Two Year Old Male Becoming Aggressive!

[taylormalyon]

I have a two year old male Mastiff who over the past few months is showing more and more signs of aggression. My boy is an absolute sweetheart, and the biggest suck, he means everything to me. He is neutered. He is great with close family and their dogs (small poodle types). As of late, especially on walks, he will lock his attention onto a passing dog, his hair goes up, and he is on guard, I am unable to get his attention back onto me. He has been taught "focus" - this is when he focuses just on me, he completely ignores me when told to do so now. He has begun to do this with people as well when walking. Not only has he began to lock eye contact, but excessive barking at people too when walking. He also shows signs of anxiety when people are in the house, excessive talking, yawning, and sometimes to the point of shaking. Today, I had dog behaviorist come to my house to assist me on some of the tools I can use to help him. When she entered the house, he was happy to see her, but in less than a second, he had bit her hand, but did not puncture. I followed instructions, I put a muzzle on him, and reintroduced with treats, ext, he began to growl and had attempted to lunge towards her, this is something he has never done before! He has been great with other people that have come into the house, male and female. This was the first time this has ever happened.
As I continue to ramble, I might add in here that he has grabbed me twice on my arm on two separate occasions. Now I blame myself for this. I believe he was over excited as he saw a dog next door (an unaltered male, which was apparent he did not like) he was running up and down the fence, and barking excessively, ignoring my commands. I had gone up and grabbed his collar when he had whipped his head around and grabbed my arm with his mouth, he immediately let go, and no puncture, and followed commands as normal. This same situation has happened twice. I believed I had scared him both times.

Has anyone else had the same similar situations? Or have any tips on what to do? I am scared that this will continue to escalate like it has! I am continuing to work the behaviorist but any insight and helpful tips would be appreciated, even knowing I'm not alone on this would be great!
Thanks so much!

 

[marke]

my opinion is you need a dog persons help , leerburg type approach folks .......... that dog sounds to me as he doesn't have enough respect for you ......... there are without question ways to get that respect , at his age and size i'd get help from someone who knows how to walk that line , it'll need to be a dog person that actually gets to know your dog and his limits . your behaviorist doesn't sound like it to me , sounds like she might have missed that day in class ....... much easier and safer to get a puppy to respect you ......... I've been around a whole lot of dog trainers , and have grown 10 lifetimes worth of dogs , some of these new better methods just leave me shaking my head ......... hopefully someone here has some better answers for you , nobodies own dog should be putting their mouth on them outside of play for any reason .........

 

[taylormalyon]

my opinion is you need a dog persons help , leerburg type approach folks .......... that dog sounds to me as he doesn't have enough respect for you ......... there are without question ways to get that respect , at his age and size i'd get help from someone who knows how to walk that line , it'll need to be a dog person that actually gets to know your dog and his limits . your behaviorist doesn't sound like it to me , sounds like she might have missed that day in class ....... much easier and safer to get a puppy to respect you ......... I've been around a whole lot of dog trainers , and have grown 10 lifetimes worth of dogs , some of these new better methods just leave me shaking my head ......... hopefully someone here has some better answers for you , nobodies own dog should be putting their mouth on them outside of play for any reason .........

It was the first meeting with her yesterday, and she has referred me to someone else who is more experienced in the area, more along the line of the breed and the situations that has happened, she's already got in touch with me, and seems positive about the situation and that she is more than capable of handling it.
I appreciate your honesty, and I do believe the respect from him towards me is an issue. Is this a normal thing? I appreciate it, thank you for your response. I'm new to the forum and am just not sure where to go to talk to people about this!

 

[marke]

that's great , the new trainer might be more prepared and not get off to such a bad start .......... not that you can't get past such a start , but it definitely makes it a lot harder than it needs to be ........... dogs not respecting their owners is very common .......... good luck with him

 

[Boxergirl]

It's my opinion that some of the older methods will get people hurt. Badly. I agree that you need a professional's help with this and I'm glad you have another person coming to help you. I feel it's irresponsible to give training advice for a situation as serious as this over the internet, so I'm not going to offer suggestions.

