Finding Jakes Root Cause/s of Aggression Part 2

Diagnosing Jake’s Agression Pt. 2

By LukEli K-9 Head Trainer Jenny Proctor

The last blog post covered dominance aggression and how it relates to Jake’s

What body language do you see?

behaviors. This week we’ll discuss two other types of aggression: fear and possessive aggression. You may recall that we were told Jake was thought to be fear aggressive when he was rescued from animal control, most likely due to the stress of the environment. Many dogs who have spent time in shelters develop this type of aggression, which often times fades away once the dog is in a stable home environment. Luckily the vast majority of dogs adopted have excellent bounce back and are more likely to have minor training issues than major behavioral issues. Jake was assumed to fall into this category by his rescuers, but they had no way of knowing that this dog had much more going on than they could’ve ever imagined.

Sometimes, aggression issues are simple to diagnosis and treat. Then there are the other times; the convoluted and complex times, with root causes all twisted like...well, roots. The root causes tangle together with innate breed traits and learned behaviors, until it all seems a hopelessly knotted mystery, never to be deciphered. Add in a dog who has experienced less than kind training techniques at some point in their life, and you’ve got a recipe for an anxious, sometimes confused, sometimes scared, unpredictably dangerous pet.

All this brings me back to Jake. He has displayed all the types of aggression we will be discussing. Keep in mind that dogs are thought to be unable to be both dominant and fear aggressive at the same time and part of the point of this entire discussion is deciding which of these applies in Jake’s case. With that in mind, consider these:

What is fear aggression and how is it diagnosed?

Fear aggression arises when a dog is exposed to people or other animals that the dog is unfamiliar with or those that have been previously associated with an unpleasant or fearful experience. Although some dogs may retreat when fearful, those that are on their own territory and those that are prevented from retreating because they are cornered or restrained, are more likely to fight. If the person or animal retreats, acts overly fearful or the pet is harmed or further frightened in any way (e.g. a fight, punishment), the fear is likely to be further aggravated. Fear aggression toward family members might arise out of punishment or some other unpleasant experience associated with the owners. Many cases of fear aggression are seen as combinations or complicating factors of other forms of aggression (dominance, maternal, possessive, etc.). Fearful body postures in conjunction with aggression are diagnostic of fear aggression.

I would say that Jake does not display fearful body postures most of the time. He seems more anxious than your average, well-socialized dog in new environments, but seems to adjust to them fairly quickly and isn’t entirely overwhelmed. His tail is broken, so that exacerbates the difficulty in reading Jake’s signals. I’ve never seen him truly tuck his tail, but that may be because he can’t. I would also say that he doesn’t know the meaning of backing down because he never backs down (unless a familiar human is involved). He always pushes forward when he’s unsure, and that’s what makes things a bit nerve racking at times. Jake does cower if he even thinks I may be displeased about something. I’ve never raised a voice or a hand to him, but you can be sure that SOMEone has done exactly that by the way he slinks around and taps out. While his behavior in this regard is fearful, it’s only because he’s had it beat into him (I have no actual proof of that) and it is ONLY shown towards familiar people.

Fear aggression can often be treated successfully with behavior therapy, perhaps in combination with drug therapy. This type of behavior modification takes copious amounts of time and patience, but a dog who responds well can seem like an entirely different dog. Severe cases of fear aggression are often the hardest to treat and owners must be prepared for the long haul.

What is possessive aggression and how is it treated?

Jake really likes rope toys.
Can you tell if he's guarding or playing?

Possessive aggression may be directed to humans or other pets that approach the dog when it is in possession of something that is highly desirable such as a favorite chew toy, food, treat, or person. While protecting possessions may be necessary if an animal is to survive and thrive in the wild, it is unacceptable when directed toward people or other pets in a household. What can be confusing for some owners is that it is not always food that brings out the most protective displays. Novel and highly desirable objects such as a tissue that has been stolen from a garbage can, a favored toy, human food, water, or a piece of rawhide are some of the items that dogs may aggressively protect. Coincidentally, these are all things Jake guards. He guards bones, food, water, and is starting to guard me from the other dogs fairly often. Jake is most definitely a resource guarder.

