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Understand your dog, its behaviour, say experts
People must understand the behaviour of animals before keeping them in the house as pets
People must understand the behaviour of animals before keeping them in the house as pets. The dog may become violent if the message that it wishes to convey to the owner is not interpreted correctly.
“When hungry, these dogs react in anger,” said Dr Abhinav Varma, chief veterinary officer, Lucknow Municipal Corporation. “Anyone who gives food to a ferocious dog should be quick and agile. That’s why old, elderly or children with slower reflexes should not go near these dogs. In the recent case in Kaiserbagh, the woman was around 82. Perhaps her movements were slow. Perhaps she was not able to understand what the dog wanted. Perhaps she was not able to understand the signals of the dog, that’s why the dog became aggressive,” he added.
He said, “Experts understand the mood of the animal by the way a dog barks. It is a different bark when the dog gets aggressive, they become still and rigid. Their bark becomes guttural, deep it becomes threatening when the dog feels unsafe or angry. The dog bares its teeth when it gets aggressive and starts lunging forward to attack anyone. That’s why training a person who goes close to these dogs is essential. For a woman of 82 years it would not have been possible to understand the physical requirements or behaviour of dogs.”
Echoing Dr Varma’s thoughts, Akash Pal, an expert dog-handler, said, “It’s imperative to understand the behaviour of dogs before you decide to keep them. I have been treating and training dogs for the last five years. That’s why I can understand their aggressive behaviour much better than others. Not only that, I know how to counter aggression. Usually, owners of these dogs try to overpower these dogs without understanding the consequences.
“One has to understand the way a dog is barking, growling, snarling, lunging forward or backward. The dog is a territorial animal. It will not like its territory being violated by anyone. If the dog feels his territory is being encroached, then he could act aggressively. One has to understand that aggression in dogs can be a normal form of communication, yet the display of aggression towards a person or animal is often considered undesirable or problematic. Besides, if anyone starts running backward the dog will become more aggressive.”
Amit Sehgal a pet lover said, “Training of owners and dogs should be made mandatory in case of ferocious breeds. Or people will not be able to understand the behaviour of their pets and communication between them would be poor which may lead to increased chances of dogs becoming aggressive.”
