Tips for Dealing with a Badly Behaved Dog

A badly-behaved dog can cause untold problems for your family. Whether they’re destructive and have damaged property, or snappy around strangers, leaving you worried someone will get injured, it’s important to address the issues that are causing this behavior. Here are some tips for dealing with a dog who is out of control.

1.   Seek professional help

It’s important to get professional help if your dog is aggressive or showing dangerous signs like growling or showing their teeth. There are a number of signs of aggression in a dog, from becoming rigid to snapping, so it’s important to pay attention to the hints that your dog is unhappy and becoming aggressive. If it has already gotten to a stage where you are afraid the dog may attack someone, then you might want to look at options such as residential dog training before anyone comes to harm.

2.   Be the pack leader

Dogs are pack animals, and in the absence of other dogs, your family becomes their pack. They’ll see the person they spend the most time with as the pack leader, so it’s important to give clear instructions and not undermine yourself with confusing mixed messages. Be consistent and teach your dogs some basic commands, using a stern voice when they disobey.

3.   Work on the root causes of the behavior

Some causes of bad behavior will have an obvious cause. For example, if your dog is always chewing things, it could be teething, boredom due to lack of stimulation, or anxiety at being left alone. Most of these things are fixable, as there are ways to stop your dogs from chewing everything, such as providing dog toys and ensuring they aren’t left alone for long periods. However, it may mean you have to make changes to your schedule to accommodate them.

4.   Find out their history

If your dog came from a shelter, it may have a history of being abused, which could make it act out once it’s in a safe home. Where possible, get a history of the dog you’re adopting and give them extra time to settle and adjust to your home. Ideally, if you are going to adopt the dog into a house full of children, you should avoid a dog that may be prone to aggression, as well as making sure you trust the dog and that he or she is well-trained.

5.   Reward good behavior

A dog is more likely to respond positively to training if they’re given rewards for good behavior. You should never punish your dog physically, simply using your stern voice and sending them to their crate is enough to make them realize they’ve done wrong. However, when they behave well, heap on the praise and love, so they get a positive association with certain types of behavior.

Dogs can be your best friend, but unfortunately, if not trained properly, their bad behavior can also drive you crazy. However, most dogs can overcome negative behaviors from chewing to aggression by making a few changes and having an understanding attitude.