Aggression Issue??

[noelle]

Looking for some insight, thoughts & opinions....

I have an 11 month old neutered GSD-Ruger. We also have a senior (12 year GSD X)-Sierra. Some relevent info, Sierra has typical age related health issues, she is going blind, deaf & has arthritis & possibly HD. She has always been a very dominant type dog & has food aggression. Knowing this when we brought Ruger home we have always kept these issues in mind- we feed them seperate & always try to ensure no food/treats between them. There have however been a few incidents where Sierra has reacted because there was food (usually people food around at a meal or something) where she has growled/snapped, etc at Ruger. We have always intervened & nothing serious has happend. Also because he is young & big & strong when playing together it can quickly become too much for Sierra & she will let Ruger know with a growl or snap that she has had enough. Again we monitor them together at all times & ensure they are both enjoying the play time & it is safe, seperating them when it becomes too much for either.
We have tried to socialize Ruger regularly, all of our friend's & family have dogs & he gets lots of time in different settings & situations (ie..our home, others homes, camping & walks, parks, etc). He does not like small dogs!! I think this is because my sister's 2 little dogs had "small" dog syndrome& were very aggressive & tried to be dominant. He finally grabbed my sisters ****zu cross this summer and held him down. He released him immediately when told to leave it-it did not seem aggressive, he did not growl, snap or hurt him in anyway. Neverthless I am extra vigiliant with the smaller dogs now!! That being said we have never had issues with other big dogs...until this past weekend. My in-laws were over with their Golden. She's usually a typical GR, easy going, friendly & loving with all people & animals. However I found she would growl at Ruger, my SIL said she does that as part of her normal play & insisted it's not aggression at all. Ariel & Ruger were running around the yard & playing, they went behind the house at one point (we were sitting to the side of the house on the patio) & I heard what sounded like a dog fight. I ran over & Ruger was on top of Ariel and they were growling, snapping, etc at each other. I pulled him off & put him in his run & Ariel in the house. There was a bowel of dog food my husband had put out earlier & I think that is what started it.
So question 1 - is it likely that because of the food aggression Ruger experienced with Sierra that he has learned this behaviour with other dogs, he doesn't fight with Sierra & backs down-but she is definately dominant in that relationship.
Later that afternoon we tried again to let them play (we ensured no food out). They were playing well, running around & chasing each other (but still some "play growling" from Ariel). Again they ran into the yard & although I didn't catch what instigated it Ruger lunged on Ariel again & it seemed very aggressive (not play) growling snapping & totally on top of her & pinning her down. My in-laws freaked...making comments about GSD's being so untrustworthy, terrible dogs, etc, etc.
Now we have seen this type of behaviour with Sierra-directed at Ruger. So is it likely that he is learning this "aggression" from Sierra? This is something I would expect to see from her towards him when play gets too much for her (she can be very aggressive with him when she's had enough) Is it possible that for whatever reason he just doesn't relate well with Ariel (the specific dog?) My other thought is that like Sierra, Ruger was just "too much" for Ariel (hence the growls)...he is an almost 90lbs "puppy" & play can get rough quick. So my thought was Ariel said "back off' with a growl & or snap & Ruger responded aggressively (?) and/or defensively(?) When camping or with other big dogs I have never seen this type of behaviour from him before..not even with Sierra when she acts out against him. I have also noticed lately that as he matures he is definately becoming more "protective" of "his" property...so is this also a piece of the puzzle, if Ruger & Ariel were in a different environemnt (not "his" yard) is it less likely to see this "aggression". I'm just very fruatrated because I hate that people jump so quickly to label him because of his breed! and of course if some aggression issues are developing I want to get a handle on it before it is out of control!!I guess I'm just rambling now, but I as I said it's frustrating & I feel bad for him because he's a really a great pup but people just seem to see a big scarey Shepherd.
We are meeting with a trainer next week so I hope to get some good training/practice skills to work on.

Thanks!!

[pupresq]

I think the behavior is probably due to his age but is independent of his increasing territoriality. It mainly sounds like poor social skills. He wants to play with other dogs but is growing into a bit of a bully because of his size. I would work with him on his basic obedience commands - particularly down stay as well as on a command like "easy" that encourages him to chill out. Supervise all social interactions and be prepared to pull him aside to chill if you see him becoming too riled up. You need to get good at spotting th warning signs and interceding BEFORE there's an issue. What often happens with dogs like this is the following chain of events -
1. They are romping around playing and having fun
2. They get overexcited and become too much for the dog they're playing with
3. The dog they're playing with attempts to get them to chill out using calming signals or growling
4. The poor social skills dog either ignores this and escalates the encounter or perceives the growling but with no understanding of what he's doing to bring this on himself.
5. The poor social skills dog reacts aggressively towards the other dog in reaction to the growling, again, without understanding that he elicited the "aggressive" behavior with his actions.

It's sort of like if you were play fighting with someone and they kept telling you to calm down but you ignored this and finally got so hyper that you clonked them in the head, they then turn around and deck you, but then you attack them for decking you without understanding what you did to create that situation or why you deserved to be decked in the first place.

Dogs like this need mom or dad to step in before the other dog has to start defending herself and the whole thing deteriorates.

[noelle]

Thank you!! That's basically what I thought was happening but was struggling to express late last night (lol). As I said we are aware & will keep a close eye on any & all interactions to be on top of issues as they arise. He is pretty good with the "leave it command" and we have been working on "enough"- to get him to back off when he gets going. As I said we are starting with a trainer next week so I hope we can work on this with some more help too!