What To Do If Your Dog Is Becoming Aggressive
Dogs are adorable pets, who have a well-earned reputation as “man’s best friend. ” Throughout the history of mankind they have adapted their behavior until they are not only useful, but also friendly. This is why it is often a concern when a dog is becoming aggressive.
Here are some ideas to solve this attitude:
Is your dog getting aggressive?
One of the first things to have, when you feel that a dog is becoming aggressive, is calm. You have to discover the causes, but, above all, do not make the situation worse with stress or anguish.
In addition, aggressive behavior is a recurring theme that can occur in any type of dog. This is not related to a specific breed and it is not related to whether it is male or female.
Having clarified this point, any concern about possible aggressive behavior in dogs by their owners is logical. However, it must be said that a large part of these aggressiveness problems have a solution.
What to do if your dog is becoming aggressive?
Go to the vet
The vet is the first person to turn to in these cases. In this way, it can be ruled out that the aggressiveness is due to any reason related to their health.
A dog can become aggressive due to, for example, some brain abnormality. An epileptic picture or some type of hormonal imbalance can also influence his aggressiveness.
The percentage of cases of aggressive behavior in dogs is not so low; It is estimated that around 20% of the cases consulted are due to some physical ailment, and that is that pain can also alter the pet. This is common with humans as well, only that dogs have no other way of channeling it because they lack the high reasoning capacity of people.
Define the particular case of aggressiveness
Once, with the help of the veterinarian, some type of health problem has been ruled out, it is time to go to another level, and we must pay attention to the type of aggressiveness that the dog has. Does it bite strangers? Or, do you do it when something that interests you is taken away? The answer to each of these questions will require a different approach and treatment.
Dogs and wolves: their similarities
It should not be forgotten that, to a minimum or greater extent, there is an intrinsic aggressiveness in every dog. Dogs and wolves have a common origin and are animals that live in groups; When this community of animals develops, an alpha male must prevail: the leader of the pack. This is achieved by imposing on the other members of the group.
The aggressiveness that a dog uses to relate to its pack is part of its form of organization; the problem arises when a dog is brought home, a question of which there is no doubt.
The most instinctive thing about the dog is that it assumes that all the other people in that household are its pack. That way, it’s no wonder you want to treat people the way you would treat your canine community. For this reason, it is very important that the hierarchy is established at home, from the first moment.
Offensive or defensive?
It remains to establish whether a dog is becoming aggressive because of a situation of fear or threat, or because of fighting for its space. Once this has been determined, everything else will be less complicated.
When a dog is afraid, do not apply a technique that involves punishment. In this case it would be like fighting fire with gasoline; a feeling of fear must be counteracted by generating mechanisms of trust in the animal. Therefore, it is much better to train with games.
If you are afraid of other people, you have to create progressive conditioning spaces for short periods of time. The dog should feel comfortable and not threatened, and it is that threats will make him more aggressive.
Redirect
When a dog reacts aggressively it is because it has worked for him before and because he has no other response. For this to change, you must have an alternative option to offer the dog; something that may seem attractive to you and fulfills our wishes rather than your aggressiveness.
It is always important that you hardly notice any symptoms of unjustified aggressiveness in a dog, and thus take precautions. So, it is of paramount importance that the animal should be watched and not found to be close to children.
There are minimal precautions that can prevent accidents. It is very positive to take him to the specialist, treat him with authority and affection, put on his leash and muzzle (the latter only when necessary), when going out.
