Reduce Dog Aggression

To reduce aggression it helps to understand the causes. Here are the most common:

• Past Negative Experiences
• Lack of Positive Experiences
• Instinct
• Territory disputes
• Resource Guarding
• Medical Issues
• Owner anxiety (protecting owner)

Socializing your dog goes a long way toward reducing problems with others. Dogs that grew up without regular interaction with others tend to be distrusting and unsure when they encounter social situations. Being unsure of their footing, they react defensively, often with the growling, barking and lunging that make it difficult to control them around others.

When you add in instinct and a desire to guard you can end up with an explosive situation. To reduce aggression and prevent future problems, you have to use a plan that creates positive associations.

By carefully controlling the environment you can produce positive memories for your dog. Here's what to do.

3 Steps To Stop Dog Aggression

1. Identify how far away he can be without getting upset. Stay outside that line.
2. Reward him for staying cool.
3. Work to move him closer to the object that upsets him.

Your dog needs the chance to interact with other dogs that are calm and friendly. Identify dogs that you know, either through friends and family or through work, and pick the ones that will be able to assist in rehabilitating your dog.

The process of re-teaching these associations is often called "counter-conditioning." As the name implies, the goal is to change the connection that exists in your dog's mind. To do this, we must give him new experiences.

Behavioral threshold refers to the distance at which your dog can no longer calmly handle the other dog. When that line is crossed, he begins to respond with aggression instead of indifference. The goal is to reduce and eventually eliminate the distance that he needs to keep his cool.

This is done by rewarding the calm mindset at the closest distance possible. For example, on Monday you arrange to have Leslie bring her super cool dog Ralph to your local park. Leslie sits on a bench with Ralph and you take your dog to a spot 30 feet away from them. Your dog is still calm so, while he's looking at Ralph, you give him a reward and tell him he's a good dog.

On Tuesday Leslie shows up again with Ralph. This time you pick a spot 25 feet away. Your dog keeps his cool so he again gets the reward.

Wednesday you move in to 20 feet away, Thursday 15 feet, and so on until Sunday when the two are next to each other. Because your dog has been getting praise and great treats every time he looks at Ralph for the last week, he has formed a positive association with Ralph and will be more inclined to meet him with a calm mindset. When they get along you will again reward him with praise and a treat.

Suddenly this other dog Ralph has become a sign of great things. Your dog wants to see him again. That's the process of counter-conditioning.

Not every scenario will be as easy as meeting Leslie and Ralph, but the plan is the same - set up the environment, establish the safe distance, reward the calm mindset, and gradually move closer.

Remember, in counter conditioning we are dealing with a dog's emotions, not just actions, so the intention is to make those feelings better to produce an actual resolution to the problem. Flooding the dog with the stimulus or making him quiet down may well produce satisfactory outward results, but it will make the problem worse. Suppression of behavior is not solving behavior.

Dog Academy

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