A number of reasons exist for why a dog could start being hostile towards other dogs. There are dogs that could become afraid or edgy when other dogs are nearby. In other situations, the dog might be striving to be the more dominant dog. There are times when a dog feels he's defending his territory and becomes aggressive. Obviously the owner can also choose to teach the dog to be aggressive, rather than socializing it with other dogs. Sexual aggression is another common reason for hostile behavior, whereas other dogs could just be exhibiting aggression out of an automatic defense of their owners.

A Few Tips

One of the easiest ways to stop dog aggression is by making sure, when the dog is still a puppy, it's socialized with other animals. Puppies learn a lot when they're allowed to play with other mature and well-mannered dogs. It's actually the way they can learn from an older animal what proper dog behavior is. Socialization teaches the dog that other animals are not a threat to him and there is no need to defend his master, his territory, or himself.

An alternative method employed to stop dog aggression after a dog begins to display aggressive tendencies is to deal with the incident every time it occurs. The dog must not ever be permitted to get away with this form of inappropriate behavior. Although it is not a long term fix for the challenge, a muzzle or head collar may be used during the dog's training period.

Stringent training is another effective way to stop dog aggression. The dog will be unable to concentrate on the distractions of the other animal because his focus will be solely on listening to and pleasing the owner. The dog must be taught to concentrate on the master in order to keep his focus on him, and so that the master can issue additional commands to the dog, like "sit" or "down," when another dog is present. The master must furthermore train himself to hide his nervous behavior and emotions, since little though they may seem, the dog is becoming edgy as he senses it from his master. Dogs are guided by the actions of their owner, which means that if you want to stop dog aggressions, you will have to control any undesirable actions on your part. Once your dog has been trained to stay focused on you, you can work on training him to look to you for a treat, which serves as a distraction when there are other dogs around. The owner can readily stop dog aggression by placing a treat on the ground and commanding the dog to retrieve it; the dog will be more focused on his reward that attacking the other dog.

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Author's Bio: 

Dog training is designed to increase the pet owner's satisfaction with their pet. James is a consultant who specializes in dog training methods.
Additionally, he studies the training of puppies in depth.
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