10 month old pup - starting to growl & nip :(

[elmofan]

Any advice would be great thanks , pup has started to growl & snap at myself & dc's {not dh} an example is = He often takes clothes off a radiator & lies on it under the kitchen table & if we go to take the clothes off of him he will growl & has so far bitten ds once [just a nip left a welt type mark on hand but didn't break the skin] , Other times we can get the clothes back without any problems . Last night when i was trying to put him in his crate at bedtime he jumped up onto the couch in the playroom but when i tried to get him off the couch{tempting him with a slice of ham put into his crate} he snapped at my hand , but i sensed he was going to do it & pulled my hand back just in time .
He is spoiled rotten by Dh in particular & i feel maybe pup now feels like he is king of the castle when dh is not here . Any tips on how to deal with this ? We all adore him & want to get past this . TIA

[midori1999]

As far as a dog is concerned, what is in it's mouth is it's property and if you try and tak eit from him, he may react as your dog is. Great that he is growling as warning and very important no to tell him off for that.

I would stop putting clothes on the radiators or where he can get them, but if he does take things, do not allow the children to take them back from him, but you offer him a nice treat as a 'swap' for what he has taken.

Use a treat to call him down off the sofa and then reward him when he is on the ground with praise and the treat. If that doesn't work, you can also keep a houseline on him (get them in Pets at Home, he must be supervised with it on) indoors so that you can safely physically remove him from the sofa if you have to. Again, do reward him with a treat when he gets down, even if you have to use the houseline.

[elmofan]

Thanks midori , last night when he snapped at me he didn't growl first , he was staring at my hand while i tried to distract him with the meat in my other hand but he wouldn't stop looking at the hand that was reaching for his collar iykwim then when i was just about to take hold of him[giving lots of "good boy" type of talk] he snapped . NO after he bit ds they are now not allowed to go near pup when he has anything . They call me or dh . I'll look into a houseline as I've never heard of them . Trying to swap whatever he has taken with food doesn't work with him tbh , he is very stubborn.

[CalamityKate]

What Midori said - also, dogs don't "try" to bite you. Their reflexes are about 45 times faster than ours. He might not have growled, but the air snap was as much a warning as a growl. He didn't get you, because he didn't want to. If he'd wanted to, he would have

[Madsometimes]

For me, it was no clothes on radiators downstairs until my dog was 16 months old. Soft clean clothes were just too tempting for him to make a bed with!

I'm sure that some people have better trained dogs...

[midori1999]

If swapping isn't working it is probably as he percieves the 'stolen' item as higher in value that what you are offering him, so you just need to up your game.

Something smellier might work, a piece of black pudding or a bit of salami. Failing that, he might swap for a toy or a game of tug or 'fetch'.

If he growls then try something else, but don't push him as it could eventually make him worse.

Obviously avoid grabbing him by his collar at any time if he doesn't like it. You can use a long lead instead of a houseline, or even a length of thin rope. Just attach it to his collar and make sure it is long enough for you to stay out of the way of his teeth if he objects. I would also probably work on making his crate more tempting so he is less inclined to get on the sofa in the first place. Maybe tie a toy in the back of it so he can only get it in the crate, give him his meals in the crate if you don't already, leave odd treats in his crate for him to find, put him in there for any kongs or bones etc. Also, make sur ehe gets plenty fo attention at tims he is just laying on the floor and minding his own business, just make sure you don't startle him.

[elmofan]

lol i am always looking for ways to out smart him & you should see the look he gives me when he realizes he's been duped

He gets his favourite toy & treats put into his crate every night at bedtime , but its not working anymore , [maybe he's bored with ham & chicken lol] he has gone through 4 new duvet type beds so far by chewing them up or ripping them to shreds during the night .
As for attention well he gets more of that than i do in this household
He spends his day following me & dh around the house & in the evening lies at our feet getting rubs & cuddles until we go to put him to bed then he acts up on me .
Oh and he gets two walks each day , every morning he gets off his lead in our local park & runs /plays fetch etc & in the evenings he goes for a 20 minute walk with me or dh .
I'm just worried that his nipping will become more serious

[fishie]

Ooh can I ask too? Got snarled at by 6mo dog yesterday when I said no to digging and various other canine horticultural crimes - puppy has hitherto had garden to himself during winter.

