ArtsAutosBooksBusinessEducationEntertainmentFamilyFashionFoodGamesGenderHealthHolidaysHomeHubPagesPersonal FinancePetsPoliticsReligionSportsTechnologyTravel

Common Reasons for Bad Dog Behavior

Updated on June 4, 2014
Bad Dog - Dealing with Bad Dog Behavior.
Bad Dog - Dealing with Bad Dog Behavior.

Where do bad dogs come from, and how do we deal with bad dog behavior?

Dogs go bad because of miscommunication between owner and dog, not because of meaness or spite.

Bad dog behavior can always be addressed with time, patience, retraining, and proper management.


Here are some common reasons that people use for bad dog behavior.

Bad Dog 1 - Born Mean

No dog is truly born mean. Some dogs may be born with neurological disorders that make them act out in unexpected ways, but there are few dogs who truly fall into this category.

Poor breeding may produce a dog that is difficult to handle.

A dog with unbalanced parents (e.g. timid, fearful, anxious), will be predisposed toward being unbalanced as well. That is why it is important NOT to get a dog from pet stores, online stores, or puppy mills. These establishments do not treat their dogs well, and are not careful with the temperament and health of the dogs that they breed.

Nevertheless, even a dog who is predisposed towards fear or timidness, can be properly managed, and trained to counter their genetic weaknesses. If a timid puppy is properly trained, and socialized to a wide variety of objects, people, and dogs, he will grow up to be a confident, and happy adult.

Bad Dog 1 - Born Mean.
Bad Dog 1 - Born Mean.
Bad Dog 2 - Vampire Dog.
Bad Dog 2 - Vampire Dog.

Bad Dog 2 - Vampire Dog

Some people believe that dogs turn bad after they have tasted blood, whether animal blood or human blood.

This is absolutely false.

Dogs are not vampires. They do not suddenly think of all humans as bags of blood, after they kill a gopher in our backyard.

In fact, the original breeders of my Siberian Husky, the Chukchi, would let their dogs free during the summer months to hunt for food on their own. When these dogs return home after hunting, they are playful and loyal companions to both adults and children in the tribe.

Bad Dog 3 - The Dog that Hates Me.
Bad Dog 3 - The Dog that Hates Me.

Bad Dog 3 - The Dog that Hates Me

Many people believe that a dog's bad behavior is a result of hate or spite.

This is also false.

Bad dogs are bad because they do not understand what we consider bad and what we consider good.

Dogs are not humans, and they do not communicate in the same way that we do. This results in frequent miscommunication, which may cause dog aggression or other bad dog behaviors.

Always be consistent with our dog, and teach him a set of commands and hand gestures, so that we can successfully communicate with him.

Bad Dog - Always be consistent with your dog, and teach him a set of commands and hand gestures, so that you can successfully communicate with him.
Bad Dog - Always be consistent with your dog, and teach him a set of commands and hand gestures, so that you can successfully communicate with him.

Bad Dog 4 - The Dominant Dog

The most popular reason today, for a bad dog, is probably dominance.

Popular dog training shows such as The Dog Whisperer, place a heavy emphasis on physical dominance and confrontation.

While dominance, is sometimes the reason for certain bad dog behaviors, the problem is more likely from fear, stress, frustration, boredom, bad communication, or simply lack of routine and structure.

A 30 year study conducted at Yale and U.C. Berkeley shows that:

"Alpha" does not mean physically dominant. It means "in control of resources." Many, many alpha dogs are too small or too physically frail to physically dominate. But they have earned the right to control the valued resources. An individual dog determines which resources he considers important. Thus an alpha dog may give up a prime sleeping place because he simply couldn't care less.

~~ [Excerpt from ClickerSolutions]


Bad Dog 4 - The Dominant Dog.
Bad Dog 4 - The Dominant Dog.

Dealing with Bad Dog Behavior

Most bad dog behaviors can be retrained and managed. All it takes is time and patience.

The only case where retraining is not possible, is when the bad dog behavior is a result of health issues, such as a neurological disorder.

Bring our dog to the vet once every year for shots, and a physical examination. This will help us identify and address health issues, before they become bad dog issues.


Join the HubPages community and share your dog stories with us.

Most bad dog behaviors can be retrained and managed. All it takes is time and patience.
Most bad dog behaviors can be retrained and managed. All it takes is time and patience.
working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)