Aggressive Dog

Rock_N_Roll_Queen90 · October 2011

So, as some of you know, las month I had to have my Lab, Dusty put to sleep. He was the alpha in our thee dog pack. Since then my Coonhound has become aggressive. I'm guessing that it's because he wants to be alpha now. He doesn't try to hurt our other dog, Stormy, but when he sees a dog in a parking lot for example, he literally tries to eat the window to get to the dog. Also if the window in the car is down a little, he tries to jump out and bite people! The biting people part also occurs when a delivery person comes to the house. He was -never- like this before Dusty passed away, he was very friendly towards other dogs, and especially towards people. I plan on getting him one of these <a href="http://www.belgian-malinois-dog-breed.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Wire-Basket-Dog-Muzzles-for-malinois.jpg"; target="_blank" class="bb-url">http://www.belgian-malinois-dog-breed.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Wire-Basket-Dog-Muzzles-for-malinois.jpg</a>; types of muzzles, so that he's unable to bite, but still able to open his mouth, drink, etc. I'm just wondering if anybody could give me some tips as to lessen the aggression. I got him when he was about 8 months old,he's about 1 and a half years old now, I'm almost 100% sure the previous owners didn't do any kind of socialization. I've tried socailizing him, but due to not living in a highly populated area, it's difficult. Anywho, any suggestions/comments are appreciated. Thanks guys!

DiamondPuppy0809 · October 2011

We have that muzzle for our Pit/Rhodie mix (just for when she's around other dogs). She's gotten older and doesn't really need it now but we're required to have it on her anyway. It's the best muzzle you can find so I'd highly reccomend it. They can pant... which they need to do sometimes. But she takes her two paws and tries to pry it off of her snout, so I'd watch for that. Multiple times she's almost gotten her nails caught in it whilst doing so. None of your dogs should be the alpha, you should... good luck!

Garnet · October 2011

You're made to have muzzles on your dogs? 0.0 Where I live, we don't even have leash laws, but we also have the right to kill (no one ever does i promise) or haul off (people do this and it breaks my heart) other dogs that wonder into their yard and pose a "threat" to humans or other dogs on that property. Also if your dog wonders into another persons yard and their dog attacks it.. Nothing can be done about it. The cops will just say "should have had him on a runner" (i know this from experience -_- our neighbors rottie's kept coming in our yard harrassing our wolf hybrid. Homie (wolf hybrid) attacked two of their rotties and ripped them open pretty good. We had told our neighbors for YEARS to keep their dogs out of our yard and they wouldn't. When Homie attacked their rotties they called the cops and the sheriff told them "sorry but they have been telling you to keep your dogs put up and they have beware of dog AND no trespassing signs up. Nothing I can do" they were soo mad 0.0 and the whole "after they have the taste of blood they have to be put down" theory didnt work for them either cause my brothers pit could walk out there and he wouldnt touch him and i could (i was like 8) could walk out there and he would be as playful as ever. he just HATED those rotties...

DiamondPuppy0809 · October 2011

She's dog aggressive so the shelter told us they wanted to put her down (she's our dog, she was never in the shelter) so instead, we said no and muzzle her in the public (as advised to by the shelter). Anyone who believes 'once a dog tastes blood, they need to be put down' must also believe that a dog cannot be trained.

Garnet · October 2011

Agreed! I strongly disagree with that theory!! He was always aggressive towards them though but we never put a muzzle on him or anything. He bit the boy on the behind one time for getting to close and he would snap and growl at them. We never put a muzzle on him because he was always on a runner in OUR yard with no trespassing and beware of dog signs. If they were in our yard then it was their own fault ya know? They used to throw things at him and rattle the fencing to his pen when he was a puppy. So he naturally learned to fear them and then to defend himself against them... So They brought it all on themselves -_- Vampy knows the neighbors im talking about xD

Rock_N_Roll_Queen90 · October 2011

Garfieldz Gal wrote:

 None of your dogs should be the alpha, you should

Hmm, yea, I agree, I'm just a major push over, I guess. So I should just be more authoratative? As of now, I of course correct him, but clearly I'm not doing it in the right way, otherwise he'd be getting better. What I do now is sternly say "no, bad boy" and tap him on the shoulder blade.

