Rescue greyhound growling at us when we come in the room

[smokeorfire]

We have taken on a rescue greyhound, aged 3, and he's been with us for 10 days now. Without any particular problems.

But then this evening he growled at me when I went in the lounge where his bed is, twice, then did the same to my partner - actually standing up and blocking his way into the room.

I'm shaking and frightened. We've just taken him for a walk round the block and left his muzzle on.

Until now he's been happy, although today he did seem a bit out of sorts. I don't know if we've stressed him out somehow and didn't read the signs or if we've done something wrong / stupid that's made him think the lounge belongs to him.

Advice would be very very welcome. I'm genuinely frightened right now of a dog who's been gentle, accepting, contented up till now. Thank you.

@Hyacinth88

We have had a rescue greyhound and they mouthba lot Before I read your update I was going to say I would use a spray water and a firm No when any bad behaviour he is trying to assert Dominance

Please don’t do this, it’s total rubbish

I think greyhounds are lovely dogs but ex-racers need a specialist home imo
Quite.
I do hope what I put doesn’t come across as greyhound hating because I don’t at all, our neighbour has one and he is a gorgeous boy, I just feel that they often aren’t as easy as they are usually made out and new owners then get a very unpleasant shock and it isn’t fair on the dog who then goes back to rescue.

Anyway, I am so sorry OP, it must be so stressful

@cupsofcoffee

I wish MN would stop recommending ex racers as easy, perfect, problem free pets frankly.

Me too. There are, sadly, so many threads like this about ex-racers. The problems range from constant accidents, biting, guarding and severe reactivity to other breeds.

I think greyhounds are lovely dogs but ex-racers need a specialist home imo.

Yes, a lovely retired couple near me got one. The first time they took it out it attacked and killed a small dog. Unfortunately the owners also injured it trying to get her to leave the dog and she ended up terrified of them too. They have kept her and have spent a small fortune on try to rehab her but she has to be muzzled while out and is scared of most dogs. It’s not the life her owners envisaged they would be giving her when they took her one. Rescue Greyhounds can be great but they can also have big challenges

“The first time they took it out it attacked and killed a small dog.”

Ex racing greyhounds are usually muzzled and on lead unless somewhere secure though...precisely because if things like that.

OP look up trigger stacking, as well - it helped me understand how stressful situations multiply for dogs until little things can trigger big reactions. Maybe it's too early for walks, and he just needs to be left to settle in somewhere quiet?

@JesusInACabbageVan

OP look up trigger stacking, as well - it helped me understand how stressful situations multiply for dogs until little things can trigger big reactions. Maybe it's too early for walks, and he just needs to be left to settle in somewhere quiet?

OP sorry to derail and I wish you the best luck in the world.

@JesusInACabbageVan Hi! Are you in Spain? I have a lovely rescue Podenco. She can be a bit lively on walks if she spies something. Do you have any advice about that?

Sorry again for derail OP and if I were you, I would see how you feel on the morning, sleep on it.

@tabulahrasa

“The first time they took it out it attacked and killed a small dog.”

Ex racing greyhounds are usually muzzled and on lead unless somewhere secure though...precisely because if things like that.

Well it is now They were told by The Rescue that it wasn’t necessary

I would take it back to the rescue, I had a puppy that resource guarded. Despite extensive work with an excellent behaviourist, it escalated until we had all been bitten and were scared of the dog.
He was rehomed to a house with several dogs and no children.
We simply were not the right house/ owners for him.

“They were told by The Rescue that it wasn’t necessary”

I assumed it was the rescue that had mucked up, rather than that they were told that and just ignored it tbh.

It’s really pretty rare that ex racers are ok with small animals. (Including small dogs)

I wish MN would stop recommending ex racers as easy, perfect, problem free pets frankly
Oh good yes, me too. I used to comment every time someone suggested it but I’ve almost stopped bothering. I bloody adore my girl, but, she is the most difficult dog I’ve ever had, and I’ve had a lot. The least adaptable, the least robust, the most jumpy and they DO shed, they DO bark and no, they DONT all sleep all day. And that’s greyhounds in general, ex racers like my girl bring their own issues. As I have as I love her, I’ll not be getting another. Back to Labradors and poodles for me.

@BillieSpain the podenco prey drive is pretty hard to deal with! But it's also very variable - some are quite easy to distract. Others are much harder to deal with! We're in Bristol and have some lovely estates to walk her on with loads of room to roam and run so it all works ok even if she spots something but once she's engaged her hunting head there's no such thing as recall.

Right now she mostly hunts picnics

I also echo what others have said about the waking up with a start thing - ours used to jerk awake and come out fighting. She hasn't done it for a while now.

You can’t keep an animal if you are frightened of it, I don’t think many people could cope with a dog growling at them. Poor dog though, wonder if a vet would be able to help.

Surprised that no vets have commented as there seem to be quite a few on mn!

Thank you again, everyone, for listening and offering your understanding. I don't know what to do for the best. I've taken him for a walk and he was great, bouncing along in an alert, relaxed kind of way, but now we're back in the house it feels so stressful.

I didn't know about mouthing, as opposed to biting. Or how to interpret it, other than negatively in terms of the dog showing more signs of stress. But as someone said I do now feel massively out of my depth, in a way that I didn't two days ago.

The behaviourist talked about trigger stacking, and that made perfect sense to me. Right now it's as if we're setting off every trigger imaginable for him. Which obviously is horrible for him, really traumatic, and not exactly who we hoped we might be for him.

I do feel naive, stupid, ill equipped and unprepared to deal with this. It's like we've turned a corner but in totally the wrong direction.

