Comments: Understanding canine aggression

“I have a 2 yr old 105 lb german shepherd ,hes a great dog expcept one big probem,,he has chewed up , several remotes, glasses mp3 s mail,and so on, but because he has been punished ,i admit sometimes hit wtih the object he destroyed,because after a while it did get old,now he has bitten my girlfriend, true she went to hit me in a fit of rage, he was protecting me,but the nextday she showed him ;the big bruise on her leg and he growled at her, then the nextday she was on the back deck itching her bruise she he snapped at her finger,then I yelled at him , hit him {iknow] and then he growed at me, he has been on steroids for ithching for a while now,and was out of a one puppy litter, and his mother was put ;down when he was 3 wks because she snapped at there child [14 yr old] she reached in her cage while she was nusing, justified ? I just dont know if I should put the dog down, oh I have breed shepherds for over 20 yrs, with no such problems ever, Is it steroids, being punished so much, spoiled, he is most certain a big old alpha male and always been al little pushy, and has growled at us before on 3 or 4 different occasioons but again he was being yelled at, for chewing something up, expect one time for no reason. well he dont seem to like being pointed at,probably because when is bad he gets pointed at and said bad dog, but that has hapend a lot sometimes daily for weeks,, we love him ,like I said I have raised dog for a long time but we always he was a different dog and extraordinally smart. please respond anybody wtih sound advice. thanks Jeff” — Jeff, Sep 23 2009

“i rescue a 11 mo. old female Akita who was next to her father in seperate kennels which i was told was no problem after having her for 5 to 6 mos, my landlord return from florida with its mixed breed female and mine was on her runner wihile i was at work and the landlord daughter walked by ourside of the house with her dog and a very bad dog fight ensued. Now while in our house if she hears the dog she literally eats our wooded door takes a blanket shakes the pudding out of it and growls with her fur up. She has also eaten the wood frame around our windows when she sees their dog outside. It's so sad to see her this upset she is so sweet and loving towards people and kids but this dog and others she goes beserk. She is now 4almost 5 years old and its daily that i watch this. I can't afford a trainer right now . I can say this past spring a small male dog came next to her while she was on her runner and i panicked by the time i got outside they were playing i almost cried seeing her being friendly with this dog but to no avail when back inside the scene stared all over again with the dog next door. Any advice would me helpful i want to make her be able to go more places with me even a walk without fear of her hurting another animal would be refreshing. e-mail at newkirktra@msn.com” — newkirktra, Sep 07 2009

“I have a maltese mix. Everytime he gets out he bits anyone walking by. Otherwise he is not aggressive. I am so afraid I will get sued. How do I teach him not to bite??? I love him but I'm at my wits end and am thinking about getting rid of him. HELP!” — crazeteach01, Feb 11 2009

“I have a dog that a behavior expert has determined to be an agressive dog. Be sure to check the laws and ordinances in your area. We now have "Beware of Dog" signs posted around our backyard and by our front door as is required where we live. It could save you from a lawsuit in the future!” — Gypsy Soul, Mar 13 2008

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