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Watch "Cane corso go aggression. .we need help!" on YouTube

DragosMom

Well-Known Member
People were getting close and Drago was not muzzled so I had to end the video immediately. This is not even a fraction of how violent he gets. It just shows his immediate reaction the moment he sees another dog. You can see where he tried to snap at my husband when he touched Dragos side.

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Gharvey

Well-Known Member
You need basic obedience! Don't let him get in front of your knee. You need to be in control. Correct bad behavior!! Don't pat him on his side.. It's like a reward. Not trying to judge anyone but you need to be the ones to change this. It's not magic. Consistent leadership.. I think you just need to take charge more or you will lose him for sure!!


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DragosMom

Well-Known Member
Thank you Gharvey..I am trying to show his initial reaction around a dog. This was mild but none the less bad behavior. He's in obedience training now, regardless as soon as he knows we are entering petco he gets very unruly. Thank you for watching and commenting. We are trying to learn from advice, experts and experience.

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Victoria93

Well-Known Member
No disrespect intended but he definitely needs work on a leash first. Right from the start he is pulling hard and dragging you to were he wants to go. I would invest in a pinch collar for training purposes and definitely shy away from harnesses for now. Until you get the basics mastered i would stay out of pet stores, not just for other dogs safety but for your pups. Good luck with your training.
 

NYDDB

Well-Known Member
The 2 posts above covered what I was going to say: ditch the harness (which can encourage pulling); invest in a well-made prong collar (Herm-Sprenger); and avoid petting the dog when he shows aggression-- you are giving him a mixed message there.

You really need to get him in a good heel position right off the bat (as soon as he exits the car), and maintain control from there.

Good luck; I know you are working with him on these issues...
 

DragosMom

Well-Known Member
We actually have the prong collar and did not use it deliberately for the video. We were trying to show you all Dragos aggression towards dogs in a normal situation. We have been training with the prong collar solely. We do not however use the prong collar for everyday use. Should we? I would be afraid with the amount of aggression he shows during his little fit that the prong collar could injure him..forgive us guys. We are learning this breed and don't know everything yet. We've had several other breeds throughout the years that never acted this way. Including, rotties, pitts, dobermans and other bully breeds..the cane corso to us is the most challenging. Pls no judgement! We are humbly seeking advice, so we do right by Drago!

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Oscar'sMom

Well-Known Member
I ditto everyone above. He needs to learn basic obedience and how to walk on a leash before thinking about going into a pet store. How does he walk on a leash at home....have you thought about working on that in your yard and your home where he can't see anyone. It's difficult in public when they are behaving poorly and not looking to you as their leader for you to correct while dealing with a bunch of strangers coming close and bothering a clearly over stimulated dog. I would go back to the beginning...basics. In that video he does t seem overly aggressive...he just seems excited and has bad manners. You're working on it and that's where it starts!!
 

Hiraeth

Well-Known Member
As a precursor - I have worked with four severely dog and human aggressive dogs. Three of them still live with me and the fourth died of cancer. I'm fairly familiar with signs of aggression when they're being displayed. And I didn't see any aggression in that video. I saw a nervous and fearful dog who circled behind his owner and "hid" from the other dogs. Confident dogs don't react that way, and neither do aggressive dogs. His barks were warning barks like "please stay away from me, I don't want you near me, I'm uncomfortable", not "if you come near me I'm going to rip your face off".

If he were truly aggressive, he would have laser-focused on the dog, refused to break eye contact, barked at high volume, snarled, bared his teeth, etc. He didn't do any of that. He's unstable and uncomfortable. Has he ever bitten or attacked another dog?

Ditch the harness. Prong collars on fear aggressive dogs don't help, either. If every time he becomes uncomfortable and reacts he gets pinched around the neck, it's only going to worsen his reactivity. Work on confidence building and BAT/LAT training when dogs are at a distance.

BAT training explanation: Official Behavior Adjustment Training (BAT) site: humane help for aggression, frustration, and fear in dogs, horses, and other animals.

LAT training explanation (down past where they try to sell you things, they explain the training methodology): Look at That! A Counterintuitive Approach to Dealing with Reactive Dogs | Dog Training for Dog Lovers Blog

Treating this like offensive aggression is only going to make the problem worse, I think. He's reactive. And fear aggressive if he's actually bitten another dog/person. He needs basic training like how to walk on a leash, how to focus on his handler in public with distractions and how to be disengaged from an uncomfortable situation without trauma or negativity.
 

DragosMom

Well-Known Member
Thank you Hiraeth, that's exactly what I was hoping to hear..that it's not aggressive behavior and it's fear. As to the question, yes, he has bitten several dogs..just a snap, nothing that caused bleeding or damaged. He has also bit a few friends and family members. Again, more of a snap then an actual bite. His mannerisms at home are completely different then when he's in public. It seems the distractions set him off. He heels beautifully when people and animals are not present. He doesn't try to pull or lead what so ever. It's just when he is in public around anyone or another animal and it all changes.. we are kinda lost but feel hopeful we can change our ways and learn to lead. This was extremely mild today. Usually there is alot of teeth exposure and drool. When we is in full action he is difficult to control. Today was a mere 1 percent of his usual attitude. I'm still glad I captured it so I could post for you all to see.

