I took him in with the intent of just fostering him back to health, and stuff, but then he has some issues that need to be worked out. He's neutered, but still very aggressive for a young pup. He was a stray that we took in about 6 weeks ago. He appears to mostly be a black lab, but has too much white on his chest. He also seems small for his age. But the things I need help with are:
How to socialize him more without any dogs
(or people for that matter) getting bitten, barked or growled at? Dogs could be walking by peacefully, but he still growls and barks at them...
Rawhide aggression. I'm trying to lessen the severity of it by holding the bone while he chews on it, or getting it, giving him a treat, and then giving it back to him. He seems okay with me taking it, but he gets really GRRR when my 4 year old gets near him while he's chewing on rawhide.
I think I just mainly need help in the socialization front.
Answers:
Yes, you do need to start working on him now, because he will only get worse and I guarantee he will eventually attack someone, most likely your 4yr old. As far as the rawhide aggression.it is not unusual for a dog to be aggressive over food (including rawhide) but it needs to be taken extremely seriously. You can try to train him out of biting you, but make sure there is always, always, always a strong physical barrier between the dog and your child whenever there is food or rawhide involved, or else your child will eventually be attacked. Even if you think you have trained him not to bite, he is still an animal. Do not ever let him be around your child when food is involved.
As far as other aggression.he really needs to see a professional dog trainer or behaviorist now before he gets any older. It seems like you are already doing a good job on food training. Another thing you can try is to never let him free feed. You should just feed him at designated times so he knows he must depend on you, the pack leader, for food. He also needs to learn obedience (sit, stay), as this also reinforces the idea that you are boss.
To teach him to behave around other dogs...perhaps you could take him to a friend's house (a friend that has a dog) and have him interact with the dog (while both are on leashes) with a muzzle on if you think he will bite. I think you should teach him sit before doing this, and make him sit while he interacts with the other dog. the idea is to keep him under control. Whenever you take him on a walk, keep him under control. If he barks at another dog, immediately turn around and walk the other direction. Don't fuss over him and tell him to stop. He doesn't know what that means-he thinks you are reinforcing him with attention.
Finally, you really need a professional for this. I can't explain this enough. I think you should also get the dog to the vet so he can start a med like prozac or clomicalm, to help manage him physically while you train him.
Be very possessive over YOUR food, remember its your and you will let him eat when he obeys and waits for it.
Take food away and give it back( do not reward w/treats).
use your body to take the food away(step between him and the food) not your hands.
Exercise him and when he is tired do obedience and discipline.
On the raw hide just try to get him to abandon the hide.it will take a while, keep stepping between him and the bone.
Always use short command or sharp loud sounds.
the only way to safely socialize him is to establish a good base of dominance over him, get him with other CALM dogs and people and a good choke chain.
Hello ...well you can try..but his being a stray has created some extra strong survival instincts that could be hard to break %26 sorry to say...your four year old is no match for this dog, we had to get rid of a dog that was like this for just that reason even tho we loved the dog..the kids were no match to her agression %26 size..so that's about all I can say on this..Take Care :)
You're lucky to get him this young because it'll be easier to train him. I watch the Dog Whisperer a lot %26 he has dealt with several dogs with these issues.
He always starts with the walk. Short leash him %26 if a collar doesn't help you control him, try a choke or prong collar. They both work pretty well %26 getting him around as many people, places, %26 other dogs will really help. Cesar also claims the food, treats whatever the dog is real possessive of as his then allows the dog to have it. He probably thinks your son is a threat so I'd train the child to leave the dog alone more for his safety then anything else. If your child were older he could help you but he's really too young. It sounds like you're headed in the right direction, just my take a little longer.
Good luck %26 thanks for taking a pup off the streets %26 showing how good life can be.
strengthen your bond with him, and make him know that you will not hurt him and that you are the boss.you will need to teach him to be gentle with little kids. the socialization can be helped by better training, and obedience classes. or when you take him out for a walk give him treats when he does good (which will probably not be for a while).when he starts barking or growling at another dog, immediately remove him from the situation and turn him so that he is facing away from the other dog, let the other dog pass, and as you do his tell him that he is a bad dog. also, you may need to take into consideration his possible prior situation where he was with other dogs before. and make sure when you are walking him that you have him on your left side, so that there are two people between him and another dog. helplul tips are always available on the internet. i suggest the beloe listed web site which is very helpfu with videos and everything you need for your dog.
http://leerburg.com/dominac2.htm...
Nip this in the bud NOW, at 18mos that dog will be a force to reckon with.
Our dog was really aggressive too ( I mean REALLY CRAZY) anyway we brought home a new puppy on monday and they were getting along by wednesday, we used this product called Rescue Remedy. It works great you should try it you can get it at Vitamin Shoppe.com, go to this website it lets you know a little about it. Good Luck.
http://www.caberfeidh.com/flowers.htm...
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