# aggressiveness



## verg (Aug 21, 2006)

I'll try to keep short. I have a female yellow lab that just turned 3. She is a excellent hunter..retrieves anything. Has hundreds of retrieves of pheasant, ducks geese. Has super pedigree full of titles etc. Great around the home, great with my 2year old son. Very sweet, friendly etc.
Problem..she is aggressive towards other female dogs. She'll charge males but let up once she realizes it is a male. I hunt with friends and family that have dogs. Sooner or later she'll get into it with another female. I correct with a collar and it works, however it hasn't fixed it. She'll quit for a week or two but seems to go back to the aggression. She will charge other dogs that people walk by in town. If no collar on, she might attack someones little poodle. I love her to death and spent a lot of training time with her. She is all i want for a hunter. But i am thinking of selling her to someone who is a lone hunter or something. She seems very protective of my son. Is that the problem-she is overly protective?? God forbid a dog get close to her birds.
I don't want to get in trouble with her going after a neighborhood dog that strolls by. I really don't want to sell her but if someone had the right environment i might. Any other advice?


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## Bobm (Aug 26, 2003)

Verg I also had aproblem with agressiveness (in my case it was handler agressiveness towards me from a dog I adopted) this web site explained what I had to do to solve it. Its a big site but in my opinion this guy knows whats he speaks about.

I liked to the area you need but I would spend alot of time reading his other articles

http://www.leerburg.com/dog-agg.htm


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## verg (Aug 21, 2006)

thanks Bob.
I read that and she seems to kind of fit two categories. Real strong prey drive and a dominance problem. She must have multiple personalities. At my fathers farm, she cowers to his female lab who is a teddy bear. She chases his cats and bares teeth at them but doesn't attack them. Then i saw her later laying with two cats in the kennel. I wonder if it is because i have a bunch of dip sh!t neighbors. Several in neighborhood who have mutts on chains in yards that have no discipline or obedience. Always barking etc. Then again i have a 95 lb choc. that is the biggest *****? I'll either have to sell her or always have a collar on her. Just don't know.


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## BROWNDOG (Nov 2, 2004)

It sounds like you have a pretty large problem, and collar corrections are not the answer, I think it just add fuel to the fire. Try asking this same question on www.retrievertraining.net/forums/index.php?... you'll get alot of good advice there as well.


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## Bobm (Aug 26, 2003)

Verg a lab thats a teddy bear to people could well be dominant to your dog read the importance of becomeing the pack leader and how to do it on that site.

Dogs that are fighters really are hard to change I would build a good kennel and not hunt her with other females, but I wouldn't get rid of her if shes not mean to people. Lots of dogs will act agressively to other dogs nd not be people dangerous.

All your doing if you give her away is passing a problem to someone else and giving up on your dog. I'm sure neither one of which is something you want to do.

Try reastablishing pack leader ship using some of the techniques on the police dog web site it really helped me with the dog I adopted. I actaully considered shooting him early on and with the techniques that guy talks about hes now becoming a nice dog.

It takes awhile to read his whole site but I found it very informative and learned a lot from it.


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## verg (Aug 21, 2006)

well it is definitley not a pack isssue problem. I have had and trained labs for years now. I know how to notice and or eliminate that trait. She knows i am the leader. when i raise my voice, she often cowers a bit and wants to nuzzle me. She knows i'm the man.  
I talked to a well known breeder/trainer here in SD. He feels sure it is a dominace issue with other females. He has seen it. He said that often it can be made better but in his experience, usually doesn't go away.
That makes sense to me. I guess i can just not hunt her with anyone else or like i said sell her to someone who needs a pal and hunts alone or with male dogs. I'll keep trying until i figure out what to do.


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## tatonka (Sep 1, 2006)

I have 8 dogs (4 Chessies and 4 Springers) ranging in age from 6 months to going on 11 years (One male Chessie and one male Springer....the others are females). I believe most all problems with aggression come back to the pack/pack leader issue. Most instances I've seen of dogs being aggressive have been when someone has had either one dog or maybe 2. It seems that in those situation, it's more difficult for dogs to deal with other dogs, the pack concept, etc. I'm no expert, but my guess is that these dogs just never get a chance to learn pack behavior. I exercise all 8 of my dogs together at least twice a day......I very rarely have a problem, and if I do it's between two of the females. It's usually a short confrontation when one of them finds a bone or something like that....nothing serious. 99% of the time they all get along fine. Oddly enough, when there is a confrontation it's between two of my Springers....my Chessies have NEVER shown any agression with the other dogs (so much for the old myths).

In your situation, I agree......keep your dog away from other females. I think the problem could be remedied, but you'll always be unsure and have trouble trusting her. Some dogs are just plain quirky and don't fit the "Mold" that the experts try to put them in. Common sense is the best way to deal with those situations. Good Luck!


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## Horsager (Aug 31, 2006)

I'm no dog training pro but there'd be darn few chances for a dog that acted like that for me. I think you let the confrontation go until you can get there yourself. Pull her out of it and establish your dominance of the situation "in no uncertain terms". If after 3-4 of these sessions she still doesn't learn I believe I'd be looking for a replacement, quickly.


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## verg (Aug 21, 2006)

I have talked to a couple pro trainers and explained in detail the situation. They all said same thing..she has a dominace issue. Said it can be lessened but hard to cure. She is a very sweet loving dog, that is a great hunter! Never problems with my other dog with toys, bumpers, food etc. She just doesn't care for other females. And she doesn't always act this way but out of the blue she'll get pi$$ed and get aggressive. 
I haven't decided what to do yet but i did discuss her pedigree with a couple parties and they are interested in taking her if i decide to part ways.
thanks for all replies


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