When a dog is aggressive, there?s always a reason behind it. Aggression may be caused by genetics, physical problem, environment, or training methods, just to name a few. One of the first things a trainer will need to do when dealing with an aggressive dog is find out what the dog?s trigger is. There can be many reasons for this, and it?s important to discover the reason for the aggression before trying to treat it. The very first thing you should do is give your dog a thorough vet examination. This will rule out any physical problems that may be causing the aggression such as joint pain or infections.
Aggression starts small and gets bigger. With each escalating aggressive incident your dog has, the more you should be concerned. Your goal is to limit the number of incidents overall so the behavior can be worked out instead of unmanageable. Try to limit access to anything that causes the aggression, the triggers. Walk the dog at times and places you know others will not be around if this is a trigger for him. Crate train your dog for times when he needs to be unsupervised. Good management skills are important to any dog owner, but with aggressive dogs it?s even more important to limit the number of episodes he has.
Dogs are pack animals and need that structure in their lives. In every pack there will always be a leader and a pecking order. The first thing your dog needs to understand is that he is at the bottom of that pecking order, with the humans up top. You need to be a strong leader in his eyes and mind. Otherwise your dog will develop habits that are harder to change; you don?t want to go head to head with a dog that fully believes he?s running the show. To express your dominance, you do not need to physically punish your dog. Instead, take control of what?s important to him and aspects of his life. Make him see that you call the shots. You set the time when he eats, goes for walks, gets his toys, or is socialized. Obedience training when a dominant dog is young helps with aggression later.
Treating the aggression is a gradual process. There are things the owner can do, like establishing dominance and managing the triggers. However, a professional trainer will have more valuable information to contribute and can break the behavior. Using correcting collars and other form of physical corrections can be dangerous and backfire, making the behavior worse. Consult a professional when dealing with aggression. The behavior needs to be dealt with sooner rather than later for everyone?s safely, including the dog?s.
