When dealing with dog-to-dog aggression, it is important to listen to our dog.
There are many reasons why a dog may act aggressively toward another.
- He may be afraid.
- He may be stressed because his space is being violated.
- He may feel the need to dominate.
- He may be protective of us.
- He may be very curious.
- He may just be over-excited.
Sometimes, what we perceive to be aggression may be the result of hyper energy, eagerness, or natural inquisitiveness. Therefore, in dog-to-dog aggression cases, it is important to understand what our dog is feeling, and what he is trying to say.
When my dog meets a new dog, I observe both of them carefully. As soon as my dog starts to get stressed, I step in and interrupt before the situation escalates.
For dog aggression issues, it is best to take a dog’s age, health, temperament, and preferences into account, while coming up with appropriate solutions.
1. Be Calm and Decisive
Dogs are very sensitive to what their human is feeling. My dog picks up on my emotions and reflects them, except with much more intensity. Sometimes, I am not even conscious of feeling nervous or stressed, but my dog notices it and starts to act up. Once I consciously calm myself down, his behavior also improves.
A common mistake when meeting other dogs is to tense up, and get fearful of what our dog may do. If we are afraid, our dog will pick up on that fearful energy, and that will likely trigger an aggressive reaction.
Be careful not to put undue or continuous tension on the leash. Also, do not pull the dog straight back, as that will likely cause a lunge forward response. To remove my dog, I pull him to the side and quickly walk him past the other dog.
2. Teach Our Dog Avoidance
When I see another dog, I usually just ignore him and move along.
I have found that avoidance is most effective when I avert my eyes from both dog, as well as owner. I keep my eyes forward, and keep walking at a natural pace. In this way, my dog learns that when we see other dogs, we avoid rather than confront.
Be careful not to crowd our dog while walking. If he feels trapped between us and the other dog, he may think he has no choice but to react aggressively. Do not stand still while trying to tug our dog away. Move away, and he will come along with us. At the same time, we are creating space so that he will not feel trapped.
I do not let my dog obsess or stare intensely at other dogs. Sometimes, my Shiba Inu will drop into a stalking-down-position, stare, and wait for the other dog to pass. Some people think that he is such a good boy for doing a Down, when other dogs are coming toward him, but he is actually just waiting to pounce.
Do not allow this bad behavior, do not let our dog practice it, do not even let him think about it. Just move him along, and ignore. If the other dog is somehow blocking us (e.g. if the owner is unable to control his dog), then walk away in a different direction. Do not stare the other dog down and do not confront him, either through posture or by physically engaging him.
Challenging unknown dogs is a good way to get bitten.
3. Create Space or Block the Other Dog
We can do this by moving across the road or into a driveway, and waiting for the other dog to pass.
We may also move our dog behind a barrier, for example a car. If there are no barriers available, we can try blocking the dog’s view with our body.
By doing this, we avoid a head-on, more confrontational passing.
I have tried all of these blocking techniques, but what works best for me is to create space, and quickly move past the other dog. Whenever I wait for the other dog to pass, my Shiba uses that time to start obsessing.
Dog treats and trying to get his attention do not work at this point, because the other dog is too close, and Shiba Sephy is no longer listening. The advantage of walking Sephy briskly past the other dog, is that he has less time to stare. In addition, he cannot fully obsess, because he must partly focus on walking.
However, using barriers and blocking may work better for a fearful dog.
Some trainers suggest turning and walking away when we see another dog, rather than passing him or waiting for him to pass.
There are two problems with this method:
- If we turn away, the other dog will be following us. This may cause some dogs to keep looking back, to make sure that the follower is not a threat. I have tried this, and indeed my Shiba keeps looking back.
- If we keep turning away, we may meet other dogs and get boxed in; especially if there are many dogs in our neighborhood.
4. Create Neutral Experiences
I try to create as many neutral dog-to-dog meeting experiences as possible. If every time my dog sees another dog, we just pass by and nothing interesting happens, it will become a non-event.
