jacksdad wrote:I don't think there is ever going to be clear cut answer/guide based on these to forces that shape an individual. we all are the sum of our experiences and genetics. where one stops and the other begins will be different for every individual.jakesmom wrote: Nature or nurture.
I do agree with you that some dogs (and people for that matter) are just born broken. something when wrong at the genetic level and there is (at least at our current science level) no fixing it.
I think in addition to trying to understand the difference between dogs that for whatever reason are "lost causes" (they honestly and truly want to hurt EVERYTHING near them) verses the other wise safe to be around dog unless your it's fear trigger, we need to be open to is the idea that in a well adjusted dog the occasional displays of "aggression" when appropriate are absolutely nothing to worry about. of course this opens the question of what is appropriate?
Which means I think we need to learn the difference between a "lost cause" aggressive dog, a fearful dog and a well adjusted dog who all have the ability to be physically aggressive, but may have VERY different motivational reasons which I think are more important to understand than any physical display.
I agree wholly with these.
As for aggression - as a professional, it's a word I refute at every opportunity. Scaredy dogs aren't aggressive - they are producing a fear response. Prey-driven dogs are not aggressive - they are catching their dinner (you don't feel aggressive towards your dinner as a rule). Dogs that are ill become defensive: dogs attacking ill dogs are merely following their natural instincts. Remove the trigger and those dogs are no longer aggressive.
You DO get very occasional dogs that ARE aggressive in my understanding of the word - but it is relatively rare. Of those, most have been trained, deliberately or accidentally to aggress, and THEN have learned pleasure from it so that aggression becomes the reward.
There are dogs that have the genetic blueprint to attack other dogs and those that have the same to attack people. It's very rare for a dog to show both, though several breeds/types have the potential for it. These are dogs that willingly and eagerly aggress at the first opportunity instead of after all other avenueshave been exhausted, and also need no trigger - they just go for it.