BehavioRx Case of the Month
for March 2004

Aggressive Dogs The "Eyes" may have it.

"Tuffy" was an intact male Beagle mix, 4 months old, when he started acting frightened and defensively aggressive toward visitors and neighbors and their dogs
during his daily walks.

His family consisted of a happy Mom and Dad with two children, 7 and 9 year-old girls. During our consultation Tuffy initially stayed close to the family as we sat
in our semi-circle of lawn chairs and chatted. I noticed that Tuffy seemed to be trying to get my scent, but the air current was not favorable.

So I got up and moved toward Tuffy, who sat beside mother "Nancy's" feet. The little dog's reaction was startling: He moved back under the chair and started growling, barking and snarling as if he was a veteran 4 year-old attack dog! I walked quickly to where I was upwind of him, crouched down and happily said, "Hi Tuffy... it's Bill here!" Tuffy did get the scent and predictably became more bold, making short charges toward me, only to stop when he got within a couple of feet, then retreat back to Nancy, who started to scold him. I interrupted to ask her to get up and approach me happily, ignoring Tuffy.

"Are you sure?" Nancy seemed hesitant. "He might think I'm mad at you."

I responded, "If you laugh as you approach, he'll probably get the idea"  

Nancy did laugh as she approached and I asked her to turn around and stand by my side, which is friendly positioning in dog-language. Tuffy ran to her, jumped at her legs, then sniffed my outstretched hand as I remained crouched. Fortunately, he chose to give the hand a quick licking rather than bite it.

I ventured, "It appears that Tuffy may have an eyesight problem."

I then asked the rest of the family to come over and stand around me, acting jolly as they did. Tuffy was delighted to see them and actually jumped up on my knee with his front legs, perhaps to get a better look at what was so positively interesting about me. He responded congenially with some more licks to my petting his throat and chest. No nipping or other defensive behavior occurred.

When we returned to our chairs, Tuffy actually stayed with me. I was apparently recognized as the temporary Leader of the Pack!

Tuffy was obtained at 8 weeks from a neighbor's back-yard litter. He was the most friendly of the 6 pups and first to be adopted. He slept in the girls' bedroom and ate 3 meals a day. The diet was a popular puppy kibble. Housetraining was quick, since Nancy had a copy of  our Better Behavior in Dogs and was following the program faithfully. She was also a stay-at-home-mom, which helped. However, she said Tuffy's emerging aggression warranted a family consultation, since the girls were becoming reticent about taking him on walks.

"Emily," the 9 year-old, then mentioned that they still loved to play "laser chase" with the pup. She described how he really looked forward to their session after
school. When questioned about how the laser came into use, "Frank" said he used it during sales presentations in his work and someone had told him cats and dogs love to chase the "mysterious" light.

We explained how lasers, if shined into an eye, can create physical damage to the retina and affect vision, everyone became silent for a few moments, until 7 year-old Peggy said that Tuffy sometimes had looked directly at the laser beam when he lost sight of it on the ground and looked toward her.

"We'd better not play with that anymore." Frank was deadly serious. "How about regular flashlight?"

We explained about the frustration that tends to build up in animals with a strong "chase reflex," such as Beagle hounds, when they cannot catch or trap their imaginary and mysterious "prey." However, with conventional  toys, such as balls and squeaky toys, they can fulfill their inclination to trap and return them in a game of "fetch." Nancy said Tuffy did enjoy fetch, so everyone agreed it was best to abandon the laser pointer.

The problem on the walks still needed attention, so we spent that remained of our time coaching the daughters in using the Bio-Sonic Beanbags the instant Tuffy noticed a person or another dog, then applying the "Jolly Routine" in order to let Tuffy know how super it was to see and meet them. Having seen the effect of this during my owner meeting with Tuffy, both girls were effectively giving the beanbag a quick shake, the laughing happily as they greeted the people and dogs.

We mentioned that this routine worked well, even with deaf and blind dogs, as long as the person using it had  possessed "Emotional Leadership" with the dog. Which led to a discussion of the "Learn-To-Earn Praise and Petting" program. Nancy said the girls could practice their reading skills by reciting that section of the book and the girls seemed amenable to that idea.

Their appointment later with the veterinarian for an eye examination did not reveal any retinal damage from the laser beam and their remedial program with proceeded successfully. However, he did have slight evidence of juvenile cataracts, which might have affected his vision slightly. Several months later the cataracts were no longer evident.

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