Lassie, how is that? Scientists have identified the most aggressive dog breeds

Researchers at the University of Helsinki studied 9,000 domestic dogs from 24 breeds to determine which animals are most aggressive towards humans. The results are reported by the Daily Mail.

• Small dogs are more prone to aggression than medium to large dogs. However, due to their small stature, they are usually not perceived as a serious threat, and therefore bad behavior is often overlooked.
• Males are more aggressive than females, and castration does not affect this.
• The experience of the owner is reflected in the behavior of the dog. For beginner dog lovers, animals are more likely to behave aggressively.
• Dogs that live with other dogs are friendlier than the only animal in the family.
• Aggressiveness is directly related to fearfulness: a frightened dog is more likely to snarl and growl. Both qualities are inherited.
• Aggressiveness is often associated with health and age. A bad character can be explained by the fact that the dog is experiencing chronic pain, or by the fact that, due to problems with vision and hearing, he does not immediately notice the appearance of an outsider and therefore is frightened and inadequately reacts sharply. All of this happens more often with older animals.
• Breed is a factor that influences aggressiveness more than any other, with the exception of age. The most aggressive were the Rough Collie, Poodle and Miniature Schnauzer. For zoopsychologists, this is not new: previous studies have shown that collies are characterized by increased fearfulness, and poodles and miniature schnauzers - aggressive behavior towards strangers. The kindest breeds are the Labrador Retriever and the Golden Retriever. For comparison, the collie is, on average, five and a half times more likely to show aggression than the Labrador.

Dog breeds by degree of aggressiveness (from most aggressive to least aggressive)

The list was compiled after studying the behavior of more than 9000 dogs. It is not exhaustive: among the 23 breeds, there were no, for example, Rottweilers, Dobermans and English Bulldogs.

1. Rough collie
2. Miniature poodle
3. Miniature schnauzer
4. German Shepherd
5. Spanish water dog
6. Lagotto romagnolo
7. Chinese crested dog
8. German spitz
9. Coton de tulear
10. Irish Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier
11. Other breeds
12. Welsh corgi pembroke
13. Cairn terrier
14. Border Collie
15. Finnish lapphund
16. Chihuahua
17. Shorthaired collie
18. Jack Russell Terrier
19. Staffordshire bull terrier
20. Sheltie
21. Lopar Reindeer Dog
22. Golden retriever
23. Labrador retriever

The research is published in Scientific Reports.