Tag Archives: aggression

Bodyworks: Physically Calming Yourself

Yesterday, we took a look at how anger works in the body — what it does to your hormones, your body language, your heart rate, and more. Anger isn’t just a mental state; it has an impact on the whole body. Calming down can be a whole body process, too. The instinctive reaction to anger is aggression. Anger is one way the body and mind respond to threats — like yesterday’s example of the reckless driver. If someone cuts you off in traffic, you may get mad because they have endangered your life. Maybe that anger makes you drive a … Continue reading →

Bodyworks: the Physical Side of Anger

Some people have a shorter fuse than others. Some people seem to spend most of the time ticked off about something. Anger is a normal, healthy emotional state — but it also has a physical impact on the body. Anger can change the body in many different ways: Heart rate can increase Blood pressure can rise Facial expression and body language can change — the face may get flushed, the jaw may clench, the arms may raise. Hormone levels change Perspiration can increase Blood flow to the hands may increase in preparation to fight Researchers have observed a pattern of … Continue reading →

Is it Okay for a Parent to Encourage Kids to Hit?

Earlier today, I wrote a blog about how many of us might be concerned that our children are violent and mean because of their behaviors. After I posted this article, I read a few more about bullying that we have here on the Families.com site and I was surprised at what I found—there were a few where parents actually recommended encouraging their child to hit other kids, retaliate and strike back physically when bullied. I thought this could be an interesting conversation. In this day and age, is it really okay and reasonable for parents to encourage their children to … Continue reading →

Is My Child Really Mean?

Biting, scratching, hair-pulling and general tantrums and tussles—what parent does not wonder if this is typical preschool behavior or if their child really is mean or a bully? It can be overwhelmingly upsetting when these aggressive behaviors appear and a parent has every right to worry about whether it is behaviors that will be outgrown, or whether the child really does have a mean streak. As parents, we know that aggression and violence are not to be tolerated. It can be surprising when a toddler or preschool starts using these aggressive behaviors in the home, day care or school situation. … Continue reading →

When Slapping Becomes a Problem

We have talked about biting as a young child’s issue here in the parenting blog, but we have not really spent much time talking about slapping. At least I have not written much about children who slap as a way of reacting to what is going on, trying to get what they want, expressing anger and aggression, or bullying other children. What does slapping mean and what can be done about it? I think that slapping can show up around the same time that biting does. I also believe that if children are raised in a home where the adults … Continue reading →

Dealing with a “Hot Headed” Client or Customer

Not everyone we deal with in our home businesses is going to be pleasant and easy-going—sooner or late we will find ourselves having to work with someone who is more argumentative, passionate, or what one might call “hot headed.” Should we just avoid or eliminate anyone who is incredibly hot headed, or are there ways to work with these super-passionate people? One of the things I have learned is that there are different kinds of “hot headed”—there is the angry, negative, argumentative person, but there are also people who are reactionary, and those who feel really passionate about things and … Continue reading →

Fence Fighting

What is fence fighting? Picture this: two dogs in a backyard, standing at the fence. They see something on the other side — maybe a squirrel, or a cat, or another dog. They’re desperate to see/sniff/chase/interact with that animal. The two dogs bark and bark and bark and finally turn and bark at each other — sometimes resulting in a fight. Lally and Moose were fence fighting just this morning. They were sitting at the sliding glass door to the patio when a black cat came by. (Just my luck, right?) We had ourselves a big, loud barkathon (at 8 … Continue reading →

Aggression at Home: Handling

Being a canine good citizen starts at home. So if your dog growls at or snaps at a family member, it will help you to figure out why. Many dogs threaten family members for two reasons: the dog may be guarding something or may not want to be handled in a particular way. For example, my dog Miko always growled at a particular friend of mine. She would try to pet him, and he would growl every time. The problem was that she was trying to pet Miko on the top of his head — and he didn’t like that. … Continue reading →

The Pets Blog Week in Review for May 21-27

Delivered for your reading pleasure is another installment of the Pets Blog Week in Review. Below you’ll find all the topics Aimee and I covered the previous week. Monday, May 21 Poor Aimee, Moose and Lally! They just arrive in their new town, find a great dog park, and what happens? Poor Moose gets attacked! Aimee tells all about it in You Should Have Seen the Other Guy? This incident also sparked her to write about dog aggression in general. The days of aggression in my household (except mine is cat-based) might be nearing an end as there have been … Continue reading →

If A Dog Is Aggressive Towards You

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Thousands of dog bites are reported each year; just as many may go unreported. If a dog is acting aggressively towards you, here’s what you can do to protect yourself from a bite. Different things can make a dog bite: fear, food guarding, neglect, abuse, or a simple lack of training and socialization. Watch for various signs of aggression, like growling and snarling, snapping, flattened ears, bared teeth, or barking. If a dog is threatening you: Stay still. Moving objects and limbs can activate the prey instinct — a dog is naturally wired to chase things in motion. Stay calm. … Continue reading →