer, show them this picture and ask if they can make a dog like this "Lay Down" and "Heel" during the first lesson. Aggressive dogs and big dogs terrify most Food-Bribery trainers.

Food-Bribery are almost always the first to tell you to euthanize your aggressive dog, especially breeds like Rottweiler, Pit Bull, Chow Chow, Shar Pei, German Shepherd, Great Dane, Doberman Pinscher, Akita and Jack Russell Terrier.

Bribing with food makes many dogs even more dangerous to children.

Canine aggression and dominance almost always escalate. Please, for your own safety and the safety of others, call us now at (916) 927-7725 and we would be glad to discuss your situation and provide you a consultation at no cost.

Classes are dangerous and often make aggression worse.

Because aggression is complex, and because the potential consequences are so serious, we recommend that you get professional in-home dog training to control any aggressive behavior.

Hire the best dog trainer in your area if children are at risk.

Dog training classes do virtually nothing for behavior problems at the home.

What is the likelihood of your dog getting trained in the aisle of a pet shop or at the park with ten other dogs lunging and snapping at him or her?

Fear-Motivated Aggression:

Fear aggression is aggression that occurs when the dog is frightened, regardless of whether or not there is something to be afraid of. The dog is frequently attempts to avoid an encounter by backing up while growling and becomes dangerous and bites or snaps when it is cornered. Sometimes these dogs will bite from behind and run away. In any case it is inappropriate to physically punish these dogs as it simply re-inforces their belief that there was something to be afraid of in the first place. Equally inappropriate is trying to soothe the dog while he behaves that way since that actually has the effect of rewarding the inapparopriate behavior.

All it takes is one dog attack in a group class to make your dog dog-aggressive for life.

If you love your dog enough, almost always we can help you to keep him. Call us before you decide to destroy your dog.

Redirected Aggression:

The hallmark of this form of aggression is that it occurs when the dog is in the midst of another aggressive behavior - for instance, the dog is fighting with another dog and the owner reaches for the dog's collar and is bitten. Most often it is in response to an attempt to interrupt the aggressive episode the dog was already involved in.

Inter-Dog Aggression:

Aggression towards other dogs is not always interdog aggression; it may be fear aggression or territorial aggression. Most instances of interdog aggression are between dogs of the same sex: two females fighting, or two males fighting, but this is not always the case. Often the dogs are of the same relative size and age, but often with dogs fighting who are residents of the same household, one is an older dog and the other is a younger one who lived in relative harmony until the younger one neared maturity. Hence, having dogs "grow up together" does not insure that they will get along as adults. Most dog to dog aggression first presents itself when the dog is mature (roughly 18-24 months old). It is possible for a dog to live in harmony with another dog, yet not accept dogs who do not live in the household and vice versa. Also, dogs fighting with each other does not imply that either dog is going to be dangerous to people.

Play Aggression:

Barking, growling, and snapping while playing with people and other dogs indicates play aggression and it usually occurs in younger dogs. These puppies grab fingers, hands, legs, and clothing or will grab your hand or arm instead of a toy you are holding. There is a such thing as play growling which is not indicative of aggression - play growls are usually high-pitched, short, and frequently repeated as opposed to the lower pitched sustained growls of a serious threat. However, some dogs do not change their pitch when growling or change it so quickly that the owner has no time to react. These dogs often raise their hackles, flatten their ears, and dilate the pupils. Play aggression may become self-sustaining since play is a rewarding activity and some sources have reported that the dog may become more aggressive to evoke a response from the owner.

Possession Aggression:

Dogs with possessive aggression guard things (as opposed to food, space, or people). These dogs will not relinquish toys or stolen objects even if they present them to the owner in an apparent solicitation of play - when the owner reaches for the item, the dog growls, snarls, snaps, or bites. Statistics indicate that 25% of the dogs with this type of aggression exhibited symptoms before the age of 3 months and 50% showed signs before they were a year old.

Food-Related Aggression:

As the name implies, this is aggression that occurs in the presence of food or "food-type" items such as rawhides, bones, treats, etc. This form of aggression directed towards people is believed to be the best early indicator that dominance aggression is likely to develop. There are dogs that are food-aggressive only to other animals in the household. Severity varies from growling to snarling, lunging and biting; generally the higher quality the food the more severe the aggressive response to a real or perceived threat.