DiamondPuppy0809 · October 2011

Tapping him his more of a, "Hello, will you please stop?" instead of, "Stop right now." We have a frequent barker in our household so we always need to correct him (very frustrating). What you need to do is recognize when he's going to bark and/or bite. There are obvious physical indications as to when a dog is about to misbehave and it's easiest to correct before he starts. Once he starts, it's much more difficult to stop him because it's like nothing else in the world matters at that moment than barking or lashing out. Being more firm, such as a loud "NO" (but not yelling) and yank at his collar might help. It's different for each dog, and if you're going to physically touch him, instead of tapping, I would poke him in front of his hip or around that area and say "NO." That area would be more sensitive than the neck/shoulder area and I noticed with my overly dominant Kelpie/Sheltie that he reacts to the discipline more. If this doesn't work, I have a few other suggestions.

DiamondPuppy0809 · October 2011

Also, I know people who are real push overs with their dogs. xD I can be one sometimes, too, but it's best to always be firm and in charge. I've had countless friends and family members start cooing at my Chihuahua puppy saying, "Oh, she's not being very nice is she, baby?" when, in fact, all I did was correct him for a behavior he shouldn't be practicing. They don't understand that it isn't all love and affection with my puppy if I want him to grow up and be a good dog. They also don't understand that just because he's a small dog, doesn't mean he should be treated like a baby. I generally treat him like I would with a big dog minus being too harsh or loud because he's sensitive to things like that.

Rock_N_Roll_Queen90 · October 2011

Ah ok! Thank you, I'll start doing that then!

Garfieldz Gal wrote:

I generally treat him like I would with a big dog minus being too harsh or loud because he's sensitive to things like that.

Jacoby's sensitive to stuff like that too, I guess thats the biggest reason why I'm such a pushover. I know he came from an abusive home, and I'm kind of afraid that he'll look at my actions as abuse.

DiamondPuppy0809 · October 2011

That makes sense. There are many ways to discipline a dog without actually touching, but just by snapping your fingers and saying no. You do have to remain calm though (I know how hard this is) and you have to pretend that your dog has never misbehaved before and just expect him to behave properly. If you are expecting him to react badly when a dog starts approaching, he will react much worse than if you didn't realize the approaching dog.

Rock_N_Roll_Queen90 · October 2011

Ah yea, I've heard that before. Something about the dog can feel the tension in your body through the leash or by your body language. Thank you so much for the help

Trianna · October 2011

Rock_N_Roll_Queen90 wrote:

 Jacoby's sensitive to stuff like that too, I guess thats the biggest reason why I'm such a pushover. I know he came from an abusive home, and I'm kind of afraid that he'll look at my actions as abuse.

That's probably just about the worst mindset to be in when trying to get your dog to behave. He'll be able to sense that you're unsure of what you're doing, and he won't take you seriously. He's probably well over being abused by now, you have to get over it too. Just forget it ever happened, and treat him like you would any other dog. As for a muzzle, it might be a useful tool while you're learning how to control the behavior it's not really a solution. People tend to fear dogs that are muzzled - your dog could pick up on that, and dogs tend to react badly to fear... Also, depending on where your dogs outbursts are coming from, a muzzle could make them worse by stressing him out/making him feel like he's without a means to protect himself. I'd say study his behavior for a bit to see where this behavior is coming from... Is it really aggression, or is it coming from fear, excitement, etc. Perhaps he's just a really nervous dog and having your other dog around was reassuring to him, or something similar. In any case you need to know the root of the problem to fix it... otherwise it's like putting a band-aid on a shot wound - it'll cover it up, but it's not really helping. As Garfieldz Gal said, you need to be calm and sure of yourself when you discipline him, and firm with your correction. Never try to discipline him when you're upset in any way, because he'll know and won't take you seriously. Since he's a larger(I'm guessing?) sized dog, maybe getting a head collar like the gentle leader might help. It'd give you more control over his head, giving you quite a bit of power over him. They're also supposed to help calm dogs, but I'm not sure about that.

Rock_N_Roll_Queen90 · October 2011

Thank you for the info! I -had- a headcollar for him, he decided to eat it though >.> I'm currently out of work, so I'm unable to buy a new one immediately, but I should be able to get a new one soon. It did seem to work well with him, but that was before his attitude changed, I only used it so he wouldn't pull when walking him.

