I have a 3 year old boy. He is a sweet boy to everyone. His issues started when the first girl around here went in heat. He lost his mind and became very aggresive towards other girls and for sure any male he was around. Then he would be fine but at the shows he has even got to the point to where I would not take him back. He does not like any male dog. He is only my second stud dog. The first was fine around males and females. So I am going to place him in a pet home but, my worry is can he after being fixed, go to dog parks and be a normal laid back boy or do I need to put big warning signs around him?

Perhaps if he is that bad he should not be placed.

I would think that you will have to neuter him and have him stay with you to find this out for yourself. You'll find out one way or the other if it curbs his behavior. Placing a dog with such issues might be difficult and dangerous to any new owner.

I had one like that 40 years ago. This was before leash laws & we lived in a rural area. He was OK out by himself when no family member was with him, otherwise he attacked any dog he saw, even bitches. We moved into a suburban area when he was about 5 and decided we had to have him neutered. It did not change his behavior, which had become hard wired by then. Managing him was a constant struggle. You need HUGE warnings with your boy.

I would have him neutered and then work with a dog trainer. Taking a class for reactive dogs really can help.

I would have him neutered and place him as a guard dog for security!

"So I am going to place him in a pet home but, my worry is can he after being fixed, go to dog parks and be a normal laid back boy or do I need to put big warning signs around him?"

I think you should neuter him and keep him for a while, or place him with an experienced family with no other dogs. Keep tabs on him and the family to see how things are going.
Dog parks are tough - pack mentality sets in and dogs that wouldn't normally behave aggressively sometimes do. I avoid dog parks for that reason. My dogs play with dogs they know, and who I know.
A very sweet corgi I know was attacked and almost killed at a dog park. The corgi was not the aggressor.

I think you should either neuter and keep him yourself, or put him down. Passing him on to a family w/children, or other pets is insane at best !
We cannot save the world , and an agressive dog is a loaded gun. Lock him up and take resposibility or put the dog down.

Human and dog aggression are two entirely different matters so if he has a good history with people, there is no reason to think he won't in the future.
I am a little concerned that he also directs on bitches. I would also neuter him and keep him around for 6 months or so and see how it goes. I think the inter-male aggression has a good chance of being resolved (80% to be precise), but you will have to wait and see with the girls. If he only does it when girls are in season, you might be in luck.

FWIW, I don't think any dog should go to a dog park. It is a stress filled toilet just begging for problems

If you are certain a dog agressive male won't hurt a child, even when food is involved, go ahead put your grandchild next to him while he eats ! If you can not do that, then that will tell the story !

Me again. There is a difference between dog-directed aggression and aggression directed to people. My dog from years ago was a prince with people of all ages. He was dangerous only with other dogs. He could never be trusted, even for a few seconds.

You said he only does this when girls are in season? I agree with those who said to have him neutered and keep him for a while and see if that solves the problem. Don't wait to have him neutered.

Please define what you mean by the word "aggression" in behavioral terms. What does he actually do? What are his triggers? What have you done that makes the situation better and worse?

I have very black and white feelings about "aggressive" labradors. I would neuter this boy, keep him 6 - 8 months and monitor his behavior.
Then as a previous poster stated, if you would trust him enough to put your small child next to him and introduce a strange dog then go ahead and place him.
If not, I would put the dog down WITHOUT hesitation.
When families come to breeders looking for a labrador I believe they do so for one reason, temperament. You are not doing any favors to the breed by placing a labrador with such potentially dangerous problems not to mention putting your own dogs or a new family in harms way.

Please let me make it clear that he is not aggressive towards people at all. My kids hang all over him and he know no stranger. Very very sweet boy. It is just male dogs. I know that it is because he wants all the girls in the world to himself! I was told by a trainer to place him after he was fixed and that being on a new property he would not feel so protective of it. He will not be put down!!!
Also let me say he has never been off leash or in a fence with a male so he has not been in a "fight" with one. He just jumps and growls and wants to fight them. As far as the girls when he gets worked up with another male around and the girls are standing by him Its like he gets annoyed that he cant get to the male and jumps on the girls but then pops right off and has never hurt one of the girls. Just scares them as they are used to his normal playing with them.

I'm with Heidi.

JMO - neuter him, keep/work with him for at least 6 months and then decide what to do. Good luck!

I have a neighbor with a seriously dog-agressive large dog. He is intact. This dog too is friendly towards people as long as there is no other dog around. However, I have met up with my neighbor walking this dog while I'm walking one of mine, and I have to tell you it's very scary. I have seen this dog turn on his owner in an attempt to get away and attack my dog. Something to think about if you decide to place this dog.
Kathy

This is called redirected aggression (attacking whomever is beside him at the moment instead of the intended target) and this explains why he is going after the girls likely. I think his prognosis should be quite good once he is neutered: if he isn't worked up by girls in season, there is no reason to fight with other boys and no reason to redirect on the girls or on humans who are present at the time.

