It can mean anything from staring, jumping, showing teeth, lunging, growling, barking, or the terrible B-word – biting.

Usually, aggression is used to describe dogs that overact to a stimuli (e.g. another dog, a stranger, food).

Reactivity is a new, perhaps less negative term, coined to describe the same behavior. Some trainers use aggression to describe dogs that overact as a result of dominance and reactivity to describe dogs that overact as a result of fear.

These terms, however, are just labels, and it is not useful to overly focus on which label to use.

The important thing is to recognize extreme behavior in our dogs, which causes us to lose control.

Dog Aggression - What Does it Mean?

Mouthing and showing teeth in one context may just be play, while in another, it may be dangerous.

What constitutes extreme behavior varies from person to person, and is dependent on context. Mouthing and showing teeth in one context may just be play (top and right), while in another, it may be dangerous.

A problem only arises when the human/owner is not in control of the situation.

If your dog is biting you and causing puncture wounds, it is best to seek help from a professional dog trainer.

My Experiences with Dog Aggression

Don't let that cute face fool you - He is a terror that flaps in the night!

I was very embarrassed, shocked, and worried when my Shiba first showed signs of aggression. It happened four days after we brought him home (at 10 weeks old), when we took him to the vet.

The vet was very afraid of him and had to muzzle him to do an examination. She later recommended that we return him to the breeder. I never visited with this poor vet again, but at the time it was very difficult not to be embarrassed, and try to show that we were good dog parents by scolding and punishing our Shiba.

Many of my neighbors also gave us the ‘you are such a bad dog parent‘ look.

Because I was so embarrassed I made some very bad mistakes. The worst was using alpha rolls and other aversive techniques including leash jerks with him. My embarrassment also caused me to get angry, and frustrated with my dog.

I was jealous and hurt when my dog would behave better with other people. After all, I feed him and take care of him most of the time, why should he misbehave most with me?

Although it is very natural to have such feelings, they are very detrimental to helping a dog with his reactivity or aggression issues.

With proper reward training, Shiba Sephy is now less of a terror and more of a lover.

Dog Aggression and Love

Remember that your dog’s behavior is a result of behavior conditioning, and not from lack of love

It is natural for us to place our own, very human values and expectations upon our dogs but that is not the way they think.

Dogs respond to conditioning (classical and operant). Dogs will repeat behaviors that have good results and reduce behaviors that have bad results.

What constitutes a good or bad result can sometimes vary from dog to dog. If your dog is showing aggressive behaviors that are continuing to escalate, then he is inadvertently being rewarded for that bad behavior.

• Does he get to go on a walk when he jumps up on you and makes a pest of himself?
• Does he get to smell the other dog by whining loudly and lunging?
• Does nail clipping stop when he mouths or bites you?
• Do you back away when he growls and shows teeth?

If so, then your dog is getting what he wants through aggressive behaviors and will continue those behaviors.

Once we accept that our dogs are not acting out of hate, jealousy, or some other human emotion, we can move on and start reshaping their behavior by changing the consequences of their actions.

Reshaping dog behavior by rewarding desirable actions, and not rewarding aggression.

Dog Aggression and Other People

Do not worry about what strangers think. Your dog’s welfare is a lot more important.

Actively watch out for feelings of embarrassment, anger and frustration and try to redirect yourself to a more positive frame of mind. Rather than focus on the judgment of strangers –

• Think about the fun you had with your dog just this morning and how cute he looked with cheese bits all over his muzzle and his tongue hanging out in a goofy smile.
• Carry some happy pictures of your dog with you to help redirect your negative feelings.
• Remove yourself and your dog from the unpleasant stimulus as soon as possible.

Dog Aggression and Breed

Some dog breeds may be more prone to reactive or aggressive behaviors. Breeds that are strong-willed, stubborn, and independent will have a higher propensity for challenging you, and displaying aggression in that process.

Breeds that have a strong prey drive may easily become over-excited when they spot prey (e.g. squirrels, cats) and redirect that energy onto you if you thwart their instinct to chase.

Similarly, a strong protective drive may result in using aggression to guard territory, food, toys, or other resources.

More primitive dog breeds often have a lower reactivity threshold. I.e., they may easily go rear-brained when excited, stressed, or fearful.

