Tips for dealing with an aggressive dog

Are you dealing with an aggressive dog? First, let’s just come out and say that you are not alone. Many dog owners deal with this. Canine aggression is a common problem that many pet owners deal with. Thankfully, dealing with an aggressive dog is possible and with some hard work, lots of love, and a bit of patience, your dog’s aggressive behavior can improve.

I prefer to call this behavior reactivity. Usually when you say the word “aggressive,” people think of a mean and vicious animal. That’s not really the case, mind you they can seem like that, but for the most part they are good dogs with some issues. Some dogs are reactive while on leash but fine when off leash. Some dogs are reactive towards strangers, other dogs, or both. They can be reactive around food. And some dogs can get so worked up that they redirect on their owners or canine buddies. Or like Dylan, he’s fear reactive and becomes aggressive towards most unfamiliar sounds or objects (he even went lunging at a lawn ornament once because he had never seen it before and I guess it moved in the wind).

So, as someone who has a reactive dog, I know that it can seem exhausting and overwhelming. If you truly care to change these behaviors and you are ready to put in a little bit of work, you can do it. They may never be that happy-go-lucky dog that you can bring everywhere. But your dog can live their best life and you don’t have to be scared of them any more. In my first blog post, I wrote all about Dylan and how we work really hard on a daily basis to overcome his behavioral issues.

Before deciding how to go about dealing with an aggressive dog, you need to make note of any, and all, of the aggressive behaviors they are displaying. The tactics you take to deter the aggression will depend upon what those aggressive behaviors are.

Light biting
Growling/showing teeth
Threatening barking
Pushing people or other animals with their body or nose
Territorial aggression
Food aggression
Lunging

Once you have taken note of the particular behaviors that your dog is displaying, now you can take the steps necessary to dealing with the aggressive behaviors. There are tips that you can follow that will help get your dog’s aggressive behavior under control.

Call your veterinarian

If your dog is displaying newly aggressive behavior, you may find that it is because of an illness. That is why the first step you should take is to call your veterinarian. They can diagnose your dog with any disease or other organic cause of this aggression. Oftentimes diseases and disorders such as brain disorders, seizures, hormones, or even chronic pain can affect your dog’s aggression. Veterinarians can often treat these conditions that may be causing the behavior.

Provide a healthy diet

Good, quality food is important in a dog’s life. Sure you can buy a mega bag of dog food at your local discount store for cheap, but the reality is that this food often does not provide the nutrition that your dog needs. A dog that has all of his nutritional needs met is more likely to behave appropriately than one who is suffering from any form of malnutrition.

Set boundaries

If you are dealing with a new dog that is behaving aggressively, it may be because the dog is having confusion regarding the pack. It’s a natural behavior of dogs to try and be the leader of the pack, so with their human families it may sometimes become an issue. To deal with this type of aggression, it is important to show who is boss from day one.

Don’t confuse showing your dog who is boss with being physical towards your dog. You should never hit your dog. What I mean is that you need to set boundaries and your dog must “earn” rewards. I know it’s hard when they look so cute, but your dog shouldn’t be allowed on the bed, on the sofa, or really anywhere without earning these privileges. Dylan and Rainey are allowed on the sofa and bed but they have to wait until I give them permission. And if they get on without permission, they have to get off.

It may seem very harsh and regimented but dogs need structure and guidance. This is especially true when dealing with a reactive dog. If they think that you aren’t capable of controlling a situation, they will think that they need to fill in that gap.

One of Dylan’s issues is that he’s leash reactive. It becomes this horrible cycle—Dylan reacts, I get stressed out expecting bad experiences when walking, and Dylan reacts more. Dylan didn’t have confidence that I was going to protect us when we were out walking, so he stepped in and would go bananas. As I gained more confidence, and set more boundaries with Dylan, his reactivity decreased. We aren’t perfect and still have bad days but now I’m not scared to walk him. I am confident that I can handle any situation that may occur.

Avoid violence and yelling

Violence and yelling is never the answer to dealing with an aggressive dog. Yes, it can get frustrating to try and get aggressive behaviors under control in your dog, but trying to battle aggression with violence is not the answer.

Responding to aggressive behaviors with violence can result in further aggression from your dog. The fear of your violence and aggression can make your dog nervous and anxious which can increase their aggression even further.

Avoid stressful situations

A lot of dog aggression can be traced to stressful situations. That’s why it is imperative to avoid introducing your dog to stressful situations. Crowds of people, loud noises, machinery, etc. All of these can be a very stressful situation to put your dog into. You have to accept that your dog may not be that dog that comes with you to beer gardens, camping trips, restaurants, etc. But you can still have loads of fun with your dog.

Certain stressful situations can’t be avoided—for instance, trips to the vet. It’s important to help your dog work through these situations. Dylan has been muzzle trained so that I know he can’t really hurt himself or anyone else (he doesn’t mind being in his muzzle). But, we also have found a vet who has been training with us for several years.

