Aggression Between Household Dogs - Professional Help

Together, we can help your dogs to feel more relaxed and manage their aggressive behaviour to increase safety for all involved.

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If you have issues with aggression between household dogs, you're not alone. We understand how issues between household dogs can make daily life stressful and overwhelming. It may be the case that your dogs growl, bark or lunge at each other in certain situations, like around food or toys. But rest assured—we’re here to help.

At Second Nature Behaviour, we provide support with dog-to-dog issues, such as a dog showing aggression towards other dogs within the home. Our Clinical Animal Behaviourists will assess your dogs' triggers, environment, and daily routine to create a tailored behaviour plan. We focus on reducing stress, improving communication, and using reward-based training to build positive relationships between dogs.

Here to Help With Aggression Between Household Dogs

Overcoming dog-to-dog issues within the home takes time and patience. With the right approach, your dog can feel safer and more at ease.

In some cases, aggression between household dogs can’t be fully extinguished, and careful, ongoing management strategies will need to be implemented. Our dog behaviourists are here to help advise you on short and long-term solutions with sensitivity and understanding.

We offer in-home consultations across Birmingham, Stoke-on-Trent, Coventry, Telford, and beyond, as well as virtual support. Let’s work together towards calmer, more enjoyable walks.

Speak with one of our team for more information about how we can support you.

Examples of Aggression Between Household Dogs

Do your dogs struggle to get along? Do they growl around food or toys when the other dog is nearby? Our dog behaviour experts can help with dogs showing aggression such as growling, showing their teeth, snapping, snarling, lunging at or biting other household dogs in the following situations:

Around food or treats

When on furniture or when resting

 

When receiving attention

When triggered by something else (re-directed aggression)

Around toys or during play

All-inclusive Support With Dog Aggression Problems

If your dogs struggle to get along, it's vital that you receive tailored support from a Veterinary Behaviourist or Clinical Animal Behaviourist. If you book a behaviour consultation with us, you receive a comprehensive behaviour modification plan and follow-up support package.

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Initial Consultation

We visit you at your home in person or online, for an initial assessment generally lasting 2 hours and ideally, everyone in the household should be present.

Treatment Plan

We take a full and detailed case history.  Together we work out a treatment plan that is realistic and tailored to you and your dog's needs.

Training Manual

You receive a dog training manual and relevant information sheets, which tie in with the behaviour plan for your dog.

Report

Soon after the consultation, a report is sent to you and your vet.  This outlines the reasons behind the problem and highlights the key steps of the plan.

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Vet Updates

Your vet is kept informed of how your dog progresses, and we work under their guidance.

Follow-up Support

You have the option of scheduling further follow-up sessions at a location to suit your dog.

Email, WhatsApp or Check-in Calls

We are available for remote support via email and WhatsApp, or via weekly check-in calls.

Vet Behaviourist Input

If a Veterinary Behaviourist's additional medical expertise is required during the case's development, we integrate their advice into the plan.

Get expert help from one of our canine behaviourists.

Or, fancy a 50% discount?

Book a supervised consult to allow a budding behaviourist to lead your consultation under the watchful eye of one of our senior behaviourists.

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Did you know? You may be able to pay for our pet behaviour services through your pet insurance. We accept direct insurance claims for our pet behaviour consultations through select insurance companies.

Next steps

Does your dog show aggression towards household dogs? Get started today by getting in touch or booking an appointment with one of our Clinical Animal Behaviourists.

1. Vet referral

Dogs reacting adversely to people are sometimes caused by underlying physiological issues, so we need to address these first

2. Booking

Online or by giving us a call on 0121 299 0188

3. History form

Give us some background about your dog, their environment, routines and your relationship

4. Consultation

Let's get started on the plan to dealing with your dog's behaviour towards people

Recommended
by vets

you may be able to
claim on insurance

"As a vet, I have referred many of my patients to Second Nature Behaviour - they work absolute miracles on dogs!"

