Backyard aggression

That sounds like a great idea, Cathy, train the dog a simple command that is incompatible with lunging and mouthing.  I would nip it in the bud ASAP, I say that b/c I was injured by a young dog doing the same sorts of things, and this dog was probably not even as big (and I am not small or weak).  The puppy behavior, mouthiness, testing boundaries, etc escalated to handler aggression and it took two trainers and a behaviorist working with the dog several times a week to train him manners and respect.

Hi, there....I read your initial post and it sounds like he is trying to play with you the same way he would play with another dog...jumping on each other and mouthing etc.  Not sure if he has a good dog buddy or not, but just in case he doesn't, you might want to find him one.  As much as you need to be the leader of the pack, he needs to understand the difference between interaction with dogs and people.

At the same time I agree completely with the previously suggested "firm no" and serious tone of voice.  If he is intent on keeping it up or being goofy, grab him by the collar and keep him in the "off  or still position" until he gets it.  No treat, but kind words are good and then a redirect. It's not that I don't believe in treats, it's that sometimes they are so smart that they can associate the treat with the "process" and then you have a new problem.  I take my dog's collar off when he is inside alone with me; the rest of the time I make sure he is wearing a collar that I can grab if I have to.

My rescue does the same thing periodically.  I got him at nine months, so had to work pretty quickly with him.  He can go from zero to high gear in no time. I reserve a sharp "NO" for things that could be a serious problem down the road or a serious problem with guests. The rest of the time, I use "hey" or "leave it."

It worked well when the cutest little multi-poo got loose and crawled through the side of my chain link gate.  The little dog came in the back yard, started barking aggressively at Bob and then ran at him.  Bob ran towards her, grabbed her and put her on her back while I let out the loudest strongest "NO" I could.  It served to break his focus on the dog (who was by then making a screaming noise) and I grabbed him.  My buddy picked up the little dog who, once elevated over Bob, immediately started barking aggressively at him again.    

Anyway, just one of the thousands of stories on this very cool web site.  The bottom line is that unless there is something wrong mentally with a dog; there is always an answer.  Yours is a healthy young dog that is learning about territory, pecking orders and manners etc. You started him off with the right training and now he needs to fit it into his understanding while you continue the training at home.  Keep the troops informed and we can keep working on it... 

 IMO, grabbing a dogs collar is a no-no.Make him drag a leash or a long line, so you can control the unwanted behavior.

 Yeah, I agree with the incompatible behaviour. My puppy Erik likes to leap up and bite my leg. Obviously not a game I enjoy. He does beautiful sits, though, and has been rewarded for sitting in all sorts of situations, so when he runs at me and I know he's going to chomp me, I ask him to sit. He plants his behind and waits for his reward, which is to lavish attention and praise on him, grab a toy and play a bit of tug or something like that. Works a treat, and he's a little monster with next to no self control at this age.

tiffy

 IMO, grabbing a dogs collar is a no-no.Make him drag a leash or a long line, so you can control the unwanted behavior.

A long leash doesn't even register with a large dog that needs to be subdued...the dog needs to be controlled immediately.  We are  talking about controlling a 75 pound dog that is jumping on the owner's back .... what does dragging a long leash do? 

The object is to CONTROL the dog's behaviour NOW....either the dog grabs you or you grab the dog.  Which should it be? 

Still wondering if Mal's dog has a dog best friend to play with.... they are so smart and the more they get to play the better off they are.

Bruister

A long leash doesn't even register with a large dog that needs to be subdued...the dog needs to be controlled immediately.  We are  talking about controlling a 75 pound dog that is jumping on the owner's back .... what does dragging a long leash do? 

The object is to CONTROL the dog's behaviour NOW....either the dog grabs you or you grab the dog.  Which should it be? 

Still wondering if Mal's dog has a dog best friend to play with.... they are so smart and the more they get to play the better off they are.

