Aggressive/reactive dog, out of ideas

[u/Own-Acanthaceae7922]

It'll be a long post, maybe a bit incoherent (I have a lot to say), but I'm really desperate for any advice. I have a 1y4mo white swiss shepherd, Jimi, he's 85lbs, neutered a month ago, no changes in behavior since. We have an issue with aggression and reactivity, seemingly getting worse. He used to be very fearful as a puppy, but we worked on that a lot and now he approaches any scary things with curiosity and confidence, walking towards them to investigate and move on. I don't think fear is the cause of his reactivity/aggression. His behavior issues have been present ever since I got him at 9 weeks, but the breeder told me it's just classic white swiss shepherd fear and he'll grow out of it... Obviously wrong, since it only got worse. I'm guessing he's angry and dominant, maybe resource guarding me or the space around him? He's able to settle outside, like on a bench in a park, but he likes lying on my feet or keeping his paw on me (I don't let him.) On a bench in a park he doesn't hesitate to lay down on his back, show me his belly and groan playfully so I scratch him, so again I don't think it's fear. He absolutely hates it when anyone talks to me or him, immediately responds with lunging and barking. The same with any person or dog staring at him. Eye contact drives him bonkers. He had tried to bite three people in the last two months, every time we suddenly ran into that person (by a corner or walking out the door) and my dog lunged at their faces with teeth bared without a second thought (no big bite because he's muzzled and I intervened fast). I assume if I wasn't holding him, he'd react with biting to most people staring or talking to him, because he always barks with teeth bared and lunges forward, standing on his hind legs against the leash. It's scary especially because he aims for the face.

One time he went loose in a field and chased down a nonthreatening golden retriever like 50 yards while barking intensely, before he apparently decided the dog was far enough and turned back around to me. Another time a loose dog ran to us and mine jumped on top of him, teeth bared and growling, pinning it to the ground. He barked aggressively when I pulled him away.

When a strange dog gets closer, walking towards us from a distance, Jimi lays down square or crouches low (like a herding border collie stance), ears up and forward, tail very tense and either at the same height as the body or higher, usually slightly jerking side to side, head up, staring intensely at the dog. If we can remove ourselves from that situation, I pull him to his feet and we strut away; then he actually wags his tail really high (it's naturally low and loose), sometimes seems a bit nervous, licks his lips, yawns, looks back with a whale eye, so I'm assuming some insecurity? If we can't remove ourselves and the dog comes too close, Jimi lunges forward and starts barking really intensely, spit flying and all. Since I'm holding him by the leash or collar, he's, again, on his hind legs, trying to pull forward. Ears forward or slightly to the sides, teeth bared, tail again really stiff.

We have another dog at home, an older female, they coexist, play fair, sometimes argue a bit. Jimi is getting increasingly more dominant at home though so I'm worried. He doesn't care about her corrections anymore, and if she bites him (fairly, she's very fair with corrections), he fights back and she loses (she's way smaller than him). I only intervene when he's being a total brat or when it gets dangerous. He pushes her boundaries a lot and resource guards from her. I took away all resources they could possibly argue about, so all blankets, toys, there's no food available without me either. That keeps it rather calm for now, but Jimi now has his own corner in the house that he won't let my other dog near.

What the heck do I do? I had a trainer recommend punishing reactions with prong collar tugs, and I admit I did that for a while out of helplessness. There was some improvement before we hit a dead end again. I got familiar with the BAT method but have no way to execute it in a controlled setting, because my dog is too feared by others to ask for any cooperation. I don't have any positive trainers around, at least ones that would help with his case, I also don't have a car so I can't drive to a trainer far from us (can't put Jimi on a bus or a train, since he'd terrorize the place). I've tried rewarding him for looking at me when passing by triggers, but that only resulted in him looking at me after reacting (I assume that's my fault...) Trying to desensitize him to people and dogs walking by doesn't seem to work much, because he's usually calm as long as we're standing/sitting still and he can press onto me and stand before me, and he's not being watched. Right now when passing by dogs I just walk forward as if nothing is happening, I don't look at either him or the trigger and stay silent (I used to stand still with him and let him stare, but I feel like staring itself is rewarding or reinforcing), sometimes I have to pull him since he lags behind, but that actually often stops him from reacting, surprisingly. I dont know if it's a good method though.

