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Training A Dog Aggressive Dog


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Hi,

i own an almost 3 year old female german shepherd who i got as an older dog and is dog aggressive

.My problem is when i took her to a group training class(she had already done some training but i was just wanting to freshen it up) and she started getting aggressive towards other dogs the instructor just got me to remove her from the situation(ie take her away and bring her back when she settled)or she did place a tarp between us and the next dog to avoid eye contact.

I really would like to overcome this problem and i don't believe just taking her away from the situation is helping her as sometimes it just not achiavable like when you have to walk past another dog to get where you're going.i don't want to spend all my time going the long way round etc just to avoid coming into conatct with another dog.

They also couldn't tell me if she had a fear aggression or dominance

I have since moved to the Wollongong area and was just wondering if anyone could recommend anyone in this area or Sydney that might be able to help me out.There are quite a few off leash beaches and parkes around here and i would like to overcome this problem so i can take her to these places

julie

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Hey Julie, I'll second seeing a behaviouralist too.

I'd also like to add that it can be worth perservering with obedience school. I've been in exactly your situation, but chose to stop going to doggy school for a while and I've regretted doing that as my boy has gotten a little worse at ignoring dogs nearby.

On the other hand, If you find she's getting far too many opportunities to "practice" her behaviour, then it may be a good idea to stop going until you've got an effective training program in place that helps you to prevent aggressive responses. Building up focus on you is one thing that'll definitely help.

Although it's hard to quit obedience (even for a short time), it's just not worth it if she's not getting as much out of the classes as she could be.

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Hi Julie :D

I'm in Nowra (south of you) and just went up to see Steve at K9 Force 3 weeks ago. Was the best thing I could've done for my dog. For me fear aggro was not an easy thing to overcome or really understand beforehand, but my dog is doing so much better now.

Totally worth it IMO :thumbsup:

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A behaviourist is a great idea.....and hopefully not to expensive..

In the past I moved an aggressive GSD into a halti style (instead of the correction chain) to give me more control of his head and so that he couldn't actually bite put a muzzle on.

I then had another dog walk past at a reasonable distance 4m or so and rewarded the GSD with treats, it helped to make sure he was good and hungry too. Gradually he was more interested in the treats and couldn't care less about the other dog even when the distance was so close they could have rubbed noses.....all he was interested in was looking up at me because he knew if a dog was near and he sat still he got a treat.

But this may not work for you and a behaviouist is the best source of help!

fear aggression is another thing.....

Good luck.....

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4Paws: They also couldn't tell me if she had a fear aggression or dominance

K9: Diagnosing the cause of the aggression is going to be the most important steps to sorting it out, Rank & Defence aggression (Dominance & Fear) are treated totally different.

O: I'm in Nowra (south of you) and just went up to see Steve at K9 Force 3 weeks ago. Was the best thing I could've done for my dog. For me fear aggro was not an easy thing to overcome or really understand beforehand, but my dog is doing so much better now.

Totally worth it IMO :)

K9: Thank you very much for the kind words, I am really pleased to hear your doing well!

T:

4 paws, you need to see a behaviourist/trainer and one of the best is K9Force,who is also a member of this forum.

Someone here will have his number or web address. If anyone can help you Steve can !

K9: Thank you very much, thats a real compliment! Thanks :)

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4Paws: They also couldn't tell me if she had a fear aggression or dominance

K9: Diagnosing the cause of the aggression is going to be the most important steps to sorting it out, Rank & Defence aggression (Dominance & Fear) are treated totally different.

O: I'm in Nowra (south of you) and just went up to see Steve at K9 Force 3 weeks ago. Was the best thing I could've done for my dog. For me fear aggro was not an easy thing to overcome or really understand beforehand, but my dog is doing so much better now.

Totally worth it IMO :)

K9: Thank you very much for the kind words, I am really pleased to hear your doing well!

T:

4 paws, you need to see a behaviourist/trainer and one of the best is K9Force,who is also a member of this forum.

