# Aggression/Dominance



## Lindsey123 (Jan 3, 2013)

Hello! This is my first time posting on here but I desperately need advice. My family has a four year old vizsla: Nick. He's very intelligent and we often describe him as the best dog we've ever had. He's very sweet and fits the "velcro dog" stereotype perfectly. Up until about a year ago, we had no problems. 
Recently, he's started to bite members of the family. I went away to college about a year and a half ago but come home for extended visits (i.e. Christmas, summer). He's bitten my mother about four times in the past year, once sending her to the hospital for stitches. He's bitten me twice and my father once. 
He growls when he's playing, but we can tell when this is "play" growling and not aggressive growling. All of the times he's bitten my mother, it's been because he has something he's not supposed to (He gets into the trash sometimes and chews on things he isn't supposed to have.). The times he's bitten me or my dad, however, it's been when he is told to go to his crate for bed time. Sometimes, he will get very argumentative and bark when we tell him it's time for bed and he has to go to his crate and he's already lying down with one of us in our bed. He will bark and seem very aggressive until we threaten him with his shock collar and then he will go to his bed. 
He's a great dog and we love him very much. However, this biting thing is very, very scary and we are willing to do whatever we can to correct it. Even though the biting incidents aren't that often, they are very unpredictable and obviously, with a dog this large, very dangerous. Has anyone else ever had a problem like this with their vizsla? When looking into buying the breed, we didn't read anything about aggression and looking now, I still can't find many people who have had a similar problem.
Thanks so much for any advice you can give!


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## datacan (May 15, 2011)

Get him professional help ASAP or it will not end well for the dog. 

But first Vet Check the dog to make sure he is healthy.

These dogs are smart, problem solvers and as such clear rules must be set. If something is allowed, it should be allowed all the time. If something is not allowed it should never be allowed. 
Sit means sit and not only sometimes.


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## SkyyMax (Apr 5, 2012)

Hi Lindsey,

I agree with *datacan* - you need to do the medical check up, to rule out any conditions that may cause aggressive behavior and get help from professional trainer/ behaviorist.

At this point you will not be able to fix the behavior on your own.

Best wishes-


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## NeverGiveUpRAC (Aug 27, 2012)

What kind of medical conditions would cause this behavior?


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## lyra (Nov 2, 2012)

Can't really add much to what has already been said but would re-iterate that you have a serious problem here and need to seek urgent professional assistance if you don't want to end up losing your dog.

I know it is easy to be wise after the event, and the first time it happens you tend to hope it is a one off and won't be repeated, but this shouldn't have been allowed to go on for so long.


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

You need to be a very calm, assertive and fair person to work with him. First you need to revoke his privileges of laying with you in the bed. Resting on the couch is out. His place is on the floor. Sometimes when dogs do something they know to be bad, they will go to their crate. I don't allow mine to do it at that time. I put them on place, on a pad on the floor. There is no running to your safe place. You are out in the open, and under my command. I will release you in a few minutes and we will go back to normal. There is no holding grudges, or punishing a dog for what happened earlier in the day. Quick, assertive and fair is how punishment is dealt with.
Put him on a lead with his ecollar on and make sure every command is followed. I would look into NILF training (Nothing in life is free) and also Leerburgs (Ed Frawley) website. Its a rough road and it takes a long time, there is no overnight quick fixes. Even after you think you have the problem fixed it can rear its ugly head, so be prepared. Professional help will only work if you and you family follow the rules laid out by the trainer.
I used to wear snake books and heavy jeans. It was go ahead and try to bite me. I will still take control and not back down. If you are not assertive enough to do that with a dog, don't do it. He will learn he can make you back down.


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## McVizsla (Feb 28, 2013)

Any hints at agression need to be dealt with immediately. When my first V barred teeth at me I would grab his muzzle and force his entire body to the ground. I would straddle him and not let him up till all hints of a challenge were gone. This dog was extremely dominant and tough nut to crack for a first time Vizsla owner. It was important that he knew I was the alpha and any challenges were met quickly, forcefully, but not severely only pressure was applied. My next two V's had their own issues but thankfully dominance and agression were not part of their psyches. All of my V's are used for hunting and companionship. 

I'm sorry your pup is aggressive. It is not easy to deal with. I agree that this may be beyond just you now and the dog needs a professional trainer. The ideal is to have the dog be boarded with this trainer until it can be determined if anything can be done about your dogs aggression. TexasReds advice is spot-on.


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## SkyyMax (Apr 5, 2012)

NeverGiveUpRAC said:


> What kind of medical conditions would cause this behavior?


