My 6-month-old dog is aggressive, biting, and peeing inside. Help!

Aggression is complicated because it can be playful aggression, dominance, possessive or anxiety. Unless you are very familiar with canine behavior, training and body language, this is a situation that requires a dog trainer. The trainer will watch Trevor’s behavior and then will teach you how to modify your behavior to change his. You should also get a few books about dog behavior and training so that you can learn how to recognize the body language as this will help. Neutering Trevor can also help to decrease unwanted behavior. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

I am afraid that unless Murphy is properly assessed and trained, he is a bomb waiting to go off and very likely will hurt someone. I suggest you make an appointment with your vet to have him examined in order to rule out any physical or health reasons that feed his aggression. Then get a recommendation for a veterinary behavior specialist (or you can find one here: https://www.dacvb.org/ ) and have Murphy assessed and then the behaviorist will work with you to alleviate the aggression, and the urinating issue (which is likely a dominance issue). It is best to deal with this while he is a puppy.

I am sorry you are struggling with Chico. I would highly recommend bringing a trainer into the house after making sure a physical exam by a veterinarian is normal. Behavioral issues/ training takes a lot of time and patience. I feel having someone come into the home and observe the situations where he is anxious and aggressive will help. Also recommend getting him neutered as soon as possible.

Hi and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Sorry to hear about Bruno. When a puppy shows aggression, I immediately advise neutering him to remove the male hormone-driven behaviors. I would advise taking him to your veterinarian for their opinion also. He may have some medical reason for his sudden onset of aggression. Your vet can gather a history, perform an exam and then offer a diagnostic/treatment plan based on their findings. Possible tests include fecal/blood/urine tests and x-rays to look for underlying medical problems that could cause aggression. If a behavioral problem is suspected, then neutering, behavior modification, and drug therapy can be tried. I wish you good luck with Bruno

I am sorry to hear you are having such a hard time with him! Some rescue dogs can be challenging and a certified behaviorist may be able to provide some options but with behavior this extreme I would be concerned about a possible brain lesion which would require CT/MRI to diagnose. You must at all times keep you and your families safety your priority and if such investigations are not feasible, euthanasia would not be a wrong decision either given the risk to others and the poor quality of life he is experiencing given he is so reactive and unpredictable

It sounds like Gizmo could benefit from both some basic obedience classes, and talking with a trainer or animal behaviorist in person, especially if his behavior is worsening or not improving with home-training. This can help increase his social skills in a structured and supervised setting and may help with overall confidence, greeting people, leash walking, and manners. If he is also having accidents in the house suddenly, or has had a sudden change in behavior, ruling out any health issues is a good step as well to make sure there isn't an infection or other underlying problem that could be causing the changes.

I see that Romeo isn't neutered. This aggression could be hormonally related, and he's peeing to mark his territory and attacking to protect his territory. I would have him neutered as soon as possible, as that will help with any aggressive behaviors that are related to hormones. Then I would have Romeo seen by a professional behavioral expert. It's very serious that he's bitten you and your brother, and he could bite other people. Aggression isn't something that I ever recommend owners try to work with on their own due to safety issues, it's something that should be left up to an expert. After Romeo is neutered, you can discuss a referral to behavioral expert with your vet.