Blue Lacy Aggressive Behavior Questions...

[qzilla]

Alright I have a pup from Marlo. He is a red lacy and I have had him since a pup. When he was a pup he was nippy but, more in a puppy sort of way. I have had him working blood since he was about 5 or 6 months old. He is now 2yrs 8 months old and is a 100% jam up blood dog. He has been on hundreds of blood trails.

Now, starting this summer he ran the first trail that had a live animal on the other end of it, at least that we know of. This was his first bay and he did a great job with us recovering the boar hog for my little girl. Since this time he has been on 4 other tracks that had a live animal on the other end, all of which were recovered. We had 1 Nilgai, 1 Buck and 2 Does. There were 2 short tracks and 2 over 3/4 of a mile long tracks.

Since he has started baying live animals he is extremely aggressive about other people or dogs around the animals. I have no problem, I can walk up to the animal any time, move him off the animal, and basically do anything I want. If someone or something else comes up he starts the growling and some barking stuff. I can tell him to "get out" or knock it off in my serious voice and he knocks it off immediately but, if anyone or anything but me comes back he starts all over. It all has rolled into doing it even with an animal that he has trailed to and is dead already.

Now of the last 4 "bays" he has had he as become increasingly more aggressive with the animal. The last being a doe that he bayed and as I came up she tried to break away and he literally drug her down. That seemed ok at the time to me for some reason!

Now, just the other day we noticed him creeping on a new Lacy Pup we have. He stalked him and jumped right up to him and barked and growled but, never bit him. We just thought it was a dog thing. Then a few hours later he tried to sneak up on my wife. When she turned around he jumped and nipped at her.

Well, needless to say he learned an immediate lesson as I heard her scream from in the barn and me and the dog had a serious chat.

He has always been a great watch dog. No one goes to the back of my truck without me. No one goes to the barn unless it is my family.

So my question is do I have a serious problem or is he at the age where he is learning so much that he is just confused and needs a little extra training? I mean he has changed a lot in the last 6 months, mostly for the best in my opinion. He will sleep on the bed with me, lay in my lap etc. just like a big old puppy but, these little things bother me.


Any suggestions or advise would be appreciated. I hate to get on him too much in certain situations because I like the fact that he is somewhat protective but, I am not willing to chance him hurting my family. I hate to treat him like a bulldog and I really hate to get rid of him but, I am more than willing to do either.

[Atfulldraw]

With a dog like that, I'm a big fan of collars.

Immediate, intense, corrective action.

He's still learning, but he's picked up some bad habits that you may be unintentionally reinforcing and that correction will help him.

You can't teach an old dog new tricks, but Innotek/Tritronic can

[Deer Tracks]

Lacies are more pack oriented than most breeds. Because of this, it's essential that you take on the role of a strong pack leader...

You decide where your dog will go
You decide when your dog will eat
You decide how your dog must behave
You must have the authority to take anything away from your dog at any time and claim it as your own. When your dog finds downed game, he should be able to claim it as his until you step in to claim it as yours. And he should have no problem with this.

Dogs have different levels of excitability. A problem dog that goes into an aggressive state of mind in certain situations cannot be corrected when he has reached his highest level of intensity. You must correct at the lower levels to prevent him from becoming out of control.

As soon as you notice your dog giving another dog the "hard stare" or approaching another dog with dominant / alert body language, you must divert his attention to correct before the situation escelates.
Grab his collar and give a sharp tug in conjunction with a firm verbal cue. If you have to flip him on his back to get his attention, then do that.

When you have successfully achieved the role of pack leader, you should be able to control your dog in any situation because they will be looking to you to see how to act.

[qzilla]

Sika I agree whole heartedly. When I am present I do not have these issues, it is only when I am not in the immediate vicinity that he pulls this crap. I have never had an issue when I am anywhere he could see me.

He wears a collar a lot but, when I just have him running around the house or our home property he does not always have it on.

The funnies thing is that he is one of the softest dogs I have ever owned. I can just change the tone of my voice and he cowers down and tucks his tail.

So, when I am there he is a perfect gentleman. It is when I get out of sight he worries me.

I think I am going to try and set him up and see if I can catch him and he will think I have "mother vision"!!

Also, like I mentioned above, I can walk up and take him off an animal even if his teeth are sunk into it and he never even looks at me funny. It is just if I walk off to the jeep or for something else that he takes ownership. I think he believes I am above him on the food chain but, he think he is between me and everyone else.

[Deer Tracks]

When I am present I do not have these issues, it is only when I am not in the immediate vicinity that he pulls this crap. I have never had an issue when I am anywhere he could see me.

This is where an e-collar becomes an effective training tool. It allows you to correct your dog from a distance. Don't use an e-collar to punish aggression. That almost always intensifies the aggression.
Instead, use the e-collar to reinforce basic commands such as "heel," "sit," and "stay."

[Cotton]

My two Dachshunds would kill each other over a cut up deer in an ice chest when they were younger. Now their position is more established they just growl and posture but the first one there usually lays claim.

I agree with Sika.

