by Chris Straigis
There are thousands upon thousands of dogs stacked in shelters and rescues all around the Philadelphia area. Some are old and some sick. Many are victims of the recession; the cost to keep them becomes too great a burden. But there is a large population of these dogs that are feared to be “aggressive” to the point that their owners are no longer willing or able to risk keeping them. As this last group’s population swells to greater numbers each day, they are usually the first in line to be labeled as unadoptable. In a rescue system that is already woefully overburdened, many end up on the short list for euthanasia.
In reality, the behavior that most “aggressive” dogs exhibit is merely a symptom of a deeper issue: insecurity. Very few dogs are truly aggressive for the sake of intentionally causing harm; they are more likely frightened, confused or self-protective to a fault. These are not irreversible issues, these are not unfixable dogs. Just ask Dave Cugno.
Among the thousands of dogs and owners he’s helped at his Canine Center near Philadelphia , a significant percentage have been dogs that have little hope anywhere else. “Owners have come to me in tears,” says Dave. “‘My vet told me to have the dog put to sleep’ or ‘I have this letter from a behaviorist that says my dog can’t be helped’. Another popular one is ‘she’s tried to attack people that come to the house, we just can’t trust her any more’. These are good people with kind hearts and they don’t want to get rid of their dog, but they just don’t understand how to deal with what they have,” Dave admits.
One notable recent example is Ringo, a Staffordshire terrier mix adopted from an SPCA at 9 months old (watch a video of Ringo). Within a few weeks of bringing Ringo home, his new owners Lyn and Dave began to recognize what seemed to be aggressive behavior. As his owner Dave recalls, “He would freak out at people on bikes, and when the kids would play he would jump in but become very rough and forceful.” Even their 10 year old son began to feel very uncomfortable when Ringo was around.
They brought him to a training class at another local company, but within weeks they were asked to leave because of the dog’s aggression. So they labored over the idea of bringing Ringo back to the SPCA but they feared he would have no chance of re-adoption because of his behavior. As a last resort, they reached out to their veterinarian who recommended they take the dog to Dave Cugno. Ringo is now showing marked improvement and his owners Lyn and Dave are confident that, with this training, he will become a happy and stable family dog.
Another trainee, P.J., is a Pit Bull mix that came to Dave because of deep-seated insecurities that were creating some problems for his owners (watch a video of P.J.). The symptoms of his insecurity were manifesting as aggression towards people (men specifically) and other animals. P.J.’s problems stemmed from trauma when he was a puppy. In 2005, a Philadelphia police officer was on patrol when he found 8 month old P.J. at the base of a 25’ high train bridge. From the look of his extensive injuries, it was apparent that P.J. had been thrown off the bridge and left to die. The neighborhood where he was found was known to the local authorities as a haven for dog fighting and related abuses.
Due to the nature of his injuries and the stigma of his breed, P.J. was expected to be euthanized. Fortunately, the officer who found him, being an animal lover, convinced the shelter to help save P.J. The shelter agreed to pay for the operation to fix his hip and leg and eventually adopted P.J. out to a member of the police officer’s family. After months of training and dedication by his owners, P.J. now spends many an afternoon frolicking with canine friends at Cugno’s Canine Center and he has come a long way in resolving his fear of men.
Another notable work in progress, Poppy Jaan, is a rambunctious young Border Collie mix. A feral puppy found on a dirt road in Afghanistan, he eventually was rescued by Ruma Mullahr (name changed for security), an American photo-journalist stationed near Kabul at the time. He wanted to bring Poppy back to the States as a gift to his son, but was fearful of the dog’s seemingly aggressive tendencies (read his amazing story). Poppy showed a much more challenging type of behavior, a deeper natural aggression that was connected to his survival instincts; behavior expected from a dog born and raised in the wild.
The general consensus among those Ruma consulted was that Poppy wasn’t safe and he could not be made into a family dog. One friend, however, had worked with a dog trainer years before and suggested that if anyone could help, this was the person. Poppy Jaan and his owner came to the Canine Center in February of 2011 and began work with Dave (watch a video of Poppy and Dave). Today, while work with the family does continue, Poppy has grown into a much calmer and more attentive dog thanks to his owner’s commitment.
These are just three examples of how making a commitment to your pet (especially when that commitment means extra work to help a dog that has insecurity or aggression issues) can pay off in the long run. Find the right trainer, learn how to work with what you have and stick with the process. You can defy expectations and have a good life with a happy and stable pet.
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