Advice again please

[bmthmark]

Another complicated stage for Jett - the joys of dog ownership, here goes....

My young Jett is nearly 11 months old now and over the weekend I noticed something with regards to his behaviour and dogs around him.

We went to a park and I let him off the lead so he can have a run around. A few other dogs came over and a couple of them (similar age) started to randomly get aggressive with Jett and full on attack mode  .
I know all the dogs in the group and have never had issues with any of them in the past. The owners were just as in shock as I was.
Unfortunately Jett retaliated and tried attacking one of them back, I can see why he did it as he was defending himself. At that point I got him on his lead and walked away. All the dogs in the group were young male dogs.
Jett has never shown any signs of aggression ever, even when he was attacked by another dog a while ago he just stepped back. He never growls and is normally just a sweet loving dog.

I also noticed over the weekend that random dogs that walk past us seem to growl and lunge at Jett  . I'm not overprotective at all with him and normally let him go up to other dogs and let them meet etc., however this weekend most of the dogs just want to attack him.

At home is completely fine and has never been aggressive to any of us and is his normal playful happy self.

Another thing I noticed yesterday was at his training. We get all the dogs to sit and stay whilst we walk backwards away from the dogs. They are all in a line and generally they all did very well. However one of the dogs decided to run off, a couple of the others followed and then Jett followed  . He was literally stuck on the dogs tail and I managed to get to him before he jumped on the others dogs back,  I could just tell he was about to pounce.

Sorry one other thing is that he is being a complete pain with recall at the minute as well. He does come eventually but he seems to be very interested in other dogs and at times completely ignores me. I've read on here that this is quite common at this age and is best to start recall training again if this happens. I have started to do this and will continue.

Oh also not sure if its relevant but he seems to mark his scent on every tree/lamp post.

All of the above, do you think this is because he is growing in to an adult dog and his hormones are causing the issues?
The biggest concern I have is that other random dogs seem to think he is a threat and just attack him.
Its like Jett is letting off smells to the other male dogs and they are attacking him.

Thanks for reading

[elaine.e]

Adolescence and hormones!

It's not uncommon in young male dogs of his age, which is why he and his similar age friends are pushing boundaries with each other at the moment. Just think of a group of teenage boys and you'll get the idea 

Don't worry, you don't have an aggressive dog, just a teenager whose hormones are affecting his behaviour at the moment. I have male dogs and I choose to leave them entire rather than have them neutered, unless there's a medical reason for neutering. I've always found that once they've come through this teenage stage they settle down and most or all of the nonsense stops.

My worst one was my first, many years ago. He went through a tedious few months where he humped the legs of people and dogs at every opportunity and his recall went to pot. Once he'd matured a bit more his recall (with lots of training from me) became good again and the only thing he humped for the rest of his life was his towel when he was being dried

[bmthmark]

Adolescence and hormones!

It's not uncommon in young male dogs of his age, which is why he and his similar age friends are pushing boundaries with each other at the moment. Just think of a group of teenage boys and you'll get the idea 

Don't worry, you don't have an aggressive dog, just a teenager whose hormones are affecting his behaviour at the moment. I have male dogs and I choose to leave them entire rather than have them neutered, unless there's a medical reason for neutering. I've always found that once they've come through this teenage stage they settle down and most or all of the nonsense stops.

My worst one was my first, many years ago. He went through a tedious few months where he humped the legs of people and dogs at every opportunity and his recall went to pot. Once he'd matured a bit more his recall (with lots of training from me) became good again and the only thing he humped for the rest of his life was his towel when he was being dried

  that good to hear. He is my first dog so all this is a learning curve.
Thank you for your message

[JeffD]

As Jett has been attacked before he may be giving aggressive signals as a defence mechanism that you cant see  but other dogs pick up on. I noticed Teal attracted more aggressive attention after she was attacked by a lab I continued to walk her near other dogs and soon began to see the ones that were likely to respond to what ever it was she was showing its took about 9 months for her to return to normal and now dogs that approach her do not seem to show aggression.

