Expert: Kaza - 1/14/2008

Question
Good day,

My mother has a 4 year Bichon who has always been fairly aggressive with other dogs and people. However he has always been great to everyone in the family. I can pet him anywhere, play with him, and he even responds pretty well to my commands. Just recently he I have come into the home, he wags his tail and is excited to see me as per usual, however when I go down to pet him he violently attacks me. Completely unprovoked. He has done this on my past two visits. Any insight as to why would be great.  

Answer
This isnt as uncommon as you think, some bichons can react like this, have you had him checked out at the vet to ensure he hasnt got a neurological problem, is in any pain and his blood panels come back normal, if all this has been done then I suggest its a phase that should pass. I had a male like that and yes i do still have him, he was terrible with other dogs he went into attack mode, yet was great with pups.He would nip the kids not nastily but occasionally when he felt excited. He had been castrated and this did appear to bring this on, its taken me near a year to have him realise that he is okay and shouldnt react like that.Now I can take him to the park but I would not have him off a lead, he can meet other dogs and is ok but I wouldnt trust him alone with them.
Everything is in small doses at the moment.
I would not go to him when you enter the house I would ignore him, walk past him and dont even speak to him, wait for a few minutes (up to 10) before talking to him, then approach confidently and you tell him to sit and stay (DONT HIT HIM ), repeat this a few times and give treats when he does it right.
You should not move down to a dog and you should always remain upright, the signals you send out if you lower to him is he is dominant , you are subservient to him, he should lower to you, this is very common mistake that owners make with dogs, what you need to realise is simply you are part of his pack , you should be his 2nd aplha,  mum is 1st he is 3rd ....or even 4th or 5th ...
Go back to puppy training and teach him simple commands that he can recall, every owner should do this as a timely reminder that the dog is not ALPHA and most importantly SHOULD NEVER BE.
if you want further help feel free to log into my site
www.eurobichons.com