Redirected aggression when the target is a human is in no means human aggression. Most dog aggressive dogs are perfectly fine with people and to the person who asked if I would place this dog with a food bowl beside a child, I would say yes 100%. Resource guarding is a completely different issue from dog aggression and is technically not aggression at all.

There is another option to consider for this dog if you cannot place him in a home. Try to contact a trainer for ATF and see if they can train him to work for homeland security. Please e-mail me and I can put you in touch with them.
Traci

I agree completely with Heidi, I would never place this dog. I would give him 6 months , if not steady with food and another dog around a child. I would put him down. Temperament first! It is who they are.

I agree with all the others neuter, keep him a while to make sure he changes. You say safe with kids, but what if a kid got between him and whoever he was going after. I just don't do aggressive at all. No place for one on my property. I have several boys, they never have a bad day with each other, girls in heat or not. Not a Labrador temperament you are talking about.

If that dog of yours is very sweet with humans then I would neuter him asap, enroll him in a basic dog obedience class to get him acclimated to being around other male dogs and dogs in general. This will be under a controlled environment with your instructor. Just let the instructor know ahead of time what his issues are so she is aware.

We've had a few crappy tempered Labradors who we bought from other breeders. These dogs had fear/aggressive issues toward some humans and one young girl who as dog aggressive. I kept all these dogs for a long time until I could get them in classes and or around the situations they were fearful of. This helped them overcome some of their fears or at least desensitized them a bit more. Then I started interviewing families. Sometimes it took 3 or 4 families before we had a good match. All these families had owned Labradors in their life and or had big dog experience. All these dogs I eventually adopted out are still living with their forever families, no incidences what so ever. The key is to take you time and work with the dog on his main issues to desensitize him more. Then keep interviewing families until you find one that undrestand's dog behavior. Observe who these people are with your dog and if they seem to be the type to allow the dog to walk all over them & not take the Alpha role then I would go to the next family. Tell his new family NOT to take him to an off leash park ever.
My dogs are good tempered but I stopped taking them to off leash parks a long time ago due to observing pack fights. Too many people don't have control over their dogs and all it takes is one bad apple to get the whole crowd in that pack mentality. You'll find the best home for your boy so don't worry too much.

since this dog is fine with children and has issues with other dogs, have him neutered. A lot of times this will help greatly! I highly recommend training. I have seen dogs who are dog aggressive completely change with the right training and working with them!! Wait and see how he does after neutering and training and then place him in the appropriate home. I volunteer at the humane society and we place dogs every day that are wonderful with people but have issues with other dogs! They are placed with the right people who have experience and will work with the dog. They don't put them down for this reason!!!
Good Luck! and don't give on this dog!!

I just wanted to echo what everyone else is saying, neuter him and watch him, at least 6 months I'd say. Put him into every situation you can think a pet home would expect him to behave in.

If there's one falter, you cannot in good concience place him.

If you do, you must be 110% honest with the people who are getting him.

No matter what you do from this point forward, you are now legally liable for any injuries this dog will ever cause to any animal or human. You could keep him, place him, sell him, but for his entire life you will be vulnerable to being sued.

To me, an aggressive dog is a miserable dog. It sounds sad, but I believe that the kindest thing to do is to put him out of his misery. And your lawyer would tell you to do it yesterday.

What you have described thus far can be managed or repaired. It is unlikely that simply neutering him will help you manage or repair the problem behavior. I hope that you consult a trainer in your area who has dealt with similar problems and who will evaluate your dog in the flesh under challenging situations.

Amen. I was in a class 15 years ago and had a magnificent looking black male try to attack my black bitch puppy for no reason. I later talked with the gal who owned him, his first time and I mentioned odd since she was a baby and not anywhere near old enough to be coming in heat. Good breeding behind him. I said I would be cautious with him since she had a very young daughter. My gut was just bad about that dog. She made excuses for him and went on her way. Several weeks later same dog took a big chunk out of her daughter's face. Needless to say, the trait was there. She put him down of course.

The disposition of this breed is by far the number one reason it is number one. Culling is hard but essential to eliminate cross dogs. i would wish there could be a tracking system to see where it came from. I'll bet the dam of his litter was cross too.

As someone who has dealt with dog aggression on a professional level, lots of what has been said is worthless. Until you have seen this particular dog, you should keep your advice to yourself. I sure hope none of you "guilty until proven innocent" folks ever serve on a jury.