what to do when a puppy growls/snarls at you

LoopyLolly88

We have a lucher he's 11/12 weeks old & was wondering what sort of punishment should be done if he growls. He growled at my son for rubbing his head & also growled at me the other day as he was chewing a cable so i pushed his head away & he growled at me i then tapped him on the bum & growled again tbh scared me. Then tonight he was laying on sofa & snarled at my son when he rubbed him & when i went to get him off sofa to put him outside he snarled at me too,freaked me out cant believe im afraid of a puppy!! What can i do to stop this? Our 2 other dogs were never like this as puppies.

scudzilla

This thread is gonna be fun :rolleyes::rolleyes:

The way i see it, the pup is testing you out, a stern voice, a loud NO, then throw him either out the back or in a cage, whatever you have. He has to learn you're the boss and you won't be taking this crap from him.

LoopyLolly88

I should mention kids are never left alone with the dog. Thanks for your reply for some reason he only does it when oh is gone out.

tk123

Assuming he doesn't have any aches or pains (he's 'snarled' twice when you went near his head?) say No/Enough/Bold etc (we say 'too bad' lol ) and put him out for a few mins. You need to be consistent with it and the message will soon sink in. If you're worried about him mouthing when you're taking him from the room leave a lead/house line etc on him and just lead him out with it.

Take a look on youtube etc for leave it/take it - it's a simple command to teach them and just a few mins a day will give him a really solid leave command from it which will come in really handy when he goes to take something he shouldn't.
Stop smacking/tapping him because he's going to start associating him getting touched by you to him feeling pain which I'm sure is the last thing you want. He's a puppy leaning the rules and just needs some guidance from you - he's not trying to assert dominance or any of that kind of rubbish.

Also maybe think of a crate if he's eating wires on you

EDIT - also lots of dogs get a fright if you touch them when they're asleep - not just your guy. An empty coke bottle rolled off the couch last week onto my sleeping dog and he got a terrible fright! Funny now but I felt very guilty lol!

scudzilla

LoopyLolly88 wrote: »

I should mention kids are never left alone with the dog. Thanks for your reply for some reason he only does it when oh is gone out.

taking it the pup is a dog and your OH is male, i reckon he is definately trying to push his luck, as the alpha is out, he's probably seeing a chance for him to step up, sure someone else here will have an idea about what to do, told you what i'd do and that's worked fine with any little growlers we've had over the years

Fuh Q

When he growls, you growl louder.
Be bigger and louder than he is and move towards him in a threatening manner, if this does not work separate him from you and your other dogs for a long time out.
You need to show him that he is not pack leader, he is trying to obtain dominance.
When my dog a only a couple of months old and she was misbehaving I would bark in the loudest but lowest deepest bark I could do, the idea is to sound like a bigger dog than the pup is. When I done this my pup would drop her ears and move away.
You need to associate your dogs behavior with a negative outcome weather it is a time out, a bigger more dominant bark from you, spray water in his face or whatever you find works.
My pup was plying with me and bit me hard so I bit her back, it didnt happen again.
Dont get frustrated,it can take time.

3ndahalfof6

Not every dog turns out to be lovely, (like many humans) warning signs are exactly that and you seem to be noticing some at an early stage, if it continues you might have to make a difficult decision, but in the long run it will be the right decision.

tk123

3ndahalfof6 wrote: »

if it continues you might have to make a difficult decision, but in the long run it will be the right decision.

You're dead right - training your dog can be difficult at times but will be the right decision in the long run.

LoopyLolly88

3ndahalfof6 wrote: »

Not every dog turns out to be lovely, (like many humans) warning signs are exactly that and you seem to be noticing some at an early stage, if it continues you might have to make a difficult decision, but in the long run it will be the right decision.

Thats what im afraid of,any pups ive been around or had never growled etc deffo dont wanna risk my kids getting bit or me for that matter,never been bit by a dog & certainly dont want to either.

The Bishop Basher

Just a small thing but I wouldn't allow a pup on the sofa for starters. That's a right our dogs have to earn. A cuddle is fine but not using it as a bed. Only a small thing but its one way to show the pup that the humans in the house are boss. Lots of little things like this add up quickly and set the tone for the pup. Just my 2 cents.

