Thinks He Owns The Place...

[Guest HeatherLee]

I've posted on an issue related to this before but would like additional input on this specific problem...

 

In a nutshell....I've had Gambler for a year, he's 4 years old now. A month after I adopted him he was attacked by my roommate's large dog and got pretty severely cut up. We promptly moved out. Since then I've come to learn he really doesn't care for obnoxious high energy dogs, or any dog that tries to be dominant. If we're in a public place and he's on a leash, he's fine with these dogs, maybe they'll sniff each other or he'll ignore them and continue on his way. He's barked at a few that have got in his face too much but that's not a big deal. I've taken him out in public to dog parks (which I don't go to much because I just don't like them), horse shows (with lots of dogs) malls, downtowns, etc.. and he's really well behaved with other dogs on leashes.

 

However, in any apartment complex we've lived in since then and especially the one I live in now, it seems to be a different story. He barks and growls and lunges at about 90% of the dogs that live in my complex. The only ones he doesn't bark at are the puppies and very tiny yorkies and min pins (as long as they don't start it first, you know how little dogs are, haha) I've noticed the other dog owners look terrified of him and I don't want him to have a reputation for being vicious because I know he really isn't. I'm pretty sure it may just be that he thinks the complex is his territory. When he does growl and lunge I hold him back (not jerking the collar) and try to remain calm and not yell. I usually end up just saying "whoa, easy, and shhhhh" (i'm a horse person) . I've also noticed he seems to be more of a small terror when my mom is walking him (she is more anxious about the situation than I am)

 

I've tried acting like it's no big deal when the other dogs come into view and sometimes that does help because I know he can sense my anxiety but it doesn't always help. I honestly don't care if he ever makes friends with the other dogs because I'm not a big fan of obnoxious high energy dogs either (i'm sure he senses that too since he tends to be a little protective) I just want him to chill out and not be seen as vicious and know these other dogs aren't a threat. Any advice?

[Sambuca]

I don't have any advice on him being territorial. I wish I did because I once had to rehome a dog partly because she was territorial (the biggest reason is that my first dog would poop in the house whenever the new one was there and I wasn't).

 

I don't think Gambler is dominant though, I think he just doesn't like dogs with bad manners. I wouldn't like if a stranger came up to me and started getting in my face, even if they weren't being aggressive. Thankfully, I can use words to express that I'm uncomfortable, Gambler can't, so he growls and snaps.

 

As for being worse with your mom, it makes sense. Dogs pick up on our emotions. If your mom is anxious Gambler is going to think there's a reason to be anxious and will be on edge. I'm a dog walker and I walk a pit bull every day that walks fairly well with me. The owner is deployed and his mom is caring for the dog. She is so anxious that she can't walk the dog. She'll sometimes join me on walks with the dog and if we see another dog (the pit bull is extremely dog aggressive) I've told the woman that she needs to walk away until I get the dog calm because it takes much much longer for the dog to mellow out when she's around. Thankfully the woman has seen the results and will walk away without me saying a word to her now.

[scullysmum]

It sounds to me more like fear aggression rather than dominance, it may have been triggered by the attack when you first had him, or he may already have been like it but it had not shown up before because he was still in the "frozen watchfullness" stage that many dogs go through in their early days in a new home (they seem to be perfect in every way but are just keeping their heads down and finding the lie of the land).

I know that there are many more experienced folk here than me who can give you more detailed advice but what worked with my girl Sadi (now at the bridge) was distraction in the form of food and ensuring wherever possible that a "safe" distance was kept between her and the dog she was afraid of. The less chance that a dog gets to display aggression the better. It helps to find ways to keep yourself calm too, so they don't pick up on your anxiety. I found that singing to myself helped, yes, people probably thought I was mad, but you can't hold your breath and sing! My girl took about a year to realise that she didn't need to be afraid any more but was just fine after that.

 

As I said no doubt others will be along with good practical tips .