The Mal most likely is trying to play with the owner's hands, grabbing him by the collar only will bring the hands closer and the Mal will take that as a game, will start nipping at the forearms until he is able to reach those really playful pair of hands. If she tries to grab the collar, at the same time the Mal is jumping and he decides to grab the forearms to play with while coming down from the jump then the owner might have a pretty good scar to show to the grandkids in the future.

My Mal has making me think on ways to control him without even touching him, when is too late and he does not listen to words anymore (because sometimes is full of energy on a saturday morning and we havent walk yet), if he starts jumping at me i just bend down a little bit and open my arms leaving a good 20 inches of space between his face and my hands.

This way i stop the jumping since the hands are coming down but he does not know which one to go for, so he sits down and waits for me to take the decision on which hand to offer first to play with. The fact that he is waiting for me actually calms him down and i dont have to offer any hand whatsoever anymore.

A lead gives you something ELSE to grab hold of further from the animals teeth.  I too have large dogs, and a lot of them, so I do have a bit of experience with handling and controlling large and mule headed dogs.

I actually like espencers spread arms.....that must surprise the heck out of Chuck!  And serve the purpose without hands on anything!

You can also step on a lead, so you are not using your hands and the dog can't jump.

I would also focus on doing NILIF in general, so that the dog learns to be more respectful and less pushy, then eventually you won't need to use your leash or hands or anything.

Ya, my boy does have a puppy best friend that he plays with -- she's a lab puppy and they play pretty rough with each other.  He does really well playing with her, as well as other dogs (@ the dog park, in our back yard, etc.).  I really think he's just testing our boundaries.  I'm not sure if the leash thing will work, but I'll definitely give it a shot.  The way he comes at me makes me think that grabbing a leash isn't going to be super effective.  It doesn't seem like he's specifically going for my hands, but I'll try the crouching down method.  Again, anything is worth trying at this point!

 Also, I just wanted to say that I really appreciate everyone's suggestions -- I tried this on another site and they made me feel stupid, like I had no idea what Malamutes are like, etc.  We haven't had an incident with him since I posted this message, but I'll let you all know how it goes when it does happen.  Thanks again!

 Of all things, my little monkey boy jumped up on me today while we were playing with throw toys.  I had been gone from home longer than usual.  When this happened, I did what came naturally.  I raised both hands forward, leaning slightly over him and said "no!"  He immediately backed off, then he went into the sit position and waited to see what the game plan was, so I thought of you and your lad.  We are always learning. We will all learn from your outcomes over the next few months.

Bruister

 

tiffy

 IMO, grabbing a dogs collar is a no-no.Make him drag a leash or a long line, so you can control the unwanted behavior.

A long leash doesn't even register with a large dog that needs to be subdued...the dog needs to be controlled immediately.  We are  talking about controlling a 75 pound dog that is jumping on the owner's back .... what does dragging a long leash do? 

The object is to CONTROL the dog's behaviour NOW....either the dog grabs you or you grab the dog.  Which should it be? 

Still wondering if Mal's dog has a dog best friend to play with.... they are so smart and the more they get to play the better off they are.

Actually, the object is to control the dog's behavior while keeping the handler safe.  If a dog is in an aroused state and you grab his collar, you can easily become the target of a redirected bite, and the dog's mouth is four times faster than the human hand.  

You now what....if you can't control your dog, then your dog is controlling you and you are dealing with a dog that will hurt others if you don't take control.  Sometimes we need to take some chances to gain that control.  Some of us have dogs that for whatever reason may give us a mouthing or two....that is the risk we take when we have a dog with a certain personality or a history that needs some work.  It may mean that we need to mess around until we find a way to deal with our dog ... or  ... someone else (a behaviouralist) takes over, and they deal with the dog.

The dog we are talking about does not appear to be vicious or dangerously aggressive in any way, so if he does anything, he will mouth....maybe even strongly mouth and the owner may even feel some teeth....but it does not appear that he will bite.  If he bites....then we are in a different category and a more serious approach is required and the owner needs to know this.

