Recognizing, Preventing, and Handling Dog Aggression

In the wild, aggression came in very handy: dogs needed aggression to hunt, to defend themselves from other creatures, and to defend resources such as food, a place to sleep, and a mate. Domestic dogs have come a long way since then, but they still use it to defend themselves, their toys, food and anywhere they consider their “spots”.

Aggression or Fear?

An aggressive Chihuahua is actually a fearful Chihuahua. Make no mistake, they would much rather lay back and let you do the protecting. However, if you don’t show them from the very beginning that you intend to make that your job, then they feel they have no other choice but to do it themselves. So, they fall back on their instincts — aggression.

What Can You Do?

There are things that you can do to prevent it and to stop it if it has already developed. The best way, of course, is to prevent aggression from rearing its ugly head in the first place – and even if prevention hasn’t been possible (for whatever reason), there are still steps that we can take to recognize and deal with it effectively.

There are several different types of canine aggression. The three most commonly seen in Chihuahuas are:

• Aggression towards strangers
• Aggression towards family members
• Aggression towards what they perceive as their “property”

Aggression towards strangers

What to look for. It’s pretty easy to tell when a dog’s scared around strange people. He may hide behind your legs or the sofa. He will try to make his body small. His tail will be tightly tucked and his ears flat. He may be jumpy and on the alert.

Why does it happen?

There’s one major reason why a dog doesn’t like strange people: he’s never had the chance to get used to them.

Remember, your dog relies 100% on you to broaden his horizons for him: without being taken on lots of outings to see the world and realize for himself, through consistent and positive experiences, that the unknown doesn’t necessarily equal bad news for him, how can he realistically be expected to relax in an unfamiliar situation?

What can I do about it?

The process of accustoming your dog to the world and all the strange people (and animals) that it contains is called socialization. This is an incredibly important aspect of your dog’s upbringing, especially for a Chihuahua: in fact, it’s pretty hard to overemphasize just how important it is. Socializing your dog means exposing him from a young age (generally speaking, as soon as he’s had his vaccinations) to a wide variety of new experiences, new people, and new animals.

How does socialization prevent stranger aggression?

When you socialize your dog, you’re helping him to learn through experience that new sights and sounds are fun, not scary. It’s not enough to expose an adult dog to a crowd of unfamiliar people and tell him to “Settle down, Roxy, it’s OK” – he has to learn that it’s OK for himself.

This should happen from puppy-hood for the lesson to sink in (that doesn’t mean, however, that they can’t learn later in life). The more different types of people and animals he meets (babies, toddlers, teenagers, old people, men, women, people wearing uniforms, people wearing motorcycle helmets, people carrying umbrellas, etc) in a fun and relaxed context, the more at ease and happy – and safe around strangers – he’ll be in general.

How can I socialize my dog so that he doesn’t develop a fear of strangers?

Socializing your dog is pretty easy to do – it’s more of a general effort than a specific training regimen. First of all, you should take him to puppy preschool. This is a generic term for a series of easy group-training classes for puppies (often performed at the vet clinic, which has the additional benefit of teaching your dog positive associations with the vet!).

These sessions (also called puppy kindergarten or any number of different titles) are relatively inexpensive and so important! You will never regret the money spent. Some pet stores have puppy classes on a regular basis. Check with your local PetSmart or PetCo

This is an ideal environment for them to learn good social skills: there’s a whole bunch of unfamiliar dogs present (which teaches them how to interact with strange dogs), there are a lot of unfamiliar people present (which teaches them that new faces are nothing to be afraid of), and the environment is safe and controlled (there’s at least one certified trainer present to make sure that things don’t get out of hand).

Socialization doesn’t just stop with puppy preschool, though. It’s an ongoing effort throughout the life of your dog: he needs to be taken to many new places and environments. Remember not to overwhelm him: start off slow, and build up his tolerance gradually. It’s good to praise him or treat him when he is calm in these situations. That teaches him that it’s not scary and that it is even a good thing!

Aggression towards family members

There are two common reasons why a dog is aggressive towards members of his own human family:

•  He’s trying to defend something he thinks of as his from a perceived threat (you). This is known as resource guarding, and though it may sound innocuous, there’s actually a lot more going on here than your dog simply trying to keep his kibble or treats to himself.
•  He’s not comfortable with the treatment/handling he’s getting from you or other members of the family.

What’s resource guarding?

Resource guarding is pretty common among Chihuahuas. The term refers to overly-possessive behavior on behalf of your dog: for instance, snarling at you if you approach him when he’s eating, or giving you “the eye” (a flinty-eyed, direct stare) if you reach your hand out to take a toy away from him.

All dogs can be possessive from time to time – it’s in their natures. Sometimes they’re possessive over things with no conceivable value: inedible trash, balled up pieces of paper or tissue, old socks. More frequently, however, resource-guarding becomes an issue over items with very real and understandable value: food and toys.

Why does it happen?

Dogs are pack animals, however, domestic dogs have come very far from their wild ancestors. In a household, it is more like a group and there is a leader in that group. (Incidentally, there can be co-leaders in a group) If you don’t show him from the very beginning that you are the leader of this group, he will feel that he has no choice other than to take on the role himself. Keep in mind that to him this is really a very stressful role. He feels he has to be on the alert most of the time. Anything different in the environment that he is used to becomes a stressful situation for them.

Your dog has his own perception of where he ranks in that environment as well. This is where it gets interesting: if your dog perceives himself as higher up on the social totem-pole than other family members, he’s going to get cheeky (I just love that word). If he’s really got an overinflated sense of his own importance, he’ll start to act aggressively. Why? Because he believes that is his right.

So what can I do about it?

The best treatment for dominant, aggressive behavior is consistent, frequent obedience work, which will underline your authority over your dog. Just two fifteen-minute sessions a day will make it perfectly clear to your dog that you’re the boss, and that it pays to do what you say. What being “the boss” means is, kindly, but firmly letting him know that the behavior he is displaying is not appropriate and will not be allowed to continue. You can make this fact clear to him by rewarding him (with treats and lavish praise) for obeying a command, and isolating him (putting him in “time-out”, either outside the house or in a room by himself) for bad behavior.

•  If you’re not entirely confident doing this yourself, you may wish to consider enlisting the assistance of a qualified dog trainer.
•  Brush up on your understanding of canine psychology and communication, so that you understand what he’s trying to say – this will help you to nip any dominant behaviors in the bud, and to communicate your own authority more effectively.
• Train regularly: keep obedience sessions short and productive (no more than fifteen minutes – maybe two or three of these per day).

See my series on how to train your dog with kindness, but firmness. If you are dealing with the aggression of any type with your Chihuahua leave a comment below. I always reply within 48 hours and would be happy to give further assistance if I can.

I made a short video on the importance of socializing:

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