Social Aggression - Page 3

IMO, social aggression is a very desireable trait.  However, it is very rare these days, and often sharpness and defense drive are mistaken for social aggression.  Dogs with social aggression are confident, often dominant dogs, who tend to want to bite people outside of their pack simply because they are outside of their pack.  Misinformed people mistakenly say social aggression is a temperament fault.  The real problem occurs when a dog with social aggression ends up in the hands of someone who doesn't recognize the trait for what it is, and then doesn't know how to manage the behavior.  Since it is a rare trait, novice handlers do not usually end up with dogs having a degree of social aggression.  These dogs are a potential liabilty, but can definitely be managed with quality and consistent training.  The typical handler does not want to deal with the additional responsibility of having a dog with social aggression.  It is a rare trait that would improve working breeds if more carefully identified and selected for in breeding programs.