From the dog’s perspective, a social experience (coming into contact with other dogs, being groomed, handled and petted, and so on) is something to be excited about. For you, it’s a chance to really bond with your dog (for pet’s lovers; dogs are our favorite furry friends!), while giving him a chance to get used to being in a more relaxed state. However, for an aggressive dog, getting him to socialize will be a challenge task.
If your dog has a history with aggression, including behaviors that have caused you to fear that he will attack other dogs or people, then knowing that your dog is perfectly happy to engage in a healthy form of socialization is a really reassuring thought. (Once you had managed to tame his aggressiveness).
Socializing an older dog is basically the same principle as socializing a puppy – patience and consistency are the “keys” to success. With older dogs, however, you might need to take things slower. At times, their temperament may simply be too strong for them to adjust or their aggression might be targeted at the wrong time or place.
When you are socializing your dog, you are in fact lowering his stress level. So you are doing something positive for your dog, and hopefully created a behavior that you want him to continue.
If you acquire a large dog, you need to be prepared to spend a lot of time with it. A large dog is going to be constantly testing your leadership. They need to see that you are a fair and firm respective leader.
Large dogs are generally not obedient by nature. They have to be trained to obey your instructions. Training a large dog requires a different approach altogether. It requires a willingness to be patient at all times.
Aggressive dogs should be treated the same way as you would treat an aggressive child. When you try to give him a firm “No”, it is best to ignore the dog, or withdraw attention until he has calmed down.
Never under any condition physically punish your dog. This is both cruel and unnecessary. Doing so will cause your dog to rebel. He will refuse to obey your command, display anxiety and may even turn aggressive. If you are going to give a command, be sure to reward non-aggressive behavior with a treat.
If you do treat your dog gently and allow him to display some compliance while you are training him, you will achieve a lot more than simple obedience. You will be building a healthy and rewarding relationship with him.
Keep in mind that a training that encourages and rewards positive behavior rather than punishment will help you to develop an obedient, willing and able dog that is more likely to carry out any command that you ask for.
I would suggest that taking your dog to a dog park to be part of your training routine. This will help to teach him to get along with other dogs when he is exposing to various different pets and experiences.
Of course, I will have to do my diligent and be very careful not to put my dog into a situation that I would not want him to experience. I try to avoid public areas that have many unknown dogs. Putting him on a leash would be essential during the socializing training till he is fully obedient.
If your dog starts to turn aggressive in the park, then you will need to figure out what is going on. You want to analyze the situation and see if you can make any changes to make it easier for your dog to get along with other dogs.
Sometimes when two dogs meet, they are dominate versus submissive. If one dog is dominating the other dog, then they are going to have a hard time. You can change things such as the length of the leash so that you can have better control of your dog when he is attempting to “interact” with any dominate dog.
You will have to establish yourself as the one in charge. Every dog should have a person in charge who they respect and trust. Making sure that you are dominating your dog, and he respects you as his leader pack. That will give you more control over him.
Proper socialization isn’t an afterthought – it’s a necessity to avoid any bad behavior in the future. If you don’t take the time to properly socialize your dog, you risk the possibility of him developing disastrously unhealthy relationships with other people (including YOU) and pets. A dog that is properly socialized is far more resilient than an unsocial dog.
An unsocial dog will often struggle to show exceptional obedience through fear that he will be harshly disciplined. He will also have a general fear of people and new situations or noises around him. This is in contrast of a well trained socialized dog, where he will be very happy to greet new people and dogs, and will learn to relax and enjoy new situations.
Certainly it is not going to be your wish to end up with an aggressive dog. Make sure that you establish and keep your position as the dominant one. Dogs are looking for ways to elevate themselves in the pack. If you are fair and firm, you can overcome this situation and turn your dog from aggressiveness to an obedient canine.
It is the nature of dogs to be dominant, territorial, and assertive. This is their nature, they have to be trained. The owner has a duty to be the alpha, the protector, and the leader and this usually takes more than just a short period of training to establish. There are owners that have been successful in training their aggressive dog. However, it all starts with the owner, and training the dog the right way!