Horrible dog!

[smallmole]

I wonder if any of you can help me work out what the problem is with our dog's behaviour? He seems to be becoming more aggressive and bad tempered all the time - this has culminated with him biting another dog outside the school gates today, so something needs to change. He's a five year old poodle cross who generally puts up with a lot from the kids but can't seem to stand the sight of other dogs.
I really hope someone can help!

There are two potential root causes of this behaviour

1. The dog is in pain, and you aren't currently aware of it. Your dog needs to see a vet to be checked out with a specific emphasis on anything potentially causing pain. Pain can make dogs and humans alike very grumpy.
2. It's a behavioural matter. If it's only the specific sight of dogs that causes him to kick off, then he may be reactive (bit of a technical term), though there could be other factors at play.

If and when any pain-related causes are ruled out, you should engage the services of a good quality behaviourist. Anyone can call themselves a behaviourist, and there are a lot of cowboys out there, so you need to look for someone who is accredited through either
CCAB www.asab.org/ccab-register
or
www.apbc.org.uk/help/regions

Depending on your insurance provider, you may have cover for a behaviourist. Even if you don't, they are well worth the money.

In the meantime, you mention that she "puts up with a lot from the kids". You need to stop this, pronto, both because
a) she could be the next focus of their ire - and every dog has their breaking point
b) if they are clambering over her, they could be making any pain worse
How old are your children?

Thank you for replying! I'm pretty sure he's not in any pain - he actually saw his vet last month and she said he's perfectly healthy. It's been gradually getting worse so I'm sure it's behavioural.

Our youngest is six, so when I said he puts up with a lot I meant more noise and ball games, rather than fur pulling or anything like that.
I think a behaviourist is just what we need - I'll have a look at that link, thank you. Is there anything else you could suggest in the meantime?

Very hard to say without having seen what happened - how the other dog approached, what else was happening at the time etc
However a dog that has been ' putting up with a lot from the kids' for five years may be under more stress than you realise. I would suggest speaking to a good trainer, and in the meantime give him a break from the school run.

I agree. What exactly happened? What's his routine like?

Yes, I agree with giving him a break from the school run.

It's very possible he finds all the noise and people at the school gate really overwhelming and the other dog just got in the way and became the victim of his pent up distress.

You take your dog to the school gate?

This is very common behaviour BUT do not take advice from online unqualified strangers who can not see the situation in real life.

I know initially it seems expensive but a couple of hours of a qualified behaviourist will be worth it. It will save you a lot of aggro and time. Put you on the right track and prevent things escalating. Do not think it will get better on its own - it will not.

There are a lot of strategies that can help, you will be given ways to control and manage the situation, how to change your dogs emotional state and also what to do in emergency situations. There is a lot of help and things that will make this situation much better so do not be daunted by the task.

It would be very rare for a dog to be stressed by kids to show a stress reaction to dogs. So I would not worry about this being the cause. Many dogs are reactive to other dogs usually a big problem caused by the very "friendly dogs" charging over to play.

This is a field I work in so if you do want any recommendations feel free to pm and I can give you names in a geographical location near to you.

It is brilliant that you have recognised the issue and are taking steps to sort it

I think a behaviourist is just what we need - I'll have a look at that link, thank you. Is there anything else you could suggest in the meantime?

From what you've said, a behaviourist would be a really good idea. However, don't rule out a return trip to the vet - if you didn't mention anything about the behavioural issues, they probably wouldn't have looked in any particular deal of depth for pain issues. A general check over should find things like heart murmurs, but it isn't an in depth thing.

Even if I was a qualified behaviourist (which I'm really not!) it would be irresponsible of me to start doling out advice over the internet to someone whose dog I hadn't seen.