Make sure to take your dog’s temperament and natural breed instinct into account while retraining his aggressive behaviors.

Breeds that are strong-willed, stubborn, and independent will have a higher propensity for challenging you, and displaying aggression in that process.

Dog Aggression – What to Expect

Dealing with dog aggression can be difficult, and may take a long time to fix, but …

• The rewards are well worth the trouble.
  The journey will reveal many things not just about your dog, but also about youself. In the process, you will develop a special relationship and strong bond with your dog – and that in itself is priceless.
• Things will get better.
  Many dog owners are going through the same thing, and their dog’s behavior has and continue to improve.

When the world says, "Give up,"
Hope whispers, "Try it one more time."
~~[ Author Unknown ]

• Your dog will challenge you less as he matures.
  … but he may keep challenging you. That is one of the joys of dog ownership 😀

If you are having aggression issues with your dog, know that you are not alone. I had many aggression issues with my Shiba Inu.

There are also many touching stories from the Toronto Shiba Meetup and Dogster about dealing with dog aggression.

More on Aggression

• Aggression: The Humane Society of the United States
• Behavioral View on Dog Aggression
• Desensitizing your Dog with Clicker Training

Canine Body Language

• Calming Signals: An article about Turid Rugaas.
• How to Interpret Your Dog’s Body Language, Facial Expressions and Vocalizations

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

Be calm and do not put continuous tension on the leash.

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

Teach our dog avoidance.

Do not let our dog obsess on the other dog.

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.

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.

3. Create space or block the other dog.

4. Create Neutral Experiences

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.

Being consistent with neutral or positive greetings will build our dog’s confidence.

5. Protect our Dog

Protect our dog from rude dogs and rude people.

Shiba Inu Sephy is an excitable 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.

Use positive interrupts and keep encounters short.

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.

Be aware that our dog’s natural look may trigger a reaction.

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.

8. Desensitize our dog to other dogs.

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 my dog sit and watch if he is calm.

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.

For desensitization to be successful, it is important to keep our dog below his instinct threshold at all times.

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.

What to Expect from Dog-to-Dog Aggression Training.

My Shiba Inu used to have the worst bouts of aggressive leash biting. He would jump up on me, grab my jacket sleeve, and shake his head very rigorously, in what I call the kill-move (the shaking, head tossing motion that animals make to kill prey).

Pack Leader To An Aggressive Dog.

The more fearful I got of my dog, the more aggressive he became. He started humping my leg, and attacked the leash whenever I held it. Thankfully, he never broke skin, because of bite inhibition training. Nevertheless, I dreaded walking my dog, or even just being with him.

Here are some techniques that helped me conquer my fear, and become pack leader to my aggressive dog.

The more fearful I got of my dog, the more aggressive he became.

1. Practice calm energy

Cesar Milan, The Dog Whisperer always emphasizes the importance of projecting calm energy, especially when interacting with an aggressive dog. If we interact with a dog using nervous, submissive, fearful, or otherwise unbalanced energy, the dog may pick up on that, get stressed himself, and behave badly or start showing aggression.

Some techniques that helped me remain calm include:

• Taking deep breaths and focusing on breathing to remain calm.
• Actively thinking of something else, whenever I start to get stressed about what my dog might do.
• Using the “tsch” from Cesar Millan. No, it is not a magical sound for calming dogs, but it helps to remind me to stay calm.
• Walking with an assertive posture (shoulders back, head up).

In addition, make sure that we are not putting undue tension on the leash.

The thing that helped me most was to imagine the worst that my dog could do. In the leash biting case, it was a bite to my hand or arm. I decided that for my Shiba Inu, I could deal with some bites. If he did that, I would hold firm, get him home as quickly as possible, and thus end the fun walk. If he continued to bite at me or the leash once we are home, I can put him directly in a time-out area. In this way, he learns that –

Biting on leash = End of walk or temporary loss of freedom,
No biting on leash = Fun walk and exploration continues.

Once I had a plan for dealing with the worst, I became less fearful.

Once my energy improved, my dog’s bad behavior also improved significantly.

2. Have a drag-lead on our dog and keep him on a schedule

Have a drag-lead on our dog and keep him on a schedule.

