Dog Aggression – When Your Dog Bites

 By: Thomas A. Beitz
(First published: March 2004, Cherry Creek Gazette)

In a recent report issued by the United States Humane Society, there has been an increase of dog bites nationwide of almost 15 %. Although different groups throughout the country have their opinion as to the causes of the increase, I’d like to consider the problem from a dog trainer’s perspective. In addition to considering one possible reason for the increase of dog bites, I would like to examine a number of aspects both dog trainers and pet owners should think about when a dog bites.

It was Dr. M. L. Jones that said, “There is nothing more likely to lead to error than to begin with the part rather than the whole.” This statement epitomizes our society today with the explosion of information found on the internet; bits and pieces of information with little or no connection, constituting no substance. When it comes to dog training, there are any number of learning theories that could be applied to address dog aggression. One such learning theory is known as “Operant Conditioning,” which was developed by a Behaviorist named B. F. Skinner.

Skinner’s theory consisted of a “four quadrant learning model.” These four quadrants are:

1. Positive Reinforcement
2. Negative Reinforcement
3. Positive Punishment
4. Negative Punishment

Without going into detail as to what each of these quadrants actually means and how they work, let’s at least consider what is referred to as Positive Reinforcement. Most people have heard of Positive Reinforcement. For example, you ask your dog to sit, and when he complies with your request, you reward your dog with a treat and praise. It’s that simple. The word reinforce means to strengthen a behavior so that the next time you ask your dog to sit, you can expect him to sit a little faster, thus strengthening the behavior. Positive Reinforcement is one aspect of Skinner’s learning model that has helped dog training progress tremendously over the years. I highly recommend using Positive Reinforcement when training dogs because it produces results in learning situations where the object is to strengthen a behavior.

Our society has shifted its philosophy to one that can accept anything positive because it is immediately construed as good and anything negative as something to be associated with bad. Many of the contemporary training methods advocate purely positive training techniques while corrective or disciplinary methods are preached as being mean or cruel. Although B. F. Skinner’s learning model isn’t perfect or complete in itself, it does contain three other quadrants, which have been ignored in recent training trends.

It is this dog trainer’s opinion that this philosophy of emphasizing the positive and ignoring the negative has at least in part lead to the increase in dog bites nationally. Anyone who has even watched a documentary on pack animals or wolves knows that the pack leader or alpha dog is not offering the subordinate dog in the treats every time he wants the subordinate dog to comply with a request. Canine communication is obviously quite different in the wild, but fundamentally the same within the animal kingdom including domesticated dogs.

An increasing number of shelters and rescue groups have adopted a temperament test that would be difficult for the vast majority of our house pets to pass. It is strictly a food/reward testing method, which has its place in certain situations. Unfortunately it is being abused in its application in that dogs that could be trained to pass the test are doomed to be euthanized. There is a subtle unspoken premise among some groups that it is better to kill an unruly aggressive dog than to discipline it and teach it proper social skills.

In my practice I have worked with thousands of dogs, hundreds of which had aggression problems. In better than 90 % of these aggressive dogs, training has resulted in remarkable changes in the dogs’ behavior. I always tell people that a dog’s aggression problem may be controlled through training but not necessarily cured. Some dogs will always need to be managed in order to prevent the dog from biting again in the future. One of the most interesting observations I have made over the past ten years of training dogs is that when a dog begins to develop aggressive behavior, their owners have inadvertently rewarded aggression. That may sound crazy but it’s easier to do than you might think.

Dogs learn by association, which is defined by Pavlov’s theory of Classical Conditioning. Let me give an example: Let’s say you take your dog to the vet for an annual check up. For any number of reasons (probably stress related) your dog begins to bark and growl at another dog across the room (perhaps a behavior out of character). In an attempt to console your dog, you begin to gently pet your dog and tell him with a soft affectionate voice, “it’s OK, it’s OK.” Remember that a soft voice and a gentle touch are positive reinforcers. Reinforcers strengthen behavior. In this example we have just in effect taught our dog to be aggressive.

The more we console a dog exhibiting this aggressive behavior, the more the dog is going to think we want him to be aggressive. Because Positive Reinforcement works so well, we will have created a monster. Over an extended period of time, the dog will become progressively more aggressive. Positive Reinforcement is an effective training tool used to strengthen behavior but an inappropriate tool to inhibit behavior. You cannot teach a dog everything through love alone!

There are a number of considerations both dog trainers as well as dog owners need to examine when deciding on an aggressive dogs prognosis.

1. Who has the dog actually bitten? Was it a stranger or a family member?

2. How serious was the bite? Did it require medical attention?

3. Was the bite provoked or was it out of character for the dog?

4. Over the past 6 to 12 months, has the dog exhibited any aggressive behavior? Is the aggression predictable or quite unpredictable?

5. Is the aggression over food or a bone or is it territorial (protecting his own turf)?

6. Are there children in the home that may be at risk and how old are the children?

7. How much liability insurance do you carry?

8. Was the dog recovering from an injury or experiencing pain at the time of the incident? Has your vet ruled out a medical condition?

9. If known, was there any history of aggression in this dogs ancestry?

The answers to these and similar questions will be useful in determining what measures should be taken to correct the problem.

As a general rule, if a dogs’ aggression is rather predictable, and the owner is willing to exercise extreme caution and supervision of the dog through controlled obedience training and behavior modification techniques, then I think the dog’s chances of turning around are very good. However, if there is a situation where there are young children or the elderly people involved where the dog’s aggression problem is unpredictable, then I am not as optimistic about the dog’s prognosis. Unpredictable dogs are almost impossible to correct because it’s very difficult to modify a behavior that only surfaces occasionally. An example of an unpredictable dog would be one that will growl and lunge at one out of ten strangers he meets while exhibiting friendly behavior with everyone else.

There are many forms of aggression, all having their own cause and are often times corrected in different way. Aggression is a serious problem in this country. Passing laws that prohibit certain breeds is not going to correct the problem. Euthanizing unruly dogs is not going to correct the problem. Using purely positive training methods are not going to correct the problem. It is returning to a balanced training strategy that considers “the whole rather than the part” an educational agenda that is not limited to trendy pedantic philosophies.

Aggression is a serious problem, which an inexperienced pet owner or “wannabe dog trainer” should not attempt to correct without professional guidance. Offering advice as to how to deal with aggression in an article could be disastrous. If you or someone you know has an aggressive dog, or you begin to see your dog developing an aggressive behavior, please consult an experienced professional before someone gets seriously injured. In most cases, aggression can be corrected if the dog owner is willing to pro-actively get involved in the training process. In some cases where all other possible solutions have been exhausted, the problem may be beyond help and then making the decision to euthanize the dog is the only conscientious thing to do.

Tom Beitz is a Canine Behavior Specialist and Dog Trainer. He is the owner of the Academy for Puppies and Dogs. Tom works with pet owners teaching dogs good house manners and obedience along with installing the PetSafe Professional Hidden Dog Fence System. He can be reached at (716) 664-4844 or (716) 649-5124 or on the web at Smart Dog Trainer . Tom is currently offering a FREE clinic to Vet Hospitals on a patented “low stress” containment and “off leash” training method.