Idiopathic Aggression

 Idiopathic is defined as, “relating to or denoting any disease or condition which arises spontaneously or for which the cause is unknown.” Idiopathic aggression occurs spontaneously – there are NO triggers. 

Unfortunately, there is an incorrect or incomplete understanding and usage of the term “idiopathic aggression” among some professional dog trainers. Although it is genetic in origin, it must not be confused with other types of genetically influenced aggression.  Keep in mind that all behavior is a combination of nature and nurture.  It is fair to say that there are genetic components to every aggressive dog’s behavior.  But just because there is a genetic component, that doesn’t mean that it is accurate to identify the aggression as “idiopathic.”  

Dog owners have a very difficult time identifying triggers. They will often tell the trainer that the bite came out of nowhere, with no warning, completely out of the blue. But that doesn’t mean that there were no triggers. It simply means that the owner was unable to identify the triggers. 

In our franchisee training program, we don’t spend a lot of time discussing idiopathic aggression, since it is unlikely that the average trainer will encounter more than a few true cases of idiopathic aggression over a lifetime of training experience. Nonetheless, it is important for professional trainers to use terms correctly. So let’s take a closer look at idiopathic aggression. 

Unprovoked aggressive episodes appear first at puberty and increase in intensity with age. The disorder is common in springer spaniels, cocker spaniels and bull terriers, and is often referred to by breeders as "springer rage."  Cases of springer rage (AKA “rage syndrome”) have declined in recent years, as the breeding community has learned more about it. Studies have been done identifying similar behavior in cocker spaniels.  A form of aggression with similar signs was also noted in Saint Bernards in the early 20th century. Although this rage was believed be to “bred out” of Saint Bernards, the breed is still prone to epilepsy and other seizure disorders. 

The behavior comes on almost like a seizure.  Rage syndrome is characterized by sudden, unprovoked aggressive attacks. A dog suffering from rage syndrome will lunge without giving any warning signals. While in a rage, the affected dog bites any human (or other animal) in its path. The dog bites down and facial muscles often spasm, preventing the dog from opening its mouth until the spasm relaxes. Some neurologists believe that this “lock jaw” is in fact a localized petit mal seizure. Observers may report that the dog’s eyes appear “glassy” or “cloudy” and the dog may exhibit other neurological signs such as “fly catching” and “shadow chasing” within minutes to hours prior to a rage. (Dodson, N. and Shuster, L., Psychopharmacology of Animal Behavior Disorders, 1998).

The exact etiology of these rages is unknown, hence the name “idiopathic aggression.”  One theory holds that the “rages” are a form of temporal lobe epilepsy (or TLE).  “[Human] patients [with TLE] may lash out with hands, feet or other objects. This aggression appears to be random and undirected” (Dodman and Schuster, 1998, P 69). 

Some researchers and observers have noted a predictable time cycle to the “rages” - often about  1 month.  Because of possible cyclic nature of the rage episodes, this disorder may sometimes be referred to as “episodic dyscontrol”  

Recommended treatments for rage syndrome vary from the use of anticonvulsants (Dodman and Schuster, 1998), to medications which increase serotonin levels (Johnson, 2001), to euthanasia (due to the safety concerns presented by dogs with unprovoked aggression). 

Conclusion:

• All idiopathic aggression is genetic, but not all genetic aggression is idiopathic.

• Idiopathic aggression is rare. It is unlikely that the average professional dog trainer will encounter more than a few true cases of idiopathic aggression over a lifetime of training experience.

• The ABCs (before, during, after) of rage syndrome are different from typical dog bites.

• Since there are no triggers, there are no effective behavior modification protocols. 

• Owners often insist that there are no triggers to their dogs’ aggressive behavior. But with patient, attentive and skillful listening, a good trainer should be able to identify the triggers with relative certainty, ruling out idiopathic aggression as the cause.   

"What Should I Do If My Dog Growls At Me?"

