CAPITAL HUMANE SOCIETY
2320
Understanding Aggressive Behavior In
Dogs
Copyright
Denver Dumb Friends League and Humane Society of the
Dog
aggression is any behavior meant to intimidate or harm a person or another
animal. Growling, baring teeth, snarling, snapping and biting are all
aggressive behaviors. Although aggressive behaviors are normal for dogs, they’re
generally unacceptable to humans. From a dog's perspective, there’s always a
reason for aggressive behavior. Because humans and dogs have different
communication systems, misunderstandings can occur between the two species. A
person may intend to be friendly, but a dog may perceive that person's behavior
as threatening or intimidating. Dogs aren’t schizophrenic, psychotic, crazy, or
necessarily "vicious," when displaying aggressive behavior.
Because
aggression is so complex, and because the potential consequences are so
serious, we recommend that you get professional in-home help from an animal
behavior specialist if your dog is displaying aggressive behavior. Our Behavior
Helpline can’t assist you with aggressive behavior problems (see our handout: “When The Behavior Helpline Can’t Help”).
Types
Of Aggression
Dominance
Aggression: Dominance aggression is motivated by a
challenge to a dog's social status or to his control of a social interaction.
Dogs are social animals and view their human families as their social group or “pack.”
Based on the outcomes of social challenges among group members, a dominance
hierarchy or "pecking order" is established (see our handout:
“Dealing With Dominance In Dogs”).
If
your dog perceives his own ranking in the hierarchy to be higher than yours,
it’s likely that he’ll challenge you in certain situations. Because people
don’t always understand canine communication, you may inadvertently challenge
your dog's social position. A dominantly aggressive dog may growl if he is
disturbed when resting or sleeping, or if he is asked to give up a favorite
spot, such as the couch or the bed. Physical restraint, even when done in a
friendly manner, like hugging, may also cause your dog to respond aggressively.
Reaching for your dog's collar, or reaching out over his head to pet him, could
also be interpreted by him as a challenge for dominance. Dominantly aggressive
dogs are often described as "Jekyll and Hydes" because they can be
very friendly when not challenged. Dominance aggression may be directed at
people or at other animals. The most common reason for dogs in the same family
to fight with each other is instability in the dominance hierarchy (see our
handout: "Canine Rivalry").
Fear-Motivated
Aggression: Fear-motivated aggression is a defensive
reaction and occurs when a dog believes he is in danger of being harmed.
Remember that it’s your dog's perception of the situation, not your actual
intent, which determines your dog’s response. For example, you may raise your
arm to throw a ball, but your dog, perceiving this to be a threat, may bite you
because he believes he is protecting himself from being hit. A dog may also be
fearfully aggressive when approached by other dogs.
Protective,
Territorial And Possessive Aggression: Protective,
territorial and possessive aggression are all very similar, and involve the
defense of valuable resources. Territorial aggression is usually
associated with defense of property. However, your dog's sense of territory may
extend well past the boundaries of “his” yard. For example, if you walk your
dog regularly around the neighborhood and allow him to urine-mark, to him, his
territory may be the entire block! Protective aggression usually refers
to aggression directed toward people or animals that a dog perceives as threats
to his family, or pack. Dogs become possessively aggressive when
defending their food, toys or other valued objects, such as Kleenex stolen from
the trash!
Redirected
Aggression: This type of aggression is relatively
common, but is a behavior that pet owners may not always understand. If a dog
is aroused into an aggressive response by a person or animal that he is
prevented from attacking, he may redirect this aggression onto someone else. A
common example occurs when two family dogs become excited, bark and growl in
response to another dog passing through the front yard. The two dogs, confined
behind a fence, may turn and attack each other because they can’t attack the
intruder. Predation is usually considered to be a unique kind of
aggressive behavior, because it’s motivated by the intent to obtain food, and
not primarily by the intent to harm or intimidate.
Individual
Variation
Dogs
differ in their likelihood to show aggressive behavior in any particular
situation. Some dogs tend to respond aggressively with very little stimulation.
Others may be subjected to all kinds of threatening stimuli and events, and never
attempt to bite. The difference in this threshold at which a dog displays
aggressive behavior is influenced by both environmental and genetic factors. If
this threshold is low, a dog will be more likely to bite. Raising the threshold
makes a dog less likely to respond aggressively. This threshold can be raised
using behavior modification techniques. How easily the threshold can be changed
is influenced by the dog's gender, age, breed, general temperament, and by
whether the appropriate behavior modification techniques are chosen and
correctly implemented. Working with aggressive dogs can be potentially
dangerous, and should be done only by, or under the guidance of, an experienced
animal behavior professional who understands animal learning theory and behavior.
What
You Can Do
·
First check with your veterinarian to
rule out medical causes for the aggressive behavior.
·
Seek professional help. An aggression
problem will not go away by itself. Working with aggression problems requires
in-home help from an animal behavior specialist.
·
Take precautions. Your first priority is
to keep everyone safe. Supervise, confine and/or restrict your dog’s activities
until you can obtain professional help. You’re liable for your dog’s behavior.
If you must take your dog out in public, consider a cage-type muzzle as a
temporary precaution, and keep in mind that some dogs can get a muzzle off.
·
Avoid exposing your dog to situations
where he is more likely to show aggression. You may need to keep him confined
to a safe room and limit his people-contact.
·
If your dog is possessive of food,
treats or a certain place, don’t allow him access to those items. In an emergency,
bribe him with something better than what he has. For example, if he steals
your shoe, trade him the shoe for a piece of chicken.
·
Spay or neuter your dog. Intact dogs are
more likely to display dominance, territorial and protective aggressive
behavior.
What
Not To Do
·
Punishment won’t help and, in fact, will
make the problem worse. If the aggression is motivated by fear, punishment will
make your dog more fearful, and therefore more aggressive. Attempting to punish
or dominate a dominantly aggressive dog is likely to cause him to escalate his
behavior in order to retain his dominant position. This is likely to result in
a bite or a severe attack. Punishing territorial, possessive or protective
aggression is likely to elicit additional defensive aggression.
·
Don’t encourage aggressive behavior.
Playing tug-of-war or wrestling games encourages your dog to attempt to
"best” you or "win” over you, which can result in the beginning of a
dominance aggression problem. When dogs are encouraged to "go get
'em" or to bark and dash about in response to outside noises or at the
approach of a person, territorial and protective aggressive behavior may be the
result.