Why is my dog aggressive towards our cat and dog? Is it medical?

Hi and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Sorry to hear about Mylah and her apparent aggression. Aggression problems can be very complicated and complex. One thing you should do initially is take her to your veterinarian and let them make sure that she is healthy and that nothing appears wrong medically. Pain, etc can bring about aggression and irritability problems. Once the medical check is cleared, then you can discuss with your vet exactly what is going on behaviorally. Your veterinarian may want to refer you to a certified trainer or animal behaviorist to try to sort out what is triggering the aggression. I see she is spayed so we can rule out irritability/aggression associated with her heat cycles. I wish you the best of luck with little cutie Mylah.

I'm sorry to hear that you're having this problem! If this has been a fairly sudden behavior change for Elsa, the first thing I would suggest would be to have her examined by a vet to see if there may be a medial reason for the aggression - many illnesses including thyroid problems and neurologic issues can cause sudden mood swings and behavior changes like this, as well as anything that may be painful such as an injury of some kind, arthritis, etc. If your vet determines that Elsa is healthy, then I would strongly recommend making an appointment with a veterinary behaviorist as the next step. Aggression towards humans is a serious and complex behavior issue that needs to be handled by a professional who can work with your dog in person. The behaviorist will evaluate your dog and help you determine what is triggering the aggression, then put together a detailed training plan to work on the problem. You can search for a board-certified veterinary behaviorist in your area here: www.dacvb.org

Bella is adorable. I would recommend taking Bella to the veterinarian to make sure there is nothing medical going on with her. If that comes back as just behavioral I would recommend getting a trainer to work with you and her. They will be able to see what is the trigger and work with her and you to stop the behavior. If the trainer evaluates her and determines medication is needed then your veterinarian can provide medication to help. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Since it sounds like this is a recent behavior change for Zora, I would be very suspicious that she may have an underlying medical problem causing her aggressive behavior. There are a number of common problems in older cats that can cause behavior changes like this, including hyperthyroidism, chronic kidney disease, or even pain from arthritis. I would recommend taking Zora to the vet for an exam when you are able to - he/she can do blood work if needed to check for these issues. If a problem is found, it's likely that it can be treated with medication to make her more comfortable and hopefully improve her mood as well :)

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I understand your concern! Until you get to the bottom of this, for safety reasons, I recommend that Lily not be allowed around children. She should be put in another room that she can not get out of and kids can not get in. I recommend that you make an appointment with your Vet. At 8 1/2 years old she is approaching her senior years and new problems can crop up. Things like arthritis, UTI's and low thyroid. She could be painful or not feeling well but not showing you in the obvious ways. Bring urine and a fecal sample to the appointment. Ask your Vet to do senior blood work and evaluate her for arthritis. If her physical and blood work is normal then I recommend training and anti-anxiety medications. Sadly she never may be trustworthy with children. I wish you and Lily the best of luck!

Before assuming this is a behavior issue, I would want to rule out a possible medical issue first. When I hear about sudden changes resulting in aggressiveness, the possibility of pain or discomfort in one of the dogs could be the root of the problem. When a dog is not feeling well, it is only natural for it to react in a negative way if one of its buddies is trying to get it to act normally. A thorough physical exam should be performed by a veterinarian in order to rule out any sort of orthopedic or neurologic pain. Thyroid conditions can also be responsible for behavior changes as well. If it turns out that no medical issue can be be identified, you will have to start considering what may have started this sudden change of heart by Mill. You will have to think back to when it started, when the problem occurs most, where it occurs most, who is around when it is occurring, who ISN'T around when it is occurring, so on and so forth. These types of issues can be long and complicated to resolve, but usually as soon as the issue is identified the road forward becomes much easier.

Please have Lady seen by a vet to help rule out a possible medical cause for her behaviour. If nothing is found to be physically wrong, seek the advice of a dog trainer who uses positive reinforcement techniques, or a veterinary behaviorist, to help curb this behavior. If left untreated, Lady may injure our other dog, a person or another animal. I would advise keeping her on a leash and away from other animals and people until you have the chance to work with a trainer or behaviourist, and keep her in a separate room from your other dog. You may need to muzzle her to prevent injury. Visit the following link for more information on dog behaviour issues. http://www.dacvb.org/resources/for-the-public/ .