Except this:

I might add in here that he has grabbed me twice on my arm on two separate occasions. Now I blame myself for this. I believe he was over excited as he saw a dog next door (an unaltered male, which was apparent he did not like) he was running up and down the fence, and barking excessively, ignoring my commands. I had gone up and grabbed his collar when he had whipped his head around and grabbed my arm with his mouth, he immediately let go, and no puncture, and followed commands as normal. This same situation has happened twice. I believed I had scared him both times.

This is redirected aggression, not the dog being scared. I have an EM that redirects when she's over stimulated. It's not a planned thing. They don't mean to do it, but it's something that you need to be very careful with and make sure you mention it to the new trainer/behaviorist. From now on I suggest that you don't grab his collar anymore or attempt to physically touch him when he's reacting. My suggestion is that if you are going to be in a situation where you suspect that he will become reactive, make sure you have a grab line or leash on him. Use the leash to guide him away.

 

[taylormalyon]

that's great , the new trainer might be more prepared and not get off to such a bad start .......... not that you can't get past such a start , but it definitely makes it a lot harder than it needs to be ........... dogs not respecting their owners is very common .......... good luck with him

Thank you!

 

[taylormalyon]

It's my opinion that some of the older methods will get people hurt. Badly. I agree that you need a professional's help with this and I'm glad you have another person coming to help you. I feel it's irresponsible to give training advice for a situation as serious as this over the internet, so I'm not going to offer suggestions.

Except this:

I might add in here that he has grabbed me twice on my arm on two separate occasions. Now I blame myself for this. I believe he was over excited as he saw a dog next door (an unaltered male, which was apparent he did not like) he was running up and down the fence, and barking excessively, ignoring my commands. I had gone up and grabbed his collar when he had whipped his head around and grabbed my arm with his mouth, he immediately let go, and no puncture, and followed commands as normal. This same situation has happened twice. I believed I had scared him both times.

This is redirected aggression, not the dog being scared. I have an EM that redirects when she's over stimulated. It's not a planned thing. They don't mean to do it, but it's something that you need to be very careful with and make sure you mention it to the new trainer/behaviorist. From now on I suggest that you don't grab his collar anymore or attempt to physically touch him when he's reacting. My suggestion is that if you are going to be in a situation where you suspect that he will become reactive, make sure you have a grab line or leash on him. Use the leash to guide him away.

I'm not necessarily looking for training advice on here as that would be irresponsible of me. I am looking for people who may have an outside point of view on the situation, that I may have not recognized, such as you have just did with the redirected aggression, that did not cross my mind, and I appreciate that, and am very thankful for your response! I'll definitely keep that in mind, and the behaviorist is aware of that particular situation. Again, thank you!

 

[Boxergirl]

I'm not necessarily looking for training advice on here as that would be irresponsible of me. I am looking for people who may have an outside point of view on the situation, that I may have not recognized, such as you have just did with the redirected aggression, that did not cross my mind, and I appreciate that, and am very thankful for your response! I'll definitely keep that in mind, and the behaviorist is aware of that particular situation. Again, thank you!

Oh no, that wasn't directed at you. Just a statement as to why I feel it would be irresponsible of ME to give advice beyond suggesting a professional. So often we get posts from people that are having potentially very dangerous situations and I, personally, feel uncomfortable giving specific advice without having seen the dog. Please keep us updated. I know how alone it can feel when you're dealing with things like this. I really hope you can find someone that can help.

 

[scorning]

My Great Dane is basically a nervy basket case. He was normal until he was about 10 months old than the shit hit the fan. He became sight, sound, and touch sensitive. I worked with a variety of trainers and behaviorists, and he is on meds, but really training and management are key. We do scent sports (nosework, barn hunt) and Rally, but I don't let other people touch him and he rarely gets to meet new dogs (he does live happily with our female Doberman and we have fosters a couple times a year, but we don't do dog parks or meet random dogs on walks). When we have guests, he is either crated or in our bedroom. For us, its a win when he can ignore dogs and people, we don't ask or force him to interact with them.

