Dog Health Questions: Dog training/socializing?

so, i need some help training my dog! i want to get him socialized with both other dogs and strangers (people) and kids. he's okay with those that he knows and constantly sees but tends to be aggressive or protective or scared of strangers. he'll walk up to sniff them but then all of sudden he'll start to growl and the person hasn't even made a move to pet him yet. same with new dogs, he'll starts to sniff and say hello then out of no where looks like he's about to attack them. i have no idea what to do. he is a large dog about 80-90 lbs so with kids it's even harder, and i wouldn't want to put anyone in danger. i've already bought a muzzle which i bring around on all walks just in case. i was wondering if anyone had any suggestions, preferably from someone who has had experience.

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Recommended Answer:
I had a simillar situation and I did some easy things to help the dog understand that people aren't gonna hurt me or him. First great job on muzzle second call your local hardware store such as lowes/sutherland/homedepot because sometimes they allow you to take your pets in that is a great way to socialize them with humans. As far as other dogs I would go with one thing at a time also remeber have the stranger who may want to pet engage in conversation with you, once your pet sees you have accepted the stranger he will be likely to be a little calmer.

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• Aggression can be a serious problem. I would suggest calling some local trainers in your area and have a one-on-one consultation to see what they think. I wouldn't recommend a class training situation since he is fearful of others. Be patient with him as well. It may take some time for him to understand and accept new people.


• Hi,
  
  Teaching your pup to be dog- and people-friendly is your most important job as a dog owner. It keeps people safe around your dog, and since aggressive dogs are often put down. It keeps him safe around people. Here's more info:
  
  http://dogtime.com/socialization.html


• Enroll him in a group obedience class which will help with training and also socialization.


• i had a very similar situation with my dog except he was only aggressive towards other dogs. I would have friends bring there dogs to my house where i had a fence and he did fine. for you i would suggest a neutral territory for meeting new dogs. and i would definitely get him in some sort of training. i didnt get my dog into training soon enough and now have what the city refers to as a viscous dog. he defended himself against a dog a quarter of his size. good luck and i hope you have better luck than i did.


• You and your dog need to see a trainer so he can be evaluated to see why he is aggressive , and what you can do to turn him around. At his size he is a loaded gun just waiting for the chance to go off. I would not bring him around other people or animals until he is properly evaluated by a Professional trainer. You don't know how many pets we get in the ER from people trying to deal with these kinds of problems on there own. Either the pet they try and get them to socialize with ends up there , or they end up there with the owners wanting to put them to sleep because they have sent someone to the hospital with bite wounds.