I expect aggression at the kill to non-pack members and don’t correct this. After all to claim the kill is a big part of his reward. I tell the hunter up front that the deer belongs to the dog until I pull him off and not to approach until then. You are allowed with no aggression because you are the alpha member. He is establishing himself within the pack and moving up in status (Wife). This usually takes place with most breeds around two. He will more than likely test his position with you at some point if not corrected.

Most dogs learn to accept their position within the pack (family) and everyone lives happily ever after but some don’t and continue to try and move up.

[Deer Tracks]

As for getting him to look to all humans as leaders and not just you, everyone in your family and your friends must practice being a pack leader.

My dogs tend to walk over a certain member of the household because she is not a strong leader to them...yet they respect and obey me and my strong-pack-leader friends.

[aironeout]

There is some great info in this thread. I do have a question regarding how I should handle a situation with my grilfriends' Dad's Blue Lacy. Here lately when we go over to their house he will come up to me and be all friendly and want me to pet him and the usual stuff. Then out of the blue his hair will start to stand up and then he will start to growl and one time he even took a pretty go "snip" at me. Then a couple of weeks ago while at their ranch my daughter was playing with his two grandaughters and he acted the same way towards her actually jumping on her back as she turned to walk away. Do I need to be the one to do the disciplineing or do I need to let her dad do it? What is the best way to show that I/we are further up the chain than the dog? Thanks.
>E

[Joey~AP]

I usually dont have a problem with my in-laws Lacy. He likes me.

One day.....I showed up after work....wearin slacks, loafers and a starched dress shirt and he tryed to rip my throat out!

My usual attire is camo shorts and a ripped up t-shirt and hat.

I guess he didnt recognize me!

[Jaspro]

AP I was thinking of Clint's Lacy as well. Glad he was penned when I came out. LOL

[Bones]

I have no problem with aggression towards game and only little issue with their aggression towards other male dogs. That grit is one of the reasons that I have the breed. That being said..............

I have not found an e-collar to be an effective means of stopping aggression in these dogs either, especially for dog aggression. It just seems to **** them off.

A merciless beating on the other hand, seems to work wonders! I do not know why except that they do have such a strong pack mentality, but I have found direct contact to be the most effective method in extreme situations or any time that human aggression is shown.

I have had two dogs who were aggressive to people and one beating later (and for the last several years) have been every man, woman and child's best friend.

If ever that does not work in a case of human aggression, I know one lesson that works infinitely.

Take it for what its worth, I only speak up because people seem to think that beating a lacy will break it as if they are too sensitive for a beating. I am not a proponent of beating dogs but extreme situations sometimes call for extreme measures. In my book, any human aggression is extreme. Only you can tell if the situation dictates this type of punishment.

Steve

[Smart]

Good read...I'm glad I found out about this before I purchased any kind of animal for tracking should I ever decide to.. Think I'll stick with labs, Jack Russells or dachsunds.

[jpbruni]

I have one of Marlo's Lacy's as well and he is a fantastic dog. There is a fine line between being a good guard dog and agressive behavior and it is a tough one to address. You want them to ward off strangers but you also want you him to be cool around your buddys and with other dogs. It's really tough to define that line.

As Court mentioned above, ALL of the family members and people he knows need to firmly establish themselves as Leaders. I tell the UPS guy, the Mailman and Gas Company Guy to get to know him, pet him, say his name with me present, then I walk away and let them stay together. If he tries to do anything, I tell them to command him. It works.

The dog should obey all basic commands from anyone he knows and they should know all the words you use. Lacys are SO DARN SMART! If they think they can get away with it, they will!! You have to put them in their place and they will obey.

An eCollar is a great training tool. Start on the Buzz or Beep setting with all commands and then reinforce them with a slight electronic correction if he is stubborn. If it goes past that; say the command, buzz him and then really light him up once! I mean Back-Flip his azz! Most of the time, you only have to do this once.

The Buzz or Beep should be all it takes after he knows the consequence that follows it! It's a process and he won't get it immediately, but once he does; you can teach a Lacy just about anything and completely stop the aggression.

You should only need one command for all the Aggression-related issues. Say OUT! or AWAY! or STOP IT! and make that the universal command that you use. Tell everyone that command so they can all shut him down on the spot.

The one item that has not been addressed; and it is the most important thing is also how well this breed responds to Praise and Treats. I have done almost all of my training with treats and praise. They are a working breed and really want to please you. He has to know that it is a good thing when he stops the aggression or does something right, I rip up a Bacon treat and carry the pieces in my pocket. I am give him one EVERY TIME he does something I tell him to and praise him like crazy!

This will totally turn any dog around. Too much negative reinforcement is horrible for any dog, but especially for Lacys. If I so much as raise my voice to Diego, he backs down. When he does, I praise him.

Most dog owners don't know this and only correct/scold/beat/punish the dog and that will turn a great dog into a horrible dog.

Hope this helps. Let us know your progress.

J.P.

[holepuncher]

He is just protecting the animal from anyone but you. You are the reason he is tracking and he wants to be sure YOU know he is doing his part. Everyone else just needs to stay away in my opinion.

[Deer Tracks]

Right on, JP. ANYTIME you catch your dog doing the right thing, praise him. Even if you didn't command it.

Praising the dog for doing the right thing or acting the right way is a thousand times more effective than punishing him for doing the wrong thing.