Being consistent with neutral greetings will build our dog’s confidence. Through repetition, we are teaching him how to behave (just avoid and move along), and how not to behave (get over-excited, frustrated, lunge, and pull). He will be more calm because he is not waiting in anticipation of a highly charged encounter, either for play or for confrontation.
I try to set my dog up for success, and do not let him practice aggressive behaviors when meeting other dogs. The more he practices, the more aggressive he will be.
If my dog becomes agitated during a walk, I try to end the outing as soon as possible. Once in this mode, his adrenaline levels will be high for a fair duration, and he will likely react aggressively to all the dogs that we meet. In this state, he will no longer be capable of learning, and will only be practicing dog aggressive behaviors.
5. Protect our Dog
I usually keep my dog away from people and dogs with weak energy (e.g. fearful, excited, or frustrated energy). In addition, I also try to keep other dogs and owners from coming into my dog’s space. I say a quick ‘hi’ to the people I meet, and move on.
If people with weak energy stop and want to meet my dog, I ask them nicely to please move on, because my dog is easily excitable.
It is fine and good to let a dog meet people with calm energy, but make sure to let them know how to best meet our dog. In particular, turn away when he jumps, no quick movements, and no petting from above.
6. Keep Greetings Short and Sweet
While greeting another dog, we want to positively interrupt our dog every so often, and get him to refocus on us. Do this as many times as necessary, so that our dog does not get over-excited, and lose control of himself.
Whenever my dog is meeting a new dog, I interrupt him after a very short duration (2-3 seconds). I quickly move or jog away from the other dog, while giving the positive interrupt command, e.g. Hey, hey. Initially, I may have to lightly tug at my dog while moving away. I make sure to treat him well for moving toward me on a loose leash.
If our dog is too obsessed to move away and is strongly standing his ground, then we have waited too long to initiate the interrupt. Positive interrupts are also useful for dealing with human greetings, and getting our dog away from a dirty or unsuitable area.
The key to successful positive interrupts is to catch a dog early, before he starts to obsess on another dog or object.
7. Be Aware of Aggressive Triggers
Some dogs, for example Spitz-type dogs, have a natural look that may appear dominant (ears up, hair out, tail up). This dominant look may instigate other dogs to respond in kind, and start posturing as well. Conflicts may occur, and if neither dog is willing to back down, this may lead to a dog fight.
If I am unsure about a dog greeting, I just move on. Better to be safe than sorry.
8. Desensitize our Dog to Other Dogs
The problem with dog-to-dog aggression issues, is that in regular situations the “other dog” stimulus is too strong, and environment is too unstructured for any learning to occur. Often, our dog overloads quickly and becomes reactive, because the other dog is too close, is staring, is hyper, or is charging toward us.
In the desensitization process, we do training in a quiet, enclosed environment, and start with a very weak version of the problem stimulus. In terms of reactivity toward other dogs, we can use distance to weaken its effect.
In this way, we also weaken the strength of our dog’s reaction, so that he will be calm enough to listen and learn. This is necessary, to create opportunities where we can begin to teach our dog to be calm and relaxed, while in the presence of another dog.
I did quite a lot of dog-to-dog desensitization sessions with Sephy, when he was young, at our local SPCA. The trainers there had many balanced, friendly dogs, that we could do training with.
First, the trainer would engage the other dog in training exercises, so that he stays in a fixed position, and is not focused on Sephy (i.e., no eye-contact). Both dogs are on-leash.
I take Sephy a far distance away, far enough away that he is still calm and able to listen to me. Then, I get his attention by calling his name. If he looks at me, I praise, and treat him for behaving well. Sometimes, I also ask him to do very simple commands, e.g. Sit.
I let Sephy sit and watch the other dog as long as he is calm, and willing to give me his attention when I ask for it. Once we are both comfortable with this, I move one step toward the other dog and repeat the Focus and Sit exercises above.
Do not move too close to the other dog, too quickly. If we move forward too fast, our dog may become reactive, and will no longer be able to give us his attention. At this point, I no-mark Sephy (uh-oh) and move back a few steps. Once we are far enough away, I try to get his attention again. When he gives it to me, I stop, praise, and treat.