Sound of Silence

3ndahalfof6 wrote: »

Not every dog turns out to be lovely, (like many humans) warning signs are exactly that and you seem to be noticing some at an early stage, if it continues you might have to make a difficult decision, but in the long run it will be the right decision.

The dogs that don't turn out to be lovely are the ones who simply haven't been trained correctly (or at all).

This boisterous behaviour that the OP's dog has shown should not be viewed as some disturbing display of innate viciousness, but rather should be viewed as an opportunity for the OP to mold her dog's behavior for the better.

LoopyLolly88

Thanks for the replys. Am hoping it wont happen again but if it does he'll be told no & put outside.

LoopyLolly88

Swanner wrote: »

Just a small thing but I wouldn't allow a pup on the sofa for starters. That's a right our dogs have to earn. A cuddle is fine but not using it as a bed. Only a small thing but its one way to show the pup that the humans in the house are boss. Lots of little things like this add up quickly and set the tone for the pup. Just my 2 cents.

His bed is on the floor but sometimes gets up on sofa for cuddles etc doesnt sleep there all the time but think ill stop him from sleeping on sofa.

3ndahalfof6

Sound of Silence wrote: »

The dogs that don't turn out to be lovely are the ones who simply haven't been trained correctly (or at all).

This boisterous behaviour that the OP's dog has shown should not be viewed as some disturbing display of innate viciousness, but rather should be viewed as an opportunity for the OP to mold her dog's behavior for the better.

I wont disagree with you on that, sometimes a dog will take to one person and decide that is the only person they want around them,

I am not saying that is the case here but I think the OP is right to be worried, it would be stupid not to be, especially with young children involved,

I am sure the OP will do everything she can to fix this problem but at what stage do you realize nothing is working, do you leave it till the dog does bite and then say, I knew this would happen but I gave the dog the benefit of doubt.

barbiegirl

Just remember outside for no more than 30 seconds to a minute. You attach his training lead to him when he's inside. If he does something he shouldn't you say a command, like that's it. Then you put him the other side of a door, trailing the lead through the crack and shut the door. Count to 30 let him back in. Any longer and he won't know what he's been out out for. That is how you deal with all unwanted behaviour. Give a warning like enough or no, if he ignores time out. It works really well.
Second in relation to growling, snapping etc it is not in itself bad. It is the puppy saying I don't like that stop. You have to teach him to like it. So for example our guy hated being picked up. As he's small kids are constantly trying to pick him up.so we keep picking him up at home and treating him as we do it. He still doesn't like it but doesn't snap anymore.
Also are you sure these are snarls and not play time puppy growls. He could be more vocal than your current dogs. Our eldest dog sounds like she's killing you when she is totally soft mouthed.
He's a baby and I doubt being vicious, you need to teach him the rules, gently and forget all the horse **** about dominance.

LoopyLolly88

We have him 2 weeks now got him from an animal rescue he was very nervous to begin with but has come out of his shell,he's very quiet complete opposite to our other dogs when they were pups.

barbiegirl

3ndahalfof6 wrote: »

I am sure the OP will do everything she can to fix this problem but at what stage do you realize nothing is working, do you leave it till the dog does bite and then say, I knew this would happen but I gave the dog the benefit of doubt.

Not at 12 weeks and not until you've talked to a qualified and recommended behaviourist.

3ndahalfof6

barbiegirl wrote: »

Not at 12 weeks and not until you've talked to a qualified and recommended behaviourist.

I do think this is what the OP was looking for, debate is good it can bring us to a result,

I was only trying to open it up, I knew there would be discourse to my views but I am not knowledgeable on these matters, information is gold.

LoopyLolly88

Thanks again for all the replys hopefully the advice ive been given will work.

Whispered

scudzilla wrote: »

taking it the pup is a dog and your OH is male, i reckon he is definately trying to push his luck, as the alpha is out, he's probably seeing a chance for him to step up, sure someone else here will have an idea about what to do, told you what i'd do and that's worked fine with any little growlers we've had over the years

Load of rubbish TBH. OP the pup is NOT testing because the "Alpha" is out. Step up? Seriously. Even IF and it's a very big "IF" dogs do test their owners, at 12 weeks old he's a baby.