Dark Flame · October 2011

what my cousin does when her dog misbehaves, and doesn't immediately listen is nip the dog on the ear with her teeth, like an alpha dog would, and that seems to work with Lyra, my cousin doesn't do it so it hurts the dog, just makes the dog know who's boss

Rock_N_Roll_Queen90 · October 2011

Hmm, I've seen that on a movie once, cant remember which one. I didnt think it would actually work though

Trianna · October 2011

TigerCub101 wrote:

what my cousin does when her dog misbehaves, and doesn't immediately listen is nip the dog on the ear with her teeth, like an alpha dog would, and that seems to work with Lyra, my cousin doesn't do it so it hurts the dog, just makes the dog know who's boss

That may work for your cousins dog, but it won't turn out well when the dog decides to challenge back... having your face that close to an aggressive dogs teeth is never a good idea imo. Plus it seems a bit unsanitary.

BabyBean13 · October 2011

Snow Dogs. Where the old guy tells what's his face to bite Jack's ear so he can look at his tooth. I've actually done that before with a dog and my cat..lol. Curiosity.. Wanted to know if it actually worked. Which, lemme tell ya, does ;P Didn't wanna post on here originally but figured I'd chime in since I knew the movie and have done it. And quoting Triana: "Plus it seems a bit unsanitary.", I kinda agree, but not any more unsanitary than biting your nails or touching Anything available for public use. Both of which I do.. Nasty habbit, don't bite your nails, people. I hate that I've done it for so long that not even fake nails, polish, or that polish for nail growth that tastes bad stops me >.< Aaaaanywho. *wanders off now*

Rock_N_Roll_Queen90 · October 2011

Trianna wrote:

TigerCub101 wrote:

what my cousin does when her dog misbehaves, and doesn't immediately listen is nip the dog on the ear with her teeth, like an alpha dog would, and that seems to work with Lyra, my cousin doesn't do it so it hurts the dog, just makes the dog know who's boss

 That may work for your cousins dog, but it won't turn out well when the dog decides to challenge back... having your face that close to an aggressive dogs teeth is never a good idea imo. Plus it seems a bit unsanitary.

Yea, I have a feeling that Coby would be the kind to challenge back. lmao Thanks Beanie!

Cherokeezbaby · October 2011

BabyBean13 wrote:

Snow Dogs. Where the old guy tells what's his face to bite Jack's ear so he can look at his tooth. I've actually done that before with a dog and my cat..lol. Curiosity.. Wanted to know if it actually worked. Which, lemme tell ya, does ;P Didn't wanna post on here originally but figured I'd chime in since I knew the movie and have done it. And quoting Triana: "Plus it seems a bit unsanitary.", I kinda agree, but not any more unsanitary than biting your nails or touching Anything available for public use. Both of which I do.. Nasty habbit, don't bite your nails, people. I hate that I've done it for so long that not even fake nails, polish, or that polish for nail growth that tastes bad stops me >.< Aaaaanywho. *wanders off now*

Lolz. Jack is the old guy, the young guy aka his son is Ted, and the dog he bites on the ear is Demon. That was like my favorite movie as a kid, so that is the only reason I know hahahaha. But Ialso have done the "bite the ear" trick. It works for some, but not all. My Labs, Pits, and Dobermans got the picture, but my Basset Hound is stubborn and it never got through to him. I think it is more about how you present yourself to the dog. It's like a child; if you tell them no and they still do it continueously and all you do is say "that was bad" every time, but don't show authority to the child, then he/she is not going to listen to or respect you. Trust me, I have learned first hand on this for both kids and dogs. My mom's Dalmatian was perfectly obedient with his owner/breeder that we got him from. They had trained him using sign language since he is deaf and he was great at it. But my mom let him get away with everything, so now he barks 24/7, digs at his cage all night, runs you over when you let him in or out of the house, and he is very aggressive towards me (my mom has seen him growl and show his teeth at me, but she says that he is just greeting me... I know what a greeting/playful growl souds like because my Yorkie and grandma's Corgis do this and you CAN tell them apart.) He is allowed to get away with this and I'm not allowed to disipline/train him, so he doesn't listen to anyone. But my Lab mix is different. She knows that I am her alpha which makes her listens to me. So it's just the training and way you present yourself to them. They can tell if you are alpha or omega and they will take advantage of that ability.

