Dog aggression, niping, biting when petted or disturbed

[j23dejonge]

We need help with a very social, sweet dog, who reflexively bites, without warning, almost like a "sneeze".

We adopted a dog from a shelter in September.
He is a lab/hound mix and they said he was probably about 3 years old. He was found as a stray in New Orleans and sent to Kansas City in the summer.

He seemed very friendly and social when we met him at the shelter. The shelter reported no resource guarding or aggression problems while he was in their care.

The first month he was destructive but not aggressive. His destructive behavior (chewing, digging) has improved a lot.

But after the first month there have been several incidents of aggression.

He has bitten or nipped at several members of the family.

We hired a dog trainer who espoused a positive, counter-conditioning approach but we haven't seen an improvement. The trainer is very expensive and also recently went on maternity leave.

We are unsure about whether to keep him but we fear if we take him back to Wayside Waifs he won't be adoptable.

Also, my daughter loves the dog and would be devastated if we didn't keep him.

He almost never growls or gives warning signs of aggression. But he has bitten or nipped very reflexively. So, it's hard to predict when he'll do it. He has done it when bothered when he's sleeping. So, we avoid him when he's resting, but he recently nipped multiple times at my son when he was home from college when he was just petting him, which really shocked us.

We need help in figuring out whether his behavior can be improved and would like some expert advice.

We are interested in finding out about your services.

Thank you!
Julie de Jonge 816-405-3078

[Nettle]

hello and welcome to the Board. You are right never to disturb a sleeping dog.

Please describe to us the other incidents when he bit. You say your son was petting him. How and where and for how long? The dog might have had enough of being touched, or the touch was rough (as in patting) or somewhere vulnerable (as in the head) or the dog may be in pain that you don't know about.

A full vet check would be a wise move.


What did your behaviour trainer suggest? What have you done that was suggested?

Please also give us the fullest possible description of a typical day for your dog - no detail too small - and tell us about the other household members, human and animal. Then we can help more.

[j23dejonge]

Thank you so much for your reply.

We find our dog's aggression confusing. We thought we knew what the triggers were, but now we don't.

The first month we had him, he was destructive (he chewed up a lot of things) but he didn't bite or nip at anyone. We tried keeping him in the laundry room when we were gone and at night. It went okay for about a month and then he started getting destructive in the laundry room. Once he managed to move the dryer and chewed up the aluminum vent behind the dryer. So, we put his crate in the dining room and he seemed to do much better. He seemed calmer. He stays in it while we're gone now and at night. We keep the door open at night but he chooses to stay in it. We previously had the crate in the basement and had used it only occasionally but after he started being destructive in the laundry room, we moved it to the main area of the house.

He is crated while we work three days of the week. The other days someone is home. We walk him about twice a day and he sometimes has play dates with the dog next door. He shows no aggression toward dogs.

The first bite occurred when he was still sleeping in the laundry room. My husband tried to open the door but he was leaning against it and my husband stuck his hand in to pet him and he bit him. It was a fairly bad wound but not bad enough for stitches.

This really alarmed us and so we called a trainer/behaviorist who came to the house. She recommended we not worry about the chewing behavior for now and that we instead focus on counter-conditioning for the biting.

He has nipped but not drawn any blood in other circumstances, generally at night when he seems tired but it's not always clear what provoked it. He nipped at my daughter when she sort of hugged him while he was resting. He nipped at my son when he moved one of his bones but was actually trying to give it to him. He nipped at my husband when he started chewing on his leash and my husband tried to take it away from him. We reported all these incidents to the behaviorist and she had us approach him multiple times a day, touch him on the head and quickly treat him. We also did it while he was chewing on a bone. We removed most bones or chew toys that we thought he might guard too closely.

But, recently, he has bitten just when being petted. It's very confusing because he wants people to pet him. He comes up to everyone and puts his head in their lap and seems to want to be petted. Often when they stop he moves his head to try to get them to do it more.

So, my older son, who is visiting from college hasn't been around him much has interacted with him a lot and the dog has acted like he wants his attention, sitting next to him, putting his back against him like he wants to be petted. Most of the time my son pets him and nothing happens. But, every once in a while he reacts very reflexively, like a sneeze, and turns his head and nips at him. We thought we understood that he was feeling threatened when he was sleeping or resting so we were treating that by offering treats but now we can't figure out what the trigger is. It seems random. He doesn't growl or give any warning, which is what makes it so difficult to figure out.

Another incident occurred, again with my older son, when my husband was using an onion chopper that makes a loud sound the dog doesn't like. He always barks and gets agitated when he hears the sound. My son tried to pet him to comfort him and he bit at him then too (didn't break the skin).

When we got him from the shelter they said he was "head shy" and he cowers a lot when someone goes to pet him. But, we've had him for four months and tried to provide a stable, positive, structured environment for him. If anything, he seems worse, nipping more frequently. He never nips at me. He often lets people pet him at length and he seems to like it.

He genuinely seems to crave people's attention. When I am home he follows me every where and lays in whatever room I'm in.

So, we're really torn about whether to keep him. But, I'm afraid if we return him to the shelter they will euthanize him.

I started reading a book about aggressive dogs and it sound it's a mistake to start counter conditioning before the dog has good obedience training. It talked about anxiety being at the root of most aggression. So, we try to eliminate anything that would make him anxious. So, I wonder if the treatment recommended by the behaviorist isn't working because we should have done something else first?
We do work on obedience training every day and practice, sit, down, stay and "leave it". The book suggested that teaching a dog more self control would help.
Also, the behaviorist is no longer available because she is on maternity leave.

Lastly, he seems to really like strangers! He is friendly and approaches everyone who comes to the door or he sees on walks and doesn't seem afraid of anyone. It's odd that it's just family members, at least so far. I'm very cautious whenever people come to the house, though.

Thank you for any insights or suggestions!

[Dibbythedog]

Sorry you are in this position .

He must have had a hard time and is in a confused state and very anxious. he wants to be petted but then finds it too much so is in conflict. it can take months for dogs to really relax and recover from their past in a new home.
One good thing is that he seems to be showing bite inhibition by not doing too much damage .

QUOTE
"The first bite occurred when he was still sleeping in the laundry room. My husband tried to open the door but he was leaning against it and my husband stuck his hand in to pet him and he bit him. It was a fairly bad wound but not bad enough for stitches. "

I expect your dog found a hand coming round the door scary and felt he had to defend himself. Most of the incidences you describe , guarding things , a noise frightening him and then turning on your son , this sounds to me to fear , stress and anxiety .
I can see where your behaviourist is coming from about desensisiting and counter condidtioning , it generally works well but perhaps at the moment , you should go with your gut and stop doing it for a while, at least a few more weeks. I would carry on basic training and give the petting very short. I would ignore him asking you to carry on , perhaps you could just talk to him instead if he still wants attention .
When you start desensitising again , I would break it down into much more tinier parts . Ifr he is guarding a toy or bone , I would start with just dropping something really yummy as you pass by until he is relaxed with that . i think appoaching and touching was too much to start with and it was adding to his stress.

Interesting that he hasnt bitten you . perhaps you could compare how you handle and interact with him to the way the rest of the family does to see why that is .

I second having a full vet check .

DAP collars can help dogs relax.

What is the name of the book , it sounds a good one .

[Dibbythedog]

I forgot to add that he before he bites he might be giving out stress body language signals that you havent noticed.
They can be very subtle , such as a lick flip or just tensing up .
If you do a search for Calming signals and stress you should find info about it and photos and explanations.