[matese]

Originally Posted by Maximo

Strong arming an aggressive dog is dangerous for humans, and won't solve any problems with the dog.

Sometimes my 2 male Yorkies get out of hand wrestling and get aggressive with each other. I do not physically intervene or restrain them because it can create a dangerous situation for us all. To break them up, I do raise my voice, "Noooo!" and make a very loud noise, sometimes stomping my foot, to snap them out of it. I tell them to sit down and then I sit down or leave the room.

Definitely work on "drop it" and "leave it" for items that your dog should not have. When he does it correctly, praise profusely and give him a reward.

Sounds like he also needs to learn bite inhibition if he is actually snapping on you. If he is air snapping, use the ignore and withdrawing attention tactic. Leave the room and go where he can't follow.

When Max was about 7 months old, I tried the Cesar Milan way for about a week. It was horrible! I know some dogs are more strong-willed than others, but I firmly believe that positive reinforcement and positive energy work so much better. The only negatives I use are withdrawing attention, and making the big noise in dangerous situations that involves more than one dog.

I would worry that the muzzling and physically restraining are creating more negative energy with your dog, leading to more aggression.