The Honeymoon Is Over: My Dog is Showing Aggression!

Mammals possess 6 basic (and normal) emotions; one of these is fear. When a dog feels threatened, most will attempt to escape the situation (flight).

But what if a dog’s fears escalate into aggression (fight) towards other dogs or even people?

In this post, Fran Menley, our own Training & Behavior Modification Expert, gives you the basics about fear-based aggression.

How Does Fear Lead to K9 Aggression?

Fear lies behind most aggressive behavior. Contrary to popular belief, aggressive behavior is not always about dominance (pack status). Fear aggression has little to nothing to do with dominance and everything to do with an underlying fear(s) felt by the dog about their environment, people or other dogs/pets.

Why Does Fear Lead to K9 Aggression?

Image by Brett Hondow from Pixabay

There are some basic reasons why a dog becomes fear aggressive.

1. Lack of proper socialization to all types of situations, people, dogs or animals and environments;
2. A history or antecedents (including past trauma or negative events); and
3. Post-Traumatic Stress (PTS) from frightening, inhumane treatment or punishment-based training techniques.

Because of any one of these reasons (or even a combination), the fearful dog cannot effectively cope with new situations, dogs/animals or even people because of a lack of self-confidence. If they continue to feel threatened, they can only resort to flight or fight.

Image by Mandyme27 from Pixabay

What Does Fear-Based Aggression Look Like?

Understanding your dog’s body language will give you important clues in predicting future behavior.

• Most dogs will try to escape from a perceived threat (flight). But be warned, they can suddenly turn, nip or bite even as they are retreating.
• Dogs will communicate their fear through body postures (low-level warning signals):
  • Cowering
  • Head held low
  • Lifting of one paw (often used with other signals)
  • Head or body turning away
  • Tail tucked in
  • Rapid heartbeat
  • Raised hackles
  • Freezing (another natural response to a threat)
  • Walking slowly (motions are very deliberate)
  • Wrinkling of the nose
  • Lip or nose licking
  • Ears are back and pinned against the head
  • Baring teeth as the corners of the mouth are pulled back
• If a dog feels still feels threatened (or cornered), their behavior may escalate into growling, barking, lunging, snapping or biting (not all fearful dogs will bite) still trying to make the threat go away. Never corner a fearful dog who is showing aggressive behavior.

Can Fear-Based Aggression be Cured?

Image by GemmaRay23 from Pixabay

The short answer is not entirely. This is because it’s impossible to guarantee behavior in people or dogs. But there are things that can be done to help modify and manage this negative and potentially dangerous behavior.

Fear-based aggression (or any other form of canine aggression is potentially too dangerous for the average dog owner to address on their own. Bring in an experienced and well-qualified K9 behavioral expert for the best possible – and lasting – results.

Aggressive behavior can be exacerbated by someone who doesn’t know what they are doing with a fearful and aggressive canine. (If you live in the Morrison or Littleton areas of Colorado, contact our Training & Behavior Modification Expert, Fran Menley, for professional assistance.) 

With time, patience and the help of an expert, together you can take the steps to identify, desensitize and add new, positive rituals to address fear-based aggression.  Fran will always recommend that a dog presenting with fear or hyper-reactivity be health-checked by a veterinarian as some issues can result in behavior issues. We never want to overlook a health issue and assume it is 100% behaviorally based.

• Your behavior modification expert will help you identify the specific triggers which elicit fear from your dog. The expert will teach you how to put your dog in a positive situation to help reduce the trigger. This will help the aggressive behavior decline.
• Humane desensitization techniques will help your dog gain more confidence while effectively dealing with their fear.
• Learn how to make your environment predictable and calm to help remove those triggers and increase your dog’s overall confidence. Unanticipated surprises and chaos can trigger a dog’s fear.
• Finally, with the expert, you will learn how to set up new “rituals of behavior” to help alleviate your dog’s fear and resulting aggression. These are actions and behaviors you and your canine can practice in any situation that makes her feel uncomfortable or triggers a negative reaction. The secret is to keep your dog focused and below her stress threshold to avoid triggering an aggressive reaction.

Remember, Most Behaviors Can Be Modified!

As soon as you see any signs of aggressive behavior, call in an expert (like our own expert, Fran Menly in the metro-Denver area of Colorado)!

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Is Your Newly Adopted Dog exhibiting fear aggression?

Or perhaps some other type of K9 aggression?

Fran Menley of Creating Forever Dogs can help with expert K9 behavioral modification and professional training services.

Just call us today at (303) 904-904-0484 or email us here to get started today!

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Additional Reading:

1. Fear Aggression positively.com/dog-behavior/aggression/fear-aggression/
2. Help for the Fearful Dog positively.com/contributors/help-for-the-fearful-dog-by-linda-michaels/
3. 15 Facts about Fear Aggression in Dogs You Must Know topdogtips.com/fear-aggression-in-dogs/
4. How to Handle Fear and Fear Aggression in Dogs www.thebalancedcanine.com/how-handle-fear-fear-aggression-dogs/
5. Fear Aggression in Dogs www.theveterinaryexpert.com/behaviour/fear-aggression-in-dogs/
6. Problematic Aggression in Pets www.drbeckersbites.com/problematic-aggression-in-pets