When Pigs Fly_ Training Success With Impossible Dogs - Jane Killion [80]
There is not room to tackle the full subject of aggression in this book. There are several good books written on dog aggression, and, if you have an aggressive dog, you need to buy them and spend lots of time learning all about aggression and how to handle it. I would, however, like to give you some guidelines for dealing with it.
Let’s understand why a dog would engage in aggressive behaviors. The dog is using a behavior that he believes is an appropriate one to ward off that which he fears or feels threatened by. Here is the important point that humans just do not understand: in the world of dogs, aggression is an appropriate response to a threat. Unfortunately for dogs, aggression is not acceptable in this human world that we have dragged dogs into. If you can show your dog that a different behavior (one that you happen to find acceptable) will actually work better than aggression to ward off the scary thing, he will leave off the aggressive displays. If you grab him and scruff shake him and yell, “NOT acceptable,” you will probably get a lot of approving nods from people around you, but you will have done absolutely nothing to teach your dog a response to threat that is acceptable to human society. Your dog will certainly aggress again.
Piggy Pointer
Don’t be discouraged if you feel offended or angry when you dog displays unsavory behavior. If it is natural for our dogs to do some “horrible” things, it is equally natural for us to get reflexively furious when they do those things. If a dog ever growls at me or destroys something I value greatly, my first impulse is to drop-kick that dog across the room. As attractive and satisfying as that option seems at times, better judgment prevails and I manage, train, or condition, as the case warrants. We are the humans with the big primate brains and opposable thumbs. We can control any situation without force or anger. Not that I don’t sometimes think wistfully about whupping my dog’s butt, I just control myself.
So, how can you practically deal with aggression? The first rule is, no one gets bitten. That means that you always stay below your dog’s threshold of aggression. Do only that which will not provoke your dog. Until you have trained your dog and can call on foundation behaviors to substitute for aggressive behaviors, stay safe and manage so you can avoid conflict. I am going to give you two common aggression situations that can be easily changed using your ABC knowledge. These two examples will help you, but, if you have a seriously aggressive dog then find yourself a good professional trainer to help you out.
Here is the most common aggression situation that dog owners complain about:
A. Dog is on the bed and owner approaches.
B. Dog growls.
C. Owner shoves dog off bed or moves dog aside and gets into bed with the dog.
Remember the first rule of dealing with an aggressive dog? No one gets bitten. This ABC scenario violates that rule big-time. It is a recipe for disaster. The dog’s growl is information. The information he is giving you is that he may bite you. It is like someone pointing a gun at you and saying, “Stop, or I’ll shoot!” Please heed this warning and be thankful that he gave you a chance to get away without being bitten. You can train away the behavior later—just don’t get bitten now!
Here is an even worse one:
A. Dog is on the bed and owner approaches.
B. Dog growls.
C. Owner grabs dog by the sides of his face and shakes him or hangs him up by his collar and chokes him until he stops growling.
Wow. You just punished out your dog’s warning system. If you are successful in your punishment your dog will not growl anymore to warn you that he is going to bite you. Next time, he may just bite you “out of nowhere.”
Those sound like scary dogs, but in many cases this is an absurdly easy behavior to change. How about this:
A. Dog on bed and owner approaches.
B. Owner calls dog, dog jumps off the bed