One of my dogs is becoming aggressive towards other dogs. Please help!?

Question

This week I have noticed one of my dogs showing aggression towards other dogs, not only the dogs at home, but also towards dogs in the neighborhood. A few weeks ago he and I and one of my other dogs were attacked by a pack of three dogs, and he was injured but is okay now. I'm wondering if this has something to do with it. I am the "pack leader" in the house, and he is still submissive to me, and he does not behave aggressively towards other people.

What do I do? We are afraid if this continues it will escalate we will have to put him down. Help!

(He is neutered, as are all of my dogs.)

Answer 1

Being attacked by other dogs more than likely is the cause of this new aggression. I would recommend slowly trying to socialize with other dogs and praising him when he is good. You could also trying distracting him with food when other dogs are around to make him see other dogs being around as a good thing.

Sometimes a sudden change in behaviour can also mean an illness or injury that you have missed. A couple of years ago my terrier turned into a vicious little monster utterly terrifying my dachshund. I took her to the vets to see if there was a reason for her sudden change. It turned out she had pneumonia. Once treated she was right as rain again.

Good luck with everything!