Rock_N_Roll_Queen90 · October 2011

Whoa, remind me to never meet that Dalmation o.o I've been working with him more, and he has gotten a little better. He's doesn't freak out as much when people walk by the car, but he does FLIP out if he's in the car and sees another dog. I tried anticipating it, but I guess I just have bad timing. He also hasn't offered to bite anybody, which is good...Obviously,lol

Cherokeezbaby · October 2011

There was a pair of dogs on "Is It Me or My Dog" and the trainer Victoria put a blinder up on both the windows and the only way the dogs got to see out is if they did not get aggressive towards outside dogs. I have not had that issue, so I can't say that I know it will work, but it did work for those to dogs on the show. It's worth a shot. But this is probably smarter to do when you have someone else in the car to take the blinder down off the one window, so you aren't trying to drive AND put a blinder up and taking it down.

Adrianna32 · October 2011

The whole "bite the dog's ear" thing is how my uncle trained his dogs for months, and now they're terrified of having their ears touched at all and WILL snap. My little cousin grabbed the dog's head GENTLY to give him a kiss and had to get stitches because of the wound that the dog inflicted when his ears were touched. Just saying, biting a dog's ear might not be good for all dogs. xD LARU had the same exact problem RockStar!! We trained her by taking her out drives and walks and passing by as many people and dogs as possible, making sure that she couldn't actually harm anyone. Whenever she was about to bark or growl or lunge (or if she already did), we'd say NO in an assertive, dominant tone, then make her sit and turn in the other direction so she wasn't even allowed to LOOK. It really is all about timing. And if you don't want to do that the blinder idea is worth a shot, especially if Coby is the type that will catch on to the "if you're bad you don't get what you want".. kinda thing. I know that Champagne could give a crap if you yell at her, she still won't listen.. but if she knows you have a treat and that she can't have it / you wont give it to her, she'll go crazy for it and listen REALLY well. That's how we train her. If she's bad she gets nothing, if she's good she can have it all. xD So in Coby's case if he's good he can see the other dog/person, if he's bad they are cut off from view and he gets nothing. You just have to find a method that really speaks to him. Aggression training is always the most difficult in my opinion.

Rock_N_Roll_Queen90 · October 2011

Those are both great ideas! I think I'll try your idea Zyn, because there's nobody that could really have the time to help me with the blinder idea. Though it's an excellent idea. Coby is very food motivated, so I think your idea will work well Zyn. Thanks guys! I really appreciate all of the suggestions

BabyBean13 · October 2011

Never claimed the trick to always work, and I rarely ever do it xP I've done it like once with a dog and twice with my cat. But for those specific moments, it worked. It was like a last resort thing when the behaviour was That bad. Zyn! You owe us pics of those pups As for the movie reference, I only realized the Jack thing After I sent it XD Unfortunately you can't edit these posts so I just left it alone as opposed to sending yet another correction post

Kazuko · October 2011

Somehow biting a potentially aggressive or dominant dog just sounds like an attack waiting to happen. ._. I'd do what Zyn does, to be honest. You may want to download some episodes of The Dog Whisperer, as that is the method he uses with aggressive dogs on walks. I use it myself with Kira, not that she's aggressive, but she becomes really. really. focused. on. things. that. move. Border collie thing, I think. xD Best of luck with you~

Cherokeezbaby · October 2011

In my defeanse, I was like 9 when I would do the "bite the ear" thing and I agree now that I am older that it is not the best choice. I was just wanting to put my two cents in lolz. I am a STRONG believer in the "show them you're boss" trick though. Not by being aggressive or cruel, but by being assurtive with you body language and how you say things. "Bad dog" shouldn't be said in the same voice as "good dog"; that type of thing (:

Adrianna32 · October 2011

Just giving our opinion on that training technique, not bashing anyone that uses it, I probably would have used that method when I was really young if I had watched that Snow Dogs movie. xD I read your post about the Dalmation and it reminded me of my mom's 170 pound, half blind, Dogue De Bordeaux. This huge dog is naughtier then the naughtiest child in America. 0.0 And I'am not allowed to train or discipline him AT ALL. Which is extremely hard for me considering the fact that I'm a dog trainer. -_- I have nine dogs, six of which are Mastiffs of various breeds, and every single one of them is trained fully and extremely obedient. My mother's dog drives me crazy!! So yes, being assertive is extremely important, a happy dog is a dog that knows his/her place. It's also never good to send a dog mixed signals, confusion isn't good for them. So if you're in the midde of punishing him and he gives you puppy dog eyes don't say: "Oh! I can't stay mad at you! You're too cute!!"- and then give them a hug. Heh. I'm sure that one you already knew, but I can't even count the number of times I was helping an owner train her dog just to watch her give up in the middle of punishment and snuggle him. -_- Anywho, good luck RockStar, you're smart anyway, I know you'll be able to train him in no time.

