# "Reactive" dog aggression



## Carryingon (Aug 28, 2004)

Hi all,
My four year old male GSD has a form of dog aggression that I'm not sure how to deal with. He is not a particularly dominant dog, but he dislikes other dogs. He will absolutely ignore any dog in any environment - leash, even off-leash, in home, in yard, at vet's office, you name it - until that dog approaches him and passes some sort of personal line - about 6 inches from him. Then he EXPLODES - snarling, biting, violently snapping.







As the dog approaches him he is completely silent and his body language is stiff but he doesn't move. Kind of like a coiled snake.







He has never drawn blood, but it may be because it has never been allowed to get past a few seconds. And usually the other dog retreats, aghast. He does this with ANY dog - senior females, other males, even puppies. 


My old girl passed a year ago - another GSD he grew up with and loved - and since then, he's been on his own with me, my DD and two cats. He plays with the cats and my DD very happily and gently - almost submissively. To other humans he is a very serious, reserved dog - not overly fond of strange people or their advances, so I'm careful - but he was socialized well as a pup. 

He had a bad encounter when he was less than a year old with another dog that moved in with a neighbor, a pit bull that I suspect may have been a fighting dog at one time, since he was a scarred up pound resuce and seemingly intent on breaking into my yard and killing both my dogs. We had a chainlink fence and there was horrific fencefighting though I did everything I could to control it. 

I think this may have triggered a reactive dog aggression in my dog, but I'm not sure how to handle it. I know dog aggression is a pain and not easily fixed. I've put a muzzle on him in situations where I know I may not be able to control another dog approaching him. Is that the only solution? I would like to offer a home to a rescue dog in the future maybe, but that may be impossible. Would appreciate any thoughts from those with expereince.


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## Kayos and Havoc (Oct 17, 2002)

This is hard and there is no easy solution that can be put in writing in an abbreviated format. 

Some dogs are naturally dog aggressive genetically others become reactive because they are fearful. If your dog had a bad experience and you are sure this is what triggered it I would assume fear aggression. 

Is he okay with dogs in his face off leash? 

A good many dogs do not like other strange dogs in their personal space and 6 inches is close. I do not let my dogs get that close to strange dogs unless the setting is controlled and both handlers understand dog dynamic.

The stiffening is a warning to the other dog that is being ignored by the other dog or the other dog is forced by a leash to come closer. 

If this were my dog I would start with consistent leadership and learn to earn. I might consider hand feeding meals for a few weeks. This builds the dog's belief that you are his sole source of support. 

I would use heavy reward every time you see another dog approach. You can even use the Look at That! game from Control Unleashed by Leslie McDevitt. Basically you reward the dog for looking at the trigger (other dog) while under thresh hold (no reaction) as you see relaxation you move closer. 

I would learn the body block and train it to fluency in your house, yard, park, on walks, vet's office. Train it when you don't need it so it is habit when you do need it. This body block is protection for your dog and he will see it as that when it successfully keeps a dog out of his space. To do the body block you have to have a short enough leash that you can spin in front of your dog ask for a sit and put your back to the on coming dog. Feed lots of treats during this. You keep maneuvering your body so that you remain between your dog and the other dog. This does work, the other dog looses interest and your dog does not have to erupt and then you can away with no bad encounter. 

Every time this happens your dog is rehearsing bad behavior so it is incumbent on you to stop encounters before they start, like the second you see him stiffen it is your job to re-treat or block.

Hope that helps.


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## JakodaCD OA (May 14, 2000)

Kathy's given great advice,,I'll just ramble about my experience with Masi who is now 8mths old.. 

I took her to puppy class, a purely positive puppy class, she was rather overwhelmed with the rambunctious dogs, but I listened to this trainer (who I most likely shouldn't have) and let things go on.

By the end of a 6 wk puppy class, she had been 'jumped' by more than one puppy and it was just to much for her to handle,,I signed up for the next level, thinking things would get better,,well they didn't,,she was turning into a dog who in my opinion, thought any dog that got toclose was going to "get her",,sooo she went into major defense mode "I'm gonna get you before you get me!"..

I yanked her out of the class, I took 20 steps back, and just started heavily socializing her, keeping her in her "safety" zone, not allowing other dogs to cross the line..

I have just finished 6 weeks at another facility, deprogramming her.
This trainer is a person I know, she has a gated area, that she allowed me to bring masi and just let her hang out and watch,,after 3 weeks of this, and dogs sniffing her thru the gate, etc,,we went into the big room during class, and again, just hung out,,it has worked absolute wonders for her. At the end of the classes, she even PLAYS with some of the dogs/puppies..

Now whether you could find something like this and go with your 4 yr old I don't know,,just a suggestion..

