My dog is possessive and aggressive towards other pets. What to do?

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/ .

I'm sorry to hear that you're having this issues! It sounds like there are a few different things going on here with both dogs, which definitely makes the situation more complicated. From your description, I can't quite tell if your male dog's crate aggression issues are directed at the puppy only, or if this is more of a general problem and he also snarls and runs from the puppy at other times as well. This is important information to help determine what may be going on so that we can make suggestions. I'm not sure how old your new puppy is, but if she is younger than six months, aggression at this age is quite uncommon and very concerning. Possessive aggression (also called resource guarding) over owners is a relatively common problem that can often be successfully treated, but you would really need an expert who can help you in person. Particularly in a young puppy, a veterinary behaviorist would be your best bet to evaluate the pup and put together a detailed plan to start working on this problem ASAP. If you want to keep both dogs, this will definitely require some professional assistance and quite a bit of time and effort for training. I would recommend asking your veterinarian to refer you to a board-certified veterinary behaviorist for some hands-on guidance.

It sounds like you have a dangerous situation going on. This is too big of a problem for a quick answer on the forum, but I will tell you that this is going to take a lot of work and time, and may never end up the way you want it to. I really feel that you need to ask your veterinarian for a referral for a good behaviorist in your area. If this is not someone you can devote some time and likely financial resources to, then you may need consider not keeping her. I am sorry you are experiencing this, I have been through something similar and it is very difficult. In the meantime I would order her a basket muzzle to keep on her when others are around to lessen the likelihood of her injuring someone. Best of luck and thank you for using Pet Coach.

Sorry to hear about your dog's aggressive behavior. This breed, among others, has a tendency to be protective and territorial aggressive towards people. The causes can be related to the blood line or as a result of environment. Best bet here is to consult with your local veterinarian on a plan to help alleviate the problem through behavioral modification and medical management through neutering. There are also specific medicines available to help deal with certain behavior problems. You might ask your veterinarian for a referral to a veterinary behavioralist in your area, who specializes in these kinds of problems. Together, I hope they can lend you some solid answers to this difficult but serious problem with your dog. Please feel free to reach out for a consult with me if you have further questions. All the best, Steve Popish, DVM.

Oh dear! This is potentially a very dangerous situation for your cat, so I would definitely recommend making an appointment with a veterinary behaviorist if you want to keep both pets - he/she can evaluate your dog in person to help determine the level of risk involved, and will put together a detailed training plan to work on the problem. Generally, treatment for this problem would involve rewarding the dog for calm behavior around the cat, while also managing the situation carefully to ensure that there are no injuries - this may mean that the dog needs to be on-leash at all times around the cat, or they should be separated using a baby gate or some other physical barrier during training sessions until things are calmer. You can search for a board-certified veterinary behaviorist in your area here: www.dacvb.org

I would speak to your vet about a referral to a professional behavioral expert for Savannah. I never recommend owners work with aggressive dogs on their own due to safety reasons. Having her seen by a professional behavioral expert is the best way to find out if this aggression can be controlled. Best of luck, I hope this helps!

I'm sorry to hear that your dog is having this problem! Behavior issues like this are quite complex, and often very difficult to handle successfully on your own if you don't have any training experience. And particularly with an aggression problem, it may not be safe to attempt to work on this without professional assistance. If at all possible, I would strongly recommend making an appointment with a veterinary behaviorist who can evaluate your dog in person and help you put together a detailed plan to work on the problem. Although the initial visit may be somewhat expensive, in many cases owners are able to stay in contact with the behaviorist via phone or email about how things are going without the need for repeated in-person sessions - which cuts down tremendously on the long-term cost vs. working with a trainer every week. The behaviorist may also recommend medication or other adjunct treatment options that could be helpful in addition to the training plan. You can search for a board-certified veterinary behaviorist here: www.dacvb.org If your dog is mainly aggressive to other dogs when she sees them on-leash (the most common form of this problem, in my experience), I would also suggest the short book "Feisty Fido" by PhD behaviorist Patricia McConnell - it has very sound, useful advice for dealing with this issue that may help to get you started.