Get expert help from our team

Meet Your Dog Behaviourists & Dog Trainers

Our dog trainers and behaviourists help owners of dogs with aggression problems across the West Midlands, including Staffordshire, Shropshire, Birmingham and Coventry.

Vet Behaviourist

Hannah is a Veterinary Surgeon who graduated from the Royal Veterinary College in 2008 and has worked in companion animal general practice ever since. She works part-time at a veterinary surgery in Stourbridge. She has a General Practitioner certificate in Small Animal Medicine and a postgraduate diploma in companion animal behaviour.

Hannah is passionate about improving pets’ mental health, as well as their physical health, and is particularly interested in the effect of medical conditions on behaviour. She is an active Candidate Member of the Fellowship of Animal Behaviour Clinicians. When she is not helping other people with their pets, she is looking after her own dog, “Noodle”.

Canine Behaviourist

Zoe has a doctorate in animal cognition and behaviour, and she is one of the few independently accredited clinical dog behaviourists in the UK (CCAB). She is also a Chartered Member of the British Psychological Society, registered with ABTC, and certified by IAABC as a dog behaviour consultant. Zoe is a proud committee member of FAB Clinicians. 

Since starting practice in 2012, she has helped hundreds of dogs and their caregivers better understand each other. Zoe also mentors budding dog behaviourists.

Canine Behaviourist

Megan graduated from Harper Adams University with a first class BSc (Hons) degree in Animal Behaviour and Welfare, then grew her busy clinical canine behaviour practice.  She has many years of experience and is an independently accredited Certificated Clinical Animal Behaviourist (CCAB). 

Megan is an active member of various organisations, including FAB Clinicians, APBC and PACT.  Last but not least Megan is registered as a CAB and ATI with the ABTC.

Canine Behaviourist

Keely is an independently accredited clinical canine behaviourist (CCAB) and has over 15 years’ experience working with dogs of all breeds and backgrounds.  She works part-time for a national dog welfare charity. mentors budding canine trainers.  

Keely primarily trains dogs (and their owners!) in Shropshire and the West Midlands.  She loves to see the human-canine bond grow. Last but not least, Keely  mentors budding dog trainers throughout the region.

What our clients say about our dog behaviour and training services

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If you are looking for expert support with managing aggression between household dogs, contact us to get started.

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FAQ

Have a more general question?  Check out our general FAQ.

Prefer to chat things through a bit more?

Give us a buzz by email or phone
0121 299 0188.

Contact us for a no obligation chat. After you have been referred by your veterinary surgeon, you can phone us on 0121 299 0188 to discuss the details and costs, or book online here. You can access the referral form here, or your vet can make the referral online here.

We will send you a referral form to give to your vet. Ask them to look at your dog and fill the form in. You should send this to us prior to the consultation, together with any clinical records that your vet may think are relevant. Alternatively, your vet may like to email, fax (0844 358 3201), or post their records directly to us. Note that they can also fill in their referral online. If you have already spoken to your vet, then this may be sufficient, but please double-check with them. Different vets have different ways of doing things. Some vets charge an extra fee for a referral.

Consultations are held on an appointment basis, either at one of our regional clinics or in your own home. If possible, all family members involved should be present. A history of the problem will be taken and your dog's temperament assessed. After this, the clinical animal behaviourist will explain the motivation for the behaviour and devise a treatment programme to help you modify your pet’s behaviour.

Treatment programmes vary according to the nature and severity of the problem. Sometimes only the initial consultation, remote support and some hard work on your part work are sufficient. Moreover, a detailed report outlining the therapy will be sent to you and your veterinary surgeon. Further advice and aftercare are provided via further sessions and email for at least 3 months. Where treatment dictates it, or if you would prefer face-to-face support, a follow-up appointment can be arranged online.   Alternatively, we can come to your home again.  As a dog owner, we offer extensive face-to-face support following the initial consultation as part of our standard service.

We cannot guarantee a ‘cure’ or work miracles, but if between us we can diagnose what is going on, and if you are prepared to work hard, dramatic improvement is not unusual.  The treatment plan is designed to be fluid.  If what we initially suggest doesn’t seem to have much effect, then we will reassess and make some other suggestions about what to do. 