[brianamac]

I have a dog that sounds a little like yours--Boo had harsh injuries after being attacked 2 months after adoption, many fear aggression behaviours ensued, and he has low (try NO) tolerance for high energy and obnoxious dogs he meets.

I tried searching for the threads I think may help you, but I can't find them. I really hope Giselle chimes in on this. On the thread I'm thinking of, she posts some videos of teaching 'look at that' to dogs that have reactivity issues. From what I remember of the video, it sounds like that type of training could be really helpful for Gambler.

Edited March 1, 2014 by brianamac

[Guest Giselle]

It sounds to me more like fear aggression rather than dominance, it may have been triggered by the attack when you first had him, or he may already have been like it but it had not shown up before because he was still in the "frozen watchfullness" stage that many dogs go through in their early days in a new home (they seem to be perfect in every way but are just keeping their heads down and finding the lie of the land).

Yes, I agree. Many reactive dogs won't react in new or overwhelming situations because it's so overstimulating that they can't even slow down enough to show aggression. They may look "fine", but an experienced eye will tell you that they're not. There's an enormous difference between a dog who is so overstimulated that he just tunes everything out, looks the other way, "turns deaf", etc. versus a dog who is truly at ease in a situation and is actively and happily engaging with others/the environment. The former is more common. The latter requires a well trained and socialized dog. Given his history, I do not think that he's showing territorial aggression, and I think it has nothing at all to do with this nebulous outdated concept of "dominance". It sounds like fear and frustration.

 

Regardless of the cause, the solution is generally the same: Ensure that your dog is happily focused on you. No matter how the dog feels about the other dogs, we want him to change his thinking from "OH NO (or, for many reactive dogs, it's: Oh YAY)! There's another dog!!! Bark bark bark!!" to "Oh look, it's a dog. Oh, that means it's time to focus on my handler!". This way, we are replacing their overaroused reactions with handler focus. Instead of holding back our dogs or telling them "No!" or trying to verbally soothe them, we're giving them clear instructions on what TO do instead. This way, there is no ambiguity and less room for mistakes. There are several ways to do this. One is the use of repetitive sits:

http://drsophiayin.com/videos/entry/podees_aggressive_to_other_dogs

Automatic sits are also my first line of defense in teaching dogs impulse control and is a good technique to keep your dog's focus in tough situations:

http://www.progressdog.com/automatic-sits.html

If your hound doesn't like sitting, you can substitute with a Down or try Targeting games:

http://www.progressdog.com/video-targeting-game.html

This is more complex, but it allows you to be a little more flexible and move towards triggers:

http://www.progressdog.com/video-focused-heel-and-lat-technique.html

^This does require your dog to know how to heel, or at least know how to focus on a loose leash. I really only suggest using the "Look at That game" as an adjunct to help solidify a dog's focus. Before teaching LAT, your dog should already know how to give eye contact and should already be strong with it in public.

[Guest HeatherLee]

thank you all so much for the wonderful information, I'll definitely work on these things with him. I can agree that it's possible it's not about territory, however this reaction only happens when he's in the apartment complex or immediately around it. I have no issue with him anywhere else I go where there are other dogs. Thoughts?

[Guest Giselle]

It's because he's familiar with the area and he *knows* that there are dogs there. Dogs are incredibly good at remembering things based on their spatial locations. They're excellent readers of context. They know that apartment complex = dogs running around = things to get excited/bark at. Because the association is so strong, he's likely entering that area with an anticipatory aroused state of mind.

Plus, because aggression is inherently risky behavior and animals do (should) not use it as a first resort, they require a baseline level of comfort before aggressing. Example: A group of adolescent kids is much likelier to bully someone than a single adolescent kid. It's social support, a kind of group mentality, something that offers familiarity and baseline support for the creature/human to show aggression.

Edited March 6, 2014 by Giselle

[Guest HeatherLee]

thanks again for all your suggestions, we're definitely working on things.. albeit slowly.