Fuh Q wrote: »

When he growls, you growl louder.
Be bigger and louder than he is and move towards him in a threatening manner, if this does not work separate him from you and your other dogs for a long time out.
You need to show him that he is not pack leader, he is trying to obtain dominance.

No he's not trying to obtain dominance? Where did you learn this from? OP please do not resort to threathening your dog. It destroys trust and is not at all necessary.

Fuh Q wrote: »

When my dog a only a couple of months old and she was misbehaving I would bark in the loudest but lowest deepest bark I could do, the idea is to sound like a bigger dog than the pup is. When I done this my pup would drop her ears and move away.

A quick "NO" has the same effect, no need to go around barking like a dog. Your dog is a lot more intelligent than you give her credit for. She knows you're not a dog, and your "bark" is not a dog bark, so means nothing beyond you making a loud noise.

Fuh Q wrote: »

You need to associate your dogs behavior with a negative outcome weather it is a time out, a bigger more dominant bark from you, spray water in his face or whatever you find works.

Time outs work brilliantly for a lot of dogs. As above, the bark has no meaning to your dog beyond it being a loud noise so a loud "no" or similar will suffice and be less likely to worry anybody who might hear you

Fuh Q wrote: »

My pup was plying with me and bit me hard so I bit her back, it didnt happen again.

So you play with your puppy, a young animal who has not learned bite inhibition yet, allowed her to get too excited, then you physically punish her for that excitement?

OP I would say you could do with advice from someone qualified to give it as that much growling is a bit worrying. To give proper advice on your case the pup would have to be seen.

I would check to make sure that there is nothing physical wrong with the puppy, no pains or anything that might make him a bit off form.

Rather than move him off the couch, or away from the cable, call him away and give him a treat for coming to you. It's much easier to train when your dog wants to work with you rather than feeling like you're constantly butting heads and giving out. It can be very frustrating when you feel like it's you against them.

I second TK123's suggestion of looking for "take it and leave it" videos on youtube. I particularly like "kikopup's" videos, but there are loads of other good trainers who work with positive reinforcement rather than rank reduction and outdated dominance theory.

Good luck!

barbiegirl

Accepted :-). I can recommend very highly Emmeline in citizen canine for anyone in the Dublin, Wicklow area. Always look for recommendations for a behaviourist and ignore/run from anyone who starts with dominance, choke collars, electric shocks etc.
We adopted a 5 month old ball of trouble who was hard work. He was aggressive if he didn't like things and very wary. Now he grumbles if he doesn't like anything, we then know he's unhappy, but he trusts us and he doesn't snap or growl anymore. Important things like being picked up we pushed he had to be desensitized to this,. The truth is he is now nearly two years later a dote of a little man who loves cuddles, kids etc.
It takes hard work to own a dog, especially a rescue no matter how young. You have to be committed to training them and putting the time in. They aren't mind readers and don't speak human.

Whispered

+1 for Emmaline!

Knockout_91

My dog growls whenever he's in a mood. He's a golden retriever. If he wants to go on a walk and I'm taking too long to get ready he'll stare at me and growl. What do I do? I growl back until we're both there growling at one another looking like two freaks !

DBB

Lol Barbiegirl, when you outlined that particular Time Out technique, I knew you'd had the benefit of Emmaline's advice!
OP, you have been given some super advice here, specifically from Barbiegirl, tk123, and Whispered. Everything they have posted is based on what is now known to be how to teach dogs most effectively: the science of dog training has developed hugely in the past ten years, and a properly qualified behaviourist, and indeed owners who've gone to the trouble to educate themselves, now know that the likes of the dominance nonsense posted by some here is a big, outdated, red-herring.

To those who posted this harmful, damaging, downright wrong guff about dominance theory, growling at your dog, squirting it with water, you could do with having a read of www.dogwelfarecampaign.co.uk, a great resource for those trying to understand why dominance theory has been disproved, and why qualified and/or educated people will not entertain this hocus-pocus any more, all on the one site for your convenience. Dog training and behaviour has transcended the ramblings of some unqualified dog-botherer on the TV.