There is no quick fix to any kind of behaviour problem. The treatment plan advised may produce results very quickly, but often it will take time, effort and commitment from all of the family to produce the improved behaviour. Always remember that your pet’s current problems may have developed over a long period of time, so it may take a particularly long time to improve. It really varies from individual to individual. However, support from us is ongoing, as you need it. Following your consultation, further advice is available by phone and email as you progress, or face-to-face if you require it. Progress is often faster with greater follow-up behaviour support within your own environment.

A strong link between the veterinary surgeon and the animal behaviourist is essential in all cases. In order to rule out any physiological causes for the problem behaviour and in accordance with the Fellowship of Animal Behaviour Clinicians‘ Code of Conduct, we only work on veterinary referral. Behavioural symptoms are often intertwined with some medical conditions. To provide a truly holistic solution to your problem, your vet needs to be involved at all stages of the process. The behaviourist will work closely with your vet, who often provides ongoing support from their end for various elements of the behaviour plan. 

We will send you a referral form to give to your vet. Ask them to look at your pet and fill the form in. You should send this to us prior to the consultation, together with any clinical records that your vet may think are relevant. Alternatively, your vet may like to email, fax (0844 358 3201), or post their records directly to us. Note that they can also fill in their referral online. If you have already spoken to your vet, then this may be sufficient, but please double-check with them. Different vets have different ways of doing things. Some vets charge an extra fee for a referral.

Second Nature Behaviour and our employees are fully covered by professional indemnity and public liability insurance.

We offer limited availability on some weekday evenings and weekends. Please note that appointments are booked on a first-come, first-served basis. To find out more about our availability, you can check our booking calendar or give us a call (0121 299 0188).

If you need urgent advice and cannot wait for a behaviour consultation, you can book in a preliminary hour with our senior behaviourist over the phone. This hour is only intended to provide you with first aid, prophylactic management advice to help you and your pet cope until a full assessment is made. To make the most of the limited time in the appointment, we still require a completed behaviour questionnaire. We will expect a completed vet referral, and as always we will keep your vet in the loop about the outcome of our call. As with all our behaviour services, there are no quick fixes. To book, visit our booking page or give us a call (0121 299 0188).

The supervised consultation is led by one of our advanced student behaviourists, supervised by one of our senior behaviourists. A 2-hour consultation and a follow-up session is included – one will be conducted virtually, while the other is in your home or on a local walk. Other students may be virtually ‘sitting in’ via online video link. You also receive a tailor-made behaviour modification plan, plus 3 months’ of email and text follow-up.

A 'student behaviourist' is someone who has met the academic requirements, but not yet been assessed on their clinical skills to achieve accreditation as a Certificated Clinical Animal Behaviourist (CCAB) or Clinical Animal Behaviourist (CAB). A 'senior behaviourist' has achieved accreditation as a CAB or CCAB.

A veterinary behaviourist (VB) is more appropriate for cases involving complex medical components. VBs are qualified as both vets and behaviourists, so they have an understanding of how certain medical factors may influence behaviour. VBs can also advise your referring vet directly on specific medical investigations or treatment options - all of which our non-vet behaviourists are not qualified to do.

No, we won’t, although it often brings some complexity to the problem. For instance, if you have two dogs or a dog and a cat, we will charge our standard dog consultation price as we would for just one dog.

This is something that you need to discuss with your vet. Sometimes vets advise that neutering can make the behaviour problem worse, so it would probably be best to wait at least until after the behaviour consultation even if you decide with them to go ahead with it.

It is important to have realistic expectations for what can be achieved.  Behaviour problems take a lot of time and work to improve, sometimes never fully going away.  However, very often at least some management strategies and techniques can be put in place to help with the behaviour. Your behaviourist will be able to discuss the different options with you once they have fully assessed your pet and your situation.  The behaviourist will make a risk assessment as well as provide you with the treatment plan if necessary.