Australian Shepherd Attacks and Aggressiveness

by Candice
(Birmingham, Alabama)

Someone please help me. I've tried everything I know to do and it seems like the situation just keeps getting worse! We have 3 female dogs, the oldest is our Aussie Coley who's 6 yrs old now. She is the smartest and most loyal dog I've ever had and she's usually very sweet and loving. We've had her since she was born and we've never had any issues with her being aggressive towards us until this past year.

She has always been somewhat aggressive towards strangers like delivery men etc. and other dogs that she doesn't know but never with our other 2 dogs or anyone in our home after she's introduced to them, but over the past year she has started to become extremely aggressive towards me.

Our other 2 dogs have never been aggressive towards any of us and there's no aggression between the dogs either except for our youngest dog Macy is a 2 yr old Aussie mix and she's also Coley's pup from the one time she got out on accident and ended up with a litter. Macy has over the past year started to become aggressive with just Coley for some reason. It's not bad but Macy jumps on Coley's back and tries to stop her from being able to play and run around and they will snap at each other for a second and then go on about their business.

I don't know if Macy being like that with Coley has anything to do with the way Coley behaves towards me but I've definitely wondered. Our middle dog is a 4 yr old rescue Chow mix who was abused and I've never seen her have an aggressive bone in her body. There are 5 of us in the house and Coley does not attack or bite anyone but me. She barks at the others when she's in my 15 yr old daughters room and anyone tries to come in she gets on the bed and barks in their face, but I'm the only one she actually bites.

I've figured out that she does it mostly when someone else is laying down or sitting and I come into the room like when I have to wake my daughter up for school for example. We've had to stop letting her sleep with my daughter at night because she tries to bite me when I come in to wake her up in the morning.

It's even worse when I have to get my husband up for work. Coley will sleep wherever she wants at night and it's usually at the end of our bed or in the floor beside our bed and she gets up with me in the morning and it's become routine for her to be extremely good and loving like she usually is until the second I start to say my husbands name out loud or do anything to wake him up. As soon as I do she jumps in front of me and starts growling and barking in my face and snapping at me.

I've been bitten over and over and she will not calm down or stop after she starts, she shakes from head to toe like she's having an anxiety attack and my husband has to help me with her to get her in her crate or outside so she will stop trying to bite me. When she comes back in its like nothing happened and she's my best friend again until the next time I "disturb" someone and then it happens all over again.

If it's just her and I at home there are never any problems at all. Every time it happens it seems to be worse than the time before and after she bites me and realizes she hurt me her demeanor changes and she seems almost ashamed or confused about what just happened.

It's really nerve wrecking for me and for everyone else and our other 2 dogs who are both non-aggressive dogs to deal with her doing this every day.

I will do anything to fix it and not have to get rid of her. Everyone loves her so much I could not imagine her not being part of our family but I'm afraid that one of these attacks is going to end really badly for me if something doesn't change.

Have Dog Training Questions?

Check out these introductory dog training videos...

I want my dog to stop being aggressive.

I want some help training my new puppy.

I want my dog to stop barking at everything.

I want my dog to walk nicely and calmly on the leash.

I want my dog to listen and come every time I call!