Behavior animal

We will have to differentiate it from other types of aggressiveness:
- aggressiveness by organic cause: she will be the had one to pain, psicomotora epilepsy, hidrocefalia, hipotiroidismo.
- defensive aggressiveness or by fear will adopt a typical position: tail between the legs, ears backwards.
- aggressiveness maternal- if the dog has puppies or a false gestation. - aggressiveness redirigida- an example would be when the proprietor tries to separate it of a fight with another dog.
- territorial aggressiveness: it will be only directed to strangers who threaten their territory.

Possible treatments:
- by duro that is to say it, there are cases in which eutanasia is the only solution
- if he is a male, the castration can diminish the aggressiveness. But it is a female, sterilization is contraindicated. - lack will make invest the relation of dominancia between affected dog-person. It will have to be this same person who makes a reinforcing negative of the aggressive conduct: --to punish it can be dangerous because it can trigger this aggressiveness. If there is to do it, before one will begin with a medical treatment or using a special necklace to punish it at a distance. He is preferable (more than to have to make the treatment) to make a prevention not to find us in these cases: - we can make a test of Campbell to 7-9 weeks of age (but he is little predictive).
- we will have to establish a relation of clear dominancia on the dog, mainly during the socialization stage.
- to make training of obedience.

2.AGRESIVIDAD BY DOMINANCIA BETWEEN DOGS

The two more frequent forms of aggressiveness between dogs are:
- the intrasexual aggressiveness between two males (in 50% of the times the castration will be the solution)
- the aggressiveness by dominancia (between two dogs that lives together). It begins generally when the youngest dog arrives at the adult age or when the dominant animal arrives at old.
Often, the proprietor will be ahead at the moment of the fight since both dogs will compete by the proximity of he himself. It is necessary to stand out that the dominancia relations are the normal form of social organization. The proprietor always must favor the most dominant dog and separate to the other.
Sometimes, the castration (or administration of progestins) can work to the less dominant dog.

3.ANSIEDAD BY SEPARATION

The anxiety by separation is a set of behaviors that can appear when some dogs (independently of sex, age or race) separate of the proprietor. The cause is the fear or the anxiety.
It is possible to be declared of several forms:
- excessive vocalization (?it does not stop to bark?).
- inadequate micción and/or defecación
- destructive conduct - diarrea, vomits, licked acral dermatitis by.

In order to know if we are as opposed to a case of anxiety by separation, we will see if some of the three following criteria is fulfilled:
- the conduct only pronounces when the dog cannot accede to the proprietor.
- the conduct appears almost always when the dog cannot accede to the proprietor.
- the conduct appears just a short time after the dog remains single. To say that the castration is totally ineffective to solve this problem.
Most effective it is to combine a farmacológico treatment (ansiolíticos) with a habituación to more and more long absences of the proprietor.

4.ELIMINACIÓN INADEQUATE (When it makes the necessidades in unsuitable sites)

The lack of learning is the most frequent cause of inadequate elimination in the dog. Other causes can be:
- in old animals, by loss of learning, urinary or fecal incontinencia, by neurological problems, etc.
- by diseases of the central nervous system (there will be symptoms generally associate).
- by anxiety by separation (that is an alteration of the behavior in which observaria inadequate elimination solely when the animal remains single in house).
- he can be an answer to the submission (one tinkles when the proprietor or another person arrive at the house and he greets it or touches) or by excitation.
Around the 3 weeks of age, most of puppies they have begun to eliminate far from its rest area by own initiative. To the 5 weeks of age, he himself will escojerá a zone destined to elimination i to the 9 weeks, this zone of elimination will be more concrete, smaller. The strategy of the domestic training must take advantage of this innate tendency the dog not to eliminate in the rest areas.

PREVENTION: DOMESTIC TRAINING

Most of the dogs they are company animals, reason why it is very important that they are trained quickly. The training of compensates is much more effective that the punishment. At the outset, the young puppies are due to remove outdoors to eliminate with as much frequency as it is practical (the ideal would be hourly while the puppy is wide-awake). In just a short time the owner aprenderà to predict the time in which the puppy needs to be removed and must remove it after eating, to drink, to play and to sleep.

