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!