Aggression
Sometimes it may look as though your dog is being aggressive when he actually isn’t – he’s just being a dog. It’s important to know which is which.
Sometimes it may look as though your dog is being aggressive when he actually isn’t – he’s just being a dog. It’s important to know which is which.
It can be alarming to see a puppy biting and attacking things, not realising that this is natural behaviour for a puppy. Humans have hands, whereas it is a fact of life that dogs use their mouths for many things that we don't! Puppies need to experiment with their mouths and learn how to use them. When a tiny puppy with razor-sharp teeth bites your hand, he’s not being aggressive, he’s learning that biting hurts you. Communicate with him and let him know this. He will modify his behaviour.
If you have a puppy, always have something in your hand that the puppy can chew instead of your hand! If the puppy bites, I say ‘Ow’ and take your hand away.
It’s also normal play behaviour for two dogs to appear to attack each other. Then, when the apparent fight is over, there’s only a bit of slobber and a few hairs out of place. I’ve noticed that Human children often enjoy a bit of rough and tumble, too. Aggression is easily misread, so if you’re not used to dogs playing in this way and need to make sure that it’s not something more serious, ask an experienced dog loving friend or get a behaviourist to check the situation out for you.
Real aggression, on the other hand, is dangerous for the dog, for you and for those he or she comes into contact with. One of the most important things you need to do for your dog is to keep you, your dog, and others safe. This applies to his whole life, not just when aggression is being shown.
It’s important to understand why aggression is being shown. There are several forms of aggressive behaviour, and understanding these can help you to prevent problems arising or developing.
Sometimes aggression occurs because the dog has a medical problem. If a dog is in pain, they can – just like humans – get grumpy. The only way a dog has of telling you that he’s in pain and doesn’t want to be touched, for example, is to scream, snap or bite. So the first thing to do if your dog shows uncharacteristic aggression is to take him for a checkup at the vet’s. A good complementary healthcare practitioner can also often identify a problem that would go unnoticed and otherwise be hard to treat.
Even a change of diet can affect behaviour. We’ve seen many aggressive dogs turn into big softies when they were taken off processed pet food and put onto a natural diet. Dogs can be allergic to food additives, or grains, or even some types of meat, and this can affect their brains. Your vet, a kinesiologist or radionics practitioner can help you to find out if your dog has food allergies. Alternatively, you could put your dog on an exclusion diet (such as fish or chicken and rice or potato) to see if this improves his behaviour. Then, by slowly adding one food type at a time, you can observe whether he is affected by each additional food type.
Omega 3 oils, found in oily fish, support brain function, and have been used to calm aggressive dogs.
Vaccines are also known to cause inflammation in the brain (the scientific term is ‘encephalitis’). One study showed that a high percentage of dogs with problems of aggression first became aggressive shortly after their shots. If this seems to be the case with your dog, you could consult a holistic vet and have your dog treated for vaccine damage. Be very cautious about giving any further vaccines. It may be that he’s safer without any further shots.
You might also like to think about whether your dog has been inadequately socialised. This can apply to adult dogs as well as puppies. Check out socialisation.
Keeping you, your dog, and others safe should be built into your life together at every level. If aggression is shown in any situation, then help should be sought.
Please be aware that a dog should never be forced into a situation that causes him undue stress or threatens his safety or anyone else’s.
It’s also worth asking whether your dog might be mirroring a situation or person in the household. For example, one dog used to growl and snarl at strangers while out on walks. When his guardian realised that she herself was suspicious of strangers and used Emotional Freedom Technique to treat herself, the dog stopped his unwanted behaviour.
The bottom line is that an aggressive dog is not a happy dog. You need to find out why your dog is being aggressive and help him to overcome his problems.
There are various books available to help your understanding of canine behaviour, which can be found in the books section.
However, if you think you need expert help, details can be found in the Trainer/Behaviourist section.
Back to:
Behaviour
A to Z
If you have a puppy, always have something in your hand that the puppy can chew instead of your hand! If the puppy bites, I say ‘Ow’ and take your hand away.
It’s also normal play behaviour for two dogs to appear to attack each other. Then, when the apparent fight is over, there’s only a bit of slobber and a few hairs out of place. I’ve noticed that Human children often enjoy a bit of rough and tumble, too. Aggression is easily misread, so if you’re not used to dogs playing in this way and need to make sure that it’s not something more serious, ask an experienced dog loving friend or get a behaviourist to check the situation out for you.
Real aggression, on the other hand, is dangerous for the dog, for you and for those he or she comes into contact with. One of the most important things you need to do for your dog is to keep you, your dog, and others safe. This applies to his whole life, not just when aggression is being shown.
It’s important to understand why aggression is being shown. There are several forms of aggressive behaviour, and understanding these can help you to prevent problems arising or developing.
Sometimes aggression occurs because the dog has a medical problem. If a dog is in pain, they can – just like humans – get grumpy. The only way a dog has of telling you that he’s in pain and doesn’t want to be touched, for example, is to scream, snap or bite. So the first thing to do if your dog shows uncharacteristic aggression is to take him for a checkup at the vet’s. A good complementary healthcare practitioner can also often identify a problem that would go unnoticed and otherwise be hard to treat.
Even a change of diet can affect behaviour. We’ve seen many aggressive dogs turn into big softies when they were taken off processed pet food and put onto a natural diet. Dogs can be allergic to food additives, or grains, or even some types of meat, and this can affect their brains. Your vet, a kinesiologist or radionics practitioner can help you to find out if your dog has food allergies. Alternatively, you could put your dog on an exclusion diet (such as fish or chicken and rice or potato) to see if this improves his behaviour. Then, by slowly adding one food type at a time, you can observe whether he is affected by each additional food type.
Omega 3 oils, found in oily fish, support brain function, and have been used to calm aggressive dogs.
Vaccines are also known to cause inflammation in the brain (the scientific term is ‘encephalitis’). One study showed that a high percentage of dogs with problems of aggression first became aggressive shortly after their shots. If this seems to be the case with your dog, you could consult a holistic vet and have your dog treated for vaccine damage. Be very cautious about giving any further vaccines. It may be that he’s safer without any further shots.
You might also like to think about whether your dog has been inadequately socialised. This can apply to adult dogs as well as puppies. Check out socialisation.
Keeping you, your dog, and others safe should be built into your life together at every level. If aggression is shown in any situation, then help should be sought.
Please be aware that a dog should never be forced into a situation that causes him undue stress or threatens his safety or anyone else’s.
It’s also worth asking whether your dog might be mirroring a situation or person in the household. For example, one dog used to growl and snarl at strangers while out on walks. When his guardian realised that she herself was suspicious of strangers and used Emotional Freedom Technique to treat herself, the dog stopped his unwanted behaviour.
The bottom line is that an aggressive dog is not a happy dog. You need to find out why your dog is being aggressive and help him to overcome his problems.
There are various books available to help your understanding of canine behaviour, which can be found in the books section.
However, if you think you need expert help, details can be found in the Trainer/Behaviourist section.
Back to:
Behaviour
A to Z