Note – for desensitization to be successful, we want to keep our dog below his instinct threshold as much as possible.
I always try to make sessions short, fun, and rewarding. This helps our dog associate other dogs with being calm, and with positive experiences. I make sure to stop before my dog shows any obsessive behavior, and long before he becomes aggressive. Once a dog becomes reactive or aggressive, it is usually best to end the session soon after.
As we make progress, we can slowly increase the strength of the problem stimulus. For example, we may allow the target dog to start moving around, or we may allow him to play with his handler.
The desensitization process can be long and difficult. Dogs with lower instinct thresholds (the point at which they lose control and switch to instinct) will be harder to desensitize. However, consistent practice will also help to raise this threshold.
What to Expect from Dog-to-Dog Aggression Training
Do not expect too much, too quickly, from our dog. Make sure to treat and praise him very well, if he voluntarily engages in avoidance maneuvers, when there are other dogs around. This includes looking away from the direction of the other dog, smelling and exploring the environment, or looking at us for direction.
Initially, treat and praise even small avoidance moves, for example looking away for just 1 second. If a dog will not accept treats from us, then he is too far gone and it is best to lead him away. Treats are only effective for shaping behavior when our dog is still thinking, and not operating on instinct.
If we keep practicing desensitization exercises, and teach our dog how to behave with other dogs, he will improve. As he matures, he will become more confident, be less dog aggressive, and be more comfortable around new experiences.
For aggression issues between two family dogs, here is more on how I help my dogs get along.
Thank you for this article! My German Shepherd 2 y.o. dog is extremely gentle w people and children of all ages, but with some dogs she begins lunging and barking. I have been at my wits end and the positive reinforcement “treating only” techniques have failed because she has no interest in the treats when she gets over-stimulated. Thank you for offering some good insight and suggestions!
This is a great article and you have described my dog perfectly. I have a Shiba/jindo mix who is 50 pounds. I try to avoid other dogs on walks, and move to the other side of the street and such, as you mentioned above.
He has not been socialized much, but I always have him on a leash for walks. How do I handle other dogs whose owners let them run off leash and then come up (usually running) to greet my dog. He does not take this as a greeting and proceeds to try to bite and attack them.
thanks for your help.
Yeah, I get that too in my neighborhood. It is a difficult problem because it is really a people issue rather than a dog issue.
Here is more on my experiences with off-leash neighborhood dogs.
Hi! Love your blog! We adopted Lucy, a female, spayed pit mix several years ago. She’s a lovely, intelligent dog but she has some quirks. She will bite if startled (we understand that fear trigger and try to keep her away from stressful situations and children). Two months ago, we brought home an abandoned 5-month old mixed JRT. He is a male, thus was promptly neutered. He is gentle and submissive, though occasionally rude in his enthusiasm. He is also occasionally the object of Lucy’s redirected aggression if someone knocks on the door. Lucy will bite him in her excitement. We are working on this, too. But we have a problem we aren’t sure how to handle. The JRT, still being a pup, sometimes hurts himself while playing and will let out a yelp. This triggers an immediate attack response in Lucy. It’s as if her little brain enters another dimension. She will come from anywhere in the house to go after him, and she is serious. Is this a prey situation? I have scolded her severely for this, and she is just contrite and confused. It’s as if she doesn’t even know why she is being scolded. At all other times, she loves the little newbie. Can you offer any help for this problem? Any suggestions on the redirected aggression would be helpful, also. Thanks so much!
I’d also appreciate some advice on how to keep her from correcting him when he is rude and invades her space. I realize that this is partly our responsibility in that we need to teach him better manners. But she is often quicker than we are and will snap at him before we have a chance to intervene. How should we react to this? As bad as all this sounds, Lucy has really welcomed having some canine company and 99% of the time, is patient and gentle with him. Thanks again.
Have you tried doing sound desensitization exercises with Lucy?
My Husky Lara was reactive to the sound of garbage trucks and coyotes when she was young. Doing controlled desensitization exercises combined with management, helped to raise her reactivity threshold, build her confidence, helped her to calm down.