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Hiraeth

Well-Known Member
Yup, definitely fear aggression. A quick snap that says "get away, you're making me uncomfortable" is fear. My aggressive dogs went for each other's throats and had to be physically pulled apart.

I think keeping him out of super high stress situations like Petsmart and putting him in more comfortable situations, like working with dogs at a distance, will help. The goal is to work with small distractions and keep him under threshold because an over threshold dog has passed the point where training will help.

Does your obedience trainer have any experience with reactive dogs or fear aggressive dogs?
 

Hiraeth

Well-Known Member
I can't edit, but I should have said "over threshold dog has passed the point where training will help IN THAT MOMENT." :)
 

teodora

Well-Known Member
my 2 cents seeing the video, sorry i didnt read the previous opinions: not sure that's "aggression" or a winded up puppy wanting to have fun/play with other dogs or people. Have you let him close to other dogs to see what happens? Sorry, from what i've seen he just wants interaction, I don't know how you came to the conclusion that he'd bite. Maybe there's more to the picture and the video doesnt include the "aggression" part. Also, don't pet him when he's tense - you basically encourage him to go and interact. If possible get in between the dog and the attraction and redirect -make him turn so hes not facing it, or get his attention if possible. Keep calm and keep walking even if you have to go aside and let people pass: dont stop in place, you just give him time to increase his arousal.
 

DragosMom

Well-Known Member
Yes he does. He however does not want to address the issue until the obedience training is down pat. We go twice weekly with 1 hour per session. We are trying diligently to follow all advice, read all these wonderful training posts you all suggest and have contacted a behaviorist. Drago sees him on Thursday. Money is not an issue for us and we are willing to commit 100 percent to any program or training that will help. We have begun to change our roles here at home from equals to leader's. We have taken so many of the how to ruin your dog bullet points and have reversed all the negative things we were doing unintentionally. It's going to be a lot of work but Daniel and I are willing and ready to take the necessary steps to become a leader for Drago. Thank you so much for observing the video and sharing your thoughts with us..it's so appreciated!

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DragosMom

Well-Known Member
@teodora.. we have tried letting Drago run free at the local dog park and playing was definitely not part of the equation. As soon as 2 rottweilers(good size) entered the park Drago automatically took to defense. Teeth showing, drool hanging and bolted to one of the dogs. He pinned the dog by the shoulder where my husband had to literally pull Drago off. During walks on a trail Drago has lunged several times at joggers and people just walking by. Never were these friendly encounters. We will not allow Drago face to face with another dog without a muzzle. Even when muzzled he does not play or interact with another dog..it's always confrontational. I hope that helps you to understand.

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DragosMom

Well-Known Member
Also to add to above. .once in the gated part of the bark park Drago was viciously biting the metal chain link fence trying to get back into the park. This resulted in cutting his mouth. My husband who is 200 lbs said trying to get him out of the park was almost exhausting. My worry is Drago is only 6 months old..90 lbs and very strong for a puppy. We only want to rectify the situation and undo any damage we may have already done by not showing strong leadership.

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Big Mutt Luva

Active Member
I agree with the above. I would still use the prong collar for basic training. Something like that that levels the field between you and the dog, in my experience, uses less struggle/potential injury to make a correction. Any dog that I've had that is simply stronger than I, I walk on the pinch collar in case an unexpected event occurs. In the past I had a dog aggressive dog (that had the same fear aggression)- but it developed at about age 4. He had been well socialized at the park and soccer games on weekends. But I used to run with him and we were attacked a couple of times and he became very difficult to walk. we worked our way up from him learning to be obedient walking across the street from a fenced dog, and eventually same side of the street as the fence, and as we gained control went back to a basic dog class not to learn the "tricks", but to learn to focus amidst his fear. When we began our "walks", I usually sprinted the first 1/4 mile with him just to let off some energy. I know every dog is different but I just wanted to share what worked for us.
 

Hiraeth

Well-Known Member
The problem with a prong or pinch on a fear aggressive dog is that they see a thing they're afraid of, go towards it, get pinched/poked on the neck and then their fear is reinforced. In their mind, they saw a scary thing and then a negative thing happened to them because of the scary thing they saw.

Negative or aversive tools and training on a fear aggressive dog is *really* a bad idea. It can very easily escalate an uncomfortable and scared dog to a dog who thinks it HAS to bite to defend itself because every time it gets scared, something tightens around its neck.

I think Drago is on the edge of outright aggression and you have started doing something about it at a crucial point in time. Please don't do anything to escalate his fear by using prongs or other aversive training techniques. At best, it will repress his fear until one day he snaps at a totally unpredictable time and at worst, it will make him immediately more reactive and more aggressive.
 

teodora

Well-Known Member
@Dragosmum, ok, that was aggression them: in the video I could not see that part.
Jack has been through a mischievous stage at some point but i never let him interfere off leash with rotties or other entire males potentially intense. I still dont do it. Have you tried to socialize him with girls/calm dogs? He needs socialization, with muzzle and gradually let him have more freedom if he earns it?
 

Hector

Well-Known Member
Can you take a video of him being obedient on leash on prong doing recall, heelwork, attention, duration?