If this is a sudden change in behavior, I would recommend getting a medical workout to rule out things like pain, eye sight problems, or thyroid issues. When I worked with a behaviorist, this was one of the first things they asked about. A behaviorist will usually give you plan and see you every couple months, but you might consider a trainer to help you implement it unless you are super awesome at holding yourself accountable, which I found I wasn't.

While you are working on training and behavior, I would focus on management. You don't want to give your dog opportunities to practice bad behavior. Learn as much as you can about dog body language. Your dog is probably giving you a lot of signs that he needs more space before he snaps at someone. When you see the early signs, get out of dodge before the blowup happens.If other dogs are a trigger, find places to walk that don't have a lot of dogs or where you have enough space to pass them. Use a muzzle. Find ways other than walks to provide exercise and enrichment for your dog, like doing conditioning work at home or starting nosework. Also, learn as much as you can about dog body language. Your dog is probably giving you a lot of signs that he needs more space before he snaps at someone. When you see the early signs, get out of dodge before the blowup happens.

 

[taylormalyon]

Oh no, that wasn't directed at you. Just a statement as to why I feel it would be irresponsible of ME to give advice beyond suggesting a professional. So often we get posts from people that are having potentially very dangerous situations and I, personally, feel uncomfortable giving specific advice without having seen the dog. Please keep us updated. I know how alone it can feel when you're dealing with things like this. I really hope you can find someone that can help.

Thank you so much! It means a lot! I definitely will! I'm willing to do whatever he needs me to do for him!

 

[taylormalyon]

My Great Dane is basically a nervy basket case. He was normal until he was about 10 months old than the shit hit the fan. He became sight, sound, and touch sensitive. I worked with a variety of trainers and behaviorists, and he is on meds, but really training and management are key. We do scent sports (nosework, barn hunt) and Rally, but I don't let other people touch him and he rarely gets to meet new dogs (he does live happily with our female Doberman and we have fosters a couple times a year, but we don't do dog parks or meet random dogs on walks). When we have guests, he is either crated or in our bedroom. For us, its a win when he can ignore dogs and people, we don't ask or force him to interact with them.

If this is a sudden change in behavior, I would recommend getting a medical workout to rule out things like pain, eye sight problems, or thyroid issues. When I worked with a behaviorist, this was one of the first things they asked about. A behaviorist will usually give you plan and see you every couple months, but you might consider a trainer to help you implement it unless you are super awesome at holding yourself accountable, which I found I wasn't.

While you are working on training and behavior, I would focus on management. You don't want to give your dog opportunities to practice bad behavior. Learn as much as you can about dog body language. Your dog is probably giving you a lot of signs that he needs more space before he snaps at someone. When you see the early signs, get out of dodge before the blowup happens.If other dogs are a trigger, find places to walk that don't have a lot of dogs or where you have enough space to pass them. Use a muzzle. Find ways other than walks to provide exercise and enrichment for your dog, like doing conditioning work at home or starting nosework. Also, learn as much as you can about dog body language. Your dog is probably giving you a lot of signs that he needs more space before he snaps at someone. When you see the early signs, get out of dodge before the blowup happens.

I rescued him at five months, and until about Octoberish, he was completely normal and fine. I had always been really strict with keeping up with his training and behavior. Then it was like something had "snapped" The other day was the first time he had actually bit someone (besides the two times that he has whipped his head and got me when I grabbed his collar) There wasn't a warning, or maybe you are absolutely right and I wasn't looking for one or seeing one as I wasn't expecting it. We've started doing "puzzle" toys ( I can't remember the exact name, but lifting and pulling things up and out to reach treats, and new ways to work for his food or his toys to keep him enriched and so far he's been loving that! Walking is still a challenge, I was never a fan of dog park to begin with, but it could be someone across the length of a foot ball field, and that will "trigger" him. On walks since this has all started, I've definitely been paying more attention to his body language, and as soon as he sees a person or a dog that is even a football field away, hair is up, tails up, eyes on them and he's barking, I'm unable to disengage him like I was able to previously. Hoping that the behaviorist will have some help with me on that one! Right now I'm conditioning him to his muzzle and teaching him where "his place" is when anyone comes to the door.
Thank you for your response! It's very much appreciated!

