| Behavioral Rehabilitation |
A dog's bark may be worse than his bite, but most of us would rather not find out one
way or the other. Growling, baring teeth, snarling, snapping, and biting are all
aggressive behaviors—but dog aggression includes any behavior meant to intimidate
or harm a person or another animal. Although these
messages are among the handful of communication
tools available to dogs, they're generally unaccept-
able to humans. Because humans and dogs have
different communication systems, misunderstandings
can occur between the two species.
But from a dog's perspective, there's always a reason
for aggressive behavior. A person may intend to be
friendly, but a dog may perceive that person's behavior as threatening or intimidating.
Dogs aren't being schizophrenic, psychotic, crazy, or necessarily "vicious" when
displaying aggressive behavior. They are following their natural instincts.
Types of Aggression
Dominance Aggression: Dominance aggression is motivated by a challenge to a
dog's social status or to his control of a social interaction.
Fear-Motivated Aggression: Fear-motivated aggression is a defensive reaction and
occurs when a dog believes he is in danger of being harmed.
Protective, Territorial, and Possessive Aggression: Protective, territorial, and
possessive aggression are all very similar, and involve the defense of valuable
resources.
Redirected Aggression: This is a relatively common type of aggression but one that is
often misunderstood by pet owners. If a dog is somehow provoked by a person or
animal he is unable to attack, he may redirect this aggression onto someone else.
Dog aggression is not an easy problem to solve. It takes a lot of hard work. But in
many cases dog aggression can be managed.
way or the other. Growling, baring teeth, snarling, snapping, and biting are all
aggressive behaviors—but dog aggression includes any behavior meant to intimidate
or harm a person or another animal. Although these
messages are among the handful of communication
tools available to dogs, they're generally unaccept-
able to humans. Because humans and dogs have
different communication systems, misunderstandings
can occur between the two species.
But from a dog's perspective, there's always a reason
for aggressive behavior. A person may intend to be
friendly, but a dog may perceive that person's behavior as threatening or intimidating.
Dogs aren't being schizophrenic, psychotic, crazy, or necessarily "vicious" when
displaying aggressive behavior. They are following their natural instincts.
Types of Aggression
Dominance Aggression: Dominance aggression is motivated by a challenge to a
dog's social status or to his control of a social interaction.
Fear-Motivated Aggression: Fear-motivated aggression is a defensive reaction and
occurs when a dog believes he is in danger of being harmed.
Protective, Territorial, and Possessive Aggression: Protective, territorial, and
possessive aggression are all very similar, and involve the defense of valuable
resources.
Redirected Aggression: This is a relatively common type of aggression but one that is
often misunderstood by pet owners. If a dog is somehow provoked by a person or
animal he is unable to attack, he may redirect this aggression onto someone else.
Dog aggression is not an easy problem to solve. It takes a lot of hard work. But in
many cases dog aggression can be managed.
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