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Aggressive People Make Aggressive Dogs?


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Do you think people who are aggressive by nature (confrontational, always spoiling for a fight be it words or physical) will naturally have aggressive dogs (following the alpha's lead)? Even if well trained by the owner and thus well behaved and not aggressive with them they have underlying aggressive tendencies that would make them more likely to fight with each other or other dogs?

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Unfortunately not necesarily- some dogs owned by aggressive people are very submissive and show avoidance at any opportunity. I think it depends on how the aggression manifests in front of the dog, the nerves and temperament of the individual dog.

Edited by Cosmolo
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I have a few aggression/rage issues which I'm currently getting help for, but my dog is a very happy, confident playful dog...

But growing up my grandfather who was a nasty old man, ALWAYS raised his dogs to be aggressive. He gave me one of the most beautiful Red Heelers because the dog wasn't aggressive enough, and we had to put him down because he bit my brothers and a neighbour. I spent so many hours sitting in his kennel with him... my first heart dog.

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Do you think people who are aggressive by nature (confrontational, always spoiling for a fight be it words or physical) will naturally have aggressive dogs (following the alpha's lead)? Even if well trained by the owner and thus well behaved and not aggressive with them they have underlying aggressive tendencies that would make them more likely to fight with each other or other dogs?

I agree with Cosmolo that sometimes they are timid and avoidant instead.

However, I would also say that someone who does not "have it together" whether they are not in control of their temper (aggro), or not in control of their life (whiners), or have A-type anxiety problems (LOL, me!) will have a negative effect on their dog unless they take active steps to reign in their particular "issue".

I think it's one of the truisms of dog training - unless you master yourself, you can't properly master the dog. How you tell someone that they need to grow up for their dog's benefit is the tricky part. Fortunately I've had people in my life who were happy to say "for god's sake, drop your shoulders, stand up straight, get some perspective and start behaving like someone you'd want to follow".

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Thanks for relating your experience PandaGirl.

Anita, do I understand you right in that you are saying you think it can happen but it doesn't always?

However, I would also say that someone who does not "have it together" whether they are not in control of their temper (aggro), or not in control of their life (whiners), or have A-type anxiety problems (LOL, me!) will have a negative effect on their dog unless they take active steps to reign in their particular "issue".

I agree that other human traits can be passed on to our dogs to their detriment.

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I say unfortunately (probably a bad choice of words) because i was thinking of the dogs that live in fear, are shy and submissive because of their owners aggression- i think thats unfortunate- not that i would prefer them to be aggressive

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Anita, do I understand you right in that you are saying you think it can happen but it doesn't always?

It's more that it's more complicated, so you can draw some broad themes but it really depends on the actual behaviour and the personality of the dog and trainer.

Someone can be an aggressive demanding bastard but if they are always consistent and clear and the dog knows exactly where it stands and exactly what it needs to do, then it will be in a different position to a dog belonging to person who is hot headed, irrational and throws a mess of cues and signals at the dog so that it has no hope of working out what is expected.

Likewise some dogs cope much better with human bullshit than others do. If you pair a dog that copes well with aggressive and demanding with the first owner, it's not how I want to live, but I think that dog would do better in that situation than a situation where you pair a soft dog that doesn't cope well with a mercurial irrational aggro handler.

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i think mostly dogs prefer consistency. if all is calm then an outburst of anger from the owner then i think if this happens regularly the dog can become fearful, depending on the temperament of the dog. In any event, people that are angry may not be thinking logically and may confuse the dog. Confusion can also lead to anxiety. fear and anxiety can become aggression again depending on the temperament of the dog. it certainly won't help the dog become well behaved!

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After having my dog at a petsitter for 2 weeks over Christmas by someone who didn't give a lot of leadership, I was a bit taken aback by how quickly her behaviour in general had gone downhill when she came home.

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I'm sure there are confrontational people who select for confrontational temperament and bring out the aggressive side of their dog's nature. But just as many who tire of their tough front and who view their dogs as outside all the human nastyness . . . someone to play with or someone who gives unconditional love. And in the boarding kennel I also get softies who allow their dogs to go feral and end up with much more aggression than they bargained for.

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