Hi All Lola is now 10 months old and is a bundle of fun How ever... A couple of days ago we was at the park as usual and she was off her lead as usual when we came across another lab - she is usually so playful with other dogs but this time she was getting aggressive and grabbing at the other labs ear aggressively, I put her lead back on and walked off as this wasn't fair on the other owner This evening we went for another walk to the park when we came across a smaller dog around a 1/4 of her size she persisted to chase the smaller dog down and what looked to me like she was biting at her head. The other dog was squealing for her to her off. I had to physically pull her away. She wasn't playing, it was like she was trying to show dominance to me but it was far to rough ? I'm worried! Or is this common for her age. I'm really confused and don't want her to be like that Thanks in advance Billy
I'm definitely no expert, but I think being overly excited and a bit too rough (common with lab puppies!) is different than aggressive. Dogs will bite at each other's faces and necks in play. Last night Quinn met another young lab and they were getting pretty rough, with each biting at the other and some tumbling around, but it wasn't aggressive. They took turns chasing each other and there was lots of sneezing (a sign of play) and breaks. Play I do not allow/do not like is hard body checking, which can escalate, or when one dog shows signs they are not having fun (going to owner, tail between legs, hackles up a lot without being playful) and having to "defend" against a dog that is relentless, or no taking turns as the chaser/chasee, excessive humping. Your dog is young, and you will likely have to step in and end the play with some dogs, especially as puppies tend not to stop when older dogs are ready to take a break. I think you were right to end both play sessions. 10 months is young - they can just sometimes go too far or not read the other dogs body language quite yet.
I wouldn' t be qualified to say whether it's aggression, I think without seeing it any one could not be sure. I think they do get a bit full of themselves at around that age and push things a bit further. But I wondered, has she been in season yet? Cassie had 2 before she was spayed, each time in the days leading up to it starting she showed a more intense interest in other dogs , of either sex. Just a thought.
I agree with @selina27 - without being able to observe the full series of 'play' it just isn't possible to say if it is aggressive, boisterous, over-enthusiastic, bad manners or any other description of behaviour. Many aspects of canine body language are seen in different situations, what they mean is dependant upon the context.
