My rescue dog is suddenly aggressive, biting, and peeing inside. Help!

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.

Hi there! I'm sorry to hear that you're having this problem with Buffy. It's not unusual for behavioral issues to take a few weeks to show up in a newly adopted dog - there is often a "honeymoon period" while they're still getting comfortable and adjusting to their new home, before these issues start to emerge. Aggression towards other dogs and humans is a complex behavioral issue that's difficult to address properly in a forum like this, but I can try to give you some general information that may be helpful. Treatment for aggression issues is generally based on identifying what situations tend to trigger the aggressive behavior - then either finding ways to avoid them, or working with the dog to teach her to respond differently using reward-based training techniques. If this is something you want to work on, I would recommend making an appointment with a veterinary behaviorist who can evaluate Buffy in person and help you put together a detailed treatment plan to address her aggressive behavior. For now, if the aggression only happens with dogs and people she doesn't know, I would recommend keeping her separated from visitors for now until you are able to get a more detailed plan in place to work on the problem. You can search for a board-certified veterinary behaviorist in your area here: www.dacvb.org

Fear and aggression are both often due to underlying fear and/or anxiety. Working with a trainer will help you learn how to correct behaviors in a way that doesn't exacerbate anxiety or fear. It may be helpful to discuss anti-anxiety medication with your veterinarian as well. What you are describing is not normal, but working with behavior modification techniques and possibly with medication could be very helpful. Best of luck with him. https://www.petcoach.co/article/6-common-myths-about-dog-aggression/ https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/dog-care/common-dog-behavior-issues/aggression

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.

Ths is very concerning and I recommend you contact a behaviorist for a house visit to fully assess all the triggers and issues in this case. Boundaries are very important and I recommend you restrict his access in the house in order to provide some social structure to his routine - allowing a dog to sleep on the beds and couches can result in mixed messages as to his place in the pack and lead him to think he actually controls the house and access to all things important. It is important he gets sufficient exercise for both mental and physical stimulation every day and should be outdoors at least 1.5-2hours a day as a largem active dog. Do not allow him to be undupervised with your chilrdren at any time until you can have him fully assessed

He may be painful or fearful - I would recommend a full physical exam in light of the crying you describe as it is possible he is becoming defensive due to pain. Do not place yourself in danger as anxious/painful dogs can react very unpredictably, if no source of pain is identified consider calming foods, pheromone products and contacting a certified trainer for a house visit. Some rescue dogs can bring a variety of behaviors due to past experience which start to show in new surroundings and can take a lot of time, patience and experience to deal with

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.