Poor you OP, it's really hard and your feelings are mirroring his - it sounds like he's scared and overwhelmed in your house. Ours had never lived in a house before and was scared of every noise, including the toaster popping! The best advice I got is that space is the cure for every stress - the more space you can give him the better. So if his bed can be somewhere where no one goes, or if you can spend a lot of time In the garden with him on a long lead, or walking the streets if he's relaxed there, that really helps. Wait for him to come to you for attention, just feed him and let him be until he's ready. But only you know your setup and whether you can make it work and keep your family safe, so you must make your own decision.

P.s I was a total idiot when I got my rescue dog, made every mistake imaginable and was totally naive about how marvellous it was going to be, so don't beat yourself up

This morning is okay. He's pleased to see my DD, eaten breakfast, now chilling in his bed. We're trying to let him just be while not giving the impression that we're giving him the cold shoulder, as it were. Thank you again for support and understanding 🐾

@JesusInACabbageVan, Thanks! She has escaped a few times, just bolts, after a rat, (orange groves, no livestock), but she does come back about an hour later, a very stressful hour!

That's great OP. My rescue was nervous for the first 3 months. Sounds like a good plan to let him be but know you are there so he feels secure.

I wish MN would stop recommending ex racers as easy, perfect, problem free pets frankly.

I don't think this is particularly fair, as any rescue dog of any breed (or indeed any dog full stop) can have numerous issues that might not be apparent until they come home with you.

By way of balance my experience of greyhounds (3 ex racers and a whippet/greyhound cross) has been largely positive. A lot of time and effort - in different ways for each dog - but the rewards are immeasurable.

It's wrong to make generalisations either way imo.

OP you sound like you're doing the right things, give some space, take things slowly and keep speaking to the behaviourist. The Dog's Trust are generally very good with support and will work with you, even if that means ultimately returning him.

Will he tolerate the muzzle being left on whilst at home OP? ( I assume you have a basket style one that lets him drink thorough, pant if needed etc? ).

I would leave that on him so that you can feel confident he won't bite anyone for the time being. This will hopefully enable you to act confidently around him because at the moment he is probably reading into your body language and nervousness which is likely to consolidate his resource guarding behaviours.

When you pause if he's looking a certain way, or try to navigate a way around him, or look at the bed that he's guarding etc, he's likely to double down on his resource guarding. If you can brush past him, largely ignore him in the house and decrease your focus on him he will relax a bit more and you will all be less twitchy. And you can do that from the safe position knowing that his aggressive behaviours can't develop.

I do understand about the temptation to back away from growling, and you absolutely do need to keep everyone safe, but my concern is dogs can then broaden this response, use it more often as it works for them, and then you are all on tiptoes for a wider range of scenarios. Definitely keep working with the behaviourist and don't feel bad if you have to return him if he is not the right fit. It is very hard to live in fear of a dog.

@suggestionsplease1

Will he tolerate the muzzle being left on whilst at home OP? ( I assume you have a basket style one that lets him drink thorough, pant if needed etc? ).

I would leave that on him so that you can feel confident he won't bite anyone for the time being. This will hopefully enable you to act confidently around him because at the moment he is probably reading into your body language and nervousness which is likely to consolidate his resource guarding behaviours.

When you pause if he's looking a certain way, or try to navigate a way around him, or look at the bed that he's guarding etc, he's likely to double down on his resource guarding. If you can brush past him, largely ignore him in the house and decrease your focus on him he will relax a bit more and you will all be less twitchy. And you can do that from the safe position knowing that his aggressive behaviours can't develop.

I do understand about the temptation to back away from growling, and you absolutely do need to keep everyone safe, but my concern is dogs can then broaden this response, use it more often as it works for them, and then you are all on tiptoes for a wider range of scenarios. Definitely keep working with the behaviourist and don't feel bad if you have to return him if he is not the right fit. It is very hard to live in fear of a dog.

Ignoring a growl forces a dog to escalate to a snap or a bite not the other way around. It's important to teach dogs that growls do work. They're a great communication tool that dogs use to avoid conflict not start it.

@smokeorfire please follow what the behaviourist advises not us randoms on the internet. Though if you fancy a read, it might be worth reading about the canine ladder of aggression ( sometimes called the canine ladder of communication). There's also absolutely no shame in returning him to the rescue if that's what you decide

@smokeorfire

This morning is okay. He's pleased to see my DD, eaten breakfast, now chilling in his bed. We're trying to let him just be while not giving the impression that we're giving him the cold shoulder, as it were. Thank you again for support and understanding 🐾

That's good he's chilled. Was it Dogs Trust behaviourists you spoke to? Their post adoption support is really good, please do follow their advice, take it slowly. They have a lot of greyhounds in all the time.

It can be overwhelming on the internet with all the different advice coming at you (especially when someone brings up dominance theory, argh!!).

No, Im sorry. You have a child in the house, the dog has to go. Growling and biting/mouthing and you are scared off the dog. How could you trust it with your child, or if you left the room and something happened? My husband has had dogs since childhood, he has said he would not keep a dog that behaved like this, plus, being a rescue, you don't really know it's history.

I'm not saying to ignore a growl as such, but to get to a situation where the dog is less likely to feel the need to growl and be on edge in general.

So many of these situations escalate through mutual nervousness; the dog recognises the nervousness of humans around it and establishes that it can control locations, resources, body handling etc, by behavioural displays.

The behaviourist will definitely help with ways to help build confidence and help keep the dog under threshold of response and from learning it can generalise behaviours that have become adaptive for it to more scenarios.