8 month old male puppy - dog aggressive

Hi Everyone,
My neutered 8 month old is getting more and more aggressive with other dogs and I'm just devastated. We have socialized him with dogs almost every day for the first few months we had him (starting at 8 weeks) and it's become less and less because he has bit dogs on occasion. Nothing too serious yet but I no longer want to take him anywhere that other dogs are off leash, because he bites, snaps, and lunges after smelling a dog that comes up to him. There is no pattern, it's all dogs of all kinds. He doesn't get aggressive with my other dog, or two other dogs that come to our house on a regular basis. He's not food aggressive, and he's not aggressive towards us at all.

Going to dog beach was one of my happiest things to do, and I can no longer do that with my new dog. I'm feeling hopeless and don't know if I can do this for the next 12-15 years. We are starting obedience training this week, but haven't started any specialized dog aggression training. Any suggestions? thanks.

I have replied to your other post. Someone will be along who has had experience in this   

I'm surprised a dog so young being aggressive, you may wish to seek advice from a canine behaviourist.

Staffies do play hard and it often sounds a lot worse that it is, are you sure you are not confusing the staffy play with agression ?

Play tug of war with the dog and don't let the dog win, show him your dominant and your leader. You can play as long as you want but always win and lots of positive interaction. Show your dog there's no shame in not being as dominant. When interacting with your dog on the floor always have posture bigger/taller than the dog.

Ask some one with a dog if you can practice some techniques:
try to get your dog to lay down, or roll on to his back, so he can get a sense of greeting another dog and accepting them as dominant.

These techniques are what ive done with my dog, hope they can help in some way. Shes now very good round dogs and people. And she also greets other dogs and has stopped charging in like the boss!

NyandEm, thank you for your post! Unfortunately some of the techniques that you've mentioned are quite dangerous, and would cause your dog to be very fearful of other dogs. Pack theory doesn't really have a place in modern dog behaviour, and positive reinforcement and obedience have proven to be much more effective and humane.

Of course, winning a game and teaching your dog obedience with that is fine. But rolling your dog onto it's back, especially when other dogs are close is a sure fire way to cause fear and in some dogs even aggression.

ahh i see ! Thankyou for replying to that . My dog seems to be very submissive with any dog she comes across, she has done this on her own from the first walk she encountered another dog. Is this okay for my dog to always roll on to her back? or she is at risk of being bullied for being to submissive, so far so good! Other dog walkers round the area say this is a good trait for her to have.
She is very spoilt and loved by me, my partner and everyone!
She will play with all dogs but her ears are generally down and tail between legs when rolling on the ground, is this ok or should i teach her confront dogs in a different manner if possible?

Hope to hear some feedback
thanks
Ny

Hiya! Oh bless her, she sounds very sweet. Personally, if she's rolling over with her tail in I'd say she's a little bit worried and maybe a little sensitive; I would gently encourage her to stand up or even stay lying down if she likes with soothing tones and even food lures initially if needs be, but praise her for being confident. I'd imagine in a staffy people would rather see these traits that assertive behavior or aggression, and some dogs are quite shy/submissive in nature. I wouldn't say it would heighten her risk of being bullied, but might just be nicer for her if she feels brave enough to stand up and say hello in a more balanced way.

It may also be that she has seen a positive response to her carrying out this behaviour (people laughing/smiling/giving attention) so may repeat this behaviour because of this. Do you ever "alpha roll" her? (Roll her with your hand onto her back?)