Growling

 

“What should I do if my dog growls at me?” is a question that trainers frequently hear. Even though it’s a common question, the “correct” answer is hotly debated among trainers. Here are some of the most popular   answers, along with their pros and cons:

 

Option 1: Do nothing. Remain perfectly still.

Pro:   Easy to execute.  
Con : If the growling is fear-based you run the risk of getting bitten in situations where the dog is growling to signal a desire   for increased distance (i.e. “Go away!”), especially if you are standing stiff and facing the dog. If it's dominance based you'll have to give distance in order to "comply" and this will reinforce the behavior. 

 

Option 2:  Redirect the dog. Offer a bone, toy or food treat to get his mind on something else.

Pro:   Owners, and new trainers, safely escape injury all the time with this time honored maneuver.

Con:  What you’re really doing is reinforcing, not redirecting. You  are rewarding the behavior. Dog growls, he gets a treat or toy – that’s a positive reward. When you reward a behavior you increase the likelihood that it will happen again.

 

Option 3: Correct the behavior immediately. For example, frontally align yourself and make direct eye contact, scold in a low tone of voice and if necessary do a leash correction. Teach the dog that it is never acceptable to growl  at you.  

Pro:       Looks great on TV shows (if the dog backs down).

Con #1: This response has a good chance of actually triggering a bite.
Con #2: If it does not trigger a bite, you will be shutting down your dog’s   warning system, making the dog much more dangerous. In the future when he feels threatened, instead of giving a warning (growl) he may instead choose to bite. A dog who knows how to warn (growl) is safer to work    with than one who bites without warning. Ask any experienced groomer!

So yes, there is disagreement among trainers on this topic. Ignoring, rewarding, or confronting a growl may each have undesirable consequences.   A good handler reads the dog's body language and knows how to prevent situations that will cause the dog to growl. But to get back to the options available, let's continue.  

If, despite precautions, the dog growls at you: 

Option 4:  Shift the dog from a threatening mode to a cooperative mode by putting him into drive. Your attitude  becomes, “I’m not interested in your growl. I’m doing this new activity instead.” When you put a previously growling dog into working drive, you shift him into a completely different frame of mind. For example, one might go get the dog’s leash, in order to bring him from a "get away from me" frame of mind into a happy, “let’s go for a walk!” mindset. Or call him to sit, down, and then reward with a treat. 

Essentially, you are diffusing the  situation by shifting the dog into working drive to bring him from an undesirable state of mind into a safer one.  (This option should not be used in situations involving resource guarding. For resource guarding, classical counter-conditioning with many repetitions and a commitment to a weeks-long or months-long project has a high success rate when applied patiently and properly.) 

Putting the dog into working mode operates on the principle that active submission is first obtained by evoking a new response, and then rewarding the new behavior. But there is an important caveat: the handler must have done sufficient groundwork for this procedure to be effective. "Groundwork" simply means that the dog must already know and respond reliably to  basic obedience commands. So if we are working with a dog who has growled at people, we generally start by a) avoiding know triggers; b) training the basics obedience commands; and c) applying the principles of the deference protocol in everyone's daily interactions with the dog.

Conclusion: Of the above options, I prefer option 4 because there is little chance of inadvertently reinforcing the aggressive  behavior, since we are first evoking a new response to gain submission, and then offering the reward, rather than directly rewarding the undesirable behavior. 

 

Are Neutered Dogs Safer to Work with than Intact Dogs?

There are several factors that should make a trainer more cautious when working with a dog: low sociability, bite history, medical problems, maternal instinct, injuries, barrier frustration, sexually mature and finally, the topic of this post - sexually intact males. All of these justify more caution. I am always a bit more careful when working with intact males (higher drive means harder biting). But I still enjoy working with them hands-on. 

Some trainers are wary of working with intact males and will quote a study from a few years ago that showed that intact male dogs between eighteen months and two years of age have a greater incidence of aggression than females or neutered males. But it's not proven science that this is due to testosterone. It is just as likely that it's due to socioeconomic factors. Dogs who arrive at animal shelters intact are mostly from lower income communities. People who cannot afford to provide medical care certainly cannot afford professional training, and some even encourage aggressive behavior in their dogs in a misplaced effort at "protection training." 

