Lexi: Dog Aggression Case Study 

Here with my The Woodlands dog training, I get tons of cases that involve dog aggression. It’s a pretty common behavioral problem, and sometimes what appears to be rough play, can actually be a stepping stone to full on aggression.

This is not to say that dogs that play or rough house with each other are just ticking bombs waiting to explode. There are dogs that understand that there are limitations, even when it comes to play time. There are dogs that understand that there are people and dogs that they should not cross. But there are those dogs that believe boundaries are non-existent, and that anything is up for taking. If a dog has no leadership or boundaries, then they can behave in any way they please, and that could range from just annoying behavior to severe aggressive behavior!

One of my most recent dog aggression cases was with a dog named Lexi. When she first started socializing with other dogs, she never exhibited any aggressive tendencies. If anything, it looked as if Lexi wanted to please EVERY dog. She’d submit to any dog, and be open to play with any dog of any size. When Lexi turned seven months, she showed her teeth to another dog for the first time. Initially, her owner was concerned, but then felt like it was okay because she believed Lexi was finally standing up for herself, and not being a door mat anymore. But when Lexi went from baring teeth to biting a dog’s hind leg, that was when I got the phone call to deal with Lexi’s dog aggression.

With any of my the Woodlands dog training programs, I not only work with the dog, but I also work with the owner so that they feel like a leader that can teach and maintain better behaviors for their dogs. Clear, consistent communication between owner and dog must be established, and then once the owner can show the dog the difference between appropriate versus inappropriate behavior, then success will be right around the corner for these families.

Think of it this way: if a child isn’t taught that fighting in the schoolyard is inappropriate, well then that child could interpret it as fighting as being an acceptable choice. A child may not ever fight or actively choose to because intuitively, they don’t want to be violent or dominant. But there could be a child that only understands that fighting was never explained as something bad, so therefore, it is fair game. It’s the same with dogs – some dogs may never fight or will never choose to be aggressive, and no one will EVER have to tell them that aggression is inappropriate, because it is already intuitively known. But there are dogs with different personalities that will see aggression as an option, because it was never communicated that it a bad behavior and that the dog should not demonstrate it.

With Lexi, she was learning to defend herself more, but she thought that she could take her defense to an extremely aggressive level. We went back to basics, and showed Lexi how to succeed rather than fail, also showing the rewards she earns from demonstrating good behavior. It took a lot of work and time, but with commitment-based and reward-based training, we were able to teach Lexi how to be assertive without aggression. She has played with many dogs since training and there hasn’t been a single aggressive incident!

If you are concerned and think your dog’s behavior is bordering on aggression, don’t wait until things get worse! Call me at 800-649-7297 and we’ll schedule an initial in-home consultation together!