Most Dangerous Kinds of Dogs It’s not about the breed!

Karen B. London

, PhD

 | 

March 25, 2016

The least scary sleeping dogs ever Not a week goes by that I don’t get asked what I think are the most dangerous kinds of dogs. If what I do for a living comes up, this question often does, too. And when people say “kind” they are typically talking about breed. When I answer that the breed doesn’t have anything to do with it, people are usually skeptical, but there is consensus in the field of canine behavior about this. Recently, I read a blog post called “The Five Most Dangerous Types of Dogs in the World” that sheds light on what types of dogs are dangerous. It makes clear that we need to pay attention to individual dogs and specific circumstances rather than the dog’s breed. According to this post, the five most dangerous types of dogs are: Untrained dogs. If a dog has no boundaries, and has never been taught how to behave, he is more likely to injure someone, perhaps by accident. Fearful dogs. Dogs who are scared or nervous may panic and act aggressively in order to protect themselves. Being afraid is at the root of more canine aggression than any other factor. Unpredictable dogs. If a dog’s behavior is confusing and does not follow any obvious pattern, it’s easy to be taken off guard by their actions or inadvertently do something that upsets him. Tired or sick dogs. Just like people, dogs are not at their best when they don’t feel well and most would prefer not to be bothered. Dogs don’t have many ways to let us know they want to be left alone. They sometimes resort to a growl, snap or bite, especially if they’ve already tried to walk away and go off by themselves, and that didn’t get the message across. Unfamiliar dogs. Not all dogs consider everyone a friend immediately. Lots of dogs need time to warm up to new people and don’t like to be treated as a long lost friend within five seconds of being introduced.. Treating an unfamiliar dog like your best friend can be off-putting to some and lead to aggressive behavior. If you adore all dogs, it’s hard to remember that the feeling of love at first sight may not always be mutual. There are plenty of dogs in each of these categories that are not dangerous in the slightest, but it makes sense to consider these potential risk factors and act accordingly.

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Karen B. London, PhD, is a Bark columnist and a Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist specializing in the evaluation and treatment of serious behavior problems in the domestic dog.

photo by Yukari/Flickr

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