Could be a lot of different things:
http://www.petplace.com/dogs/medical-causes-of-aggression-in-dogs/page1.aspx


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## datacan (May 15, 2011)

*Re: Bite Inhibition Training Experiences*

McV... It's a puppy not stupid animal you are dealing with.


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## McVizsla (Feb 28, 2013)

Odd response. We are talking adult dogs here trying to express dominance through aggression unless of course there is an underlying medical condition. A puppy is quite a different thing altogether.


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## Ozkar (Jul 4, 2011)

Lindsay, I believe Texas Red has some usable and effective ideas. 

As for the physical domination of a Vizsla, puppy or adult, do it at your/your dog's peril!!! Getting physical with a Vizsla is not smart if you ever want it to trust you! 

I also agree with others suggestions of getting a professional to assist you. It does sound like over time you have allowed his dominance to creep up on you and it's now to the point where you have lost confidence in your ability to control pup. So a trainer will not only help you train your dog, they will also train you.


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## datacan (May 15, 2011)

*Re: Bite Inhibition Training Experiences*

Right, wrong topic... Thought it was an 8 month old, my mistake. 

Read your post and thought it was a puppy.... Pin an adult to the ground? You must be big 
I dealt with GSD before, hard to imagine pinning a six month old.


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## lyra (Nov 2, 2012)

As the OP hasn't made any response since 3rd January I presume we are continuing because we like the sound of our own voice 

I certainly do, so here is my slightly OT contribution. Heard a dog confrontation get out of hand on the beach yesterday and turned around to see a Boxer and an unknown breed being pulled apart. Dogs and owners were all fine. Glanced back back about a minute later to see the full size Boxer being held down on its back by its petite female owner. A brave woman although I guessed that this wasn't the first time she had done it!


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## kiki (May 28, 2012)

We have a 5 year old male V that tries to be dominant. We have not had biting issues like yours, but a few growls and baring teeth. we have been working very hard on being calm, assertive and it is helping a lot. We have been watching Cesar Millan shows and learning how to do this in a respectful way. We have not pinned him to the ground because he is not that aggressive. Yes, there are a lot of varying opinions on Cesar and his methods and I do not want this thread to turn into a debate. But to understand the psychology of a dog is so important, and for that information, I think he does a great job. I think understanding that and being the leader of your dog is much better than just trying to use obedience type methods alone. Best of luck and keep us updated!


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

I have nothing against Cesar Millan. If you learn nothing, except to be able to read you dogs body language. Then he has helped you.
On using obedience type methods.
If a dog is possessive over things he finds and will growl or snap to keep them, sound obedience is a answer.
A dog learning Heel, Sit and Give are commands that have to be followed. No gray areas. I say it and you do it. 
Followed by praise for job well done. They learn by positive and negative corrections.
Dogs that like to get on furniture, and refuse to get off need to learn Down, Off or Leave it command. It doesn't matter what command you use. The dog has to learn that it means what you say. Growl are not, they are going to get down. Later they just get down when told.
All of what I have posted will help a dominant, strong willed dog. There are dogs that for whatever reason don't have their brains wired right. I know nothing to help them.


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## McVizsla (Feb 28, 2013)

I can see that my methods may not be for everyone. But it was effective. Murph started to challenging around three years of age. He was first in his class in obedience and he and I were inseparable in the field hunting. He was hard headed. Agressive behavior that can lead to biting must be dealt with quickly and sometimes physically. This rough patch on lasted a month or two. Trust me murph and I had a bond that lasted his entire life. You have to know the dog to know the method. My second V Porter and my third Finn never needed this. Murph did.


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## datacan (May 15, 2011)

*Re: Bite Inhibition Training Experiences*

Certainly there are better, more effective ways to deal with aggression. Getting physical with any dog is takes things to a whole new level. I have never had a dog that responded well to a beating. Hurts the relationship, even if we don't admit. 
Prongs, ecollar conditioning alond with strickt rules tame most if not all dogs. 

With a V ... Raising a hand or loud voice can yield negative results. Prongs and ecollar are impersonal, leaves emotion aside.


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## McVizsla (Feb 28, 2013)

We will have to agree to disagree then. Physical restraint is sometimes necessary. It was necessary for murph. Been at this for a while. Our relationship did not suffer and he never progressed to biting.


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## datacan (May 15, 2011)

*Re: Bite Inhibition Training Experiences*

McV... Agreed, leave it at that.

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http://leerburg.com/qa/mostpopular.php


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