Help! Golden retriever showing aggression

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I’m so upset. We have a gorgeous golden retriever rescue (from Turkey) and she’s so sweet most of the time. A lovely dog. But today she has shown some aggression and has bitten my DH. We've found already that she doesn't like to be pulled/encouraged by her collar and has snapped, but today she has been digging in the garden - both of us tried to get her to stop but she really went for us. Then she bit him. Maybe we should not be trying to move her by pulling her collar - maybe she's had a bad experience in the past. If anyone has any insight and advice please tell me! I’m worried.

I think the idea is not to breed from animals with poor temperament.

My dog loves to dig. We let him dig. He's trained but basically we let him get on with dog stuff that makes him happy. It's like having a kid - pick your battles. My dog is amazing off lead, is friendly to all and has great recall. My back lawn is like the Somme however.

Wolfiefan

Rage syndrome is definitely a thing and it has been found in golden retrievers, among other breeds. I don't think they ever confirmed a definite cause, but a common thought is that it is a form of epilepsy and it can be diagnosed by a vet.

True rage syndrome is VERY rare and suspected rage is usually another behavioural problem.

OP as you have children it would be sensible to make a diary of her behaviour and contact a behaviourist, although in the meantime I would try some "fun" retrieving with her, it can't her to keep her mind occupied.

Thanks frilly. I didn't know it had been heard of in goldens. I knew it as rare and with certain colours of cockers only.

We have a 14 month old Goldie boy, my 4th one.
The previous 3 have been very gentle but this one has shown aggression from a very early age on a couple of occasions - always over guarding. It was especially bad with things he had " stolen" . We worked with a behaviourist and we haven't had an issue for months.
We have learnt to read his behaviour and see when he is getting tense and to deal with it appropriately. Last time DH got bitten ( not badly) I could see if was about to happen and told DH to leave him alone, he didn't.
If I ever feel he is a threat to the children he will be rehomed but I don't believe he is and when he has bitten he snaps once and backs . He's never bitten the dc.
It was a real shock for me because I chose the breed as I thought I knew them well.

Hi OP, just wanted to say please make sure your 'behaviourist' is in fact a qualified clinical behaviourist. If they don't insist on a referral from your vet then it's unlikely they're qualified and could cause more harm than good.

Oh blimey the thread has gone feral!

It is very unlikely that your dog has the "rage" . It is extremely far and even more rare in goldies. I have worked with dogs for years and years and seen only one case in a cocker.

Do not worry about dominance and anyone who mentions it or suggests you are causing this - smile sweetly and ignore. It is a very old view that has been discredited years ago.

Hopefully your behaviourist has qualifications and is force free? If so you will already have been given the correct advice.

For the record Tugging is a fantastic game to play with all dogs. It teaches impulse control in the dog, it helps them to bond with you. F

For example if you wanted to stop your dog from digging hold the tug away from the area that your dog was digging call and play tug. One happy do g (No need to growl and bite) one happy owner as dog no longer digging :)

I work in this field so if you need recommendations for a qualified behaviourst feel free to pm.

Good luck and hope the training goes well

Haven't logged on for while so came back to update. Never heard of dog rage! That's very interesting. Peggy is on whole gorgeously sweet but we're wary now if we have to take something from her. A treat normally does the trick. We have a dog behaviourist on board - he's a member of the British Institute of Prof Dog Trainers. Our kennels have worked with him and they speak highly of his work. He's given me some great tips to follow, and he's now doing a report - what he calls an idiots guide - to help us deal with the issues. He spend 2 hours with us and was very thorough and i was impressed with his approach, and the way he observed and interacted with Peggy.

Interestingly, on the tug of war issue - he says it's fine so long as it's us who instigates it - and us who finish it. So she knows who's boss.

We'll see how we go!

Interestingly, on the tug of war issue - he says it's fine so long as it's us who instigates it - and us who finish it. So she knows who's boss.

Hmmmmmm. What other tips has he given you so far?

Not taking things from her mouth - offer a treat to get her to drop.
Time out in pen if she doesn't stop nipping feet (this works)
Not leaving my boys unattended with her
Getting her off lead. Actually, when he was with us he commented that she was like a toddler on haribos! She'd been having about an hour / hour and a half walk a day but i was wary of her being off lead. He rightly said, how can we train her to be off lead if she's not off lead? So i put aside my caution - and now she is pretty much amazing off lead! So she has a good hour off lead in the park in the morning and half an hour so on a big field playing fetch in the evening. And i have to say, she is a different dog. No digging in the garden - in fact hardly goes out!

What i didn't say earlier is that the guy is doing this report, and then we'll have 3 follow up visits from him when he'll help us put his plan into practice.

That is very old fashioned advice. It really doesn't matter who wins a came of tug. The actual act of playing tug mimics dogs cooperating when prey is caught and helping each other tear the prey for eating. The act of tug is the reward in itself. The dog doesn't give a rat's ass who wins.
BIPDT are a bit stuck in the past.

The wariness of tugging games nowadays isn't usually about dominance but more about dogs playing sharing games vs competitive games. So a tug game isn't always ok, but not is it always a bad thing.

Example: if your dog has displayed food aggression, guarding behaviours or 'extreme stubbornness' when you try and get it to do something 'neutral' then it would be best to play more sharing games like fetch. Once it's learnt sharing with you and obeying commands like drop are fun and don't mean a game is over then if you feel it's what you really want you can introduce controlled tuggy games.

Just another point of view as some people had dismissed views that tuggy games may not be ok for your dog right now.

Also I'd say you should concentrate on recall and luring training so that you never have to pull or push your dog to move it, which is never something dog trainers like to see and could affect your bonding with your dog. Be consistent and I'm sure you'll be fine

I agree he's giving you rather old fashioned advice.

With regards to letting her off lead the most sensible (and safest) solution would have been to use a long line attached to a harness so you can give her some freedom and practise recall whilst still maintaining control if things don't quite go right. Obviously just letting her off has worked out fine for you but it's not great advice to just let a rescue dog you've not had for long off the lead if you're concerned about how they will behave.

As well as physical exercise she should be getting plenty of mental stimulation as well. Physical exercise will tire her out for a while but as she gets fitter it'll take more and more. Really getting their brains working can be just as tiring and satisfying for them as physical exercise. Impulse control games are great for this and can have a really positive knock on effect on the rest of the dog's behaviour as well. Scent games, trick training and body awareness exercises are also brilliant ways to both get the dog thinking and build up the bond between you.

I'd also be very careful with long games of fetch. The sudden stopping and turning is quite hard on the joints and obviously GRs can be prone to hip/elbow issues. Sustained periods of nothing but fetch can also really hype a dog up and you may then struggle to calm them down afterwards. As she's a GR doing retrieves of various types rather than fetch would be a really good option and has the benefit of getting her brain working as well as her body.

OP - I have a golden retriever crossed with a poodle and he is very similar in that he has a different indoor and outdoor personality. He also hates being pulled by his collar if outdoors (and yes, he has bitten because of it). He also bites if we try to take things off him outside. I had a behaviourist about 5 years ago and they said he was anxious outdoors hence the change in behaviour. Indoors he typically feels quite secure etc and is the most cuddly dog ever! Usually. I'm now expecting my first child and all the changes are causing his negative behaviours to creep back in so are waiting for his behaviourist to visit again for some more specific advice.

I know I've not given any advice for your situation, but wanted you to know it's not that unusual and you aren't alone. Sounds like you're doing the right thing by getting the behaviourist involved so quickly. All the best.