How do I help my aggressive aussie?

Question

I have a 3 year old neutered male australian shepherd that is terrified of people and dogs so he behaves aggressively. I have had him since he was 7 weeks old and he has never been abused or mistreated in any way. He has never bitten anyone but he barks and growls and has snapped at some people. He is very well trained in obedience and is fine with people and dogs if he is in an obedience command or on a leash, he can even have people touch him sometimes then(he shakes and is very jumpy still and might let out a small growl). No one can even get to our door any more because he is getting worse with people and I'm afraid it's just a matter of time until he bites someone. We have small neighbor kids that wander into our yard sometimes and i'm terrified he will bite one of them. He has been attacked by other dogs numerous times so now he snaps at them before he gives them a chance to be nice. Putting him down is NOT an option and we dont have any dog trainers or behaviorists nearby.

I've searched for 3 years for a trainer near by and the closest one is 2 hours away, which I'm trying to get my parents to take him to. He's been checked by a vet and he is physically fine. he's just terrified of everything(hats, people, dogs, storms, ect..) I have heard of aussies being aggressive and reserved. I got him from a breeder and both his parents were friendly.

Stimply, I tried correcting him before and that increased his aggressiveness because he is already scared involving pain into it just makes him more scared. I do watch the dog whisperer and use some of his techniques on him and I've posted this on his blog. a choke chain should never be kept on a dog though, I had a dog get caught and almost strangle itself once.. I do keep him in a heel or stay when I know someone is coming over but usually people come either when i'm not home or unexpected. we have a buried line in our yard to keep him in so he has access to the entire yard which is a problem. He is fine with people if they play with him(throw his tennis ball) and he will hide from them if he has a chance. I'm not going to keep him tied up all the time or penned, he is way to active to be tethered all the time just in case someone comes over..

I will not put him down and i am not being selfish with that decision. He is muzzled when we have people over and when he is not being watched. I know my dog and you do not, he is usually fine with kids, and he is not going to bite unless he is cornered or trapped. He barks and growls at men mostly, but he stays out of there reach. There is no need for him to be put down, maybe if i lived in a city or town where there are people all around but I dont, my neighbors all know about him, and they dont really live that close to me. The kids that have come into our yard are running to me and know not to come into our yard unless I'm there. I just want him not to be so terrified all the time. I hate having to muzzle him.

When I got this dog I took on a responsiblitly. I knew that with any dog there is a chance it could have some behavioral problems. I will not just give up on him and give him to someone else or put him down. When you get a dog they depend on you to take care of them and help them no matter what. I have handled this for 3 years without anyone getting bit but I want to make my, his and our neighbors lives easier by fixing him. Another thing; when i am gone from home and someone(ups man or landscapers) come to our house Boomer(thats the dogs name) has opened our doors and let himself inside to hide. We can't have fences in my neighborhood so we just have to buried line.

Answer 1

OK.

What is needed is to change his perception (of one thing at a time) from "this scares me, so I'll make it go away" to "wow, everytime this occurs, something terrific happens! I think I like this thing now."

Fear aggression, in my mind, is a learned behavior, therefore it can be unlearned (or new learning can overcome the old). This is going to take time. Nothing is going to change overnight, but you have made it clear that you're willing to work with him, so start now.
Below is the page on Dr Patricia McConnell's website to order "The Cautious Canine". It's small, well-written for pet parents, and an easy to follow, step by step guide to de-sensitizing the fearful dog.

I would be happy to help you with this, and this is the guide I use in any similar situation. Get the book and e-mail me through www.rotts-n-notts.com and we'll see if we can work this out.

In the meantime, let him drag his leash around the house when you can monitor that he doesn't get caught on anything. If you need to quickly get control of him, you just step on the leash, pick it up and get his attention or put him in a settle position. it's non-threatening and gives you more distance to catch him than lunging for his collar ;]
If he's already crate-trained, great. he can go into his crate with a lovely stuffed Kong or real bone when company comes. You want to make sure his 'crate treat' is never given to him any other time - only in the crate. Therefore, his crate is great and he has something to focus on other than people in his house.

I'll look forward to hearing from you.

Answer 2

If he doesn't exhibit this behavior when on a leash, start keeping him on a leash when you do things like answer the door or have him in the yard.

Until you can break him of this behavior, you should look at getting a choke collar or one that is part "normal" collar and part choke chain. (PetCo and PetSmart have these.) This will allow you to firmly pull on the leash/collar to correct him when he starts showing the aggressive behavior.

