Hi folks I am after some advice for my 2 year old neutered black labrador. He is very nervous and if on lead and meets a dog he hasn't met before or one he has previously seen and decided he doesn't like he gets very aggressive. I try the usual treat and distract which can work if I notice the dog early enough, however this isn't always possible as not all paths are straight! On the lead he will lunge and growl and now I cannot let my son take him out on his own as he is too strong. When off lead he is friendly with most dogs but I quite often stick to walks where we don't meet many others.
Hi there, I would strongly advocate you join a good training group, to help your boy realize that other dogs do not wish him any harm, so he does not need to be afraid or react negatively. There are others on here with reactive dogs, who will be able to give you more advice on day-to-day strategies. I give a dummy training class myself, and we have one chocolate lab who is reactive to other males, but he is slowly getting better as he realizes the other dogs are not interested in him, and that they only want to work.
I agree with @Karen - onlead training, along with LAT (Look at That) were the two things that saved me with my boy (now passed) Brogan. We took the goofiest classes (fun tricks, doggie dancing) in addition to the more standard obedience and agility. Anything to get him on lead around other dogs in a positive atmosphere. All those things together got Brogan through the storm and really built us up as a solid team. Of course I don't know your dog, but also I'd suggest really looking at what he does and asking if it's aggression or fear. I say that because I misinterpreted Brogan's issues for quite some time and I'm pretty sure that misunderstanding caused everything to go on longer. In his case, he was excellent with any dog off leash but somehow acted like the devil on-leash. For him, it was definitely fear - on leash he felt both empowered (I was there to back him up in his mind) and trapped (couldn't run away as he was on leash). Once I understood the "why" it was easier for me to train him through it with more patience and calmness. To give you some hope, I'd also add that 2 years old was the pinnacle of Brogan's on leash issues. To this day, no one who met him after the age of four years believes me that he ever had an "aggressive" bone in his body. It can get better!
Thanks for the replies would say it is fear and on reading different articles I don't seem to help as I panic and tighten my grip on his lead - think we both need training!
