My Dog is Aggressive – what now?

Stop confusing Reactivity with Aggression!!!

Aggression is a very complex topic, which can create a lot of debate
around it.

There is very little consistency in classifying aggression in the
training community. Many terms are used inconsistently. As a result
there is a huge divide between common usage and scientifically accurate
classifications of aggression. This lays the ground for confusion of
those seeking help with aggression.

Sometimes aggressive behaviors are labeled as non-aggressive and vice
versa and what is even worse, sometimes very serious types of aggression
are even negated and said not to exist, such as dominance aggression.

If you cannot correctly identify the type of aggression and find a basis
for it in ethology, then how can you create a successful treatment
protocol?

One example of wrong classification is the thrown around term of
reactivity. “My dog is not aggressive, he’s just reactive”. Well, both
have a different underlying cause and motivation.

There is nothing wrong with showing aggressive behavior. What’s wrong is showing aggressive behavior when a different type of behavior should be shown or when the intensity or duration of the aggressive behavior is
prolonged.

We will look more at classification of aggressive behavior in future
posts but basically there are two type of aggressive responses:

Instrumental aggressive Behavior:
Where the aggression has a goal, an objective directed goal and no
emotions. It has something to do with the individual and the resource. I
want food to survive therefore I need to show aggression, once I get it
the display of aggressive behavior is over.

Reactive impulsive:
No apparent goal, mostly based on misinterpretation by the individual of
the circumstances, sees no escape route when there is one. And sees an
inability to control emotions, therefore it shows aggression. This is
usually due to poor imprinting and socialization. It usually has
something to do with us or our reaction. Often we are actually
reinforcing this behavior.

Aggressive behavior is any behavior that if left uninterrupted will
likely result in a bite!

Please help me to rehabilitate my dog!!
I’m sure you’ve heard about behavior rehab haven’t you?

“Rehabilitation” is the act of restoring something to its original state. It is derived from the Latin prefix “re-,” meaning “again” and “habitare,” meaning “make fit.”

Yesterday we mentioned that aggression is something natural, that every species has. Genetic predisposition, age and past experiences play a great role in how and when aggression is displayed. Through training and management we can interfere when aggressive behavior is present but that is not rehabilitation.

Many times dogs are managed, their responses are controlled but they are not rehabilitated – they are not “made to fit again.” Looking at this in the wrong light is what has sometimes caused shelter dogs that have been “rehabilitated” to go out to a family just to again show too much aggression at the wrong moment and often having to be put down.

A terrier with a high prey drive that is chasing the pet hamster of his owners around and gets corrected with an e-collar for example has not been rehabilitated. Chasing the hamster is a natural response and the e-collar has been used as an effective tool to stop it. So he has not been rehabilitated – or “made to fit again” because it’s a natural behavior.

And unless the trainer knows how to generalize, maintain and prevent spontaneous recovery of a natural behavior, it will not be very long lasting.

Of course rehabilitation does take place in training, but you must remember that rehabilitation is “making fit again”, bringing something back as close to the original state. If you injure your knee and go through rehab, you may be close to how it was before but never better. You’re not all of a sudden going to be able to jump like Michael Jordan.

And as such it is with dogs as well, in the Video for example you can see Salvador, who was rescued by Alex and Kristine in Panama. He was showing a lot of aggression, and has been brought back to a state close to normal, but we don’t really know what that normal was for him. There is still an underlying overreaction and fear when he meets new dogs now, but it’s by no means as aggressive as in the video

In order to treat aggression, we first need to classify what type of aggression we are dealing with. This serves to educate our followers and offer some insights into aggression. But we don’t advice that you work on aggression cases without the help of a trainer. Get in touch with us if you need help and we can point you in the right direction.

Dominance Aggression:
Do not mistake dominance for “showing your dog who’s boss”, dominance is the first right to limited resources. Dominance is designed to reduce aggression, without dominance and submission social species would kill each other. Dominance aggression is the result of a conflict relating to dominance. In canines, the most dominant are also the leaders of the group. Dominance aggression is not the same as leadership aggression but they go hand in hand so we will classify them as one.

Examples of dominance aggression (first right to resource):
First right to/over:
– human or other dog attention
– food/water
– a toy
– resting place

Examples of leadership aggression (first right to initiation):
Aggression when pack/family tries to:
– leave
– initiate affection
– initiate play
– interrupt an aggressive behavior
– reprimand dog

Resource Guarding:
A defensive aggression limited to guarding food, water, toys or other objects within the “ownership zone” beneath a canine’s mouth and between the front legs. Do not confuse it as a “challenge of status”. Do not teach your dog that you are competing with him for his resources by sticking your hand in his food etc.

Fear Aggression/Protective Aggression:
Protective aggression is the instict of a dog to defend him/herself and other packmates from a threat. Fear aggression is the same but the trigger seems to be irrational or inappropriate for a protective response.

Protective Aggression:
– Stranger hugs the owner
– Someone handles bitches puppies
– Stranger/dog approaches in “threatening” manner

Fear Aggression:
– Aggression towards most dogs/humans regardless of actual threat.

Territorial Aggression:
Similar to protective aggression, but focused on protecting a territory from outsiders, never directed towards pack members, therefore not to be confused with dominance or resource guarding.

Predatory Aggression:
Related to the instinct to hunt, chase, kill, dissect and eat.

Play Aggression:
Play in puppies is practice for predatory aggression and fight .The main purpose is to prepare the dog for being an adult. Play aggression shows a more relaxed body and face postures and better control of the bite pressure (bite inhibition). It should not be confused with mature forms of aggression and in puppies should be channeled and managed properly as it can be a nuisance and cause injury to owners and children especially.

Barrier Frustration:
Aggression due to frustration of not being able to engage due to being restrained (often by a fence or a leash). If this is the only reason for aggression, it will disappear as soon as the restraint is taken away. A dog that barks greatly on leash and seems aggressively at other dogs, but as soon as he’s let off leash goes and plays with them for example.

One type of aggression can be layered over others and make each other stronger. Aggression is a natural behavior but can be problematic in the wrong times or to the wrong degree of intensity. Understanding this instead of trying to suppress natural behavior is always the first step in any plan. Quick fixes and only addressing symptoms will always make matters worse.

Ever heard of the aggression cycle? Well the aggression cycle is the progression of aggressive behavior.

As you should know by now if you’ve been following our last posts, aggression is normal to canines but showing it in the wrong situations or to the wrong degree is not. Same goes to skipping steps in the aggression cycle.

If you were to compare it to humans, a normal escalation may be something such as, asking someone to get away from you, not to touch you, slapping his hands off and then maybe throwing a punch or getting out some pepper spray. It would not be considered normal if a person steps close to you and you right away punch him in the face.

With dogs it’s pretty similar. A lot of time the dog is showing a lot of self control when acting defensively, the dog may often accomplish what he wants by a posture, a growl, a bark or an air snap and if that does not work then he may go to different degrees of bites. From mere contact of the skin with his teeth to a full bite and hold breaking skin and tearing.

If the dog skips these steps and resorts right to a bite, then it is definitely worrisome. You need to become skilled at reading your dogs body language. We will talk about this in more detail next week.

The most important take away of this is that we need to listen to our dogs and their warning signals. When your dog growls because someone is approaching him or touching him, do not correct the dog. See what it is that is bothering your dog and remove that from the situation.

Because otherwise the dog may go up the ladder and start showing teeth, maybe doing an air-snap. Then at that moment the perceived threat is likely to stop interaction and the dog will start learning that it should go directly to the air-snap or bite because that’s what gets him his results.