Treatment must first be directed at preventing possible injury. At first it may be best to confine your dog so that it cannot gain access to any items that it might pick up and protect. Dogs that protect their food can be given a less palatable diet, and fed in a separate room away from family members. Dogs that protect their treats or toys should have them taken away, and only allowed access to them when alone in the crate or confinement room. When you are available to supervise, a long leash and head collar can be kept attached so that your dog can be prevented from wandering off and immediately interrupted if it attempts to raid a garbage can or pick up inappropriate objects. Booby traps (shock mats, Snappy Trainers, motion detectors, unpleasant tastes) can also be used to teach your dog to stay away from selected objects. Although prevention can help to ensure safety, if the problem is to be corrected your dog will need to be taught to accept approaches and give up objects on command. The goal is to train the dog that it will receive a favored treat or reward that is even more appealing than the object in its possession. The key to success is to have good control and a well-trained dog. If your dog will not sit and stay, come, or allow approach when it has no object in its possession, then there is little chance of correcting a possessive problem.

Jake has learned “leave it”, “drop it”,  “stay out”, and the good, ol’, reliable “no” so that we have something to fall back on when that proverbial steak falls on the floor because, well, I’m certainly not willing to stick my hand down there to test his bite threshold just yet. Certain cues must be taught with resource guarders in order to be safe, and these are pretty standard. You and the dog both need to know what to expect, and teaching some cues helps immensely. Careful management of the environment is also crucial for your dog to be successful.

Jake is learning that he has to earn access to everything from water to the outdoors. We want Jake to understand that everything good comes from humans and he must play by the rules. We are the ones with the most social freedom, not Jake. We decide who gets what and when. This is the best and fastest way to not only teach Jake acceptable behaviors, but to teach him what is unacceptable as well.

Next time I’ll cover a few more types of aggression and discuss how they apply to Jake as well.

If you have a dog with aggression issues, don’t hesitate to seek out the help of a behavior modification professional. Safety should be your number one priority when you have an aggressive dog. Family, friends, other pets, and strangers can all become targets of an aggressive dog. It’s up to you to take the appropriate steps to manage and counter condition your dog so they can become a happy, well-balanced member of the family!

Finding Jake’s Root Cause/s of Aggression

Finding Jake’s Root Cause/s of Aggression

By LukEli K-9 Head Trainer, Jenny Proctor

He does have a sweet face, but you can't
judge a book by its cover!

One of the number one rules in behavior modification is that you should NEVER treat a dog for aggression unless you are certain of the root cause/s first because you can really make things worse by using inappropriate training methods for the circumstance. I have seen Jake display aggression in many different ways and quite a few different settings. I have begun a few things (i.e. charging the pager like a clicker, working on some basic obedience) that are independent of addressing the root cause/s but are laying the groundwork while we try to figure out just what Jake’s issues are for certain.

Sometimes, the issues dogs may have don’t really become apparent for quite some time after they are re-homed. I usually find that after 2-3 weeks the real behavioral issues manifest themselves, while sometimes these issues actually arise because of the new environment. Apparent issues with a new dog can morph from one thing to another in that span of time. For instance, Jake’s resource guarding issues are indeed just that, but he has other, more serious (in my opinion) problems that have begun to surface. Jake has displayed all of the following types of aggression, although I am undecided between dominance and fear aggression. Theoretically, dogs can’t be in both of those categories at the same time, though Jake is pushing my belief in that particular rule to the limits!

Aggression

From the ASPCA website: “Aggression is the most common and most serious behavior problem in dogs. It’s also the number-one reason why pet parents seek professional help from behaviorists, trainers and veterinarians.

What Is Aggression?