Territorial Aggression:

The dog which is territorially aggressive defends space - for example, his yard, his crate, or his "personal space" - a mobile area encompassing a certain distance around himself. The hallmark of these dogs is that they are not aggressive when they are moved out of their territories - except for the dog with the "personal space" issue whose area moves with him. The use of fences frequently sets up clear boundaries for the dog to defend and restricting the dog with a chain seems to have the same effect.

Predatory Aggression:

Two types of behaviors commonly fall within a diagnoses of predatory aggression. The first type is the dog that stalks "small prey" which can be birds, squirrels, cats, small dogs or other critters. These dogs may or may not be dangerous with infants, but because infants act in a manner similar to small prey, these dogs warrant special attention. The second type is the dog that chases moving objects such as joggers, bikers, skateboarders, etc. Some of what looks like predatory aggression may be territorial aggression. Dogs which are exhibiting territorial aggression generally have a "boundary" where the behavior starts and stops - for example, it occurs when the dog is home, but not when taken to the park for an outing.

Protective Aggression:

This form of aggression is characterized by a dog who perceives a threat to his owner, handler, or family member (may be another dog) when there is no actual threat. Common scenarios involve the strangers or people known to the dog at the door, when someone approaches a car the dog is sitting in with his owner, or when another dog approaches. These dogs sometimes react to raised voices, and people hugging. The thing to remember here is that the protective aggressive dog is behaving aggressively when no real threat exists, which differs significantly from the same behavior when an actual threat does exist.

Fear Aggression:

Fear aggression is aggression that occurs when the dog is frightened, regardless of whether or not there is something to be afraid of. The dog is frequently attempts to avoid an encounter by backing up while growling and becomes dangerous and bites or snaps when it is cornered. Sometimes these dogs will bite from behind and run away. In any case it is inappropriate to physically punish these dogs as it simply re-inforces their belief that there was something to be afraid of in the first place. Equally inappropriate is trying to soothe the dog while he behaves that way since that actually has the effect of rewarding the inapparopriate behavior.

Idiopathic Aggression:

Idiopathic aggression is an unprovoked, unpredictable form of aggression with no known cause. Dogs frequently get a "crazed" look seconds before they become violent. This form of aggression is very difficult to diagnose correctly because the age of onset is 1-3 years which corresponds with the age that dominance aggression and idiopathic epilepsies first present and the symptoms of this disorder are very similar not only to dominance aggression and epilepsy, but numerous other medical behavioral disorders such as rage syndrome.

Maternal Aggression:

Maternal aggression occurs only during pregnancy, "false pregnancy", and in the presence of pups. Mother dogs sometimes "guard" their babies from very long distances and generally do not bite unless the puppy or toy (which the dog perceives to be a puppy during a false pregnancy) is taken. Repeated perceived threats may cause the mother dog to kill and/or eat the puppies.

Pain Aggression:

As the name implies, this form of aggression is a response to pain the aggressive dog is experiencing. This pain can be acute as in a sudden injury (hit by a car) or chronic (as in hip dysplasia). Most dogs suffering pain aggression will warn first, but not always. Treatment involves pain management. Veterinarians have to contend with this type of aggression frequently and may do so using muzzles (to limit damage) or by using sedatives or anaesthesia to treat the dog. Children are also victims of this type of aggression since they frequently make poor decisions (play roughly) and are uncoordinated when playing sometimes tripping over or falling on a dog. Children as young as 18 months can be taught to treat a dog gently and approach it safely. Children and dogs should always be physically separated when there is no adult present to supervise both in a direct line of sight.

Dominance Aggression:

DOMINANCE, or dominance-related, aggression is one of the most common forms of canine aggression. It is manifested by consistent atypical, out-of-context aggressive behaviors directed toward people. These behaviors include growling, snapping, and biting. Bites are usually not preceded by a vocal warning.'

Dogs display dominance aggression in a variety of circumstances. What links these events is a dog's attempt to control situations involving people. Typical provocative situations include:

Disturbing a dog while it is sleeping

Pulling a dog's leash to correct it

Reaching over a dog's head to attach a leash

Grooming a dog

Staring at a dog

Hugging a dog

Handling a dog's muzzle or face

Conducting restraint exercises

Administering physical punishment.

Targets of the aggression may include one or more family members, or a dog may be aggressive to strangers only. Some dogs are aggressive only during a household commotion that distresses them. Not all household members may be equally victimized by dominantly aggressive dogs. Some dogs react aggressively toward young children because children are at the same eye level as the dogs and their staring is perceived as a threat. A more compliant family member may be victimized more often than someone who is firm with the dog because the dog knows it can push around a compliant person. Conversely, some dominantly aggressive dogs know they can victimize compliant people so they leave them alone and challenge the more forceful family members instead.

