Aggressive behaviour

What to do if you’re worried about a dog’s behaviour

There are no definite and clear-cut guidelines for how to de-escalate a worrying situation with a dog. What may work in one situation, may aggravate another, but safety of the people involved should always be the main priority.

Generally if you ignore a dog it will also ignore you. If a dog’s behaviour is concerning you, avoid eye contact and distance yourself from the dog quietly, slowly and calmly, and if possible, create a physical barrier between yourself and the dog such as a car, door, tree etc. If the dog’s owner is visible, ask them calmly to put their dog on a lead if they aren’t already. Making loud noise or running could startle the dog or increase arousal, increasing the likelihood of the dog chasing or feel threatened.

If a dog is running towards you, do not run despite your instinct telling you to do so, try to remain still and stand side on to appear less threatening and ignore the dog. Keep your arms still as moving limbs may provoke engagement. In the rare event that a dog does attack you, if you end up on the ground, curl up in a ball and protect your head. Use clothes, bags, or any objects you may have to create a barrier between your head and neck and the dog.

What to do if a dog won’t release a person or dog

If you are alone, shout for help in as calm a manner as you can.

Please note that any attempt to intervene physically should only ever be undertaken if the person involved feels confident in their own ability to intervene and that the risk of the alternative/doing nothing justifies the risk of potentially making things worse.

If possible, distract and divert the primary aggressor. A loud whistle or coat or water thrown over them may distract them enough to get them as far apart as possible. However, this may increase arousal levels – it is not a guaranteed approach.

Do not hit the dog, this can increase arousal and escalate the situation and may redirect the bite on to yourself.

Do not pull the dog and person / dog apart, this will likely cause the dog to grip harder, instead, push into the bite.

If the dog is on a lead, try to immobilise the dog against a solid object such as a wall to avoid them moving around and pulling the wound.

As a last resort you could use the lead or collar to tighten around the dog’s neck and temporarily restrict airway until they let go.