Re: [PyrNet-L] Re: more puppy problems

["Mitzi Potter" <Pyrs-R-Us@popline.com>]

On Thu, 23 Jul 1998 15:50:03 -0700, ken arndt wrote:

>It makes perfect sense..I spent alot of time researching the breed
>(my wife had a Pyr as a child). It seems that there are common
>personality traits-some more extreme than others, And I was trying
>to ascertain what is considered "normal" and what is "aggressive".
>Is aggression a constant behavior?  
>what are the warning signs etc. I will be the first to admit that I dont understand the "dog >term" agression. I had a LAB that would become aggressive towards anyone
>passing outside of our fenced yard (barking, hair standing up).
>Once the individual was in the yard he was a calm loving dog.
>was this aggression? A dictionary would define it as so. I thought
>he was protective. 
>....Confused as ever

Not at all constant in most cases. There's so many different *kinds
of aggression, that it gets confusing. In my opinion almost every
single one of them is retrainable or you can work or live around it
and it's not that big of a deal. With a true aggressive dog it gets
to be too time-consuming and frustrating to continue to deal with it.
Most people eventually give up. Lots of dogs can be perfectly fine
with almost everyone. But if you try to get them off the couch, or
try to take their food, try to get a leash on them and that sort of
thing, they'll bite. That kind of aggression is usually overcome by
consistant training by a professional (if the dog means that much to
you). The truly aggressive dog is one who'll snarl & bite and not
give up. They won't let it rest and no matter how hard you try to
control them, you get nowhere. And the younger they are when they
start this kind of behavior the less chance that you're ever going to
"really" be able to trust them. Sometimes with a lot of hard work
from an experienced owner these dogs can be somewhat controllable.
But when you're an inexperienced dog owner and you've got kids who
play with the dog, it's tough if not impossible. (I don't think
people on this list are inexperienced-or won't be for long).
As far as your Lab, that's territorial barking, not aggression. If
he'd have acted that way and did his best to tear a chunk out of
someone in the process or when they came inside the fence-that'd be
aggression. My laid-back-nothing-bothers-them Pyrs stand at the fence
and bark and carry on like crazy when someone pulls up in the car.
But if they walked directly over to the fence and stuck their hand
through it, the dogs would turn into mushballs and start wagging
their tails. Your Lab was just doing what he's supposed to-guarding
his property. When he saw that YOU accepted the person, that was fine
with him, his job was done.
This is just how *I* see it. Everyone's got a different opinion on
what aggression is, that's why all of us usually remain continuously
confused :-)
  Mitzi Potter   OKC  OK
  Pyrs-R-Us@popline.com
  http://www.popline.com/quinnz/dogs.htm