[Edward]

My family and I have a beautiful 1 year old fem schnauzer, "Lola". We were warned that this breed was known for barking, snapping and being somewhat aggressive; which Lola is has lived up to that standard. Albeit she is VERY sweet to her family and to those folks whom she knows.

She and I went through Obedience Training where she was the top of her class. But even there, the trainer warned me that the only dog that ever bit her was a mini schnauzer.

Recently, Lola has shown aggression to men. She is fine with other animals, kids (big and little) and women. We've had her since she was 8+ weeks old so I know that she did not grow up in an abusive home.

The TOPS of this aggression was that she ran out into the street to nip at the pants of a male stranger walking by our home. She didnt care about his wife or kids,she went straight for him, and caught him on the thigh breaking the skin!!

I do not know what to do and I am very concerned that this will continually get worse. I've spent a LOT of time with her outside and she knows the boundaries of our yard, but I'm now considering an invisible fence. I know this does not solve her aggression but it may keep me from having a law suit.

ANY HELP would be appreciated!!!

[Curbside Prophet]

Welcome to our forum Edward. It's nice to have another mini owner among us. Having lived with my Elsa the last year and a half, I can say my experience has been much different than yours. I seem to always here these stories about how minis can be yappy, but Elsa rarely barks...I guess I could say her guarding tendencies are not as pure as other minis. I've also heard the aggression stories, but Elsa would more likely lick you to death before ever biting an unknown hand. Aggression can stem from many things, so I have to ask, how much exercise does Lola get? Do you practice NILF? Was she socialized when she was younger?

[Edward]

Originally Posted by Curbside Prophet

Welcome to our forum Edward. It's nice to have another mini owner among us. Having lived with my Elsa the last year and a half, I can say my experience has been much different than yours. I seem to always here these stories about how minis can be yappy, but Elsa rarely barks...I guess I could say her guarding tendencies are not as pure as other minis. I've also heard the aggression stories, but Elsa would more likely lick you to death before ever biting an unknown hand. Aggression can stem from many things, so I have to ask, how much exercise does Lola get? Do you practice NILF? Was she socialized when she was younger?

Thanks, in advance, for your assistance on this!
Lola gets regular exercise - at least one very good long walk per day. Inthe summer time, we take her everywhere. Plus she has my 2 young children to play with each day.
I practice NILIF with her routinely, but of course my 4 year old just wants to play with her!
The thing that gets me about her aggression toward other men is that its me whom she has bonded with the most out of my entire family.

[Curbside Prophet]

It sounds as though you’ve taken a good approach in raising your dog, and maybe she hasn’t been socialized enough around men. It sounds as though she is very protective of you and the family. Unfortunately, what you and your dog needs is a behaviorist, someone who can see exactly what is going on. There’s no way I can offer training, without seeing what exactly is going on…because if the dog attacked someone who is just walking by, something had to trigger the attack. But I can give you suggestions that may be helpful.

The training itself basically involves creating adequate distance to strangers, ignoring unwanted behaviors, and rewarding even the tiniest signs of wanted behavior. In addition, you’ll have to create a barrier to prevent her from doing it again, which is something the dogs understand because they use it themselves.

The moment your dog as much as looks at stranger walking by, and a fraction of a second before she has time to react, praise and reward her as quickly as you can. Ignore any aggressive acts. For a while you need to find places where you can remain at a distance from strangers. The best would be if you can get some help from someone who uses this technique themselves.

Obedience and control over the dog will not help – it will probably only make things worse. What your dog needs is to learn to use her language again, and she will learn it if given a chance – that is, if she learns to associate strange people with good thing rather than as a threat, like she does now. So, no punishment or pain! I don’t think you punish your dog, but just imagine what it must be like to feel threatened and be punished for it…so continue to avoid punishments.

Reward her every time you see her use or attempt to ignore the stranger. If she turns away, praise her. If she sniffs the ground, praise her. If she yawns, praise her. Help her by reinforcing the use of the social skills she innately has. Finally, keep her on a loose leash every time she meets a new person, so that you are sure she will not be allowed to scare them.