[bizzylizzy]

Absolutely agree with the previous comments, and it does seem typical for a dog at that age who's starting to feel his feet. I  also had similar experiences with Humphrey and was really upset the first time he decided to defend himself instead of turning the other cheek as I didn't even know he could growl ( ).
I think the best strategy is to (try and) remain as calm and matter-of-fact  as possible while trying to put as much distance betwenn the dogs as you can. I'm the first to admit that I do have a tendency to panic but this most definately makes the situation worse as Humphrey picks up on my  nervousness and decides that attack is the best form of defence.
As regards recall,(or lack of ) and other exhibitions of "disobedience", I think its most definately age/hormones, we went through exactly the same, it IS exasperating but if you just remain patient but consistant, its a phase that will pass. Humphrey's just over two now and he's most definately started to settle down, so I'm sure Jett will too.
Hang on in there and best of luck!!...

[bmthmark]

As Jett has been attacked before he may be giving aggressive signals as a defence mechanism that you cant see  but other dogs pick up on. I noticed Teal attracted more aggressive attention after she was attacked by a lab I continued to walk her near other dogs and soon began to see the ones that were likely to respond to what ever it was she was showing its took about 9 months for her to return to normal and now dogs that approach her do not seem to show aggression.

Thanks - that could be the case. Its strange because sometimes he is minding his own business in his own little world then a sudden random attack from another dog.
I know Jett is not always completely innocent as he doesn't know when to stop and will pester the hell out of some dogs. Most of the time the other dogs will just ignore him (I think they can tell he is young), sometimes he gets a growl  - which I think is good for Jett as he is being told to stop being annoying and Jett does stop straight away when this happens. If I think Jett is being too much I will always pull him away.

But the weekend just gone was a bit different, the dogs he was with are normally placid and calm but they acted very aggressive around him.
Then when we were walking with him on the lead another random dog went absolutely mental, luckily the dog was on a lead as well.

I really don't want to make it an issue as I know he is clever and picks up on things. However I don't want him to get attacked or for him to attack another dog.

I think I will just have to be extra cautious and walk away if I sense any issues.

[bmthmark]

Absolutely agree with the previous comments, and it does seem typical for a dog at that age who's starting to feel his feet. I  also had similar experiences with Humphrey and was really upset the first time he decided to defend himself instead of turning the other cheek as I didn't even know he could growl ( ).
I think the best strategy is to (try and) remain as calm and matter-of-fact  as possible while trying to put as much distance betwenn the dogs as you can. I'm the first to admit that I do have a tendency to panic but this most definately makes the situation worse as Humphrey picks up on my  nervousness and decides that attack is the best form of defence.
As regards recall,(or lack of ) and other exhibitions of "disobedience", I think its most definately age/hormones, we went through exactly the same, it IS exasperating but if you just remain patient but consistant, its a phase that will pass. Humphrey's just over two now and he's most definately started to settle down, so I'm sure Jett will too.
Hang on in there and best of luck!!...

Thank you for your help (again)
It definately shocked me as I too had never heard him growl before, he even showed his teeth!  But looking back at it now, if I was him I wouldn't be happy getting attacked. So he was only defending himself. My wife and I only joked a few weeks back regarding how soft Jett is and we thought he didn't even know he had teeth  .
I will try to remain calm as I can tell he definately picks up on me being nervous or unsure and his behaviour does change. An example of this is when I take him to training, if I relaxed he does well, if I'm unsure about something he does not do well.
I will continue with the recall and hope the phase passes soon.

Thanks again

[Sarahcam]

Hi, I'm going through something very similar with my 11 month cocker. He's always been a soft dog but recently there's been quite a change. He has some possession issues around his ball which results in him acting aggressively towards other dogs if they come near him. His recalls gone to pot and he's started guarding his toys. We've gone back to basics with everything and he's back on the lead on his walks. Hoping it'll all settle down. Was going to post something very like yours so reading your replies with interest. I hope your issues resolve themselves soon.