Someone here will have his number or web address. If anyone can help you Steve can !

K9: Thank you very much, thats a real compliment! Thanks :)

Looks like you're the man for the job K9Force :champagne:

shall give you a ring and organise something soon,how hard is it to get in at this stage?

julie

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4: Looks like you're the man for the job K9Force :)

shall give you a ring and organise something soon,how hard is it to get in at this stage?

K9: Its very easy, but it takes about 2 months lol..

OK,best make that call soon than

cheers

julie

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4Paws: They also couldn't tell me if she had a fear aggression or dominance

K9: Diagnosing the cause of the aggression is going to be the most important steps to sorting it out, Rank & Defence aggression (Dominance & Fear) are treated totally different.

O: I'm in Nowra (south of you) and just went up to see Steve at K9 Force 3 weeks ago. Was the best thing I could've done for my dog. For me fear aggro was not an easy thing to overcome or really understand beforehand, but my dog is doing so much better now.

Totally worth it IMO :(

K9: Thank you very much for the kind words, I am really pleased to hear your doing well!

T:

4 paws, you need to see a behaviourist/trainer and one of the best is K9Force,who is also a member of this forum.

Someone here will have his number or web address. If anyone can help you Steve can !

K9: Thank you very much, thats a real compliment! Thanks :D

Looks like you're the man for the job K9Force :rofl:

shall give you a ring and organise something soon,how hard is it to get in at this stage?

julie

Hi K9, I am very interested in this topic as I too have the same prob with my kelpie bitch. I have only had her for a couple of months and she is now about 12 months old. She is very posessive of me and attacks my other dogs if they come near me. At dog club she does the same thing but I think with strange dogs maybe it is fear aggression. How can you work out which it is and is it possibly both fear and dominance at the same time?

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K9 sorry to jump in here..... :(

luvworkingdogs, is your kelpie a working bred kelpie? This will make all the difference to the answer.

yes I think so. I got her from a farmer who was going to shoot her because he said she is too small for herding. He needed a bigger dog to push around big rams. He said she is a good worker but not enough size. It didnt make sense to me but I dont know about herding. she has plenty of drive though thats for sure! lol

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come join us in the Kelpie thread :rofl:

Maybe if all us Kelpie people get together we can also figure out the dog-dog issues :( Gotta love em :D

They are a special breed thats for sure. not sure that everyone would agree though. But I dont understand the difference in working breed kelpie? how does that effect the answer?

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My Border X Heeler has doggy aggression too stemming from really poor socialisation when my hubby had him as a puppy. We did the one on one training, which was great, but he was only fine when the trainer was there. When our own, Roggie just went back to being the same old barky leash-pulling anger hound.

We then put him in a fast-track obedience training kennel for a week, came up a treat while with the trainer, but then reverted back to his old ways with us.

It was then that we figured out that it was probably an issue with us handling him (I can see the doggy trainers all nodding their collective heads in agreement there!).

We're now in group training with ADT here in Melbourne, which caters to problem doggies & they give you specialised attention when your dog is being a real pain in the bottom (as Roggie so frequently likes to be!). However, each time we see a different person, they each diagnose Roggie with a different aggression type. I've given up on people diagnosing Roggie, all I really want is good tips on how to manage his behaviour when he is being Mr Aggro 2007 because ultimately, it's down to me as his handler (or my husband, as *he's* the one that's caused the problem & *he* has to fix it...arrrgghhh don't get me started!!!) to control & manage his behaviour, simply because whether it's fear or any other type of aggression he looks up to me to lead him & let him know what behaviour is acceptable.

So far, it's been a really long road full of ups & downs, good days & bad days, and people at dog parks giving you the evil eye because you're trying to correct your dog as your trainer told you - which can sometimes look really heavy handed when correcting with a check chain *sigh*

Anyway, I feel for you, I know how frustrating it can be when all you want is a nice walk with your doggy and instead you spend most of your time being yanked around by an over-excited dog hellbent on eating the oodle across the park.

Good luck!!

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