Looking for advice as dog showing signs of aggression

[cheryl kerry]

Hello everyone,

I have a 20 month old black lab called Bodie who has been around other dogs since he was a puppy, he goes on group walks and he has been attending a dog club twice a week. He loves being with other dogs

When he attended dog club this saturday (basically it is a large enclosed field where dogs can run around together) 2 intact male dogs a GSD and Boxer started to fight and bodie (who is neutured) then launched in and was aggressive towards the Boxer and hurt him. The boxer dog left and the GSD who likes to hump Bodie (normally is so laid back about this and has never reacted), he tried to hump him and Bodie reacted.

Then last night on a walk (he was on a lead) he saw a border collie (they are the same age & went to puppy classes together) he was excited to see Bodie they jump around etc but leads got caught & again Bodie reacted. This is so out of character for him and so looking for a little advice as i don't want this to become his learned behaviour. Any advice as Bodie is our first dog.

Thanks
Cheryl

 

[JudyN]

In both situations, there was a high level of arousal and potential anxiety for your dog. In young male dogs there can be a combination of insecurity/fear, and wanting to try to show bravado.

I have to post and run now, but have a read of this post and come back if there's anything you want to ask: Dog Reactivity

 

[JoanneF]

I'm not keen on these sort of situations for dogs, for the reasons @JudyN says - there is just too much potential for over-arousal and the evidence of that is in the fighting, the humping, and Bodie's reaction to the humping - which, out of all of these, is probably the most reasonable. I consider humping to be very rude behaviour and I don't blame the dog for humping as much as the owner for failing to notice when his dog was being over stimulated to the point the dog needed to do this. Unobservant owners are another reason why dog areas like this are high risk.

I would avoid situations like this for at the very least a few days to let the stress hormone cortisol drain down. Then, if you do go back, monitor interactions closely. Dogs really don't need lots of doggy friends, it's no more natural than you hugging every random stranger you meet in the supermarket. I actively train my dog to be dog neutral - another advantage is that his focus is then on me, I am the centre of his universe and he doesn't expect to play with every dog he meets. He has three doggy friends that he plays with, they have known each other for a long time and understand each other.

I'm just going to attach a video so you can see how subtle the signs of discomfort in a dog park can be. There is a better one but I can never find it, maybe someone else will.

 

[Hemlock]

very good advice you have there already.

I'm going to describe something revelatory that happened to me many years ago. I was having a pub lunch with a friend and her 13 year old son. This son had been beautifully brought up and was a very nice lad. But.....13. Around the same age in development as this teenage labrador.
This young lad saw another the same age, also having lunch. Immediately the boy with us started a muttering dialogue about how this other lad was "looking at him". And what he was gonna do if he carried on looking at him. His mother told him he was to be quiet and eat his food and that nobody was looking at him. Despite these assurances and his previous good character, the antsiness ramped up and up until you could nearly smell the testosterone.

And that's what this adolescent labrador is doing. He'll grow out of it as long as he is removed from places where it is likely to occur BUT if he is allowed to practice this behaviour, he may become addicted to it because it feeds reward centres in the brain.

So - keep him right out of such situations and YOU are his best friend, guide and mentor. Control any ad hoc situations that might happen with other dogs. Don't let him bully or be bullied. Your lovely pup will grow into a well-rounded adult - just as the teenager from long ago did.

 

[Jan Woodhall]

Hello everyone,

I have a 20 month old black lab called Bodie who has been around other dogs since he was a puppy, he goes on group walks and he has been attending a dog club twice a week. He loves being with other dogs

When he attended dog club this saturday (basically it is a large enclosed field where dogs can run around together) 2 intact male dogs a GSD and Boxer started to fight and bodie (who is neutured) then launched in and was aggressive towards the Boxer and hurt him. The boxer dog left and the GSD who likes to hump Bodie (normally is so laid back about this and has never reacted), he tried to hump him and Bodie reacted.

Then last night on a walk (he was on a lead) he saw a border collie (they are the same age & went to puppy classes together) he was excited to see Bodie they jump around etc but leads got caught & again Bodie reacted. This is so out of character for him and so looking for a little advice as i don't want this to become his learned behaviour. Any advice as Bodie is our first dog.

Thanks
Cheryl

 

[Jan Woodhall]

'there may be a physical reason for this, so bear that in mind! Things like tumours on the brain can cause this behaviour, just don't discount it.

 

[JoanneF]

'there may be a physical reason for this, so bear that in mind! Things like tumours on the brain can cause this behaviour, just don't discount it.

it's always possible of course; but hopefully the hormones and over-stimulation - which we know were in play - are the cause.

 

[JacksDad]

very good advice you have there already.

I'm going to describe something revelatory that happened to me many years ago. I was having a pub lunch with a friend and her 13 year old son. This son had been beautifully brought up and was a very nice lad. But.....13. Around the same age in development as this teenage labrador.
This young lad saw another the same age, also having lunch. Immediately the boy with us started a muttering dialogue about how this other lad was "looking at him". And what he was gonna do if he carried on looking at him. His mother told him he was to be quiet and eat his food and that nobody was looking at him. Despite these assurances and his previous good character, the antsiness ramped up and up until you could nearly smell the testosterone.

And that's what this adolescent labrador is doing. He'll grow out of it as long as he is removed from places where it is likely to occur BUT if he is allowed to practice this behaviour, he may become addicted to it because it feeds reward centres in the brain.

So - keep him right out of such situations and YOU are his best friend, guide and mentor. Control any ad hoc situations that might happen with other dogs. Don't let him bully or be bullied. Your lovely pup will grow into a well-rounded adult - just as the teenager from long ago did.

great relatable parallel to the human experience, and basically the same concept I was going to contribute. But you beat me to it, so I am just going to quote for emphasis.

My contribution is going to be, just because it might end up not being anything to worry about in terms of "oh no, my dog is aggressive", and possibly even a natural normal phase of development...doesn't mean we have to just "let it happen" or write it off as "dogs will be dogs". I would strongly encourage training an alternate behavior for when around other dogs vs allowing your dog to get better at this unwanted behavior.

 

[JacksDad]

'there may be a physical reason for this, so bear that in mind! Things like tumours on the brain can cause this behaviour, just don't discount it.

anything is possible, but not always probable. At 20 months old tumors are not high on the list of probable causes of aggression. particularly a one off or first presentation.