Quote:
|
Originally Posted by AMUSIX
My wife and I are in need of some advice. We have a 14month-old CzW, and in the past few months, she's started to show aggression towards certain dogs. This has quickly become a problem as she's now bitten three dogs. In all cases, the dogs are VERY submissive (one was a female Blue Heeler, one a female Poodle, the other a male mutt). Other than their submissive nature, there seems to be no connections. She has shown aggression towards some other dogs as well, but, again, there seems to be no common thread between them.
|
Hi, we had similar case, but it is getting much better, so I will tell you what we are doing about it, ok? I am not saying it is the best thing, but it works quite well. It would also help to know more about exactly where and in which circumstances your dog shows aggression (walk, dog training, around the house ..).
Our dog, Mery, was also properly socialised, goes to training club, loves to play with dogs. She´s two years now and still can play both with males and females. However, she also would love to bully submisive dogs, shy dogs and clearly old dogs. And some dog breeds she hates plainly just because.
First thing, I do not let my dog (or both dogs) close to other dogs, unless I know the other dog and his behaviour. Everytime I see some other dog (when on a walk), I call my dogs back and put them on leash. Then, if things are fine and the other dog is friendly, my dogs can go play. If it is clear it would not work, I do not allow them to meet it. If the dog is off leash, I ask the owner to put on leash. Saves at least 80% of the trouble.
Second thing, if I see my dog is too agitated about the other dogs and ready to be aggressive, I am trying to distract it with treats. The goal is to redirect my dogs attention from the dog to me, pay me attention, get her to do what I want (heel, walk away or sit). That gives her chance to calm down and we can go away from the problematic dog. The more I do it, the more my dog pays attention to me, when she sees other dogs. It is like - look, dog! - where´s my cookie? It does not work 100% yet, but then we started it only few weeks ago.
Third thing, I believe your dog is just maturing, she is trying to improve her status among the other dogs. And of course, it is easier to bully the submissive dogs, than the selfconfident one´s. Easiest thing so far is again not to let her close to other dogs, if you do not know their behaviour and you can´t trust Emma.
As Ina says, improving your leadership role would probably also greatly help. I´d recommend reading this book (can be ordered via Amazon) - Patricia McConnel - The Other End of the Leash. It has been of great help to me.
Good luck, Mirka