Territorial aggression in Labs
 

I have a problem with my 4 year old lab. He is very protective of the yard and house. He will agressively charge the gate and bark and growl at anyone walking by. This aggression only seems to be directed towards people he does not know If I were to invite that same person in, he would be all other them looking for love. He also only does this when he is in the house or yard. If we're at the dog park or out for our walks, he is as friendly as can be.
I don't mind a bit of protective instinct in him but this is too much. I have never encouraged this behaviour either and scold him when he does it. However this does not seem to work.
We will be moving to a small town quiet town and will be building him a dog run in the yard. I do not want him to be barking at the neighbors all the time though.
I have considered a bark collar for him but am not sure I want to go that route. He does not bark for the heck of it and other than the protective part, is very quiet. He usually barks once to get in and I wouldn't want him to get "corrected" for that.
Overall, he is a pretty mild mannered dog. Rather submissive to other dogs and often a little timid around things he isn't familiar with. 90 lbs of snarling dog pushing against a gate is a little scary though.
Anyone have any ideas?

RE: Territorial aggression in Labs
 

Cyrus, my yellow lad sounds similar to yours. My lad is very protective of the yard and my wife and I. Once the lab gets you close and you pet him he is fine. i believe mine became like this after a stranger shot him with a BB gun, ever since then he has had a problem with strangers. I dont discourage his behavior because I'm gone alot and my wife like the sense of protection the dog offers her when I'm away. I wouldn't worry about it to much, out of curiosity do you have another dog? I have a wiemeriner aswell and sometimes they feed off of each others mood, thats why I ask.

RE: Territorial aggression in Labs
 

No, we don't have any other dogs.
I know a lot of people wouldn't worry about it and to tell you the truth I don't worry too much about it now that we live in the city. It's an annoyance but at least I know the little punks walking down the lane won't come through our yard.
It's when we move to the new house in a small town that I don't really want it. I'm going to be building him a big run in the yard on the side of the house. I really don't want him going berseck on the neighbors every time they come out.
Not a good way to start out in a new neighborhood.
I'm pretty sure that if I get the neighbors over right away to meet him and he gets as much exposure to them as possible right away that he won't freak out on them.

Thanks for the reply

RE: Territorial aggression in Labs
 

I understand completely about not wanting the new neighbors upset. You may have to think about making the run out of wooden privacy fence if you cant keep him quite, I to am in the same perdicament. My wife is moving to a small town in MO, our place is near a small cemetery, we are affraid our dogs will not allow visitors any peace while they visit loved ones. Good luck

RE: Territorial aggression in Labs
 

Do a search on the internet for articles relating to aggression. There are many site with very good information. Do not yell at or scold the dog. This will only make it worse. Normal voice without excitement is required.

In part from the animal health channel

"Dogs are instinctually territorial, but they usually protect their space by marking and posturing, rather than threats and violence. Dogs that growl, snarl, and lunge without first posturing, staring, and waiting are exhibiting territorial aggression.

To successfully treat protective and territorial aggression, it is important to accurately determine the precise situations that lead to the behavior.

Treatment
Avoid all situations that elicit the aggressive behavior. If you cannot answer the door without the dog barking and growling, and the dog does not respond instantly to a verbal command to stop the behavior, put the dog behind a closed door or in its crate before answering the door.

If the dog growls or lunges, say “No” and banish the dog from the situation until it is calm and responds to verbal commands to sit and stay. Removing the dog from attention and control for attention is one of the most effective and safest disciplinary actions.

Do not use physical punishment.

Avoid sudden arm gestures or motions that dogs with protective aggression often perceive as threats.

Dogs with that exhibit territorial aggression should be placed behind a secure door when any unknown person (e.g., repair person, delivery person) comes to the home and should never be loose outside or fenced into an area that a person may have access to.

If the dog protects an area within the house, change the area in which you keep it frequently."


Here is a very good link were I get information occasionally.

http://www.dogsbestfriendtraining.com/home.php

RE: Territorial aggression in Labs
 

I forgot to add one other thing. Get a PO BOX. The mail man is usually a primer for the aggression problem. He/She comes the dog barks the mail man leaves. Cause and Effect

RE: Territorial aggression in Labs
 

Cyrus

My 2 yr old chocolate female was like that and still likes to bark and act like she is a vicious dog but once she walks up to a person she starts smelling them and backs away and barks again then comes towards the person wagging her tail staying her distance and then she is fine..

I have had her on a pinch collar now for 25 days to train her for obedience and she has come along way and she still barks at people she dosn't know or at a cat or dog but she doesn't jump and run towards them any more due to the training 10 minutes a day and the pressure she feels of the pinch collar..

I know it sounds cruel but it works and after a few loud yelps going towards people or animals she had no cuts or puncture marks around her neck and she now relizes that if she misbehaves she will feel pressure and she does not act like she once did and we can walk right by a cat 2 feet away and she heels right by my side with a few voice commands ( heel ) and she does fine :)

The book i refer to is called - The 10 Minute Retriever - found at amazon.com

Good luck with your lab and that goes out to all of you lab lovers.. ;)

RE: Territorial aggression in Labs
 

My female has also become aggressive since her first litter, now that they are gettin weaned I HOPE she will settle down!!