 

[Boxergirl]

Oh geez, yes. CeeCee is right that the first thing to do is always get the dog to the vet. My behaviorist requires it of all her patients and I'm surprised if yours doesn't. Do a full blood panel and full thyroid panel (not just T3 and T4). I'd suggest the FULL thyroid panel (T4, T3, freeT4, freeT3, TgAA) and have it sent out to be read. Dr. Dodds at Hemopet is always my first choice for thyroid testing.

 

[taylormalyon]

Oh geez, yes. CeeCee is right that the first thing to do is always get the dog to the vet. My behaviorist requires it of all her patients and I'm surprised if yours doesn't. Do a full blood panel and full thyroid panel (not just T3 and T4). I'd suggest the FULL thyroid panel (T4, T3, freeT4, freeT3, TgAA) and have it sent out to be read. Dr. Dodds at Hemopet is always my first choice for thyroid testing.

He has just had a full workup not even a month ago. Thyroid and blood included, I had phoned my vet regarding the situation as well, and they got him in the same day, just in case anything was going on medically that needed to be addressed ASAP. Everything came back normal, he's in great health! That was one of my biggest concerns as well!

 

[Cher]

For barking, my trainer at Pasanita Obedience Club recommended buying Binaca breath spray and spray it on the dog's mouth. If you can get it inside his mouth, it's better but while he's barking, it's a bit hard to do. I generally just spray it on their nose and mouth or in that direction. It's safe to use. I got it on Amazon. They come in 2 sizes: 0.2 and 0.5 oz. I got the 0.5 oz pack of 5 for around $11. I really like it. Maybe you can try this and you won't have to grab his collar when he's barking at someone.

 

[Hector]

Sounds like anxiety, arousal issues turning into reactivty and redirected frustration on you. A competent trainer should be able to SHOW you and help you how to handle and train the dog in these areas.

 

[marke]

Having broken up many dog fights , I have to think that would qualify as a dog under extreme duress, involving many different dogs , and never have a dog redirect on me , My opinion is a dog that redirects is out of control and it is a discipline problem ……….. any method that doesn’t work is not much of a method , and one that gets you hurt is surely isn't a method …….

 

[Boxergirl]

I am not a fan of spraying anything in or at the dog when they are barking/reacting. That's not teaching them what you want them to do and I feel there are much better ways to handle the situation. I definitely wouldn't do that to a dog that's reactive and redirecting. As for the redirecting - I don't think it's necessarily a discipline problem. The dog is in a high state of arousal and not thinking clearly. Unable to think clearly. When we put a hand in it's not an intentional redirection, as in "you touched me and I'm going to bite you for that." It's more of a reflex in the heat of the moment. My girl can redirect when she's over threshold. So we worked on impulse control, CC and DS training, and not allowing her to go over threshold. If she does get over aroused, I use other management techniques to gain her attention and I never pull on her collar when she's reacting. A good trainer will definitely help with desensitization and counter conditioning training to help prevent the dog from getting so aroused that he will redirect. And just maybe your dog will always redirect when stressed and you should always be aware of how you're handling a situation with that in mind.

Not training advice, but a good read and some CC and DS techniques that you can implement now, at a safe distance.
https://clickertraining.com/node/2327

 

[marke]

i've known many folks who intentionally breed sharp , reactive , high strung , defensive dogs that bite , i've seen them redirect to the handler many times , and i've seen them learn not to ....... i'm pretty sure a guy like ed frawley has seen it and fixed it hundreds to thousands of times in his lifetime ....... my dogs never have done it because their my dogs ........

 

[advrider]

i don't know how everyone feels about this. But we use an E collar on our dog, Lagertha. We only need the vibration mode on her to break her concentration and listen to what we say.

 

[CeeCee]

i don't know how everyone feels about this. But we use an E collar on our dog, Lagertha. We only need the vibration mode on her to break her concentration and listen to what we say.

I would say that this is one of those tools that you most assuredly want an experienced professional guiding you on if, when, and how you should use a remote collar in these situations. The potential fallout because of missed timing, an inappropriate learning method, or misunderstood or misapplied technique could come back to haunt everyone.