In my almost 30 years of dog training experience, I've been bitten more often by neutered dogs than by intact dogs. I know trainers from military and police backgrounds who worked exclusively with intact males and have never been bitten.

Neutered male dogs have 3 times the risk of hypothyroidism - and there are more dogs who bite due to hypothyroidism than any other medical factor. 

Testosterone doesn’t make a dog vicious, it merely adds drive. All police patrol dogs and military dogs are intact – and attacks on their handlers are virtually unheard of.

A landmark scientific study found that only a small percentage of dogs realize a change in aggressive behavior after being neutered:   Neilson, Eckstein, and Hart,(1997) found that [only] 25% of adult dogs that were aggressive toward humans or other dogs in the household can be expected to have a 50 to 90% level of improvement after gonadectomy.  A 50 - 90% level of improvement can likewise be observed in [ONLY]  10 to 15% of dogs that are aggressive toward unfamiliar people or human territorial intruders after gonadectomy.

No trainer should get a false sense of security because a dog is neutered. And no trainer should ever recommend neutering as a solution to aggression.  (Of course, neutered males who have not yet fought are less likely to fight if they are neutered as a preventative measure.)

There is universal agreement among breeders of large breed dogs that, for a number of developmental reasons, it is inadvisable to neuter too young, and there are well known health risks involved with spaying and neutering dogs.  

Regarding females and any connection between spaying and aggression, Lindsay’s Encyclopedia of Dog Behavior and Training (Volume 2, p. 187) includes a study which supports the assertion that incidents of aggression are higher in spayed females than in non-spayed females. 

 My main point is this: No trainer should be "more relaxed" just because a dog is neutered.

Dog Growling When You Approach the Food Bowl?

How Do You Prevent Resource Guarding in Dogs?  Step One – Don’t CAUSE it in the first place!

"What NOT to do" #751: Annoying a Dog While They’re Eating to “Show Them Who’s Boss.” 

People do all kinds of stupid things to their dogs because their dad, or uncle, or grandfather always did them. Some of the ones that really push my buttons are sticking a dog’s nose in an accident as part of attempts to housetrain them, rolling a dog on its back and pinning it down to prove you’re alpha, and hitting  a dog - with  anything. Regardless of what your Uncle Bob told you, all of these are always wrong, all the time.  

Guess what folks – a true pack leader (whether it’s an alpha wolf or a human pet owner) – doesn’t bother lower ranking pack members when they’re eating. That procedure does not teach them you’re the boss, it only teaches them one thing – that you are a threat to their food. This procedure does not prevent food guarding – it causes it. If you want to prevent food guarding in a young dog, then teach the dog or puppy to ENJOY it when you approach the food bowl. Without petting or annoying the dog, simply approach the bowl and drop in some more food. This teaches the dog to regard the approach of a human as a positive thing, not a negative. 

Canine Dimensions trains thousands of puppies each year. When we start with a young puppy we teach the owners to approach and add food during each meal. We have never had a puppy grow up to be a food guarder when the owner followed this advice. On the other hand, in virtually every case when we are called for assistance involving an adult dog who is growling, snapping or biting when someone approaches his food bowl, we learn that the owner made a habit of sticking his hand in the food bowl and annoying the dog when it was young.  Which brings us to…

"What NOT to do" #752: Habitually Taking Objects Away from a Puppy.

The principle here is the same as above, but instead of teaching a dog to guard its food, people often teach a dog to guard objects by constantly taking things away from them while they're young.  

NEVER snatch an item out of your puppy’s mouth without giving him something better in return. In spite of your best efforts to “puppy proof” the house, there will still be plenty of times you will need to take something away from your puppy that she’s not supposed to have. But the right procedure is to always trade up – for example if she picks up a sock, trade her a piece of hot dog while saying, “out” or “drop-it.” This teaches the dog to drop the item on command, and also teaches them not to run away, or growl and snap, to protect the forbidden item.