The use of the same zone allows that the scents are accumulated and must increase the probability that the puppy returns to eliminate again there. As soon as the puppy eliminates in the appropriate place, it is due to award to him abundantly or a small one is due to give him compensates of food. If the puppy wants to play or to enter house, these circumstances must be used to award the dog so soon has concluded the elimination. Not to hope to that the puppy is again in house to give a food prize him, since this him standard that goes ahead to him you compensate them to arrive at house (and not by the elimination).

Matching up a signal or an order with each elimination, many dogs learn the concept of the elimination by mandate. Ideally, if the dog is watched, the owner can intuit or learn to identify the signs that precede to the elimination (p.e the animal smells, adopts a seized position, escabulle,?) and thus, he can interrupt the dog before this one eliminates and direct to him to the appropriate place (where it is possible to be praised to him and to be awarded to obtain it). Of this form, it will not be necessary to make a punishment. However, if the owner sees the dog that he eliminates in an unsuitable place, is due to interrupt to him with no! severe.

But it is necessary to remember, that the severe punishment can teach to dog a: - to avoid the later elimination in that place, or - to avoid the later elimination in that place when the owner is present, or - to avoid the elimination in the presence of the owner. One is only due to think about the punishment if the owner observes that the puppy begins to eliminate in house. A water pistol, the shock of a tin or an audible trainer? is preferable to the physical techniques or even to the verbal repressions, since it is less probable that they cause fear of the owner. In addition, if it is possible that the owner is not versusible at the moment of the punishment, the animal can learn to let eliminate as much in the zone if that one is present as if it is not it. A punishment never must be used that causes fear to the dog.

IN SUMMARY: - To teach to the dog where going, compensating the elimination in the appropriate place. As soon as it eliminates, to give one him compensates social (caresses,?) or of food.
- To outdoors use a direct route towards a single advisable zone. The scent and place can serve to stimulate the later elimination in the opportune site. - To wait for to the previous signals to the elimination such as the sniffing, the returns in circle and, when they are observed, to take it quickly to the correct site.
- Whenever the fence puppy cannot be watched, it is due to lock up.
- At the outset, one is due to outdoors remove to the puppy very frequently and coverall after the meals, drinking, etc. If the dog no longer is a puppy, another method consists of removing it and not returning to house until it has made his necessities. In this case, if they return to house without it has done it, is due to watch it close by very (to tie it to a cord to restrict its movements, etc) and as soon as it is possible to return to the street and not to return until it has done it (and always to compensate it)
- The only allowed punishment is slightly moving a verbal admonition during the act to eliminate in the incorrect site. To avoid the physical punishment because it can learn: ?not to do it in front of the owner, to per yes when it is not?.
- Any zone of the house where the animal has eliminated must perfectly be cleaned, trying to neutralize its scent. The dog must understand that it will receive you compensate most valuable whenever it eliminates abroad.

5.MARCAJE TERRITORIAL WITH TINKLES

The main people in charge of this conduct are the androgens. For that reason, it will be a typical problem of the adult males. However, some young dog also can do it, like some females (generally during the fervor). They will generally be short micciones and in particulramente outstanding sites.

The olfactory stimuli by the micciones of other males in these sites, can trigger this conduct.
It will have to differentiate from:
- organic problems, like diseases that can trigger alterations in the amount of tinkle or in the micciones, or urinary incontinencia.
- problems without organic cause
- lack of learning (it is a frequent cause).
- loss of the learning, mainly in old animals. Sometimes, associated to other problems like locomotive incontinencia, alterations, etc? - anxiety by separation
- phobias
- extreme submission. In this case it is not necessary to never punish it because he would be counter-productive. The person or proprietor must act trying not to trigger this conduct.

Several possibilities of treatment exist:
- the castration has an effectiveness of 60-70%
- farmacológico treatment with progestins (it has advantages and disadvantages)
- farmacológico treatment with ansiolíticos (he is generally little effective unlike the cat).
- to place food (if it is possible) in these sites where it marks.

Source: Veterinary clinic Acsis
Author: Dr Josep Vallès

Bibliography:

*Pathologie du comportement du chien of Pageat, P.
clinical *Etología of the dog and the cat of Victoria Coll
veterinary clinical *Etología of the dog and the cat of Xavier Butter
*Manual of problems of conduct of the dog and the cat of Landsberg, Hunthausen, Ackerman
*Artículos published in: - Animal Welfare 1997, 6:9 - 15 of S.Galac and BW.Knol - Consultation of veterinary diffusion Vol.6, pp 31 Nº 51 1998 of J.Fatjó and X.Manteca