Canine dominance aggression typically develops at social maturity, which usually occurs between 18 and 36 months of age. Although most dominantly aggressive dogs are male, this condition can occur in females, often at a young age (8 weeks to 8 months).

Dominance aggression is not controlled by hormones, but the presence of androgens, including testosterone, or the lack of estrogen during sexual and social development may exacerbate the aggression. The fact that dominance aggression usually occurs at social maturity suggests that owners don't cause this problem.

Diagnosis

Before making a diagnosis of dominance aggression, rule out any medical causes of aggressive behavior. Some medical conditions (e.g. neoplastic, infectious, or neurologic disease) and their treatments can cause dogs to be more reactive and to behave inappropriately.

Once medical causes have been ruled out, a diagnosis of dominance aggression is based on the recurring presence of the atypical aggressive behaviors described above. A definitive diagnosis can be made if an aggressive response intensifies when a dog is physically or verbally corrected or its behavior is interrupted.

Dominance aggression is not linked to one specific circumstance, and its diagnosis should not be based on a one-time event. For example, a diagnosis should not be made if a dog bites only when pushed from a bed; the dog may have been frightened or hurt. But a diagnosis can be made if a dog bites when pushed from the bed and also exhibits other aggressive behaviors (e.g. it growls when the owner reaches over its head to place a leash, yells at it, or disturbs it while sleeping). These behaviors stem from the dog's urge to control rather than from a specific activity.

Dominance aggression is not specifically linked to food-related, possessive (toys), or territorial aggression, but it can occur concurrently with these disorders. If so, the situation may be severe."

The frequency and intensity of aggressive behaviors do not affect the diagnosis. But these factors may affect the prognosis and the dog's potential danger to people.

Dominance vs. assertiveness

In diagnosing dominance aggression, remember that the term dominance is often used erroneously. Use the term only when describing an individual's ability to maintain or regulate access to some resource in a staged contest.6-8 The word dominant should not be used to describe a dog that is merely assertive, confident, or pushy. A dog can be pushy or assertive without being dominantly aggressive; such a dog can "talk back" and snort at people, but it isn't aggressive in the situations discussed above. Pushiness or assertiveness is a personality type. In fact, many owners prefer confident dogs because they work well in obedience situations and are thought to have good personalities. Because the terms dominance and dominance aggression are often used erroneously, I ask owners to avoid using these loaded terms and instead describe what their dogs are actually doing.

The two categories of dominantly aggressive dogs

Because it is associated with social contexts, dominance aggression, like other forms of aggression, is probably an anxiety disorder. Dogs with dominance aggression can be divided into two broad groups: 1) those that know they are in control and can compel their owners to do their bidding, and 2) those that are unsure of their social roles and use aggressive behavior to discover what's expected of them.

Contrary to the commonly held view of dominance aggression, dogs in the first group are rare. Most dominantly aggressive dogs are in the second group. These dogs receive information about their social and behavioral boundaries based on how their owners react to their aggression. This is analogous to disruptive and sometimes aggressive teen-age children with behavior problems. Dogs in this category appear to be less sure of their relative hierarchical status. They express more ambiguity in their vocal and physical responses to what they perceive as threats. Dogs in the second group do not direct aggression equally toward all people because they respond differently to each social interaction.

According to data obtained at the Behavior Clinic at the University of Pennsylvania's Veterinary Hospital, most dogs in the second group also exhibit attention-getting behavior (Behavior Clinic, Veterinary Hospital, University of Pennsylvania: Unpublished data, 1999). These dogs are needy and are constantly setting people up to attend and defer to them. They have an abnormal urge to control and often challenge others to determine their roles in the social environment. Because affected dogs have an anxiety disorder and are using provocative behaviors to get information, physical punishment has no place in teaching appropriate behavior. Physical punishment removes uncertainty and convinces these dogs that the person punishing them is a threat. Accordingly, their aggression worsens. Hitting, beating, or kneeing an affected dog creates an adversarial relationship and reveals a lack of understanding about canine aggression and anxiety.

Recognizing subtle dominance aggression behavior

Much has been written about dogs seeing people as part of their pack. This simplifies the situation. It is more likely that dogs and people can live together successfully because dogs and people have similar social systems. Dogs live in extended family groups, have extended parental care, and use vocal and nonvocal communication. More important, dogs and people both have social systems based on deference, not physical violence and control. Many people think that dogs constantly fight for control and status. On the contrary, studies of wolf and wild dog behavior indicate that aggression and violence are the exception. There is a relative hierarchy of social rule structure, and status can be affected by the age and sex composition of the social group and by an individual's skills.

