Vicious Dog Spent His Whole Life Chained – His Reaction When Released Is Incredible

by Top Retriever · Published 8 January · Updated 21 September

Watch his reaction when released (Video)

Aggression in dogs, especially when exhibited by bully breeds or breeds with bad reputations, is far too often attributed back to some inherent fault in the dog. When you encounter a dog that barks at anything and everything and pulls at a chain, do you assume that this particular dog is just a bad apple in the bunch, or do you assume that the dog learned this behavior because of how it was treated and conditioned by humans? The first part of the video feels extremely tense, but make sure to stick around for the absolutely incredible ending!

This video shows footage of a German Shepherd, Alex, that had been chained to a fence for his entire life. The man who approaches was called in to try to help Alex, as he has extensive experience in dealing with dogs just like this one. He knows that Alex is aggressive because he’s been constantly chained up, and is ready to prove that there’s a gentle beast hiding behind the tough exterior. It’s certainly a risky operation, but this dog deserves a second chance, no questions asked. He was so uncontrollable and unapproachable. He barked, snapped, growled, and lunged at the volunteer for over 20 minutes. Alex was completely on the defense and hostile, it appeared that he needed a lot of work and behavior therapy before he would ever be suitable for adoption.

The massive transformation!

At first, there seemed to be no way to get close enough to him so they could remove the oppressive chain he was tethered to. After working slowly and cautiously they eventually gained enough ground and trust to remove the restraint. They got Alex in the truck and drove him away from everything he used to know. Within 20 minutes the dog changed completely, and for the better. He quieted down and became so calm that they even felt safe enough to let him out of the truck and pet him. It seemed that all Alex needed was to be taken off the chain and shown some love and affection. Watch the video till the very end and check out the massive transformation of Alex.

Dogs can develop aggression for many reasons: there’s fear-motivated aggression, protective aggression, territorial aggression, and frustration aggression, just to name a few. Alex is probably exhibiting aggressive behavior for a combination of reasons: partially because he is tied up and is frustrated because of it, partially because he’s defending the territory that he believes to be his own, and I’m quite confident in assuming that some of this aggression is learned from an owner who wanted a guard dog more than a companion. When you really consider this dog’s circumstances from every angle, it’s clear that he was completely disadvantaged from the first.