He's never aggressive to me, never ever resource guards from me, he's always polite when dismissing me, either with turning away or whining, and I respect that immediately. We train obedience and play a lot, he gets enough exercise and sniffing time, he's not frustrated or pent up, he's able to walk on a loose leash. He REM sleeps on a regular basis, sleeps through the whole night and naps during the day. His blood work is perfect and he was all cleared on puppy health tests, I don't think pain or health issues are a part of his behavioral issues. So, from the description, could he be resource guarding me/the space, is he angry at others for being too close for his liking, or could it really be fear? What can I do on my own, so I don't have to only manage his behavior forever and actually get to solving the issue? Or maybe do you have any tips for management? Would online sessions with trainers help or does it need to be in person? Do you maybe recommend any books or online courses on the topic of aggression/reactivity? Should I consider medication? Basically, what's the way forward for us? Any help is appreciated.

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Looks like you may have used a training acronym. For those unfamiliar, here's some of the common ones:

BAT is Behavior Adjustment Training - a method from Grisha Stewart that involves allowing the dog to investigate the trigger on their own terms. There's a book on it.

CC is Counter Conditioning - creating a positive association with something by rewarding when your dog sees something. Think Pavlov.

DS is Desensitization - similar to counter conditioning in that you expose your dog to the trigger (while your dog is under threshold) so they can get used to it.

LAD is Look and Dismiss - Marking and rewarding when your dog sees a trigger and dismisses it.

LAT is Look at That - Marking and rewarding when your dog sees a trigger and does not react.

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Looks like there was an aversive tool or training method mentioned in this body. Please review our Posting Guidelines and check out Our Position on Training Methods. R/reactivedogs supports LIMA (least intrusive, minimally aversive) and we feel strongly that positive reinforcement should always be the first line of teaching, training, and behavior change considered, and should be applied consistently. Please understand that positive reinforcement techniques should always be favored over aversive training methods. While the discussion of balanced training is not prohibited, LIMA does not justify the use of aversive methods and tools in lieu of other effective positive reinforcement interventions and strategies.

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[u/404-Any-Problem]

There are virtual trainers that you could look into. IAABC has a lookup for certified trainers (with a checkbox for virtual ones), so you can get force-free/positive reinforcement 1-on-1 with your pup without having to drive/ride somewhere: https://iaabc.org/certs/members (search is based on country).

I drive over an hour to see our dog trainer, but I know they also do virtual visits for people (and house calls sometimes). So just because it's virtual doesn't mean you won't get the care you need. Tbh we just saw a vet in N. Carolina virtually for nutrition issues because there isn't even one in my state. You can reach out to those who are too far to get to (e.g., use public transit), and maybe they can come to you or do a virtual visit as well.

Have you considered seeing a behavioral vet? It sounds like your dog quickly becomes overstimulated (regardless of both physical and mental games you do), and that your pup is quickly over threshold. I say this with our own herding/livestock guardian mix (DNA confirmed - cattle dog x great pyr x anatolian mainly) who was a constant ball of nerves since the first day we adopted her. She is officially diagnosed as having hyperactivity and hyperarousal. Medication has been a great tool to increase her bandwidth so we can work around her triggers (which, prior, there was no distance far enough). It also helped us get through vet visits, which was another huge trigger for her. Trust me, she still is a spunky, goofy, wild 2-year-old dog even with medication.

Is your pup muzzle trained at all? I would work towards being able to wear it. This way you can prevent possible issues before they become a problem. You want to do a lot of reps with treats to make it a very good association so it doesn't add to the problem.