How do you deal with a dog who is aggressive with men?

Question

I adopted my dog from adopt-a-pet when she was 7 mos old. She is a chow/border collie mix and is now 2 yrs old. She has always been a bit shy around men and will bark at a male that she doesn't know when they first come to the apt. In the past, she has never bristled up or made any move that she will bite. In fact if a stange male made any move towards her (like holding his hand out to her for her to smell) she would stop barking and hide behind me. When we are outside the apt (like Petsmart) she is usually friendly with women and will shy away from men. Recently she has begun a new behavior on our walks that has me concerned. When we are walking around the apt complex she will greet women just fine, but if a male approaches...she at first might wag her tail, but then will bristle up and begin barking. This morning she actually tried to chase this guy.When we are indoors, my dog will listen to me and obey commands. As soon as we are outside though, she ignores me.

My dog likes to chase squirrels and stray cats and we are working on behaving on a leash. So any suggestions on what to do with the aggression towards men and obeying me outside would be appreciated.

I looked into obedience classes. I work second shift and every single class is offered at night in this area. I looked into private lessons and it is 75$ an hour. I cannot afford this unfortuantely.

Answer 1

Congratulations and thanks for getting your pet from a place like Adopt-a-pet. So many animals out there need homes that we don't need to go to breeders and definately not pet shops who support puppy mills (they always say they bought from a breeder but can never give you the name to contact them). You're a kind person.
Obviously this little girl has been mistreated in some way by a man. Some dogs are born skitterish and it doesn't take much to be intimidated by a man. Women generally talk softer and hug them more.
Buy a good book on dog obedience....one that uses praise only...no negative ideas. I always recommend obedience school, even if the dog doesn't seem to need it, it gets them out to socialize with other dogs and people. Is there nothing on Weekends in your location?? If not, watch or tape a TV program based in Vancouver, B.C. called "Good Dog". He is very good at helping people correct their dog's behaviour problems.
For now, all you can do is maybe be sure to use a head halter when walking your dog (gives you much more control) rather than a choke chain (bad things) and scold her when she acts up. If you know a man she is okay with, then try walking back and forth, continually meeting him and each time she acts correctly, give her a treat. When she barks at any other man, scold her. Watch her hackles as you approach a man.....if they begin to rise, be extra careful she doesn't try to jump up and bite. Don't be afraid to talk to the person before you meet up with them on the sidewalk (maybe 20' away) and say you're trying to train her and she has problems with men so please don't pat her. If you could get him to stop and then pass him a treat he could show your dog and then drop on the ground (so he doesn't risk being bitten) then maybe your dog will eventually get over her fear of men.
If that doesn't work and the behaviour continues, be sure to have a very strong leash and you may have to muzzle her which is a shame.
It may be she see's a need to protect you from men. Check with Petsmart....they may know of someone who specializes in dog behaviour that you could have come in to see her.
Too many dogs are not trained as pups (I don't mean yours) and are put down or abandoned because of behaviour problems...it's the #1 reason for euthanasia. I know my sister in law has taken dogs people were ready to abandon, they paid her to work with them for a week and it was like having a new dog. Some people just have the knack of training animals.

Answer 2

Watch Dog Whisperer. Usually it is not the dog that has the problem when it comes to an aggressive dog. You need to become the Pack leader and teach your dog that this is not desired.

As for being a bit aggresive towards men, is that really all bad. Sounds like a good protector. It might even be good for any of the local men in your apartment complex to know that your dog is a little aggressive. It sure will keep the bad guys away.

Answer 3

My dog is the same way. When a man comes in she will not sit or shut up until he sits down and she can check him out. After she's done checking...if she likes the guy...she starts the "I need attention" game. If she doesn't like him she'll lay in the floor at my feet...growling quietly and if he moves she'll start barking. She's never been hurt by any man, so I don't know where she gets it. But...if you can get the dog in a comfortable environment with a man, and she can get used to him at her own pace, things might change slowly. If not, then your dog just isn't going to like men.
If there isn't a man around the house she might be freaking out when she sees a man because they do smell different than a woman. To a dog anyways!
As for her not listening...if she's really excited when you go out then it may prove to be difficult to tame her down. All the smells will drive her nuts! From now on when you go out..bring some goodies, and while you're on your way give her commands she WILL follow and when she responds properly...reward her. She'll hopefully soon understand that if she listens she'll be rewarded with something she loves! Then eventually maybe you won't even have to bring goodies and she'll naturally know what to do on your outtings. Patience is a virtue dearie. Good luck!

Answer 4

If Bandit's a rescue, she's properly had something happen in her early life. By the sounds of it, involving men, which is why she's afraid of them. Separation anxiety obviously come from her dependence on you. To solve her fears and aggression, it's going to be like training, slowly ease her into accepting men or separation. I heard you shouldn't try to comfort the dog as it confuses them, and they think that you're looking for comfort putting them as the dominant, thinking they need to protect you. I saw somewhere about a dog with similar fear of men. They brought in the man, obviously the dog backed off. They ignored this, and talked showing that the dominant master was accepting the man, you can move onto hugging, then depending on how the dog reacts let the man try to interact with the dog, if agressive back off, and continue the orginal step, persistance is always the key! As for separation, try going out of the room, making her stay. Wait a few seconds, then go back in. Keep doing this, increasing the time you wait. Eventually she'll see that you will come back, and that she can trust you to leave. If you can't trust her with the cousins, don't risk it in till you see improvements.

Answer 5

Does she know any men personally? I have two rescues that were aggressive with men. One had been badly abused by a man and one had alone lived with an elderly lady. For both, it was just a matter of getting to let them know some men and discovering that no one was going to hurt them. Obedience training will help.
Don't you wish they could tell you what the problem is??

Answer 6

my answer to you is KEEP LOOKING, you defininately need these classes. My chow/shephard mix was terrible, he would drag me down the street, try to attack dogs even behind fences on our walks, some people he wouldn't be trusted to pass etc. I took him to school and three months later (he was so bad I had to go to three different sessions) he is great. he stays with me on his lead, he won't even bark at a dog even if one pases across the street.

as far as not liking men, she might have been abused as a puppy by a man and she cannot learn to trust them yet, she may never. that one is something you will have to work on if it is important to you.

until you know how to handle her on a lead you will never know how to restrain her if she does try to attack and it sounds like it is not getting any better.

If you know a friend how can go in your place and then have your friend teach you what was taught in class you may have a chance. until then, unless you can get videos or read up on training her youself, you may just need to find other options.

Answer 7

watch the dog whisperer. He can pretty much help out with any behavioral problems just by a tug of the leash[not a harness] and a wispy noise at the time of bad behavior.

Answer 8

shes probably tellin u somethin girl and being protective


just get her and him to be comfortable with each other u know

Answer 9

Two words Obedeint School......did I even spell that right?

owell ^^;