What Makes A Dog Aggressive?
Friends of the Dog
Friends of the Dog
Addressing aggression in dogs is indeed crucial for the safety of both the dog and those around them. Below are the most common reasons that we have found where aggression is exhibited.
Fear
Fear seems to be the number one reason for aggression, and research has shown that fearful dogs were found to be five times more likely to exhibit aggression than a dog that is not fearful.
Aggression is not something that happens overnight unless pain related. It can start with the dog backing away – if that does not work, the dog may start growling. If the growling does not work and the perceived threat comes closer, the dog is forced to escalate its response until it results to actual aggression – as this behaviour ‘works’, the dog will continue to exhibit the behaviour, and this becomes what is termed ‘learned behaviour’.
The majority of dogs we have worked on where aggression was in place, had a common history of being taken away from their mom and littermates between 4 to 6 weeks of age, and many were ‘only’ pups. The early socializing with littermates and discipline from mom are crucial where social skills are concerned, and do pup should leave it’s mom and littermates before 8 weeks of age.
Lack of early socialization to different people and animals, and especially not attending a puppy school. Pups that attend puppy school, which occurs between approximately 10 to 16 weeks of age have a huge advantage and are building a strong social foundation.
If a dog has a history of abuse, neglect, trauma or mistreatment it is often fearful and could exhibit aggression.
Environmental Factors
Dogs who live in households with no other dogs, and dogs whose owners had never previously had a dog, were more likely to be aggressive than dogs with canine housemates or experienced owners.
Dogs that have no mental stimulated, limited human socialization and are often left alone outside, can exhibit aggressive behaviour due to sheer frustration and its needs not being met.
Pain or Medical Issues
Pain-related aggression occurs when a dog is experiencing discomfort and tries to prevent other dogs, and people—even their owner—from touching or handling them due to the pain, or even the fear that the pain might worsen. The source of the pain isn’t always obvious and can arise suddenly, catching many owners by surprise. One common cause of pain-related aggression is a hereditary condition, such as hip dysplasia.
In some cases, the pain stems from a visible external injury, allowing you to identify the affected area and avoid it. However, other times the pain is internal, making it harder to detect. Even without a visible injury, touching the dog might cause discomfort, leading them to associate physical contact with pain. As a result, a dog might growl or snap if someone comes too close or makes a movement towards them—no actual contact is necessary.
Sex of Dog
Both male and female dogs can display aggression, but statistics indicate that "intact" (not neutered) male dogs are more prone to aggression compared to female dogs or neutered males. However, we have recently come across some research that disputes this claim, but have unfortunately, not found any scientific confirmation.
Age & Size
Older dogs were more prone to aggressive behavior compared to younger ones. This could be due to pain caused by age-related illnesses, which can trigger aggression, or because sensory impairments may cause human interactions to feel abrupt and more intimidating.
Another instance where age may come into play is during the adolescent stage.
The spike in hormones and energy that adolescent dogs often go through can lead to more territorial behavior, mounting, and aggression, or result in hyperactivity, destructive habits, and excessive barking. It's no surprise, then, that many dogs are surrendered to animal shelters during this stage.
On average we have found that small breed dogs were more likely to exhibit aggression than medium and larger breeds. More often than not early socialization was not undertaken and basic guidelines of what is, and what is not acceptable, were not in place in the home environment.
Conclusion
Aggression can be a very serious issue and can take a huge amount of input and consistency from owners, however, the majority of time, unless serious bites have occurred, it can be changed. This is not a condition that will go away by itself, it will get worse – the sooner the aggression is treated, the quicker and easier it will be to change the behaviour. Only work with professionals that use modern methods, such as Positive Reinforcement. Using aversive methods, such as alpha rolls, poking the dog, aversive collars such as those that are very high on the neck, or chole or prong collars, are more likely to do more damage than good.
Fear
Fear seems to be the number one reason for aggression, and research has shown that fearful dogs were found to be five times more likely to exhibit aggression than a dog that is not fearful.
Aggression is not something that happens overnight unless pain related. It can start with the dog backing away – if that does not work, the dog may start growling. If the growling does not work and the perceived threat comes closer, the dog is forced to escalate its response until it results to actual aggression – as this behaviour ‘works’, the dog will continue to exhibit the behaviour, and this becomes what is termed ‘learned behaviour’.
The majority of dogs we have worked on where aggression was in place, had a common history of being taken away from their mom and littermates between 4 to 6 weeks of age, and many were ‘only’ pups. The early socializing with littermates and discipline from mom are crucial where social skills are concerned, and do pup should leave it’s mom and littermates before 8 weeks of age.
Lack of early socialization to different people and animals, and especially not attending a puppy school. Pups that attend puppy school, which occurs between approximately 10 to 16 weeks of age have a huge advantage and are building a strong social foundation.
If a dog has a history of abuse, neglect, trauma or mistreatment it is often fearful and could exhibit aggression.
Environmental Factors
Dogs who live in households with no other dogs, and dogs whose owners had never previously had a dog, were more likely to be aggressive than dogs with canine housemates or experienced owners.
Dogs that have no mental stimulated, limited human socialization and are often left alone outside, can exhibit aggressive behaviour due to sheer frustration and its needs not being met.
Pain or Medical Issues
Pain-related aggression occurs when a dog is experiencing discomfort and tries to prevent other dogs, and people—even their owner—from touching or handling them due to the pain, or even the fear that the pain might worsen. The source of the pain isn’t always obvious and can arise suddenly, catching many owners by surprise. One common cause of pain-related aggression is a hereditary condition, such as hip dysplasia.
In some cases, the pain stems from a visible external injury, allowing you to identify the affected area and avoid it. However, other times the pain is internal, making it harder to detect. Even without a visible injury, touching the dog might cause discomfort, leading them to associate physical contact with pain. As a result, a dog might growl or snap if someone comes too close or makes a movement towards them—no actual contact is necessary.
Sex of Dog
Both male and female dogs can display aggression, but statistics indicate that "intact" (not neutered) male dogs are more prone to aggression compared to female dogs or neutered males. However, we have recently come across some research that disputes this claim, but have unfortunately, not found any scientific confirmation.
Age & Size
Older dogs were more prone to aggressive behavior compared to younger ones. This could be due to pain caused by age-related illnesses, which can trigger aggression, or because sensory impairments may cause human interactions to feel abrupt and more intimidating.
Another instance where age may come into play is during the adolescent stage.
The spike in hormones and energy that adolescent dogs often go through can lead to more territorial behavior, mounting, and aggression, or result in hyperactivity, destructive habits, and excessive barking. It's no surprise, then, that many dogs are surrendered to animal shelters during this stage.
On average we have found that small breed dogs were more likely to exhibit aggression than medium and larger breeds. More often than not early socialization was not undertaken and basic guidelines of what is, and what is not acceptable, were not in place in the home environment.
Conclusion
Aggression can be a very serious issue and can take a huge amount of input and consistency from owners, however, the majority of time, unless serious bites have occurred, it can be changed. This is not a condition that will go away by itself, it will get worse – the sooner the aggression is treated, the quicker and easier it will be to change the behaviour. Only work with professionals that use modern methods, such as Positive Reinforcement. Using aversive methods, such as alpha rolls, poking the dog, aversive collars such as those that are very high on the neck, or chole or prong collars, are more likely to do more damage than good.
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