Teddy – Child Aggression Case Study

It’s always scary coming across an aggressive dog. What’s more scary AND heartbreaking is when that aggressive dog is yours. My Atlanta Dog Training Program has had many aggression cases where owners call me feeling distraught and helpless, enduring with the fact that their dog’s anxiety and fear levels are shooting through the roof. Another frightening aspect of an aggressive dog is the harm he/she may inflict on another being. While it’s never pleasant that a dog may injure another animal, the biggest concern many people have is a dog going after a human, more especially if that human is a child. Not only could that lead to a child at the emergency room, but a dog to quarantine, or even worse.

If a dog has aggressive behavioral patterns toward children, it is extremely important to examine all the possible factors, especially those present in the dog’s daily environment. There could be a specific, identifiable cause for this type of behavior, or maybe it is completely unpredictable. I still am a strong believer in parents supervising and educating their children on how THEY should act with animals, particularly animals that they are unfamiliar with. If a dog bites a child because the child is pulling on the dog’s ears, that is still a problem we cannot ignore. However, we might be able to easily avoid and erase the aggression by simply taking proper precautions and teaching our children boundaries just as we do with our dogs.

About three months ago, I got a call about a dog named, Teddy, who had recently snapped at his owner’s infant niece. While the baby survived with only just a small cut on the cheek, this was still a major problem that led to a phone call to animal control and a quarantine period for Teddy. His owner was not only embarrassed over the incident, but was also in fear for Teddy’s life and any other children that might not be so lucky. Her vet referred my Atlanta dog training program and that was when Teddy’s owner and I decided to meet for an initial consultation so that we might be able to pinpoint the root cause for Teddy’s aggression, and also determine a protocol that would end it.

When I arrived, I was surprised to see not only Teddy and his owner there, but some other family members present, including the young niece who recently met Teddy’s wrath. I was able to see Teddy’s incessant aggression toward the young girl – his focus was dead set on her! After finally being able to calm him down, I spoke with his owner who said that the first aggression incident was when the niece was first introduced to Teddy. With their faces so close, Teddy became nervous and knew it was either flight or fight situation. Unfortunately, Teddy chose fight.

Fear aggression is something that CAN be tackled. With Teddy’s case, we simply needed to teach him how to handle situations like these through consistent obedience training and gradual desensitization. With my San Francisco training program, I not only want the dog to avoid the fight option, but also the flight, where the dog no longer experiences the anxiety, but can approach potential fearful situations with confidence. Many trainers will simply aim to teach dog owners to only manage their dog’s poor behavior. With me, I want to eliminate the poor behavior and give the dog another choice, a better alternative!

As for Teddy, he is currently almost done with his training, and he is an entirely new dog. He is more sure of himself, demonstrates calmer behavior, and shows more happiness and excitement with his family, including the little niece! Before training, it looked like Teddy was on the path to death row. Now, he can look forward to life without fear or aggression.

If your dog is suffering from ANY type of aggression, give me call as soon as possible! We can make a difference and get your dog to overcome this dangerous and potentially fatal behavior! Call 800.649.7297 for an initial consultation and for any questions!