However, I would try and avoid the sources of your dog's stress / triggers for aggression for now. As that seems to be primarily dogs - skip the school run, and go walking at quieter times / locations, avoiding other dogs as much as possible. Forcing a dog to meet things it finds scary / stressful doesn't cure it, it means the dog is rehearsing the feelings of fear /stress. As your dog has bitten another dog, you would be wise to muzzle for now - note that it must be a basket style muzzle, not a cloth muzzle, as the latter does not allow them to pant, drink etc. You can't just bung a muzzle on without introducing it slowly; there are lots of YouTube videos on muzzle training which should act as an introduction

Also be prepared for the beating from the dog house crew they seem to hate humans but love dogs - if you can survive this you can easily sort out a reactive dog

(Just for the record, what I've said is in no way aimed at addressing the behaviour, merely at preventing further harm while you're waiting to see a behaviourist)

Cantcope
I take my dog to the school gate. Many do. Never on school policy. Always on a short lead and she's never allowed to approach people she doesn't know. She's quiet and calm. What's the issue?!

Vallahala Has anyone on here given loads of 'unqualified' advice? I think most people have tried to be helpful and make no claims to know the answers to the OP's situation.

However, it would seem sensible, if a dog bites another in a particular situation, to try to avoid that situation until the problem has been addressed.

The OP asked for opinions and help from unqualified people on the internet and that's what's she's getting.

Just wait PigsDOfly

Okay. I will wait and see.

There's always one.
Make a loud noise
Shout no
Use an anti bark collar
DON'T do that!
Do think through exactly what happened. Dogs rarely react without warning or provocation. (And you may not see it as provocation but they may.) My girl was growled at today. She pottered up to a dog (I was chatting to the owner) the dog obviously wasn't interested and ignored her in a very pointed way. She went back more than once to try and say hi and eventually he growled. She left him alone. To someone not watching it could seem like he was in the wrong but actually my dog (calmly and quietly and gently) pushed her luck a little bit.
Choose a behaviourist carefully. It's not a regulated industry.

Nobody can give advice about your dogs behaviour unless they know your dogs history, home life and training to date.

There is no point asking strangers on the internet for advice. Seek out a behaviourist.

Obviously I don't know your dog, but, the poodle part of him may not help. Poodles are very sensitive to moods and can get very anxious if stressed or feel that there is 'unrest' in their surroundings. He just may need a more structured life and more down time, rather than a lot of rough and tumble. They are especially sensitive to shouting and aggression, even if it is not directed towards them, so could find noisy children intimidating.He could be feeling worried and insecure.
I hope a behaviourist can help you.

They're also very bright dogs. So consider the amount of training, brain game type work, time off lead, different walks and stimulation he's getting?
Hope you can find an answer.

Wow - thanks for the responses. There's a lot to think about here. I'm aware that he can't be 'fixed' over the internet.

I've always taken him to the school - I'm not sure why this would be a problem? We don't go into the school grounds, he's on a short lead and he loves the children who approach him. Obviously, I'm not keen to take him there anymore.

He wasn't provoked in any way by the other dog and they were both on leads.

If he's stressed, I'd really like to help him deal with that - he's so licky and sweet natured at home!

Am I going to get an internet roasting for wanting to understand my dog?

No roasting here!
The school run can be overwhelming. Noise and chaos and unpredictable children.
Many people don't like dogs and some are petrified of them so a dog on the school run could potentially be an issue.
One of the issues is that dog body language can be very subtle. Even a dog looking at him in a certain way can be seen as provoking.
Also dogs on leads can be reactive. Can't comment on your exact case but remember he can't escape any problems when on a lead.
The other issue with the school run is that you can't give your dog your whole attention. So you may miss signs of stress or other dogs provoking him.

Do you need to take him with you on the school run? I only ask because my dog finds being around lots of animals/people very overwhelming and he gets quite stressed. At home, he can take himself to his bed or remove himself from the middle of all the noise, but if we're outside he has to rely on me to remove him from the situation.

The school run is quite a frantic place at the best of times - cars, people rushing about, shouting, loud children, babies, other dogs, kids running about playing - maybe he finds it all quite overwhelming and a dog approaching him was the last straw? Could you leave him at home and take him for a good walk afterwards on his own?

Yes, that's what I did today. He seems his usual self but it's quite possible that he's overwhelmed by the chaos at school time and I just haven't picked up on it, poor thing.

I've made an appointment with a behaviourist - thank you for all your help everyone!