Dog Aggression
Author: Bill Blondin

Per request, this article is a basic discussion of dog aggression; that is to say a dog's innate desire to fight with other dogs. I will begin by describing the roots of what motivates a dog aggressive dog, and then attempt to cover a few training ideas that might help a dog owner deal with and correct dog aggression in their own dog.

The motivators behind dog aggression are somewhat varied from dog to dog. It has been my experience that dog aggressive behavior can be summarized into two groups: 1. genetic predisposition to dog aggression; 2. learned dog aggression.

For the dog that is genetically predisposed to becoming dog aggressive as an adult, the warning signs usually appear early in life, sometimes as soon as 7-12 weeks of age. Puppies show a marked fearful response to the presence of a strange dog; growling, hackling, barking are all indicated. This type of response is obviously fear based. Another type of dog aggressive behavior in a young dog is indicated by the "bully" puppy - the one that is constantly picking fights with the other pups, standing in the puppy food bowl, growling at the other pups, etc. While this form of dog aggression is still genetically transmitted, it is based on social dominance rather than fear.

Learned dog aggression generally happens either via negative experiences with other dogs or by being kenneled adjacent to other dogs (fence fighting, for example).

Whatever the basis, dog aggression can be a frustrating problem to deal with. It is my opinion that it can never truly be "cured", but rather it can only be masked with solid obedience training. Two dog aggressive dogs, left on their own for long enough, will eventually fight, I don't care what you do. It is unrealistic to expect otherwise. It IS, however, realistic to expect that your dog will behave himself when on leash and in the presence of another dog.

There are a variety of methods to attempt to deal with dog aggressive dogs, and the training should be customized to match each individual dog's needs, so what follows is just one approach that is usually effective for training a dog aggressive dog to stay passive in the presence of a strange dog. It is the same basic method used on hunting dogs to teach them not to follow unwanted game. The process is called "Crittering".

The premise behind the technique is to train the dog that acting out on its internal desire to fight with another dog will only serve to cause discomfort, thereby creating a preemptive negative association to an otherwise positive motivator. The technique is best trained with a good electric collar, but could be done with a prong collar as well (though I am sure it would take more time to condition the response).

To begin the training, you need a dog that is mature enough to handle compulsive training methods, I would not recommend beginning this training until you first have a good relationship with your dog, and the dog is over 12 months of age. You start by fitting your dog's electric collar on him while he is at home, a few hours before the actual training begins. We do not want to teach the dog that the compulsion is coming from a specific collar, but rather that the discomfort seemingly comes from nowhere. Putting the collar on hours ahead of time, helps the dog forget about the collar by the time the training begins.

You then need a helper with an unfamiliar dog, that is old enough to walk on leash, and is ideally, not dog aggressive himself. Find a large field, such as a football or baseball field to conduct the training at. Station the helper dog at the far end of the field before taking your dog out the field. You want at least several hundred feet of separation to begin with.

Bring your dog out, on leash, basically for a walk around the edge of the field. Watch your dog's behavior as he walks about. The moment your dog sees and then turns toward the helper dog, stimulate the electric collar continuously and walk directly away from the helper dog. Don't give any commands to your dog, just stimualte and turn away. The moment your dog looks away from the helper dog, release the colar control button to turn off the stimulation. If your dog comes up to you, praise him gently. Change your direction so that you are again walking perpendicular to the helper dog. If your dog does not pay attention to the helper dog take a few steps toward the helper dog and then turn to walk perpendicular to the helper dog again. When your dog reacts the helper dog, stimulate and walk away as you did before. Continue this process until you can walk within 15-20 feet of the helper dog. You may need to do this over several session, or it may work in the first session, it all depends on your dog.

As the sessions continue, try to work up to the point where you can pass within a few feet of the helper dog with no reaction from your dog. Never "test" your dog off the collar during this training phase, and do not expose your dog to situations where he will encounter random dogs on a walk. The training must remain clear, without mistakes. The dog must think that he will ALWAYS get shocked. Once you can pass reliably within a few feet of the helper dog, with NO electric stimulation required for 5 training sessions, you can probably say that the dog has gotten the picture. At this point, continue to work on your basic obedience commands, and gradually add the presence of other dogs to the obedience sessions. Again, always have the dog fitted with the electric collar in case you must give a correction. Obedience will give you the control you need in the event that your dog is not wearing his e-collar and you find yourself in a situation with another dog.

Hopefully this article has given some insight as to the nature of dog aggressions, and one effectiove technique at dealing dog aggression in your own training program.

Happy training!