We go regularly for “mock” visits where she walks Dylan around and gives him lots of treats and then we just leave. This helps him to get used to her and the office without constant negative associations. When it’s time for his annual exam, we break it up over several weeks and are creative in how we give him a physical and take blood. She is the first vet who has been able to take blood from Dylan without causing loads of distress and trauma.

Allow comfort items

If your dog has a blanket or bed that they love, don’t take that away from them. Specifically, make it easily available to them during stressful times. This comfort item can often instantly prevent aggressive meltdowns that are caused by anxiety.

For Dylan, I made sure that he was crate trained. He doesn’t need a crate, but because he loves it, we just keep it open all the time and make it very comfortable for him. After a recent knee surgery, he went in there to rest.

Avoid dominating games

Playing with your dog is a great idea, but be sure that you are playing the right type of games with them. Domineering games such as tug of war may increase their aggression.

When we first brought Rainey home, she wanted to play tug with Dylan, but a few times it would escalate with him going after her. Think about it, you have a dog that wants to dominate, then you play a game where they are “fighting” to get the reward, and then also are staring at eye to eye. This isn’t setting up anyone for success. They now are the best of friends, and Dylan has overcome many of his issues, and can now play such games together without issue.

Exercise your dog regularly

A dog with too much pent-up energy can easily be seen as aggressive. It is often dogs like this that we find the following aggressive behaviors:

Restlessness: Pacing through the house and having the inability to sleep are signs of restlessness that comes from having too much pent-up energy
Excessive barking: Non-stop barking at each and everything is one sign of your dog not exercising enough, this is just another form of restlessness
Destructive behavior: Damaged household items, chewed shoes, overturned trash cans are all things to look for
Pestering: If your dog keeps pestering you, this is a sign of them having too much energy
Rough play: Playing more roughly than they should and lacking control of their own behavior
Pulling and misbehaving while on leash: If your dog hasn’t been exercising enough, they are likely to misbehave when you do put them on the leash. This is when you will feel pulling on the leash, trying to run off the side of the sidewalk or road, etc.

Providing a structured exercise regimen for your dog is important. You can take them out on regular walks or runs. You can take them to the dog park or day camp and let them run and expend energy for a specific period of time. When they are exercised properly, they have less time and energy to behave aggressively. A tired dog is a good dog.

Have your dog spayed or neutered

There is evidence to support that having your dog spayed or neutered reduces aggressive and violent behavior. Additionally, sterilizing lowers the anxiety that naturally occurs when dogs feel the natural pressures of needing to mate.

Work as a team

When it comes to dealing with an aggressive dog, the entire family needs to work together in order to make sure standards are met throughout the dog’s day. All family members should have the same rules for the dog. Everyone needs to agree to not allow bad behavior and to follow the same discipline standards. If you are not all on the same page as it relates to rules and discipline, your dog will become confused which can cause its aggressive behaviors to increase.

Find the right trainer

All of the above ideas are great, but you’re not an expert. And when dealing with an aggressive dog, you need to get professional help. I went through a plethora of trainers when I was trying to get help for Dylan’s issues. Dylan is very smart, so he quickly learned all his commands and the basics. This is great but it didn’t resolve our issues—he would now just lunge from a sit/down position. The problem with traditional training, you learn a few things, then are left to “work on it” yourself. This is fine for most dogs, but when you have a reactive dog, it can just be too overwhelming.

The best solution for Dylan and I was to send him away for 2 weeks of immersive training with a trainer that has experience dealing with reactive dogs. They also have a day camp with similar dogs. So, Dylan is able to happily socialize with new dogs in a structured and safe environment. Dylan learned how to keep himself together when exposed to stressful situations. But I was also taught how to handle him and those situations.

That’s the biggest success. I didn’t have to stress out about teaching him the basics, he learned the basics and everything he needed. I just needed to make sure I knew how to keep them implemented. Dylan and I became a confident team and we work every day making that team stronger.

Celebrate even the small accomplishments

This may look like a silly picture, but it makes me realize that we need to celebrate the small accomplishments in life. Dylan, like many dogs, would always attack the vacuum. It was a struggle. Sometimes, I would put him in his crate, to make my life easier. Then I started to desensitize him to the vacuum by using a lot of treats. That worked for the most part but he would still always pop out of nowhere to give the vacuum a sneak attack. During the worst times, he would redirect his aggression on Rainey. I just got used to it. Well the other day, I was vacuuming and he just stayed calmly on the sofa and watched us. If you aren’t dealing with an aggressive dog, you won’t understand. But if you are, you will understand why this was a cause for celebration.

Things can and will get better over time. You just have to not give up on your dog (they won’t give up on you). With a lot of patience (and perhaps some blood, sweat, and tears), your dog will become their very best!!

Do you have experience working with an aggressive dog? What steps did you take to stop some of their behaviors?