aggrestion

Question
QUESTION: hi, I have a american bulldog that is 15 months old and weight 80lb. never had a aggresive problem to recently. she got out and the house and ran  and started barking at some kids going to school. she used to not do this,when she got out and she saw someone she would ran back on the porch. and she was always good with children.how can i fix this problem. also the children next door is always teasing her when I have her out in the back yard.what am i doing wrong.

ANSWER: Once a dog reaches social maturity, you often see behavior changes.  The dog becomes more confident (or more fearful) and may act out accordingly.

I don't think you are doing anything wrong.  I think her reaction to the children is probably the result of the teasing.  She wants to chase the kids away.  Don't leave her unattended in the backyard when the kids next door are out.  If you see them, ask them not to tease your dog.  See if they will toss her some treats instead.

Each day when the kids walk to school, put your dog on leash and sit out front with her in your front porch area.  When the kids appear, start feeding her small tidbits of really good treats - leftover meat is great for this.  Be sure she's hungry for this exercise (no breakfast the mornings you work on this). The treats should be no bigger than a pea.  You want to create a positive association with the appearance of the kids and food is the best way to do it.  When the kids leave her line of sight, the treats stop.

If she won't take the treats or begins to bark, find a way to create more distance.  Sit inside the house if necessary so she can still see the kids, but might feel safer.

Never allow her off leash in the front while kids are in the area.  The more she practices the barking/chasing away behavior, the harder it will be to correct.

Please let me know if you have any questions.  I hope you will see some success with tis.  Let me know if you don't!



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: thanks for getting back to me so quick. I will try the training monday,as far as letting the neighbor kids feed her treats i cant do. I live in detroit,michigan where crime is high and the neighbor kids are teenagers they be at my back door teasing her when i'm at work. So it makes it hard to deal with them. so is their away to train her to not chase the kids but I still want her to bark when they come near my yard or door.

Answer
By using the procedure I described, you should be able to interrupt the barking when you need to.  After the initial alert bark, redirect her attention back to you with the food and remove her from the area.  Prevent chasing by keeping her secured at all times.