[bmthmark]

Hi, I'm going through something very similar with my 11 month cocker. He's always been a soft dog but recently there's been quite a change. He has some possession issues around his ball which results in him acting aggressively towards other dogs if they come near him. His recalls gone to pot and he's started guarding his toys. We've gone back to basics with everything and he's back on the lead on his walks. Hoping it'll all settle down. Was going to post something very like yours so reading your replies with interest. I hope your issues resolve themselves soon.

Thank you

It looks like its a common theme and hopefully this will all pass. Jett was very good this morning and came to me when called.

[TheAdventuresofBarnaby]

Barnaby's our first male too.  Currently aged 9 months, hormones are definitely starting to come into play.

Everything you describe points to a maturing young dogs.  Increased sense of smell, and increased hormone levels. 

Its been interesting to watch his relationship with other dogs.  I think that when they are young  they do not smell "Male" to other dogs,  so are not attacked.  As they mature their scent becomes more obviously male and other dogs' reactions to them change.....often for the worse.

We're watching this thread with interest as it is giving us good guidance for what's ahead.

Hope Jett settles down soon.

[Gazrob]

This sounds exactly what Marley is going through at the moment. He's unneutered. He marks everything on walks it's embarrassing, other dogs have also went for him a few times. I think it's because he's unneutered and other dogs know it. I tend to not let him play with other strange dogs just to be on the safe side. He's much better and calmer this way. If I see a dog that I know and I know that they get along I will let him off to play but everytime I see another dog and owner he goes on the lead. His recall is also hit and miss at the moment but I'm working on it. Just keep doing what you are doing.

[bmthmark]

Barnaby's our first male too.  Currently aged 9 months, hormones are definitely starting to come into play.

Everything you describe points to a maturing young dogs.  Increased sense of smell, and increased hormone levels. 

Its been interesting to watch his relationship with other dogs.  I think that when they are young  they do not smell "Male" to other dogs,  so are not attacked.  As they mature their scent becomes more obviously male and other dogs' reactions to them change.....often for the worse.

We're watching this thread with interest as it is giving us good guidance for what's ahead.

Hope Jett settles down soon.

Thanks - Jett is our first dog so its all a learning curve. It was a shock how one day no other dog was that interested in him, then the next day lots of dog attempting to attack him.
The problem is that I know he is picking up on my behaviour (e.g. extra cautious) so he is probably on edge. I need to remain calm 

[bmthmark]

This sounds exactly what Marley is going through at the moment. He's unneutered. He marks everything on walks it's embarrassing, other dogs have also went for him a few times. I think it's because he's unneutered and other dogs know it. I tend to not let him play with other strange dogs just to be on the safe side. He's much better and calmer this way. If I see a dog that I know and I know that they get along I will let him off to play but everytime I see another dog and owner he goes on the lead. His recall is also hit and miss at the moment but I'm working on it. Just keep doing what you are doing.

Thanks - mine does the same marking every post. If I see another dog that I think might cause a problem, I get Jett on the lead. Or if Jett is being too much to another dog I will pull him away. Jett is still classed as a puppy and he does still act like it, he loves to chase over dogs and he loves it even more if they chase him. But sometimes he tries to play with a grumpy dog, this is when I step in and move Jett away.

We had a good walk yesterday evening, I met up with a friend who also has a 7 month old girl cocker. They got on really well with no issues at all.

From reading all the posts here, it seems a common thing for males at this age.

[montysmum]

hi!! We have 15 month old black WCS. With regards to other dogs being aggressive to your dog, we get this all the time. I noticed that your profile pic is a black cocker. I done a bit of research and apparently black dogs suffer from other dogs' aggressive more than other colours. Apparently, the other dogs can't see their eyes clearly and it unnerve them. Probably doesn't help you with the issue, but could be the reason for other dogs' aggression.

[bmthmark]

hi!! We have 15 month old black WCS. With regards to other dogs being aggressive to your dog, we get this all the time. I noticed that your profile pic is a black cocker. I done a bit of research and apparently black dogs suffer from other dogs' aggressive more than other colours. Apparently, the other dogs can't see their eyes clearly and it unnerve them. Probably doesn't help you with the issue, but could be the reason for other dogs' aggression.

Thanks - that's interesting, I've never heard of that.