My feeling is, with ALL of my dogs,,I honestly don't care if they like or want to play with strange dogs,,however,,they have to be able to go out in public and be tolerant of other dogs..I do NOT like strangers allowing their dogs in my dogs faces,,,ask first please ))
as I wouldn't allow mine to do the same..

IF I were you,,I wouldn't place your 4 yr old in the position to "zone out"..he sounds like a dog I could definately live with,,just know his safety zone, respect it, and make sure others do as well.

IF you want to work on the problem, ask around at some training facilities, and see if you can do what I did,,just take him and observe,,Keep him in his safety zone, and slowly close that zone.

Honestly, 6 inches isn't unreasonable,,some dogs, just do not like dogs in their space and that's that..If it were say, 20 feet and he goes bonkers,,well that's another thing,,but 6 inches isn't unreasonable in a dog's mind.. Make sense? LOL 

Good luck with him,,
diane


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## Carryingon (Aug 28, 2004)

Kathy and Diane,
Thank you both for your thoughtful replies, and for your suggestions.

Kathy, he exhibits the exact same reaction whether on or off leash. 

It really is the 6" personal space thing - he has never taken off after another dog. And he won't chase the dog even after his little explosion thing - as long as the dog backs off and stays away.

Diane, I'm glad Masi is doing better. I really think the young dog/puppy being bullied by other dogs leaves a major negative imprint on a dog. But socializing is important too, and maybe some trainers are hardwired to that. 

My boy Opa has a great recall and can be exercised off-leash with other dogs in sight, so long as they don't approach him. He has done a peaceful down-stay for long periods with other GSDs within a few feet of him during SchH training; all dogs ignoring eachother. But I'll be putting the muzzle on him tomorrow for his annual vet appointment, on the chance of him running into any other dog in the waiting room. 

I will work on the body blocking, thanks! He does know "watch me" and has some clicker training as well. He's not extremely food motivated but will do anything for a ball.

Do you think muzzling exasperates the problem at all? Because I had the thought of taking him to local obedience classes purely for the sake of socialization, but muzzling him for the safety of other dogs. (It's a police training muzzle, not a pet store cloth one.) 

Thanks again.


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## Packen (Sep 14, 2008)

What activity do you do with your dog, he is 4 yrs old, is he just a pet? any sports? etc.


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## Carryingon (Aug 28, 2004)

Packen, right now he has no "job" other than family pet/guardian/running-biking companion. We belonged to a Schutzhund club where I previously lived and we were very active in it, but do not here - there is no one close enough. Life circumstances prevent me from doing much more with him right now, but I try to keep his mind occupied by tracking and obedience exercises and his physical exercise needs met by runs and ball games every day. He is a working line dog and he needs a lot of activity.


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## Kayos and Havoc (Oct 17, 2002)

He sounds very normal to me, I would simply help him protect his personal space. It sounds like all he is doing is protecting himself from space invaders and there is nothing wrong or aggressive about that.

You can help him to relax more about with very careful work or simply help him protect his space which in turn teaches him greater trust of you and you may see more tolerance as a result.


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## Packen (Sep 14, 2008)

Sounds like a great dog to me, you are taking good care of his needs by exercising and mental stimulation. Might be that he needs correction for his aggression, some working dogs need a stiff distinction between what is expected of them and whats not. In Schutzhund did you use a prong and e-collar?


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## dogs_dolls (Apr 27, 2001)

WHOA, be careful with adversive methods when dealing with a dog aggressive dog. Actually when dealing with ANY aggression issue. This is a case where you probably do not want to fight fire with fire. There is a really good yahoo group site that is devoted to dog aggression. They stress positive training and there are several trainers who post regularly. It is very strictly moderated and they keep right on topic at all times (or else!). 
I really recommend it. They have been very helpful to me over the years in dealling with aggression issues.
[email protected]


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## Riley's Mom (Jun 7, 2007)

Since Yahoo has so many groups, one can easily mis-choose. Which is the one you are referring to dogs_dolls?


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## Packen (Sep 14, 2008)

Proper use of the prong or e-collar is not adverse by any means. The reason I mentioned these is that a Schutzhund dog is typically well familiar with these tools and responds very well. The key term is "proper use".


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## dogs_dolls (Apr 27, 2001)

[email protected] is the specific group I was recommending. If you put this in your search engine it will bring it up. This specific one. There is also a group for "reactive dogs" but to be honest that one does not address serious aggression issues as well as the one I have noted.


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## dogs_dolls (Apr 27, 2001)

Yep I agree with the caveat...Proper use! For training not for punishment. It is a fine line one walks with an aggressive dog, my caution was just that...a caution to be careful what correction methods you use with your particular dog. It is possible to make a bad problem much worse. Having said that, of course the proper use of any training tool depends on the trainer.


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