Has anyone heard of this condition 'Cocker Rage Syndrome' My inlaws have a black Field Cocker. A couple of months ago he attacked his mum (human) and took a chunk out of her wrist. We've all been reading up on it since then and have made him an appointment with a Cocker Rage Guru. He is such a dominent dog and has the run of the house, guards the front door and in my opinion has far too much responsibilty with is causing him great stress. Although this is what I think, has anyone any ideas about things to try with him so I could pass them on?

Thanks

You'll find background info & theories about Rage Syndrome HERE although I would stress it is rare & not generally known to occur in Working Cocker lines (assuming this is what you mean by a Field Cocker), nor is it confined to Cockers either. True Rage has clear symptoms & is not the same as "dominance aggression" - do make sure any trainer/behaviourist you contact is not the type to assume that any problems with aggression in Cockers is down to Rage as this is not the case. It's not sensible to offer advice about serious aggression over the internet as none of us has seen the dog in question or how it behaves - far better for the dog to have a thorough examination by a vet (to rule out any health problems which could be causing the aggression) followed by a referral to behaviourist/trainer experienced in dealing with aggressive behaviour in dogs.

Jane

'Cocker rage guru' - my what a posh title ;)  May I ask who this might be and where are they located?

IMHO Cocker rage does exist, but it's rare, and most cases which present as 'cocker rage' are infact more the result of a smart dog being given too much lee way, and when confronted by a human using 'normal' human body language - standing up, shouldars back, making lots of eye contact - the human finds themselves on the recieving end of plenty of canine warning signals, which they choose to ignore until the dog finds themselves so cornered/threatened that it only has one final course of action.  Most owners, once they have learnt to 'think dog' find themselves living with a different dog......

Thanks for your thoughts so far. The dog in question has been to the vet and has been referred to a 'Cocker Rage Guru' (that was my title I gave him/her) Maybe a Dr Mugford? or someone that works very closely with him/her. The symptoms that I have read about are exactly the same that this dog shows. A glazed blue look in the eye especially. I have two dogs of my own and am very well informed on training, thinking dog etc. I had a run in with him a while ago and that was after turning away from him very slowly and avoiding eye contact and sudden movements. There is definately something not quite right, be it a chemical imbalance. My inlaws have submittted his pedigree to the person they have been referred to as not much is known yet about Cocker Rage. They are trying to see if there is any report cases is his bloodlines.

Hello all,

I have to agree with what has already been said, I would be pretty surprised if it was a working cocker, but there again, I suppose there's always a first time.
Good luck with sorting it out.  There are some pretty good info websites around with details of this - I hope it all works out in the end.

Ali :)

You have to bear in mind that it sounds like this dog has been given the impression he only has to exhibit the slightest agression to get his own way - and once this has been established, even allowing him the chance to intereact normally on a one off won't mean he will take the opportunity - he has to be treated with consistency to allow his learnt behaviour to die down.