The term “aggression” refers to a wide variety of behaviors that occur for a multitude of reasons in various circumstances. Virtually all wild animals are aggressive when guarding their territories, defending their offspring and protecting themselves. Species that live in groups, including people and dogs, also use aggression and the threat of aggression to keep the peace and to negotiate social interactions.

To say that a dog is “aggressive” can mean a whole host of things. Aggression encompasses a range of behaviors that usually begins with warnings and can culminate in an attack. Dogs may abort their efforts at any point during an aggressive encounter. A dog that shows aggression to people usually exhibits some part of the following sequence of increasingly intense behaviors:

•  Becoming very still and rigid

•  Guttural bark that sounds threatening

•  Lunging forward or charging at the person with no contact

•  Mouthing, as though to move or control the person, without applying significant pressure

•  Body positioning to move or block access

•  “Muzzle punch” (the dog literally punches the person with her nose)

•  Growl

•  Showing teeth

•  Snarl (a combination of growling and showing teeth)

•  Snap

•  Quick nip that leaves no mark

•  Quick bite that tears the skin

•  Bite with enough pressure to cause a bruise

•  Bite that causes puncture wounds

•  Repeated bites in rapid succession

•  Bite and shake

Dogs don’t always follow this sequence, and they often do several of the behaviors above simultaneously. Many times, owners don’t recognize the warning signs before a bite, so they perceive their dogs as suddenly flying off the handle. However, that’s rarely the case. It can be just milliseconds between a warning and a bite, but dogs rarely bite without giving some type of warning beforehand.

Keep in mind that use of and threats of aggression is natural and normal for dogs. We expect a LOT when we expect our pets to show us no aggression whatsoever and most of the time our dogs are able to achieve that standard. Poor or incorrect socialization and lack of understanding on the dog owners part, however, can lead to dogs who lean more heavily on this type of behavior because it works for them and is instinctual. Knowing the difference between desirable and undesirable behavior can help nip aggression in the bud, before it spirals out of control!

What is dominance aggression and how is it diagnosed?

In animal behavior, “dominance” is defined as a relationship between individuals that is usually established through use of force, aggression, and submission. Dogs, in particular, use a variety of facial expressions and body postures as signals such as standing tall, a high wagging tail, eye contact, or snarling, and body positioning to communicate and jostle for their spot in the group in order to establish priority access to all desired resources (food, the opposite sex, preferred resting spots, etc). A relationship is not established until one animal consistently defers to another. Truly “dominant” dogs have no need to resort to force to establish their access to resources, but are simply granted that access (this part of the equation - why certain dogs have this status while others don’t - is a bit of a mystery) by the group, though they will show aggression if necessary. Dominant aggressive dogs don’t feel secure in their position and/or have learned inappropriate responses over time because of the behavior being reinforced and must constantly establish themselves through use of aggression. Because this type of aggression is related to access to resources as well as social freedom, aggression towards family members in one or more of the following circumstances along with dominant signaling may indicate dominance aggression:

Although this is not Jake this is an example of a dog
Resource Guarding a bone.

Protecting resting areas or resources (food, toys, beds, furniture)

Restraint, pulling, pushing, discipline, punishment

Staring, eye contact

Handling by the owner (lifting, petting, hugging, rolling over onto back or side)

Overprotection of a family member

Jake is definitely a candidate for this category, but he is also very confusing in the signals he sends at times. We also have to be careful not to confuse anxiety with fear. Dominant dogs can still be anxious and under-socialized, but they are not generally fearful. Possessive aggression is usually a form of dominance aggression (with one or two exceptions which I will talk about) and Jake certainly has issues with that. He uses aggression to stop you from making him do something he doesn’t want to do (like go outside) and that is indicative of DA, as well.

We have observed six different forms of aggression from Jake. The next blog will  be posted in a day or two and will discuss fear aggression and how it relates to Jakes actions, followed by a discussion of the other forms he’s displayed in the coming days as well.

Remember, aggression is always a serious issue and should not be taken lightly. Always keep safety in mind when dealing with aggression issues and don’t hesitate to contact a canine behavior modification professional for help reaching your goals!