When our dog does something undesirable, it is always our reflex to chase after him. However, we will quickly realize that our dog can run much faster than we can!

To get better control of my dog and avoid chasing games, I usually put a drag-lead on him. Initially, I use a longer leash so that I can control him without being close to his mouth.

Only use a flat collar with the drag lead and NOT an aversive collar. Some example aversive collars include the prong collar and choke chain.

Also remember that while dealing with an aggressive dog, safety is of the utmost importance. If necessary, I muzzle my dog with a basket muzzle. A dog can still chew with a basket muzzle, and it is less restraining. To make the muzzling process less stressful, we may want to desensitize our dog to the muzzle, by pairing it with food and fun.

Both Siberian Husky puppy Shania and Shiba Inu Sephy have drag leads on in case play gets out of control.

3. Have clear and consistent rules for our dog at all times

Have clear and consistent rules for our dog at all times.

Fun scratch session continues as long as there is no biting on hands.

In the beginning, we want to be more strict with our dog. Institute more rules so that we have many opportunities to show our dog, that we are the boss.

If my dog does not follow the rules, then he does not get his most desired resources, for example, access of the backyard, walks, yummy dog treats, fun dog toys, play time, and access to pack members.

One of the best ways to become pack leader is to control his resources by following the Nothing in Life is Free (NILIF) program.

This just means that our dog does not get anything, until he does something for us first.

I do not give my dog all of his food on a silver platter. Instead, I use it for dog training, grooming, and other activities. I don’t leave food or high priority resources (e.g. food toys) out for him to use whenever he wants. Being the boss means that I control the key resources, and I decide when, where, and for how long he gets access to those resources. Of course, I also make sure that my dog has many opportunities to work for all the things that he wants.

Some useful rules to establish and maintain pack leadership include:

• No getting on furniture.
• Sit calmly before going through doorways, and only go through on command.
• No jumping on people.
• No leash biting.
• No food aggression. Must release resource (food, toys, or other items) on command.
• Absolutely no growling, barring of teeth, mouthing, or biting of people.

Once we gain some confidence and our dog is behaving better, we may relax some of these rules.

Must work and lie calmly for food.

4. More walks of shorter duration

More walks of shorter duration.

Most aggressive behaviors occur on neighborhood walks because that is when our dog is exposed to the most interesting stimuli (e.g. other dogs, cats, squirrels, people). On walks, we also have less control over the environment, and may not easily and quickly get our dog under control.

When I had troubles with my Shiba Inu, I shortened our walks but increased their frequency.

First, I would walk him in a heel position inside the house. Doing the heel exercise helps to put me in a pack leader mindset, and enforces my leadership status. In addition, if my dog starts any aggressive behaviors, I can more effectively stop him.

Once we are ready to go, we practice manners at the door. This helps to further secure my leadership role. My dog has to sit calmly while I open and close the door. If he remains calm, we can leave and start the walk.

Initially, I walked my dog close to the house, so that I can quickly end the walk, get him home, and put him on a time-out if he shows any aggression. As we started to have more and more successful short walks, I was able to gain more confidence, and control my fear. When things started improving, I slowly increased the distance and duration of the walk.

When I had troubles with my Shiba Inu, I shortened our walks but increased their frequency

5. Address aggressive behaviors as soon as possible

Address aggressive behaviors as soon as possible.

No food aggression or food guarding.

A good pack leader is a vigilant pack leader. Watch our dog closely, especially when he is young (< 1 year old). Stop any aggressive behaviors as soon as we see them.

If we do not address aggression issues early, our dog will likely escalate his behavior, and start practicing aggression in a broader range of contexts. Once this occurs, it will be harder to break him of the habit.

I do not let my dog leash bite, show teeth, growl, or mouth at me. Any of these offenses will get him a warning (ack ack). If he continues, he gets a time-out. I carefully manage the everyday details of our time together, so that I set both of us up for success.

Proper management can significantly increase the number of successes, reduce the number of aggressive episodes, and help us  become a good pack leader.

For aggression issues between two family dogs, please refer to Introducing a Second Dog into the Home.

Proper management can significantly increase the number of successes, reduce the number of aggressive episodes, and help us become a good pack leader