Lhaso Apspo aggressive to strangers

Question
Hi Kristen

I have an 14 month old Lhaso called Jagger (my wife and I are Rolling Stone's fans). He's our baby and brings so much love to our life. He's mostly an inside dog and has been neutered.

I'm a vocal coach and recently I have started to teach from home. Since that time Jagger has become aggressive to my students as they enter and leave the house. When they are in the house for a while he calms down but when they go to leave he lunges at them at actually bit one. Thankfully, the woman concerned was OK about it. Now we keep him in our bedroom until my students leave as we can not risk it again. Even more recently he has become very aggressive when any of us (the family) leave or enter the house. This evening he attempted to bite my step daughter as she left with her boyfriend. He used to be such a calm  little thing. Please can you advise. We both love him very much and would hate to have to lose him should he seriously bite someone.

Thanks

Mick

Answer
Mick (seriously? Considering you are a Stones fan? **hee hee!**), I believe that, since you are operating a business from your home, you should continue to keep your dog away from your students. Keep him put away whenever you are teaching, because he is a liability (especially since he's already bitten someone), and you could actually be sued if he goes after the wrong person.


Now, having said that, your dog should not be trying to bite or otherwise go after you or any of the other people who live in the house! This is a total lack of respect, and it is totally uncalled for. I would suggest obedience training if you have not already done any kind of training with him prior to now, and immediately beginning the 'Nothing in Life is Free (NILIF)' technique with him. It's imperative that EVERYONE in the house participate in NILIF, or it will not be effective. Basically, NILIF requires that the dog obey a command before he gets anything. That means that before you put his food bowl down, he must obey a sit command and remain sitting until you release him to eat (not jump on the bowl as soon as it is within reach or as soon as it touches the floor). Before you pet him, he should obey a command. Toys should be kept put away (except for chew bones/toys, like Nylabones, if you like), and brought out only when you want to play. Before you begin, and several times while you are playing with him, give him a command. If he doesn't obey, playtime is over, even if it hasn't yet begun! When you're finished playing, take the toy and put it away. Before you put his leash on to go outside, again, he must obey a command. Before he is allowed to jump up on the furniture, he must obey a command. And in actuality, until the aggression issues are under control, I don't know that I wouldn't suspend his furniture privileges completely. You can find lots more information about NILIF by doing a search for it at http://www.yahoo.com

I would keep him leashed at all times, so that if he does begin to show aggression, you have a way of correcting him and removing him from the situation. I would suggest that you consider working with a professional trainer who has experience dealing with aggression in dogs, and who can preferably come to your house to work with you and him, since that is where the problem lies.