I don't advocate getting bitten by our dogs, but I do believe that "a positive, close and loving relationship" means that our dogs will choose NOT to bite during correction.  I do not condone punishment of any sort, but i do feel free to take control of my dog by grabbing him and holding him steady if he is being too goofy. If he bites me then, I have a more serious problem on my hands and I would prefer he bites me than someone else.  So far, I have no bites.

I think you might be missing the point.  A dog in an aroused state can accidently bite the human.  It's not a deliberate bite but it still happens.

I live with 6 german shepherds.....another "dangerous" breed.  I've done a fair amount of rehab work with fosters as well and I completely agree with Spiritdogs that controlling the dog and keeping the handler safe is the ultimate goal.  Even an accidental bite can give your dog a "bite history".  If you have to seek medical attention, in many states, the ER/docs are required by law to report the bite.  Even from your own dog.  So, there's one bite on the poor dogs record, and all because you stuck your hand where it shouldn't have been stuck.

It is NOT ok for a dogs teeth to EVER touch my skin.  Intentially or not intentially.  Using the line keeps everyone a bit safer.

You now what....if you can't control your dog, then your dog is controlling you and you are dealing with a dog that will hurt others if you don't take control.  Sometimes we need to take some chances to gain that control.  Some of us have dogs that for whatever reason may give us a mouthing or two....that is the risk we take when we have a dog with a certain personality or a history that needs some work.  It may mean that we need to mess around until we find a way to deal with our dog ... or  ... someone else (a behaviouralist) takes over, and they deal with the dog.

The correct terminology is *behaviorist* and most behaviorists I know do not recommend grabbing a dog by the collar, for the reason I stated.  You may have confidence that your own dog will not bite you, although I still don't see the point of a collar grab, when it's far more productive to give the dog no attention whatsoever for such pushy behavior (if he gets nothing for it, he'll eventually stop doing it because it doesn't work any more).  But, those of us who work with unknown dogs that may decide to become aggressive are not dumb enough to reach over the head of a dog and grab its collar.  Do that often enough, you will eventually get a bite.

The dog we are talking about does not appear to be vicious or dangerously aggressive in any way, so if he does anything, he will mouth....maybe even strongly mouth and the owner may even feel some teeth....but it does not appear that he will bite.  If he bites....then we are in a different category and a more serious approach is required and the owner needs to know this.

It's seldom productive to meet aggression with aggression, and usually only makes the situation much worse.  The object is always to avoid having the dog bite (what they practice, they learn to repeat).

I don't advocate getting bitten by our dogs, but I do believe that "a positive, close and loving relationship" means that our dogs will choose NOT to bite during correction. 

Since most dogs bite out of fear (about 80%), rather than overt aggression, why would you add a "correction" that only serves to increase anxiety, thus adding fuel to the fire???

I do not condone punishment of any sort, but i do feel free to take control of my dog by grabbing him and holding him steady if he is being too goofy.

Feel free - it's your dog (poor thing).  But, if you did that to my dog, you'd have to deal with me.

If he bites me then, I have a more serious problem on my hands and I would prefer he bites me than someone else.  So far, I have no bites.

What the heck does that prove?  There's always a first time.  Good thing you have a soft dog. 

Bruister

I don't advocate getting bitten by our dogs,

It's great that you don't advocate getting bitten, but, when giving advice on an internet forum, you have to remember that just because you can read a dog & your dog doesn't bite, doesn't mean that the person who you are advising can do those same things.  It is a bit wreckless to recommend, to someone you don't know, that they grab a dog, who is trying to bite, by the collar.  Just because you have been lucky using that method does not mean that it is an intelligent way to handle the situation.

Two weeks ago one of my dogs attacked someone.  The attack was warranted, as the person was looking to harm me.  After the police arrived, I tried to pull my dog off of the man.  Stupidly, I grabbed my boy's collar to try to remove him from the guy's face.  I got my dog loose, but in the process he redirected & chewed on my arm.  I had nine deep punctures on my hand & arm, along with a broken arm due to my dog's redirection.  I'm not upset with him in the least.  It was totally my fault that he bit me.  I know better than to grab a collar on a dog that is worked up, yet for some reason I didn't use my head & grab his leash.