How To Tame An Aggressive Dog
Before you can tame an aggressive dog you must determine from where his aggressiveness comes from. Aggression has served the canine population well. Dogs in the wild use aggression for hunting, defending themselves as well as protecting their resources such as their den, mate and food. Though selective breeding, humans have significantly reduce the amount of aggression our dogs have today, but the fact is: there is still a bit of aggression in every dog.
Counteracting fundamental instincts can be very difficult. But as dog owners it is a must that we learn to control our dog's aggressiveness for the well being of all of us. There are many technique we can use to avoid having dog aggression show it's sharp teeth in the first place. Even if there wasn't steps in preventing dog aggression there are things we can do to recognize and deal with it effectively.
There could be as many aggression types as there are dog breeds, in this article we will focus on the two most common:
-Aggression towards strangers -Aggression towards family members.
You may be saying to yourself, "Aggression is aggression, just tell me what to do to fix it NOW! Please." Not so fast, these two types of aggressions come from two different problems and require two different types of treatment.
Aggression towards strangers
Most dogs that show an unnatural aggression toward strangers or other animals lack proper social skills. It is our responsibility to introduce the world to our dogs. The more experiences our pets have with the out side world the more comfortable and confident our pets will be with unfamiliar places and people. It is best if you start your dogs socializing early, soon after he gets his vaccinations. On going exposure to new things will insure your dog becomes wall adjusted.
Aggression towards a family member.
Aggression toward a family member is much different than aggression toward strangers. If the family member has spent a good deal of time in the same house with the dog and your dog still hows aggression towards that individual then there is a dominance problem. The dog feels as though he out ranks the family member in his pack (family). In the dog pack world aggression is how a dog maintains and moves up the social hierarchy. To curb this type of aggression you need to introduce some obedience training and brush up on your alpha dog techniques.
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