Is it good then, to be snarled and growled at? Obvo better than being bitten but that isn't really a problem, although he does mouth ds (5yo) terribly. Can we expect this to go away?

I have had much meeker dogs before so not encountered this, also they were mine rather than DH's but he's home based so is main leader. Elmofan ours doesn't do it to DH either.

[minimu1]

elmofan can I be really honest and tell you the vibe I get from your threads. I come across this a lot with clients I meet.

You have been given some very solid and clear advice but your reaction is that it doesn't work anymore or that you do it already.

What you very carefully need to look at is, are you exactly doing what has been suggested or only sometimes or not giving enough high quality treats.

If you do nothing you will have a major problem on your hand and a very confused unsettled dog.

What type of dog is he?
He is definately not trying to be King of the castle but may be given different signals from you DH and yourself.

If he only gets two walks a day and not good quality interaction apart from that he will go self employed. It does sound like he is a chewer and this could be his age or that he is stressed and unsure.

1.Make sure he has a quiet area and that he crate is put in there. Feed him in his crate for every meal and drop titbits in there during the day. I would give him a hour chill out time in there after his walk in the morning.

2.If he is having an issue with his collar he at some time is realising that hands coming towards him are bad things so either that they prevent him doing things, are threatening, or take things away.

1. To change this just start giving him yummy treats bend down do not go towards him and offer him the treat- liver cake, a bit of meat, or cheese or hotdog not kibble.
   

4 Do not rush this go gently and let him see hands are good. I would like to see you be able to add food to his food bowl but only you can judge whether this is safe to do this or not - DO not rush this.

1. Definitely follow the advice above and remove the clothes from the radiators in the rooms that he can get to.
   

1. Give him a really boring toy and then say swap and give him a nice titbit do not attempt to take away the toy. If he does not offer to move from the toy throw the titbit away on the floor do not take away the toy. He will learn that good things come from you not negative.
   

1. Eventually you will get to the stage where you can swap and he will readily give you the item he has for the titbit.
   

1. If he does growl give up and move away if he is uncomfortable the only option left to him will be to bite.
   

All of the above does work and if you feel it is not working for you do get in a trainer from APDT to help you. This could become a major issue but with the correct handling can also become a non event and you can all move on. However it will not go away on its own and will need some consistency and hardwork from you to start with

[elmofan]

Thanks Minimu , yes i can see that dh & i are different in our approach with him tbh dh talks to him like a baby whereas i talk to him in short gently commands when i want him to do something & he is normally very good with obedience . Yes good point i do think he associates my hand reaching in to him to take something away from him therefore maybe he feels threatened . He is an English springer spaniel [field type] .
I also think dh gives him too many treats throughout the day that when i want pup to go to bed in his crate he is not bothered by food . The clothes on the radiator issue will be a bit harder to combat as i can only use the radiators downstairs in the house to dry clothes on as my dc's are asthmatic & can not have damp clothes in their bedrooms but i will try to sort something out .
Thanks i will let dh read your post when he gets home from work & see if we can encourage pup to go into his crate without any issue's tonight .

[minimu1]

As a springer I know he is still young but I would up his exercise. 20 mins for him is just a warmup. I would be giving him at least 45 mins twice a day off lead running.

I understand about how some things have to carry on in the house re the washing! Would you be able to put it on radiators when he is in his crate or just confine him to one room. This stage will pass honest!

Don't give him treats for nothing - he has to earn them so if he earns them all from you DH then cut down on his actual food at meal times. I don't ever give my puppies a proper meal they have to earn all their food to start with.

[elmofan]

His morning off lead run is for an hour or so depending on the weather , either in the park or on the beach [he loves the water] but yes he only gets a 20 minute walk in the evenings & is kept on his lead with this walk so i will try to up that walk & hopefully he will be tired & be happy to go into his crate at bed time .
pups crate is in the playroom which is away from the rest of the house , do you think that is maybe why he does not want to go into it as maybe he has separation anxiety ?

[CalamityKate]

I used to think my dog wasn't overly food orientated - until I stopped feeding her from a bowl and made sure she ONLY got fed as a reward for doing stuff.

Amazing how much more exciting/high value a bit of kibble becomes when they only get it at training times