Case Study: Why veterinary referral matters in complex (and non-complex) behaviour and aggression cases
- 1 day ago
- 4 min read
Turo’s story highlights a critical message for dog owners and professionals alike: when behaviour changes are sudden, severe, and accompanied by aggression, veterinary referral is not optional – it is essential. This is particularly true when medical, hormonal, and emotional factors overlap, and when behavioural intervention alone has not led to meaningful or lasting improvement.
Meet Turo
Turo is a much-loved dog, collected from a breeder 14 weeks of age. From the outset, she showed signs of sensitivity. Within the litter, she was quieter and less interactive, often being clambered over by other puppies. Despite this, she quickly formed a strong bond with her guardian.
In early life, Turo’s behaviour was manageable:
She attended puppy classes, initially struggling with other dogs but gradually gaining confidence.
She learned to socialise and play appropriately.
She enjoyed meeting people and regularly accompanied her guardian to work in a busy volunteer-based environment, where she interacted calmly with many individuals.
At this stage, there were no apparent flags suggesting future aggression.
The Turning Point: Hormones and Behavioural Change
Everything changed when Turo reached sexual maturity.
Her first season was extremely difficult for her. She appeared depressed, physically uncomfortable, and required pain relief. Following this, she experienced a pseudopregnancy, and it was during this period that her behaviour deteriorated dramatically.
Although the overt physical signs of the pseudopregnancy resolved and Turo was subsequently neutered, her emotional state did not recover. Instead, she became:
Chronically anxious
Easily angered
Hyper-vigilant
Increasingly aggressive in situations that had previously been safe and familiar
From this point onwards, Turo was no longer the dog she had been.
Current Presentation: Severe Reactivity and Aggression
Turo now displays high-risk behaviours, including:
Aggression towards people, particularly those approaching her guardian or the home
Barking, lunging, jumping up, and attempting to bite
The need for muzzle use, due to bite risk
Occasional aggressive reactions even towards people she knows
Reactivity towards some dogs
Her behaviour has also generalised into separation anxiety:
Previously able to be left for hours, she now panics when her guardian leaves
Tolerance is limited to around 10 minutes, and even this is inconsistent
Car-based separation (e.g. popping into a shop) is equally challenging
Despite working with trainers, progress has been short-lived and management-heavy, with no long-term resolution.
Why Training Alone Was Not Enough
This case is a clear example of why behaviour cases should not be managed in isolation from veterinary input.
Turo had previously been seen by an influencer type trainer, you know the type, claims a no BS approach, slip lead in hand, and to the untrained eye the occasional shock collar oh and that they need to feed a raw diet. I sigh! And the complete opposite to me. They attempted to address her behaviour without first ensuring:
A full medical investigation
Consideration of hormonal and pain-related contributors
Collaboration with a vet experienced in behavioural medicine
When aggression is sudden, intense, and out of character, it is a red flag for an underlying medical or neurochemical component. Without addressing this, training plans are often destined to fail – or worse, escalate risk.
Understanding the Contributing Factors
Turo’s behaviour is best explained by multiple interacting influences, rather than a single cause.
1. Genetics and Breed Traits
Turo comes from a small gene pool, I am purposefully not naming the breed
2. Learning and Emotional Processing
Turo is highly intelligent and when calm, she learns quickly and engages well.
However, when anxious or angry:
She becomes emotionally stuck
Cognitive processing shuts down
Behaviour cannot be modified in that moment
This results in a reliance on strict management (distance, muzzles, avoidance). Unfortunately, well-meaning members of the public frequently ignore requests for space, approaching her because she ‘looks friendly’. Each aggressive display successfully repels the person, reinforcing the behaviour.
Turo is also chronically hyper-vigilant, rarely fully decompressing. Notably, one of the only times she achieves deep daytime sleep is after a significant aggressive outburst – highlighting how overloaded her nervous system is.
3. Medical and Hormonal Factors
This is where veterinary referral becomes critical.
Turo’s behavioural decline closely followed:
Her first season
A significant pseudopregnancy
Neutering shortly after
This raises concern for a persistent pseudopregnancy state, something that is under-recognised becoming more documented. In similar cases, repeat hormonal treatment can lead to rapid improvement.
Additionally:
Turo experiences hip pain due to joint capsule misalignment
She is on pain relief and undergoing physiotherapy
Pain alone can significantly reduce tolerance and increase irritability, especially in already anxious dogs.
The Importance of Veterinary Collaboration
Turo’s vet has been open to a structured medical trial, including:
Reviewing current medication effectiveness, including treating pseudopregnancy
Reviewing pain relief
Consider the use of anxiolytic medication
This collaborative approach is essential. Medication does not mask behaviour – it can lower the emotional intensity enough for learning and behaviour modification to become possible.
Key Takeaways from Turo’s Case
Sudden aggression following hormonal events should always prompt veterinary investigation
Pain and hormone imbalance can dramatically alter behaviour
Behaviour modification cannot succeed when a dog is chronically anxious, painful, or hormonally dysregulated
Collaborative, multi-disciplinary care offers the best chance for improvement
Final Thoughts
Turo is not a bad dog and this was no due to the guardian being lazy, letting her get away with it. She is a sensitive, intelligent dog whose nervous system has been overwhelmed by a combination of genetics, hormones, pain, and stress.
We are now 6 months on, Turo has made some really huge progress, currently we have a slight relapse, as this is behaviour and not training after all and we do not reside in the world of quick fixes . The current thought is that pseudopregnancy behavioural symptoms can flare at the same time each year. We suspect this might be the case but again collaborative work with her vet is ongoing.
Her case is a powerful reminder that complex behaviour requires complex thinking – and that veterinary referral is not a last resort, but a cornerstone of ethical and effective behaviour support.