Because dogs and people have similar social structures, we recognize many canine signals. Unfortunately, this similarity is also a problem because people assume that dogs' signals are exactly like ours. For example, some owners think that a dog is giving them a hug when the dog places its paws on the owner's shoulders. This is not a hug, it is a challenge. In communication between dogs, pressing on another with the front feet is a clear challenge. By petting dogs that are actually challenging them, owners inadvertently defer to the abnormal dogs. This petting can worsen the dogs' behavior.

Many affected dogs exhibit subtle dominantly aggressive behaviors that cause clients to redirect their activities. For example, an affected dog will lie in front of a door or furniture so that its owner has to avoid the area, or it may lean against or have a paw resting on the owner at every opportunity. Owners need to distinguish these behaviors from mere pushiness or attention-seeking. For example, if a dog is leaning against its owner just to get attention, the owner can physically move the dog without its becoming aggressive. Unlike most dominantly aggressive dogs, dogs that lean on a person for attention do not stiffen, open their eyes, and move with the person so they are again touching or pressing. Dogs seeking closeness usually respond to verbal cues to stop leaning and then use solicitous behavior (e.g. turning their heads sideways, rolling over, whining, wagging their tails, putting their ears loosely back). Dominantly aggressive dogs may stiffen and "talk back" by grumbling or growling. Later, the growling may get deeper in pitch, and the dog's stance, vocalization, or actions (e.g. biting) may become more threatening. In such cases, caution is urged.

• First check with your veterinarian to rule out medical causes for the aggressive behavior.
• Seek professional help. An aggression problem will not go away by itself. Working with aggression problems requires in-home help from an animal behavior specialist. Call us at (916) 927-7725
• Take precautions. Your first priority is to keep everyone safe. Supervise, confine and/or restrict your dog’s activities until you can obtain professional help. You’re liable for your dog’s behavior. If you must take your dog out in public, consider a cage-type muzzle as a temporary precaution, and keep in mind that some dogs can get a muzzle off.
• Avoid exposing your dog to situations where he is more likely to show aggression--like dog training classes. You may need to keep him confined to a safe room and limit his people-contact.
• If your dog is possessive of food, treats or a certain place, don’t allow him access to those items. In an emergency, bribe him with something better than what he has. For example, if he steals your shoe, trade him the shoe for a piece of chicken.
• Spay or neuter your dog. Intact dogs are more likely to display dominance, territorial and protective aggressive behavior.

• Enroll in a dog training class.
• Punishment won’t help and, in fact, will make the problem worse. If the aggression is motivated by fear, punishment will make your dog more fearful, and therefore more aggressive. Attempting to punish or dominate a dominantly aggressive dog is likely to cause him to escalate his behavior in order to retain his dominant position. This is likely to result in a bite or a severe attack. Punishing territorial, possessive or protective aggression is likely to elicit additional defensive aggression.
• Don’t encourage aggressive behavior. Playing tug-of-war or wrestling games encourages your dog to attempt to "best" you or "win" over you, which can result in the beginning of a dominance aggression problem. When dogs are encouraged to "go get 'em" or to bark and dash about in response to outside noises or at the approach of a person, territorial and protective aggressive behavior may be the result.

Call us if other dog trainers tell you that your dog can't be trained and needs to be euthanized.

Many of the dogs in the pictures on our web sites have bitten people and/or used to be horrible with dogs. Most of their owners tried Food-Bribery dog training. Most of these dog owners sought help previously and were told by dog trainers, behaviorists or veterinarians that that their dog could not be trained and should be destroyed. The dogs' owners had the character and integrity to not listen to people who told them to kill their dog because it could not be controlled. Our experience is that people are often bullied into killing their dog. It is not easy staring down evil and erring on the side of life.

Doing the right thing is always the easier, softer path. At the time, the right thing can be very painful.

We once had a client with incredible insight and wisdom who adopted a deaf dog because he knew that his children would appreciate it and gain even more from the experience by adopting a dog most other people would not want. Everyone told the man before he got it that the dog should be put down. He looked for a dog trainer who had conviction and believed that any dog could indeed be trained. The moral of the story is. . .

When you err on the side of life there is always someone who can help you, not just with dog training, but if in life too.

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