How To Stop Dog Aggression

Most of us who share our lives with dogs consider them to be members of the family. Thus, it's extremely difficult when our four-legged companion displays aggressive behavior. Although aggression is a complex issue, there are several steps that can be taken to alleviate the problem.

1. Consult your veterinarian. If your dog has never shown any signs of aggression, and suddenly begins growling at, snapping at or biting people, talk to your vet. This type of sudden change in behavior can be a sign of an underlying medical problem such as hypothyroidism or a brain tumor. Once a medical condition is treated or controlled with medication, your pet's behavior may go back to normal.
2. Consult a professional dog trainer or behaviorist. Aggression is one of the toughest problems for dog owners to overcome. Because of the seriousness of this problem, your best bet is not to attempt to fix it alone. Have a trained professional assess your dog's behavior and plan a course of action.
3. Determine the situations in which your dog displays aggressive behavior, and avoid these situations whenever possible. There are a number of reasons why dogs exhibit aggressive behavior including fear and territoriality. An important step in controlling the aggressive behavior is knowing what causes it. Does your dog growl and snap when people approach his food bowl? Does your dog try to bite if his feet are touched? Does your dog growl at strangers who enter your home? Knowing what sets your dog off can help you work with your trainer to decide the best course of action, and in the meantime you can simply avoid putting your pet in a situation that elicits aggression.
4. Create a behavior modification program. Again, this is not something that an owner should do on his or her own, but only with the help of a professional behaviorist or trainer. The professional can help you create a program using positive reinforcement training methods to begin alleviating the problem. For instance, if your dog growls a bit as you approach his food bowl, your trainer may have you practice approaching your dog's food bowl when it's empty and drop a treat into it. Your dog will begin to learn that when people approach his food bowl good things happen for him. A trainer will have you slowly work up to approaching your dog's food bowl while he's eating. The starting point for exercises such as this depends on the degree of aggression your dog has exhibited. Medication may also be a part of the program.
5. Be consistent. One of the toughest parts of working on a behavior modification program is being consistent. Your dog is only going to learn new behaviors if his actions result in the same consequences every time.
6. Never punish your dog for acting aggressively. There are two problems with punishing your dog. The first is that aggression breeds aggression. If you punish your dog for snapping at you, he may feel the need to defend himself or his territory with a bite. The second problem is that too often we punish our dogs for growling or snapping at people. Granted, this is unwanted behavior, but these behaviors are also an indication that your dog is uncomfortable in certain situations. If someone approaches your dog and your dog growls, usually the person will heed the warning and back off with no further harm done. If you don't allow your dog to give a warning growl or snap, he is more likely to simply bite when put into a situation that makes him uncomfortable. This is why so many people report unprovoked bites. The bite is not usually unprovoked; the dog simply has no means of warning you that you're moving beyond his comfort zone.
7. Be prepared for baby steps. Aggression is not a problem that's going to go away overnight, and it may never be fully cured. It may instead be a problem that you learn to manage. It's unrealistic to hope to see major improvements in your dog overnight, but in many cases owners who follow behavior modification programs do end up seeing changes in their dogs' aggressive behavior over time.
8. Take steps early in your dog's life to prevent aggression issues later on. One of the best things you can do for your dog is to socialize him as a puppy. Dogs go through a critical development period between the ages of eight and sixteen weeks. The more new people and experiences he can be exposed to in a positive manner during this time, the less likely he is to act aggressively in new situations later. You can also make an effort during this time to get him used to being held and groomed while getting lots of praise and treats. Also, take opportunities to drop special treats in his food bowl while he's eating, and to offer him treats in trade for a bone or other toy he's chewing on.
9. In cases of serious aggression, be prepared for the worst. There are, unfortunately, some dogs who have aggression issues that even the best trainer is unable to change. In these cases, the dog may present a serious threat to you or other family members. You may have to make a very difficult decision and euthanize the dog in this instance.

Aggression is a serious and complex issue for dog owners to deal with. In many cases, with consistency and the help of a professional, the problem can be overcome or managed.