In the beginning, I did the exercises with Lara alone. I make sure that my other dogs are safe and in a separate area. Then, I start playing a recording of the garbage truck sounds in soft volume. I engage Lara in doing very simple obedience commands and reward her very well for staying calm. I repeat until she is comfortable and fully relaxed, then I *very slowly* increase the volume of my recording, repeat the exercises, and so on.
After Lara was comfortable with the sounds in natural volume (what she would hear normally), I started to do exercises with the garbage truck itself. Garbage trucks come by on Tuesday, so we would practice desensitization every Tuesday, first inside the house, then close to the door, then in our front yard, and so on. Each successful exercise helped her to build more confidence, and to be more relaxed and calm.
During desensitization, I very carefully managed Lara’s environment, so that we did not accidentally meet a garbage truck during our walks. This would trigger a fear reaction, undermine her confidence, and set back our training. I only expose her to the stressful stimulus slowly, in a controlled way, and only when I am sure that she can handle it without losing control. I keep sessions short, fun, and positive. I make sure to always keep everyone safe during training, and I use management equipment (e.g. baby gates, leashes) as necessary.
More on how I do sound desensitization exercises with my dog.
In terms of introducing a new dog, and helping everyone get along, this is what I do.
However, dog behavior is very context dependent. I consulted with several professional trainers when I was going through a difficult period with my Shiba (Sephy), and it was helpful to have someone observe Sephy, teach me how to read his body language, as well as help me with technique and timing. For more serious bite issues, it is also best to consult with a professional trainer.
http://www.apdt.com/pet-owners/choosing-a-trainer/
Big hugs to Lucy and her new brother. It is very good to see that they have found such a good forever home. 😀
Hello. We recued our female Basset/Beagle mix (Dog A) in January 2013. She is older – probably over 6. She is very sweet. Cuddly. A joy.
We rescued our female Pointer (Dog B) just 10 days ago. She was under weight, had numerous rashes/skin allergies, severe itching and nawing, sad, and who knows her history. She is slightly gray in the face – so she may be over 6 yrs as well. Dog B was also very sweet, cuddly, fearful at time of doorways, and slept ALOT on our couch. By day 5, Dog B had put on a few pounds and we got the medication that she needed to help with her conditions. She is a HAPPY HEALTHY dog now.
On day 8, Dog B started trying to dominate Dog A. Dog B will stare at Dog A, cutt her off as Dog A is walking, block Dog A from my husband and I, sit close as Dog A lays on the floor.
This morning Dog B showed the first signs of aggression towards Dog A. She showed her teeth and nipped at Dog A as Dog A was approaching where Dog B was laying on the couch.
Is Dog B demanding the Alpha role since Dog A could care less? Do we allow Dog B to keep this role? Will Dog B’s aggression advance?
I don’t want to give up on this dog. Thank you!
Let me rephase my question…..
I realize we must not allow aggression. But do I do such things as feeding Dog B before Dog A? How do I keep Dog B from “bullying” Dog A? Is Dog B demanding the Alpha role because she is new? Larger? I see Dog A as the Alpha because she was “there first”. Dog A sleeps with us. Dog B sleeps on the couch. Can we continue this arrangement?
Some things that have worked well with my dogs-
1. I set up clear dog-to-dog interaction rules. For example, there is no stealing, no bullying, no humping, and no correcting each other.
2. I supervise them closely, especially when there is a new dog around. In this way, I can teach the new dog what the interaction rules are, together with the help of my existing dogs. If there are any conflicts, I will resolve them in a fair and consistent manner. I set the rules, I enforce them.
3. I do group training sessions and other fun things with my dogs together. In this way, they learn to associate other dogs with positive outcomes, rather than as competitors for resources.
4. I manage my dogs’ excitement level so that they do not lose control of themselves during play and other activities.
Here is more on what I do while introducing a second dog.
Hey! I have a boxer who usually is the kindest dog in the world, but when we meet small dogs she just snaps! She does everything she can to come close to them and try do dominate. What can I do?
