Treatment of aggression

Treating aggressive behavior is best handled by a professional animal behaviorist or a very experienced, reputable animal trainer. There are a number of individuals who call themselves animal behaviorists or trainers who are poorly qualified. They often resort to brutal and sadistic methods such as "hanging" and shock collars to correct aggressive dogs. Excessive force and punishment are their main tools.
When seeking a professional trainer, always seek advice from your veterinarian and carefully interview trainers to find the one who uses the least amount of force necessary.
Treatment consists of listing all the things that trigger aggressive behavior and preventing these situations from developing. For example, if the dog growls when you try to remove it from the couch, don't allow it to get on the couch.
The first impulse is to minimize contact between an aggressive dog and the person or people he is most aggressive to. However, this scheme only encourages the dog to become dominant to more and more people and tightens his control of the household. Therefore, the individual who is having the most difficulty with the dog should become the main provider for everything the dog needs food, water, exercise, praise, affection, and all play activity. This person must be able to train the dog to obey basic obedience commands of sit, stay, come, and down. He will probably need a lot of help with the down command (which puts the animal in a submissive position) so he doesn't get bitten.
All other family members must totally ignore the dog no play, food, or affection. The dog must look on that one person as its sole provider of everything.
The dog must be rewarded for any signs of submissive behavior such as ears back, looking away (avoiding eye contact), rolling over, licking, crouching, or lowering the head when being reached for. Any dominant gestures that the dog will tolerate should be used frequently and the dog must be praised and given occasional food rewards for submitting. The dog must earn everything.
Once a dog starts to respond, then counter-conditioning can be started, but this should only be done with a qualified behaviorist-trainer. Counter-conditioning includes working with a dog that doesn't like its feet or hindquarters handled; it is also referred to as desensitizing the dog to certain stimuli or conditions.
To counter-condition a dog that does not like its hindquarters handled, first teach the dog to stand on command, then, with an experienced handler controlling the dog's head, the gently touch the rear end. If the dog submits, praise and give a food treat. Repeat praise and reward for each positive response. Gradually increase the duration and frequency of handling and praise the dog for each act of submission, no matter how small.
Aggressive dogs can be retrained under the right circumstances. Keep in mind, however, before anyone starts a program to correct an aggressive dog, he must realize that the dog may never be trustworthy around other people or children and may bite if provoked. Owners should always be given the cold, hard facts: they should never feel guilty for having an aggressive dog euthanized, but they should also realize that, if they are likely to make the same mistakes with another dog, they should not get another dog.