Face The World - Y chromosome

I've had my dog for about 2 months now. I rescued him from a shelter, he came from an abusive background but he's a great dog. He's very aggressive with other dogs though. He growls when he's near them and I've learned that it's because he wants to get to know them but he doesn't "introduce" himself properly. A month ago, he was attacked by another dog and it was horrible. I thought he was going to get killed. Thankfully, that didn't happen but now I'm so afraid when I take him for walks or to the park. I feel like something like that will happen again and I won't be able to get him out of the situation. The minute I see another dog, I take my dog and we leave. I can't even enjoy my time out with him because I'm constantly looking for other dogs. What should I do?

I like to use Iams kitten kibble as a teaching treat. Put a handful in your pocket. take your dog for a walk, and as soon as people approach, just before he would normally bark, make a signal, such as 'tsk-tsk', and give him a treat. As the people are passing, continue to give him a few kibbles. If he doesn't bark, give loads of praise. Don't scold him if he does bark, but ignore it. keep this up for a couple of weeks, if walked daily, and he will get the point, and begin wagging his tail, and looking to you as soon as people or dogs approach.
In your home, do much the same. However, a firm 'No Bark' is in order in your home, and make him back away from guests. You must be the boss in your own home, he shouldn't be allowed to be rude to guests. Reward good behavior with affection or treats.

Show him your dominant over him and the other dog by placing your dog on its back by grabing its neck (not chocking) until he rolls over on his back. Then with the other owners permission do the same with the other dog.

Sure, grab your dog by the back of the neck and try to throw him on the ground when he's about to fight with another dog. Do this and you will definitely get bitten. Your dog is acting on your fear, he probably does not even remember the fight he got into, but you do. Just stay calm and don't panic when other dogs come around, just keep walking and keep your dog focused on YOU. Do this by keeping him on a short leash right by your side, do not look at the other dog, and give your dog's leash a firm tug when he acknowledges the other dog. Jerk on the leash until you get his attention. Depending on his size, it may only take a gentle tug or a whole arm pull. Let me clarify that this is not intended to hurt the dog, I know some of you out there are gonna freak. It is only to let him know " hey, I'm watching you and you better not even think about it". You need to walk him every day for hours around other dogs to get him used to this. Pretty soon he will ignore everything but you.

You didn't mention how old your dog was….Ususally this type of aggression is caused by your dog not being socialized with other dogs when he was young. Often dogs are taken away from their mothers early (at around 8 weeks) and if they aren't socialized with other dogs, they don't know how to act around them. They don't know what it means to be a dog and they give off the wrong signals around other dogs and indeed…this can get them into serious trouble if they other dog sees their behaviour as agression.

Do you have friends who have socialized dogs that are submissive? I'd suggest asking a friend to meet you at the park in an out of the way place where there aren't likely going to be other dogs and then introduce them to each other not by walking directly towards each other, but by approaching each other in wide circles with both dogs showing their sides to each other. As the other dog gets closer to you and is at the point where he is directly behind your dog (always behind) then start walking your dog in a straight line and have your friend come up beside you with her dog also walking in a straight line…don't stop, let them walk side by side for awhile. Once neither of them are paying attention to each other then bring the other dog closer again slightly behind your dog and slowly come to a halt. Hold your dog facing forward (tight leash) and let the other dog sniff at your dogs behind (they are just saying hello) then have your friend turn their dog around and let your dog sniff at the other dogs behind. I ususallly suggest then to walk them again side by side for awhile and then repeat. Once they are doing this without being too excited or lunging or growling then you can relax the leash a bit and let them meet on their own terms.

Now that gets you past the "first dog" hurdle and also teaches your dog some dog etiquette. From there you need to slowly increase his exposure to other dogs. I'd suggest walking him where there are other dogs and try and always approach from behind and walk along side the other dogs (as close as you are comfortable with). I'd also suggest going places where other dogs are ON LEASH and have your dog just sit and watch them without approaching. If his FOCUS on the other dog is too intense (and you'll figure out by watching him what this means) then break his focus with a squeak toy or calling his name etc so his brain breaks the intense focus on the other dog which could be a sign that he's gearing up to attack or be agressive towards the other dog. The more he is around other dogs and the more he watches their behaviour the more he will relax around dogs and also learn the proper dog body language etc.

And yes you can also put him on his side in a submissive position if he acts agressive towards another dog, but that works best when the other dog can then stand over him to assert his/her dominance. If they are lunging etc…that isn't always easy to do.

Another thing is to try and quelch your fears about his being around other dogs…dogs can sense our moods and emotions…if you are afraid, he will be afraid. Try and be as calm and matter of fact about this as you can when doing these excersises.

For now…..I wouldn't let another dog that is off leash get anywhere near him so walking him in the park around other dogs is fine as long as they are on leash. If a dog approaches you off leash, immediately turn the opposite way and walk your dog the other way…if the other dog runs right up to you…keep moving….don't stop…don't look at the other dog, don't make eye contact…just keep going. Keep your dogs attention on walking forward and not on the other dog….the other dog should lose interest if no one is paying attention to him and wander off to bother someone else.

Good luck

i assume it's a young dog? if yes get a cat