I wasnt sure where to post this...

Okay, Rade (7.5 month old GSD) is untrustworthy in public. He will growl, bark, and lunge (that is why I keep my distance from people). He gets corrected for lunging because that is unacceptable to me, but how do I stop him from growling and barking. I've read that you should correct "warnings" such as growling. If people are walking towards us he tenses up. I think its fear agression because he seems very stressed, he wants to lean against me, hackles up ect. I dont know how to procceed from here. Even at home, he tried to bite my grandmother (I had him on a long line with a prong), who has done nothing to him.

He can be agressive towards humans and dogs, and I would like some advice on how to proceed from here.

Thank you in advance!!!



Ed's comments edited in:

When your not sure where to post - please only postonce - not in 2 or more threads. Thanks much

I like Rade. Reminds me of me. Are you absolutely sure you're not exacerbating the situation by expecting his reaction, therefore making it a self-fulfilling prophecy? 9 out of 10 times someone tells me this kind of thing, they immediately gather up extra leash and tighten their hold when they see a situation that could get iffy. Are you in this group?

Guilty here!! lol. Yes I do tense up, but dont know what else to do. I dont want to give him slack on the leash cause I dont want an accidental bite. Would it be ok to put his muzzle on until I feel comfortable with a loose leash? To sort of test what is making him stressed and to see what might make him act out.

I'd start by not using a prong to correct it.

To be honest, I just started using the prong on him. He's had this issue long before the prong was introduced. Is there any other type of training collar I can use that will give me more control than a flat collar or martingale?

I'd use a nylon choker, but after seeing people use them incorrectly or not understanding the hanling technique to get thru to the dog, or the correct timing, I am hesitant to try and explain its use on a forum anymore. I haven't seen the dealing with dominant & aggressive dogs dvd from Leerburg, but I'm pretty sure it goes into the correct use of a nylon choker/dominant dog collar.

I would simply lift up the dog on the collar and tell him to knock it off, but if you don't have the (to steal a dog whisperer term) correct "energy" in your action it won't neccesarily help anything.

Also some dogs tend to learn to hide their warning signs when doing this, having learnt that it results in a correction, which makes it harder to read the dog in future.

OK, I will use my nylon choke chain and see how that goes. So I'm just lifting him halfway off the ground? And what do you mean by "energy"?

NOTE: I also meant to say I read that you should NOT correct a dog for the "warning" signs.

Like Mike, I hesitate to try to explain on the 'net about the energy (yes!) you have to have or about how to use a dominant dog collar. (I too prefer that over a prong for this. JMO.)

I would start here:
http://leerburg.com/fear_aggression.htm
and I'd read the whole thing, including the links Ed supplies to related articles and videos. http://leerburg.com/301.htm

I would indeed be very sure that I was not contributing to the dog's anxiety with tension of my own. If you can't be confident yet, then I'd completely avoid the fear-trigger situations except for training*.

I'd start obedience training in short and upbeat sessions at home, asap. (Do you have video #302?)


But you can start today with the link above and with starting motivational obedience training (a great confidence builder; a tool you need when you do encounter fear-triggering situations; a good bonding mechanism.... actually, an all-around good thing for you to do). http://www.leerburg.com/302.htm

And for now, I would avoid those situations and get going on training.

JMO.


* If you can predict the situations that trigger the response, then you can practice counter-conditioning. (You may not have the experience or confidence to carry this out. What is your experience level?)

This is the video Mike was recommending:
http://www.leerburg.com/301.htm

Thankyou Connie. I will read that article, and avoid certain situations.

My experience level with this type of dog is very novice. Ryot was from working lines but was much more lax and confident out in public, so I never had agression issues with him. But Rade is a completely different story.