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Pupforum presents your training questions answered by professional dog trainers.
Lynne has been training dogs since 1985. She has worked as head trainer for two facilities, a studio trainer (print ads, commercials and television) and as a continuing ed and certification rep for what was then the largest dog training company in the US. Lynne is a member of the IACP and keeps her training techniques current by attending various seminars and reading books. She currently competes in the sport of schutzhund, has a registered therapy dog, and has started her young Papillion in agility. Lynne owns and runs Blazing Trails K9 Academy in Santa Clarita/Antelope valley California.
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[Edit]
2/15/2006
I have a 2 year old yellow lab. We adopted her a
year ago and immediately took her to training
classes. Since we have got her she has been around
numerous other dogs with no problems. Within the
last 2 weeks she has snapped at a friends' dog and my
parents' dog.
From what I have read so far people
just accept a fight by knowing what started it and
in our case it was over a toy and food. I know what
started these fights but why all the sudden is she
snapping when before she was all about playing.
I am
afraid to take her around other dogs now but I also
know isolation is not going to help anything. Some
other things I read said the alpha female (both dogs
she fought with were fixed females) was the reason
for the fight and to let them fight it out but these
dogs do not live together so I don't see the point
in that.
Is there something that we are doing as her
owners that is causing this? Would putting her in
another class help with this? Labs are usually not
aggressive like this but since we adopted her we are
not sure how she was treated in her first home.
(psampson00, Nebraska)
ed note. Any information on the pupforum website does not substitute for sound advice and recommendations from an experienced dog training professional who has evaluated your dog in person. Please read the rest of our disclaimer here
Generally I tell people whose dogs show any sign of
aggression to
immediately seek a qualified
professional who can come out to your home, evaluate
the situation, and customize a training program to the
needs of your individual dog and needs. Most people
want to turn to the Internet to try to find out as
much as possible but this would still be a case where
you need someone in your home to evaluate the dog.
Without seeing the dog it's impossible to diagnose
what's going on and how to fix it appropriately. All
the time I get calls from people that want me to tell
them what's going on. The majority of the time I'm
right, but sometimes I get to the home and see the dog
and change my mind. So in this case because there is
aggression involved I HIGHLY suggest hiring a
qualified professional to come out and work with you
on it.
Group classes are good for socialization and for
working with obedience around heavy distractions but
it depends on the quality of the classes. Generally
it's not a catchall for aggression cases. Even with
specializing in aggression I don't like to handle
aggression in my group classes. Generally I prefer to
do at LEAST one or two private in home sessions to
assess the situation, get the owner started, and THEN
if I think it can be done safely I MIGHT allow them
into group. I wouldn't recommend just finding any
local group class and attending with a dog that has
had some issues with other dogs. Again, it would be
prudent to have a private in home with a trainer or
behaviorist that specializes in aggression before
deciding to go into a group class.
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