Some dogs may snap at small dogs because of prey-drive.
http://sixteen-feet.com/blog/2013/4/4/prey-drive
http://www.dogways.info/the-canine-prey-drive-instinct
I do desensitization exercises to raise my dog’s reactivity threshold, and to teach him how to behave in the presence of other dogs. I make sure to keep everyone safe during training, by keeping my dog on-leash and in-control at all times.
Hi there! This problem is very recent and very shocking to me. I have four dogs. The oldest is 7, and she is a 60 pound Pitbull/boxer/lab mix, Ainsley. I received her a bit too early from an eager owner, at 5 weeks old. She has always been very energetic, athletic, and intelligent to the point that she understands how to turn doorknobs. This has resulting in replaced doorknobs from toothmarks but…you know.
The next oldest is Morgan, a 5 year old Cane Corso/Neopolitan Mastiff mix. We received her at 7 weeks old, also a bit early. She was deeply inbred and has some mental issues because of it, but we love her all the same even though she’s special needs, and she plays with Ainsley well, as Ainsley helped take care of her during puphood.
The next two are sisters, from the same litter, 4 year old Siberian Huskies Arkham and Lillith. I recieved Lillith at 7 weeks, and Arkham at 10.
Arkham is a very ‘talky’ husky. Lots of sounds come from her and she’ll stare you right in the eyes while she does the, expecting you to answer. She gets offended if you don’t. She is otherwise quiet, out of the way, calm, collected, and never aggressive. Then, there’s Lillith. She is the typical, classic husky. Fluffy, fast, and strong. She is energetic, but normally very well behaved despite being hard headed and a ‘runner’ (Arkham has never left the vicinity of the house, but Lillith will run for miles just to run). The problem is Ainsley and Lillith. Ten minutes, they can be best friends, snuggling and licking and grooming each other (a favored past-time of Ainsley) but the next, they’ll fight so hard that I need a pry-stick to break ’em up. After a 15-20 minute cool down. they are cleaning each others wounds and snuggling again, as if the previous fight never happened. They even cry if I decide to keep them separate for longer.
Arkham is clearly the omega here, and I’m certain that Lillith is planning on taking over Ainsley spot as dominant dog, as Ainsley is now officially a senior and should be beginning to slow down soon. Unfortunately for Lillith, Ains is still the reigning champ of their fights.
This is worrying me more than usual because Arkham had puppies. They are now 10 weeks old and I only have two left, and one we call a mini-Ainsley, aka ‘The Devil’ and officially known as ‘Banshee’ because of her attitude, her willingness to succeed and dominate, and her habit of LOUDLY HOWLING HER TRIUMPH OVER THIS FOOD BOWL.
She had gotten very, very attached to Ainsley, moreso even than Arkham, and Ainsley was happy to play with her. Taught her growling, stalking, pouncing, and even that it was okay to share food instead of being a jerk about it. However today, Ainsley seemed grumpy or annoyed, and bit Banshee superficially. (The wound bled alot, but no serious damage was done.) Banshee was fine after a 10 minute calm-down snuggle, and Ainsley was sitting at our glass door with her paws on it, crying. Everything about her read ‘submissive, apology’ and worry’ about ‘her’ puppy.
Is her age beginning to effect her, and her over-aggression with Lillith (Whom I have had to stop from attacking an unsuspecting Ainsley) because of her growing weakness? (Though at 7 years old and still able to pulls a 130 pound cart, I’d say she’s showing no signs of slowing…)
What helps most with my dogs, is to set up clear dog-to-dog interaction rules.
When there is a new puppy, I make sure to supervise closely and teach my puppy what are good ways of interaction and what behaviors are not acceptable. Puppies, especially Husky puppies have a lot of energy, so they will want to play and interact almost all of the time. This can become annoying, even to a usually patient adult dog, who needs some quiet time now and then. 😀
Therefore, I set up some clear rules and boundaries, and I enforce them. I make sure that my puppy has a fixed routine, and that my adult dogs can have quiet time away from puppy whenever they want it. If there are conflicts, I will resolve them in a fair and consistent manner, before it escalates into anything serious. In this way, my dogs learn that they do not need to correct each other, because that is my job. They get to enjoy each others’ company, and I get to be the bad Sheriff. 😈
Here is more on what I do at home to keep the peace-
http://shibashake.com/dog/second-dog-introducing-a-second-dog
Hi, this information is really helpful.
