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I've written a couple of posts earlier on aggression between dogs. Here's another one.
This is a nasty bite Deepa suffered while playing with a neighbour's pet dogs in Doerflingen, Switzerland. The biter was a big German Shepherd, known for being jealous around other dogs.
The owner's second dog is Deepa's friend and regular playmate. The GSD is normally leashed during these play sessions, but unfortunately the owner left him off-leash that day. Owners of aggressive dogs need to be extra-careful not to put other dogs or people at risk. And above all they should invest in some canine behaviour counselling and training!For earlier posts on this topic, click here and here.Photo: Nicole Poyyayil
Following up on the post about the bulldog's attack on Leela, here are links to some articles on canine aggression (against humans and dogs). I must thank Yvonne de Kock for doing all the homework for this and sending me the links. Some of them provide really valuable insights into common dog behaviour and actions, the sort of things we take for granted.
My insight, for what it's worth, is that it may be a mistake to attribute aggression only to specific breeds. Genetics is of course of the utmost importance, and some breeds are definitely more predisposed to attack and bite, but there are individual dogs of these breeds who are docile and friendly, just as there are aggressive individuals belonging to "friendly" breeds. This seems to show that the owner's attitude and handling of the dog are equally important.
I suspect the large aggressive breeds are usually selected by people who want to project a macho image. I mean, how often do you find a sweet gentle old lady picking a pitbull? Or a 'might is right' muscleman choosing a chihuahua? Stereotypes do operate in dog selection to a large extent. The macho type of owner then worsens his dog's temperament by encouraging the belligerent traits it has inherited. One often hears male owners bragging about how powerful their dogs are, what great guard dogs, how savage towards other dogs or intruders, what terrifying injuries the dog would inflict if not restrained by the owner, and so on. It's almost as if they are living out some "power" fantasy through their dogs...just as some owners seem to live out fantasies of high status and nobility through their pedigreed pets...
Now that I've probably offended a sizable chunk of the dog-owning public, let's get back to dogs. It is clear that "upbringing" has a lot to do with how a dog behaves, and wrong handling by the owner could probably make a monster out of just about any dog. In all this talk about recognized breeds, I am not excluding INDogs/Pariahs. Thanks to survival pressures, pushy aggressive individuals are as common among INDogs as in any other type of dog. In fact there is the added danger of this temperament being unwittingly encouraged by indulgent and compassionate owners who feel the dog should be allowed to do anything it wants after the hardships it has survived on the street. A common mistake is allowing a dominant male dog to sit on the bed.
I could go on and on...but I'm no expert. If you think your dog is growing aggressive, please please don't delude yourself that it is nothing to worry about. Get professional help without delay.
The articles:
A behavioural view on dog aggression - Barbara NiblingAggression - The Humane Society of the United StatesDominance aggression in dogs - Karen L. OverallSocial aggression to unfamiliar dogs
Dog owner's guide - Canine aggression
If you'd like to recommend any other useful sites, do send me the links.
April 5, 2008 was a very bad day for Yvonne de Kock and her beautiful INDog-mix Leela - thanks to a vicious attack on the latter by a poorly supervised, aggressive pet dog. Every now and then one hears of such incidents in Mumbai as well, even episodes in which a smaller dog has been killed by a larger one. Much as we love our dogs, it is entirely our responsibility to make sure they do not harm other animals or humans in public spaces. I sometimes hear complaints about street dogs in India who bark at or attack pets, but in my experience an untrained unsupervised pet dog is as great, or an even greater danger. I asked Yvonne to write about the incident because I think we should all know what the victim goes through. And of course, I'm hoping all readers will restrain their pets properly if they aren't doing so already. Yvonne's account of what happened:
On Saturday afternoon, April 5th, Leela and I were taking an afternoon stroll through Central Park and I decided that it would be nice to walk up along the Hudson River back home to 103rd Street. We were crossing west along 72nd Street when a man and his adolescent son, each with an English bulldog on a leash, came walking towards us. When they were approximately 20 yards away, one bulldog pulled, the son let go of the leash, and the dog ran straight towards Leela and viciously began attacking her. I tried to keep the dog away from her, but the bulldog got hold of her right flank and started ripping. It was so disturbing to see a dog intent on killing another dog who was entirely innocent, serenely walking alongside my leg. There was no provocation whatsoever on Leela’s side. The dog locked its jaws and the owner tried to pry them open whilst Leela just screamed and screamed in agony.
When the owner finally managed to get the dog to let go Leela had a few large puncture wounds in her abdomen. A crowd had gathered on the sidewalk and some said afterwards they were horrified at the bulldog’s unprovoked aggression. I told the owner that he was entirely responsible for his dog’s attack on Leela as well as the expenses this entailed. He agreed. I did not have any money on me so a kind woman gave me $20 for a taxi to take Leela to the emergency vet, but no taxi would stop for us so the man whose dog bit Leela agreed to drive us to the vet after he had taken his dogs back home. Leela was shivering and in shock and I was extremely concerned in case her intestines had been punctured. We couldn't lift her into a car because of her injuries so she managed to jump into the front and sit on my lap still shaking and panting.