Frostbight8 · October 2011

Zyndalee wrote:

I know that Champagne could give a crap if you yell at her, she still won't listen.. but if she knows you have a treat and that she can't have it / you wont give it to her, she'll go crazy for it and listen REALLY well. That's how we train her.

Hey! Replace the word "Champagne" with "Pookie" and you'd have just described my dog! Pook doesn't listsn to me all that often, unless the command is "sit". Anyway, I can sort of relate with you, Rockie. Pook is very aggressive towards larger dog's when she's on a leash. If she's on a leash she will full out attack. Thank god all the dog's she's done this to were big softies because one snap of those jaws would break her neck. But we do what was suggested, turn her around and sit her down.

Rock_N_Roll_Queen90 · October 2011

I tried it and....it worked!! We were at the far end of a parking lot, and I was letting him go "potty". There was another dog and Jacoby started growling and his hair started going up, and I sternly said "Coby! No, bad boy!" and turned him around, forcing him to look at me, and he just stopped!!

Cherokeezbaby · October 2011

Zyndalee wrote:

Just giving our opinion on that training technique, not bashing anyone that uses it, I probably would have used that method when I was really young if I had watched that Snow Dogs movie. xD I read your post about the Dalmation and it reminded me of my mom's 170 pound, half blind, Dogue De Bordeaux. This huge dog is naughtier then the naughtiest child in America. 0.0 And I'am not allowed to train or discipline him AT ALL. Which is extremely hard for me considering the fact that I'm a dog trainer. -_- I have nine dogs, six of which are Mastiffs of various breeds, and every single one of them is trained fully and extremely obedient. My mother's dog drives me crazy!! So yes, being assertive is extremely important, a happy dog is a dog that knows his/her place. It's also never good to send a dog mixed signals, confusion isn't good for them. So if you're in the midde of punishing him and he gives you puppy dog eyes don't say: "Oh! I can't stay mad at you! You're too cute!!"- and then give them a hug. Heh. I'm sure that one you already knew, but I can't even count the number of times I was helping an owner train her dog just to watch her give up in the middle of punishment and snuggle him. -_- Anywho, good luck RockStar, you're smart anyway, I know you'll be able to train him in no time.

I know what you mean. I will be disciplining one of MY dos and my sisters think that means that I am being "abusive", so they reward MY dogs for bad behavior. It makes me so mad because I work hard to get/keep my dogs well behaved and that is the type of thng that will turn them from great obedient dogs into a Rumble(my mom's Dalmatian).

DiamondPuppy0809 · October 2011

May I just say that Rumble is an adorable name, Cherokeez? :] My sister spoils our dogs rotten. She is too lazy to discipline them and if she finally gets fed up with them- for example- for barking too often, she'll only scream at the top of her lungs at them from a different room... definitely not effective! Due to this, Max and Sayge have taken a higher liking to her because she's not strict with them, she feeds them treats all of the time, and let's them anywhere at any time. I really cannot wait to move out with my own dog, Czar, where he'll be properly handled and not around unbalanced dogs. Max and Sayge aren't -my- dogs but I do try and discipline them properly but I'm very fed up because they spend most of their time with my sister who has no rules... it's so hard when not -everyone- is participating in doing healthy discpline with the dogs! Czar is the only one that's being raised completely properly. I don't allow my sister to walk, feed, or do much of anything with him because I DO NOT want him to end up like Max and Sayge. He isn't allowed to be spoiled rotten. He's also not allowed table scraps (little dogs can get upset stomachs easier, plus Chihuahuas easily gain weight) and I'm positive if I hadn't enforced that rule with my sister, she would've given him food anyway by now. She constantly feeds Max and Sayge table scraps, many times a day, along with regular treats. Max has gotten overweight and no matter how much I tell my sister, because he's not -my- dog, she doesn't listen to me. He should not be eating so much when he already has a weight issue. :[ Anyway, I'll stop rambling! Congrats, Rockie, it's awesome to see progress already! If you continue to discipline him like that, he will definitely get much better over time. The more often you do it, the more often he'll behave better. We noticed this obvious pattern in Max on his walks. :] It sinks in so much better if it's done done constantly.

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Aggressive Dog

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