agressive behavior in male lab

[Guest Anonymous]

I have a large (115 lbs.) male black lab that is exhibiting agressive behavior around other dogs at the park. This behavior is limited to times when i am walking him with my younger female lab/shepard/malmute mix (65 lbs.). The problem is that i cannot control both of them when they see other dogs. The younger female wants to go play with the new dogs...and unfortunately the male (who has raised this young female from a 3 mo. pup) is very protective. It is becoming increasingly difficult to control them at the park...as i am trying to control ~200 lbs. of jumping, lunging,barking dogs. I am at a point where i am wondering if i can continue to take them to the park together and i would like the option to take them to a dog park but i am concerned about the male's agressive behavior toward new dogs (especially other males in an off leash situation). For now...i leash him up when we are in off leash situations but he is difficult to control. Can you suggest any training strategies that i can employee for the protective lab and the younger rambucious female?

thank you,

deb :-?

[Smooshie]

Does your male act aggressive at ALL when your female is not around?? You may have to consider taking them to the park seperately (I'm sorry...not a big help, I know :oops: )

Also, have your dogs been altered? Intact males will tend to act more aggressive towards other male dogs in a group situation...

[drjeffrock]

Ok, I will take a stab at this. Bear in mind you should consult a prof. trainer before implementing a training program, but I will try to make some sense of this. Both of my dogs are EXTREMELY dog-aggressive but behave on-leash. I have tried a few different methods, I will give you the one that worked best for both my dogs, and friends aggressive dogs that I have helped train. What kind of collar do you use? I might get flamed, but I suggest a choke chain fitted as high on your dogs head as it can go without slipping over the ears. A choke chain can be an excellent tool. You can have a lot more control than using a nylon collar that just hangs around the lower neck.
Basically, first you must teach your dog to NEVER walk in front of you. Keep the leash short, dont give your dog the opportunity to lead you around. This applies for all walks, etc. Dont let your dog pull you to the grass to pee, etc. You should be the one to determine when and where your dog pees. You need to let your dog know that YOU are the boss, and if you are not interested in other dogs, then your dog shouldnt be either. During training, there is probably only 12 inches between my hand gripping the leash and Dex's neck.
If you dog tries to get in front of you, a simple snap of the leash will correct this as well as stopping abruptly when he tries to get in front. This teaches your dog that he is not #1, you are.
Once you get the feel for this, you can move on to the next step, getting your dog to behave around other dogs. This should be done with just you and the aggressive dog. Dont bring your other dog to the park with you while you are working on this. What you want to teach your dog is to avoid other dogs. This will take some learning on your part to see your dogs behavior and to recognize the very first characteristics of his aggression/dominance. Most likely he will stare, stick his nose and chest out a bit. You basically want to shift his attention from the dog(s) back to you, before his aggression reaches a 10 (snapping, lunging, etc.) What I did is the second I noticed my dogs starting to stare down other dogs, they get a quick correction. If they continue to stare at the dog or pull/lunge/etc. I will make them sit facing the opposite way of the other dog and let the other dog walk by. If they try to turn around or whatever, another correction or two or 10 is given. Bear in mind that the correction does not need to be harsh. If the choke chain is fitted properly, you should be able to give a little snap and break your dogs stare. I also like to make a SHHHH noise to get my dogs attention.
Another way of getting your dog to not pay attention is to redirect its attention to you with treats. I have done this, but found its much more effective to give a correction (in the case of aggressive dogs) than to reward the negative behavior.
In a sense, you want to teach your dog to be submissive to you (and the other dogs around.) Right now, your dog thinks that he is in charge and needs to take control to protect his pack from other dogs.
When you are walking at the park, choose a path and stick to it. If another dog walks by, keep your pace. Dont slow down, or hunch over and tense up. Your dog will pick up on this, and it will make the cycle much more difficult to break. If your dog starts staring or deviating from the path you choose (i.e. starts pulling to the left towards a dog) he should receive another leash correction as you keep up your pace. If the behavior escalates to snapping, lunging, etc. turn him away from the other dog and make him sit without letting him turn around to look at the other dog.
I strongly suggest not just trying this stuff without first consulting a professional trainer. Its a lot easier said than done. Dex was a complete nightmare before I got tough on him. He would get so worked up in a frenzy over other dogs, I was worried that he might bite someone or a dog who just happened to be close when he went turned into a nutcase. He has gotten much better, I can hike through our local dog park for 2 hours without him lunging at a single dog. Needless to say, he is never allowed off-leash as he is far from being submissive to other dogs. Good luck, its a long, hard process but once you get some results it will be well worth it. I used to dread walking Dex cause there are so many dogs in my neighborhood. I dont know why I did not just try this method at first, as it had worked like a charm with my Akita.
So to summarize: Be the leader of your dog, do not allow your dog to escalate to the frenzy point of snapping and lunging, and walk past dogs like they dont exist (keep a calm, positive attitude.) Other people might disagree with this method, however I have seen this work in numerous dog-aggressive dogs, as well as human-aggressive dogs. Keep in mind that different dogs have different training needs, and a pro. behaviorist/trainer can help your assess your dog better than anyone of us can through a computer. Good luck!