But I do have a question. I have a Siberian husky (unspayed), that is a year and a few months. She was raised by me since she was 8 weeks old, but I’ve been around her since she was a week old. I had 2 other dogs, one 12 year old fixed male and a 6 year old unspayed female. When she got a bit older, she started attacking the male, the second time was bad enough so she got scolded and never touched him again. Now, she’s been attacking the older female for about 2-3 months now, ever since she went in her second heat. Everytime they are close to each other, the youngest raises her fur and starts shaking and grolwing. When I’m walking with her and she meets another dog, she raises her fur and start shaking a bit (Less than with our other female). I’m not sure what to do anymore, we have to keep one locked in a room to avoid further injuries, I have also been injured stopping one of the dog fights.
Dogs can get more aggressive during their heat cycle.
My Huskies are spayed so I do not have much experience with care and management during the heat cycle. Also, given that there is injury, I would get help from a professional who can develop a safe plan for retraining as well as management strategies during the heat cycle.
http://www.apdt.com/pet-owners/choosing-a-trainer/
hey. I have a tibetan spaniel that is 14 months old and is aggressive with other dogs. He is great with people but the main problem with him is that he just reacts really aggressively to other dogs on walks. We have been attending a dog socialisation class on the weekends the past two weeks and he was amazingly well behaved at the school being off the leash with other dogs with no aggression. But he is still aggressive on walks and my mother gets quite upset and hesitant to take him for walks anymore. I was just wondering if the dog socialisation is the best thing we can do? or is there more to do?
We both try and tell him to stop when he gets aggressive but he gets a bit out of control. Please any advice will help. thankyou
It sounds like it could be on-leash aggression-
http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/dog-behavior/dogs-who-are-reactive-leash
With my Shiba Inu, I helped him to stay calm around other dogs by doing dog-to-dog desensitization exercises. I also create neutral experiences and use distance and barriers to reduce the strength of the “other-dog” stimulus. I describe more of what I do in the article above.
I have a year and a half old cockapoo. He weighs twenty pounds so he is a pretty small dog. He is perfectly fine with people but if we are in the vet or on a walk and another dog goes by, and doesn’t even look at him, once he spots another dog he makes a very high pitch noise and shows he teeth and starts to get aggressive. I yell at him but I do not know how to stop it!! He also gets that way with toys and food towards our other cocker spaniel! I am lost at what to do to stop this behavior.
With my Shiba Inu I did dog-to-dog desensitization exercises to help him be more calm around other dogs. In addition, dogs will pick up on the energy of the people around them. Therefore, to get my Shiba to calm down, I make sure to stay very calm myself, and I use distance or barriers to weaken the “other dog” stimulus.
Here are some things that I do to help my dogs get along at home.
I need help. My 5 year old beagle/terrier mix and my 1 year old rednose/staffordshire terrier mix have been fighting. It got to the point that my husband is ready to find a new home for one of them. I want to avoid that if at all possible. The first fight I am unsure of the reason because I was not in the room when it broke out, but the second was because the 5 year old growled at the 1 year old and next thong I know they are fighting. They are currently not allowed to be together which is a strain, but worth it to prevent any further fighting. What do I need to do to create a safe environment for my dogs?
Here are some things that I do to keep the peace at home with my dogs.
I would also consider getting help from a professional trainer. A professional can observe the dogs, read their body language, and help us identify the source of the aggression.
http://www.apdt.com/pet-owners/choosing-a-trainer/
When dogs growl – it is already a warning for “something”. With my dogs, I try to determine the root cause of the behavior, for example, what made the 5 year old growl? Was it a toy that both wanted? Did the older dog just want to rest? Did they both want to lie on the same space? What was the surrounding context? Who usually starts the disagreement?