Dogs walked by men are more aggressive

[Jack's Dad]

I can't believe the amount of dumb studies that are funded including this one.

Even if it were accurate, so what. What will it change?

If there is money floating around out there I wish they would use it for something worthwhile.

I believe that I watch what is going on and prepare better than my wife. She will talk on the cell phone while walking but again so what? Neither one of us will do anything different because of some obscure study.

[PaddyD]

Originally Posted by Jack's Dad

I can't believe the amount of dumb studies that are funded including this one.

Even if it were accurate, so what. What will it change?

If there is money floating around out there I wish they would use it for something worthwhile.

I believe that I watch what is going on and prepare better than my wife. She will talk on the cell phone while walking but again so what? Neither one of us will do anything different because of some obscure study.

Agreed. And tomorrow there will be another study saying the opposite.
In my experience, the dogs walked by men were/are under better control than the ones walked by women. Not only that but the men were more inclined to attempt socialization with another dog. But that's just me.... far from a good basis for generalization.

[martemchik]

Probably a little truth to the more under control, but it also probably depends on how the dog was raised. My pup knows he can get away with more with my girlfriend just because she does less disciplining and I'm the main trainer. Just last night on our walk a girl had her bully breed dog (not sure what kind it is) who is clearly a little dog aggressive out and about. That dog started to pull so hard towards me and my dog that it took her 10 yards to finally get him under control. My dog knows not to try that because I'm not going to budge no matter how hard he pulls. But then again I've seen another guy get dragged clear accross our training area by his GSD with a prong collar on!!! I don't think the sex of the person walking has anything to do with how aggressive the dog is. The dog will do what it wants and what it knows it can get away with depending on who is on the other end of the leash.

[Anthony8858]

There could be some truth to that, but not by accident. I think a lot of men wouldn't correct the initial first sign of aggression, and may actually feel macho about it.
Ive seen guys glow about their dogs toughness, and aggressiveness.
OTOH, I think many women might feel frightened about handling an aggressive dog, and would more than likely address this aggressiveness early on.

Just my opinion.

[Good_Karma]

Originally Posted by Jax08

...women are probably more likely to hand off the dog walking of an aggressive dog to their husband.

I bet this is the reason too.

[sashadog]

This takes me back to something my trainer once said, in jest, during one of our CGC classes and even though it was supposed to be funny, I found it very true. She said that in her experience, women are more aware of subtle details and are better at picking up on early cues as to how a dog is going to react. Men on the other hand are more concerned with the bigger picture and how they are going to get their dog to behave how they want them to. Of course this is a generalization and no offense to all you incredible male handlers out there But this rings very true in my experiences as well. Men may just let the situation get more out of control because they aren't as aware of the small cues their dog is giving off. Just a thought and I can't emphasize enough what a huge generalization this is

[PaddyD]

Speaking of generalizations, here's one: Women are more process oriented and men are more result oriented. Women need to make sure that the details in the process are all followed according to 'the rules'. Men just want to get the job done. So, more often, the women get the job done 'right' while the men get the job done sooner. And I will steal the line above.
'Just a thought and I can't emphasize enough what a huge generalization this is.'
As far as who is more clued into the cues the dog is giving I think it depends on the person. Some people are just more tuned into their dogs. I know that my wife hardly notices any nuances in my dog's behavior while I am constantly pointing out this or that. Her priorities are elsewhere and she is more tuned into them than I am. It is possible that both genders are 'generally' equally tuned in but that the men just let certain things go uncorrected longer because men are generally more laissez-faire.

[Ucdcrush]

It could be that aggression prone dogs are not often walked by women, or taken to training by women (for the 100% of male handled dogs that have attacked at training).

Also, as a male myself, there are times that I have pressured my dogs in presence of other dogs. For instance, they get excited and pull a bit, I'll quickly react with a correction in order to keep them in line. They usually get back in line, but I know it's pressure and stress on them. There are other times where I don't care if they pull a bit, and this makes them more relaxed and less reactive. I can see how increased stress on the human (self imposed) and dog (human imposed) can lead to more bites.

Interesting study.

[codmaster]

Could be just that men are more likely to walk the family dog if they are more aggressive to begin with, perhaps?

[doggiedad]

to me this is totally, duh, i believe it.