Why is my partner's dog aggressive and territorial towards me?

You need to get him into a professional behavior expert for training. Aggression is very serious, and Bodie could hurt you. Do not deal with this on your own, it's not safe. Speak to his vet to get a referral to a behavioral expert as soon as possible. For your safety, keep him away from other people for now as much as you can. Best of luck.

This is quite strange behavior. It sounds like it is mostly anxiety and stress related due to the change in environment and care givers. I would have your girlfriend try to give him some treats and feed him to help "win him over" again as long as he isn't being too aggressive. I do not want her to get bit again. If this behavior continues on and off, I would consider putting a calming collar on her like adaptil and giving him a calming chew like vetriscience composure. Finally, if that doesn't help, I would talk to your vet about starting him on an anti-anxiety medicine like fluoxetine. I hope this helps and he starts to get back to normal soon!

I agree you should get on top of the behavior. Canine aggression is a complex behavior as it can stem from dominance, possessiveness, fear, anxiety, resource guarding or a combination. Most people are not familiar with reading canine body language and training. Because of this, I recommend to work with a professional trainer. Researching on your own will also be helpful. Familiarizing yourself with canine body language and dog training can help you to recognize what your pet is trying to say. You can find many books written on the topic and there is a trainer named Victoria Stilwell who I think is particularly helpful. You can also try to increase the bond between Harley and your GF. Have your GF be the one who feeds Harley, and plays with Harley. Have a favorite toy that Harley ONLY gets when the GF hands it to her and plays with her. This does not mean Harley will automatically correct her behavior but it can help. Best of luck.

This sounds like a vet difficult situation and there are a lot of factors that can be contributing. Firstly, I would recommend a consultation with a veterinary behaviorist right away to see what can be done. In the mean time, avoid all situations in which he's showing aggression (yes I realize this will be really really hard). He may need to be in a crate, or in the room on his own with some amazing treats whenever you are both home. If he's not showing any aggression towards your SO, she'll need to be the one to move him around. Don't use an punishments, because this could make things worse. Don't try to fix this on your own, you need professional help to avoid potential injury. Wishing you the best of luck.

Definitely take Max into a veterinary behavioral expert for help! Aggressive dogs are not something to leave alone, and this behavior can and does get worse over time. In addition, if he did bite someone, he could seriously injure them and there could be very severe repercussions for that occurring including euthanasia. There are a number of cases where a dog has had to be put to sleep for biting people, and you do not want that to happen. Speak to your vet about a referral to a professional behavioral expert asap. I hope this helps!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. My advice is to get professional help sooner rather than later. This type of behavior is often due to anxiety. I would strongly recommend talking to your vet about anti-anxiety/ behavior modification medication which can make a huge difference! Once the medication is on board, the fear-threshold is lowered, and learning can occur. At that point, working with a reputable trainer in your area is a must. Best wishes to you and Cooper.

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.