Dog Obedience Training ' Solving Dog Aggression

Aggression in dogs can be brought under control and in many cases extinguished by using a combination of dog obedience training techniques in a system that will take some patience and a lot of love.

I have designed a special obedience training system for dogs that will more than likely bring an aggressive dog totally under control and made into a good canine citizen. I believe that if this system is applied diligently and consistently, almost any aggression can be extinguished or at the very least brought under control.

Personally I believe that 'bad' dogs are not born bad. They are a product of their environment and upbringing. If they are brought up in a loving home, where the dog is properly and adequately socialised, and put through a good dog obedience training course, it is unlikely to be in anyway aggressive.

On the other hand, a dog that is left tethered to a long line, left untrained, never taken out and allowed to socialise with other dogs, or physically abused, will undoubtedly be aggressive.

A dog's aggression can be caused by numerous triggers '

'dominance aggression where the dog has been brought up to believe he is the alpha dog and any perceived challenge is met with an aggressive display.

' fear aggression where the dog may have been attacked by another dog when it was a puppy and now bites first. The pup may have been mistreated by a child and so is afraid of children and will bite to prevent being hurt again.

' possessive aggression is where the dog has possibly been starved and is protecting what it has been given. It could also be a sign of alpha dog syndrome.

' territorial aggression where a dog is protecting its territory. This could just be the space immediately in front of wherever the dog happens to be or it may be its whole yard.

If, after observing your dog, you know what trigger sets your aggressive dog off, you can work through a full desensitising programme that will teach you how to recognise the signs that your dog is about to launch into an attack, how to control that aggression and shows the dog that you are far more rewarding than chasing fluffy little critters.

The kingpins to this training programme involves working through the following dog obedience training techniques :-

Knock the alpha dog syndrome on the head

Teaching the dog to be totally food focused

Teaching the dog to focus on the handler

Teaching the dog to tug a tug toy and retrieve a ball or throw toy

Teaching the dog its name

And teaching the dog a series of obedience training exercises including sit, drop, stay and come,

All the above techniques need to be worked on and instilled really thoroughly in the dogs head so that if you say jump, he will ask 'how high'.

The exercises are trained using the click and treat, positive reward system which ensures that, if you have an aggression problem, this is not made any worse by using harsh handling methods.

Throughout this dog obedience training programme the dog is rewarded with food treats and lots of tug games which, seen from the dogs perspective, builds the handler up as a really rewarding figure, a figure that is worth focusing on and worth ignoring whatever it is that upsets the dog.

Nev Allen is a dog trainer with 30 years of experience and he is now sharing this experience to help you make your puppy a good, happy and well trained obedient dog. Visit my blog for more detailed dog obedience training and clicker training articles.