Understanding Dog Aggression

DR Mel Prunster is passionate about helping dog owners better understand their animal’s behaviour and had some timely advice about how to identify the early signs of aggression and simple steps to manage the behaviour.

Dr Prunster explained the simplest way to understand a dog’s arousal is to think of a sink, whereby the more stimulus or the more water flowing into the sink the less able they are to logically think and obey commands and the more they react instinctually.

“When they are calm and bopping around home their arousal level is quite low, but when they start to get aroused such as playing, owners coming home or something delicious to eat then that water level starts to come up and the fuller that sink the more likely they are to get to a point where they are overflowing and that’s the when they start to use a part of their brain that is quite reactive and primitive” said Dr Prunster.

“In terms of dogs we have to think of them first and foremost as predators, which is what they are and a lot of their instincts come back to that; at the baseline dogs give chase and when they are in that zone that’s really reactive and instinctual, even dogs that have never shown signs of being aggressive to other people or other dogs I think we need to look at each situation as an individual one,” she said.

“There are many breeds bred to be hyper-vigilant, bred to be guard dogs and to pay attention to every little thing and as soon as you have an animal that gives chase then their sink overflows straight away and it’s important to think they that may not be an abnormal behaviour and there are lots of things that can trigger that,” said Dr Mel Prunster.

Dogs with aggressive behaviours who may be classed as menacing or dangerous dogs need to restrained so that they do not come into contact with another animal or person which may stimulate their aggressive reaction.

One in five dogs have an anxiety disorder, similar to the rates in humans, however the signs and behaviours from dogs need to recognised early in order to stop the anxiety or aggression escalating.

Some of the behaviours to observe in dogs may include:

• lip licking;
• yawning;
• panting;
• in male dogs seeing the tip of their penis showing out through their sheath;
• release their anal glands;
• drooling;
• shaking;
• hiding;
• straining at the end of their led;
• barking all the time;
• doesn’t sleep very much;
• turning their heads to avoid eye contact;
• eye contact between dogs is not polite behaviour, and
• body position – crouched, or standing with front paw up and ears away from you.

Once the dog is no longer able to focus or concentrate on commands because it’s brain has reverted to instinct, better training is not the answer.

“When you observe these behaviours – all of them are geared at releasing tension and making an uncomfortable situation go away, it’s not their dog being defiant or dominant or jealous it is your dog saying, ‘I am super uncomfortable here please take me out of this situation’,” said Dr Prunster.

“The best thing owners can do is get the dog out of the situation, put them in the car, or inside for a little while,” she said.

“If the behaviours are not settling down within the hour we then question is this a typical level of intensity and time how long the behaviour is going on, once removed they should be able to settle themselves down,” she said.

“First is to avoid the situation or change the emotional cue, there are many things we can do for animals with behavioural issues and it’s not just limited to training,” she said.

“We are here to help and there is not a single case that I don’t think we can do something to at least help,” she said.

“Don’t be embarrassed because I’ve seen it all,” Dr Mel Prunster said.

For more information and assistance for dogs with anxiety and aggression contact the behavioural team at Pet Medical.

Laws and classifications for dog behaviours and owner responsibilities: Related Story: Dog Owners to be Brought to Heel.

Relevant Pet Medical blog posts:

• How to Stop Dogs Fighting at Home
• The Dangers of Pets and Children
• Inter-Dog Aggression
• How to Handle Your Pet’s Nipping and Biting Behaviour