Start with having people come to the door with him on a leash. If he starts growling firmly yank at his collar to correct him. Don't wait until he starts into a full growl or bark. The moment you hear him start the growling, like a deeper breath, or see him get into an aggressive stance, quickly yank then release the collar (this won't hurt him) and say something like "no" or another word he knows as stop.

You want to redirect his focus so that it's not on this new person or new dog, but on you. By correcting him using a choke collar, you're getting him to look away from whatever makes him so intense.

To work properly with this collar, you don't want to always keep it tight or pulled. It should be slack until you need to correct him.

So start that with people coming to the door. Eventually you should be able to have people come to the door without him on a leash and no growling/barking. It will take time and consistency.

Then do the same with the outside agressiveness. Keep him on a leash and close by your side. Have a willing participant come into the yard and when he starts to show aggression, correct him with the collar.

The link below is a good resource. The show, Dog Whisperer, has helped us with training our dog. If you do a search on the name Cesar Millan you can come across some Q & A articles that address common behavior problems.

Answer 3

My father has a 8 year old stock dog mix that is very similar to your dog. We bottle fed him and his sister and he is super attached to the family. Even though he lives with them, he growls at all of the other dogs (we have five total) and scares the hell out of people because he acts so mean when they come around. He does it because he is 1) protective of his family and 2) he's trying to look tough because he's actually a chicken. We've tried a lot to mellow him and it seems with age he's gotten better. My suggestion is to just keep on with what you are doing. It seems like he needs to continue being exposed to new people and dogs in a non threatening way, to build his confidence that being friendly isn't a bad thing. Locking him away will only make him worse, trust me. Rio, our trouble child, has gotten better as we've introduced new people to him and he's not nearly as bad as he used to be. I know that probably wasn't what you were looking for, but I just thought I'd let you know I've been there too. I'll keep looking for some info for you to help you out. Best of luck.

Answer 4

Did you get him from a breeder or pet store? Many are inbred and end up with chemical imbalances. Behavioral modification through training may still be an option, but if it's a neurological disorder, he may never change.

Try searching Craigslist or Y! Yellow Pages for a trainer. Or you could ask your vet for a recommendation. I'm sure there are trainers nearby.

Answer 5

My dog was aggressive to other dogs when I adopted her from the pound. I put a pinch collar on her, walked her by other dogs, and I would give her the command to "Leave it". When she started showing aggression, I lifted her front legs off the ground until she stopped struggling, about 5 or 10 seconds. It only took me doing that once or twice before she realized that aggression would not be tolerated! Now, I can walk her within 15-20 feet of other dogs, and she will behave. I'm working on getting her closer, but it will take some time. This sounds like a pretty severe technique, but I have a German Shepherd, and with their already bad reputation, I could not tolerate any aggression from her.
Here are some ideas that might work with you:
Hand random strangers tasty treats (like hot dog bits) and tell them to toss them in front of your dog. Don't have them try to give them to your dog, just have them toss the treat gently in front of your dog. Over time, he will start to view strange people as hot dog dispensing machines and his anxiety towards people will be lessened. When new people come up to him, don't have them stand over him or try to pet him. Just let the dog come up to people on his own time. When strangers come into your home, have them toss the dog treats, otherwise make sure they ignore the dog and don't pay it any attention.
You might want to fence your yard off with some kind of solid fence that will keep little kids and other dogs out. You might try purchasing a chain link kennel to keep him in when he's outside. You can get some big ones (10x10) that will give him plenty of room to move, but he will be unable to hurt any kids.
There are lots of really good books available at your local library that will help you greatly. I liked "The other end of the leash". It helped me understand my dog much better!
Hope this helped!

P.S. I commend you for trying to fix your dog! Lots of people just give away or put down dogs that have issues. It's awesome that you are willing to put the work into making your dog a better canine citizen.

Answer 6

I realize you said you are having a difficulty finding a trainer nearby. But, it sounds as if this is your ONLY chance and addressing your dogs issues. It seems like you've tried everything within your power to help him and you've reached a point where you don't have anything to offer him. My advice is to take him to a trainer/behaviorist regardless of how far it is or be prepared to look into other alternatives (putting him down or putting him in rescue.)

Answer 7

Full medical exam with cbc and thyroid test.

AMERICAN DOG TRAINING NETWORK
http://www.inch.com/~dogs/

ASSOCATION OF PETDOG TRAININERS
http://www.apdt.com/