Possessive aggression refers to an aggressive behavior where someone becomes aggressively protective or territorial over something they believe belongs to them. This could involve defending their possessions, territory, or asserting control over someone or something they consider as theirs.
Full definition
Problems like resource guarding (also
called possessive aggression), touch or handling issues, phobias, separation anxiety, and aggression toward people or other animals require intensive treatment plans and individual attention from a qualified behaviorist.
While in territorial aggression the dog protects mostly what he perceives as his property,
in possessive aggression the dog is protective of food, toys or a special person.
If you can't find a behaviorist in your area, you can hire a Certified Professional Dog Trainer (CPDT) instead - but be sure to determine whether she or he has professional training and extensive experience in successfully working
with possessive aggression.
Possessive aggression is protecting valuables such as food dishes or toys.
Male and female dogs are equally prone to
possessive aggression, and this type of aggression is common in both puppies and adults.
Resistance to handling,
possessive aggression, territorial vocalization, excessive reactivity and many forms of fear might not emerge until the dog is older.
Protective, Territorial and
Possessive Aggression Protective, territorial and possessive aggression are all very similar, and involve the defense of valuable resources.
They are likely to exhibit other forms of aggression related to the control of «resources» such as property (territorial aggression), people (protective aggression), and objects (food related aggression and / or
possessive aggression).