At the emergency vet everyone scurried around getting the estimate of what the treatment would cost and we had to sign in a hurry believing they needed to get on with stitching her up. Once the papers were signed we sat around for another 3 hours and then went home leaving Leela in the hospital. Nothing happened for 12 hours except for an x-ray. My husband (who is a physician) called every two hours during the night to find out what was happening and they said they would get to her soon. He told the vet that he was extremely concerned about sepsis setting in. According to the vet at NYC Veterinary Specialists, the emergency facility, her injuries were more extensive than initially thought. Leela required surgery that night and was discharged the following day with sutures and staples and drains coming out of her, as well as a cone around her head.
She required daily check-ups at our regular vet, Symphony Vet, who are a pleasure to deal with. Leela had acquired a severe and deep-seated infection from the bulldog’s mouth and needed a second surgery a few days later involving the extensive resection of a large amount of muscle, fat and skin tissue, together with a prolonged course of antibiotic therapy. The vet commented that it was the worst infection she had ever seen following a dog bite. Leela was unable, and also not allowed, to walk because of the tension on the sutures and we had to use a specialized pet transport service for her numerous veterinary visits. A special van was required that had a ramp for getting in and out and in which she could stand upright as she was unable to lie down (even at home she could not lie down to sleep because of pain and discomfort). The high fever as a result of the infection caused her to drink excessive amounts of water and she was urinating all over the apartment so we were constantly cleaning up. In addition to the urine, she had had more drains inserted into her abdomen and rotten fluid was draining out until two days before her sutures were removed, over three weeks in all.
I consulted our homeopathic vet, Dr Don Hamilton, frequently by phone to help out with the severity of her condition due to the injuries sustained and the resultant infection. He prescribed certain homeopathic remedies as well as two supplements to support the regeneration of skin tissue so that her wounds could heal. Luckily she was already on an organic raw food diet and in good health so that helped too.
Given that Leela needed 24 hour care and supervision for three weeks there was no way I could leave our apartment to even go to the store downstairs, let alone teach my scheduled yoga classes. Leela had to wear an e-collar/cone at all times so that she could not lick or interfere with the affected area and she needed supervision at home with this as she would get stuck in awkward positions against furniture.We have all been through a nightmare, but Leela is healing well and the disruption to our lives is finally subsiding. I now never leave home without a dog repellant spray (Spray Shield) as well as a mace/pepper spray so at least I have something to help deter the aggressive dogs here in NYC should one try and attack Leela again.
It is imperative to be vigilant and aware of dog aggression, educating oneself in order to recognize the signs, signals and posturing that accompanies the various forms of dog aggression, and rather avoid any form of confrontation by, for example, crossing the street if necessary. Best to be prepared, but at the same time not to be anxious as our dogs pick up on our emotions and act on them!
As much as dogs need, and like, to socialize with other dogs it takes good judgement as to when it is appropriate (or not) to get close to another dog. For example, I never take Leela into our local dog run if there are Pitbulls around, and, if one arrives, I leave. Pitbulls are notorious for being unpredictable around other dogs and I prefer not to take a chance. I have also seen them attack other dogs in the dog run for no reason so I feel justified in avoiding them.
Yvonne de Kock
NYC, USA
Following Manik Godbole's interesting post "Are these traits common to all INDogs/Pariahs?" (29 November, 2007), I thought I'd show you what Lalee does when she meets free-roaming INDogs/pariahs in neutral territory - in this case, a beach in the Alibagh area which we often visit.
Lalee's constant companion there is Lucy, a little INDog-mix who lives in my aunt's bungalow. She's a bit older than Lalee, but Lalee is the dominant one. Whenever they see other dogs on the beach they both rush at them with hackles up, barking and often growling. If there are just one or two strays, my two usually manage to chase them off the beach into the wooded area nearby. If there are more than two, Lalee and Lucy are much more careful and don't show actual aggression. I never interfere in these little skirmishes, they all seem to sort it out perfectly well on their own.
Two weeks back there was this little group of three, one female on heat and two males (top). I was secretly a bit worried that Lalee might get bitten this time, as they were mating when she barged in (second and third photos - Lalee is the one with the collar of course). The fourth picture is of Lucy approaching the pack - very very carefully!
The point I'm trying to make is that both Lalee and Lucy have been interacting with other dogs right from the start, and understand how to go about it. In neutral "no dog's land" my experience is that INDogs are generally more defensive than aggressive. If I had tried to shoo off the strays, my own dogs would have interpreted it as support and launched a more ferocious attack - and would probably have been bitten in retaliation. It may seem risky to leave them to their own devices, but this way has worked for me for the past six years. Of course if my dogs had actually entered another dog's territory there would have been a fight. Also, the aggression levels of free-roaming INDogs may vary from place to place - so I'm definitely not recommending that you unleash your dog and let him/her rush at stray dog packs! I'm only describing what I myself have witnessed and I would really love to know other people's experiences.Rajashree Khalap