OP, this has nothing to do with your dog trying to take the place of your OH when he goes out, this has nothing to do with the pup showing you who's boss. Growling when you try to move him is one of many forms of resource guarding. This is a dog trying to keep something that he likes. Humans do the same thing. But it's not dominance. It's pushing his luck, but that's not the same thing: children do this sort of thing all the time... but you never hear anyone call them dominant, do you?!
As I've posted many, many times before, if a dog's motivation was to dominate us and gain some sort of world supremacy, we just could not keep them as pets. They would be an utter nightmare, and a danger to live with, on many, many levels.

OP, this problem is a difficult one to advise on via this medium. There is a lot of subtlety in what's happening before your pup growls, there are as yet unresolved reasons for why your pup is growling at all, and there are other things you reveal in your post that make me worried that you're not going to get on top of this problem without help. I'm a little concerned that a rescue gave such a nervous pup to a family with kids... but I don't know the full details so will comment no further.

Would you consider getting professional help? I think you need to do so as soon as you possibly can: if you're in Dublin, Wicklow, Wexford, Carlow areas, the above-mentioned Emmaline, who is fab, can help you. But if you're not in these areas, there may be someone else who can help you: just let us know a rough geographical location... you have to be really careful when choosing a behaviourist as it is, as yet, unregulated, and anybody can call themselves by the title, but are little more than cowboys chancing their arms, whose advice is as harmful, and just plain wrong, as some of that given above. But some are the real deal, and well worth the investment.

LoopyLolly88

DBB wrote: »

Lol Barbiegirl, when you outlined that particular Time Out technique, I knew you'd had the benefit of Emmaline's advice!
OP, you have been given some super advice here, specifically from Barbiegirl, tk123, and Whispered. Everything they have posted is based on what is now known to be how to teach dogs most effectively: the science of dog training has developed hugely in the past ten years, and a properly qualified behaviourist, and indeed owners who've gone to the trouble to educate themselves, now know that the likes of the dominance nonsense posted by some here is a big, outdated, red-herring.

To those who posted this harmful, damaging, downright wrong guff about dominance theory, growling at your dog, squirting it with water, you could do with having a read of www.dogwelfarecampaign.co.uk, a great resource for those trying to understand why dominance theory has been disproved, and why qualified and/or educated people will not entertain this hocus-pocus any more, all on the one site for your convenience. Dog training and behaviour has transcended the ramblings of some unqualified dog-botherer on the TV.

OP, this has nothing to do with your dog trying to take the place of your OH when he goes out, this has nothing to do with the pup showing you who's boss. Growling when you try to move him is one of many forms of resource guarding. This is a dog trying to keep something that he likes. Humans do the same thing. But it's not dominance. It's pushing his luck, but that's not the same thing: children do this sort of thing all the time... but you never hear anyone call them dominant, do you?!
As I've posted many, many times before, if a dog's motivation was to dominate us and gain some sort of world supremacy, we just could not keep them as pets. They would be an utter nightmare, and a danger to live with, on many, many levels.

OP, this problem is a difficult one to advise on via this medium. There is a lot of subtlety in what's happening before your pup growls, there are as yet unresolved reasons for why your pup is growling at all, and there are other things you reveal in your post that make me worried that you're not going to get on top of this problem without help. I'm a little concerned that a rescue gave such a nervous pup to a family with kids... but I don't know the full details so will comment no further.

Would you consider getting professional help? I think you need to do so as soon as you possibly can: if you're in Dublin, Wicklow, Wexford, Carlow areas, the above-mentioned Emmaline, who is fab, can help you. But if you're not in these areas, there may be someone else who can help you: just let us know a rough geographical location... you have to be really careful when choosing a behaviourist as it is, as yet, unregulated, and anybody can call themselves by the title, but are little more than cowboys chancing their arms, whose advice is as harmful, and just plain wrong, as some of that given above. But some are the real deal, and well worth the investment.

Thank you i am very greatfull for the advice. The rescue said he wasnt around people so was quiet nervous & wont take long for him to get used to us.im in wexford,when i get on laptop ill have a look at who you recommened.

Pup growled once earlier today was put out back straight away,not excatly sure why he growled tbh he was in his bed & my son was sat on sofa & he growled. When he came back in he jumped up on sofa told him no & to get down but just ignorned me looking all sad lol so instead of me moving him off the sofa i got him to come to me by bribing him with some ham & into his bed.