Dog Behavior Aggression-How Serious Can It Be?

Dog behavior aggression is probably the most serious reason for dog owners to look for. Dogs don't become aggressive overnight. In many cases, there is "handwriting on the wall", weeks, months, or even years prior to a dog's first serious bite. Unfortunately, many dog owners do not realize that warning signs such as growling, snapping or "nipping", often escalate into biting behavior over time.

Growling, baring teeth, snarling, snapping, and biting are all aggressive behaviors--but dog aggression includes any behavior meant to intimidate or harm a person or another animal. Although these messages are among the handful of communication tools available to dogs, they're generally unacceptable to humans. Because humans and dogs have different communication systems, misunderstandings can occur between the two species.

Each year, many dogs are sent to animal shelters and put down when they show aggression towards people. Sadly, this behavior can easily turn deadly when an adult or child is viciously attacked, causing a great deal of pain and suffering. Instead of allowing dog aggressive behavior, you must immediately correct any behavior that can be seen as threatening. Also, be sure to keep your dog on a leash in all common places and consider upgrading a fence to prohibit him from roaming at will, when most dogs are subject to attack bystanders. In addition to correcting your dog behavior aggression, you may need to also correct the behavior of individuals who could provoke your animal and may lure them into an attack.

Punishment won't help and, in fact, will make the problem worse. If the aggression is motivated by fear, punishment will make your dog more fearful, and based on that more aggressive. Attempting to punish or dominate a dominantly aggressive dog will likely cause him to escalate his behavior in order to retain his dominant position. Result could be a bite or a severe attack. Punishing territorial, possessive or protective aggression will probably cause additional defensive reaction.

The sooner you start working on the problem, the greater your chances of success. Every time the dog shows the aggression, the habit gets stronger. It will then take a longer period of time and more patience and training to change the habit-if it can be changed at all. These problems often emerge in adolescence. This is an unstable time for dogs and a period of their lives when they can suddenly completely change their behavior and start causing problems. Dog behavior aggression should be stopped immediately before it escalates in serious threat to relationship with your pet.