Does dog aggression = human aggression?

Something i see day in day out.

The simple answer is NO, dog aggression does not mean/lead to human aggression.

The two are very very different, although a dog CAN be both, very few dogs are HA compared to a much larger amount who are DA.

So when you see comments from so called media over a dog on dog attack

But what if it was a small child next

you realize how absurd it is.

Also a lot of people come on to forums like this one, worried over their children, saying their dog(s) have attacked another dog, or started showing aggression to them, and should they rehome said dog as there are children in the house. 9 times out of 10 the dog has shown no aggression towards people or those they live with as they are not HA, and even if they become DA as they mature - such as a number of staffies do, you CANNOT assume they are suddenly HA. It is one big reason for a lot of dogs ending up in rescues, and through no fault of their own.

Also to bear in mind is the breed in question, I shall use my two as an example, staffies are a breed with a larger chance of the maturing dog becoming DA then a lot of other breeds and yet the 'nanny dog' and brilliant with people, whereas ambulls are a breed who have 'aloof with strangers' as a breed trait but a higher chance of being HA but get on well with other dogs.

This quote from the article linked below sums it up much better then I could do:

Although it might seem that some dogs are born to be aggressive, it is more accurate to say that they are born with inherited tendencies that might, if not controlled, make aggressive behaviour more likely. As aggression is always a response, usually to a threat, there is no reason why a dog cannot learn alternative responses. If these responses are controlled throughout the dog’s life, starting with breeding from well balanced parents and continuing with learning good social skills as a puppy, there is no reason why any dog should learn to use aggression inappropriately. Because of the way some types of dogs have been bred, some puppies will need more careful nurturing than others to ensure that they do not grow up to use aggression inappropriately.

If dogs do not have the right kind of experiences at any time in their life, they can learn that aggression can solve problems for them. Once learnt it can become the dog’s first choice of ways to solve problems. This kind of dog may appear “naturally” aggressive, but they are actually responding to the combined effect of the learning experiences they have had over their lifetime.

A simple yet informative article: http://www.apbc.org.uk/articles/dog-aggression-FAQs

So a little photo, my Chance IS HA and yet lets a strange dog in and stay in our house.

Couldn't agree more!

nice post Ella

Very good post Ella.   

Brilliant   

Excellent!

hope it helps!