Very Aggressive Sheltie-Please help me!

Thank you everyone

I had a successful session with a professional trainer today with Leo. He met Leo for the first time and within 5 minutes got Leo to relax and listen to him on a lead which is shocking since Leo is terrified of men! He gave me some tips on what to do with Leo when he attacks and not to do the "alpha roll" but to use a correction collar and correct him very strongly with that and get his attention immediately. We are going to have 5 more sessions with him over the next week and really go through some "boot camp" training.
He agreed that Leo needs more confidence and more mental stimulation. He feels we spoiled him way too much and need to get him to work for us more than us pampering him constantly. I'll try to keep everyone posted on Leo and mine's journey over the next few weeks and maybe we'll find good solutions for more people with situations like this.
Thank you again for everyone's help!
 
I am glad to hear that you made some progress with Leo! I hope it will keep going well and he will be more confident soon.

I know how hard it is not to spoil them!:rolleyes2: They just look so darnd cute - how can anyone resist??!!!
 
I am glad to hear that you found someone who is helping Leo!

There is some great advice in this thread already, a lot of which I am using with my fear aggressive boy Apollo. He was attacked and bitten in the face by another dog and as a result is now very frightened of other dogs and lashes out at any that get to close to him or even just make eye contact with him. I'll share the 2 most important things I've learned so far in rehabilitating him:

1. He is looking to me to keep him safe, and I need to make sure I do that. If that means seeming rude to other people and their dogs, that is what I have to do. Until he has learned to be comfortable near strange dogs I need to make sure strange dogs are kept at a distance from him.

2. He isn't able to learn if he is past his threshold and already reacting to something. If he is already scared of another dog, that means I've let the other dog get too close and Apollo needs to be removed from the situation immediately. Neither corrections nor rewards help him at all if he has already gone off the deep end.

Right now we're working on the "Look at That" game from Leslie McDevitt's book Control Unleashed. Essentially you reward the dog for looking at what he is reactive to and immediately focusing his attention back to you without getting upset. The book also educates you on how to help your dog relax and stress free in many situations. I really recommend it for further study after you're finished with the sessions with your trainer.

Best of luck to you and Leo!
 
I am really happy you found someone that will take a interest in Leo, that is great. My sister had three trainers with her dog, the first two came once and had more excuses why they couldn't finish her boy. The third guy took her dog home, and did a great job. I keep on reminding her she has to keep the work up, or he will go back to his old ways, which he has twice now.

Leo be a good boy for mom!
 
I agree with the advice Caro and Romeosangiovese gave. I'm glad you have found a trainer to help you.

There is a lady at my agility club having the exact same problem. She has a little rescue terrier mix, he was always nervous around dogs, but now has started to attack strange people who come to her house. It is part fear, part that he feels she can't protect him so he must protect himself.

His owner is a very quiet and slightly under-confident person, always apologising for her dog even when he has not done anything wrong. She needs to find a way to become more confident so that she can be in charge and her dog no longer feels that he has to take the lead.

Do keep us updated on Leo and I hope he progresses well.
 
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