Barking and growling at young boys

[susan198130]

I have a 13 week old cockapoo. He's not allowed out for walks until Thursday, but we've been taking him out by carrying him so that he gets used to different people/animals/outdoors etc. but I've noticed he seems to bark and growl whenever he sees young boys, but the strange thing is I have 2 sons myself who are 8 and 9 who he absolutely loves, so I'm not sure why he's doing it. Any tips on how to try and stop this behaviour? Whenever he sees boys walk past the window, he barks and growls and does seem a little aggressive, more than playful.

Does he do this when your out carrying him too or just in the window. We started to train our pup straight away but barking and growling in the window I'd tell him a firm no and put him on the floor. Our pup was quite a Barker when we first had her and I tell her no and walk away. She did get it after a few tries she knows now when is acceptable to bark and when not. When you do start taking him out on the lead and he growls just again tell him a firm no and have him sit, sounds strange but it did work for us when we walked our pup she knew if she did something unacceptable she would have to sit and not go anywhere until she behaves but your pup is still very young and is only just learning but if you do see any signs of aggression try to deal with it straight away and be careful not to encourage the behaviour by stroking him or giving him a treat to get him out of the window or stop him growling because he will see this as a reward.

Is it aggression, or is frustration because he associates your boys with fun, and wants to get at these other boys to have fun too?

Hmm interesting point, maybe it could be frustration. It seemed slightly aggressive to me, but I guess that could be confused with frustration because it does seem strange when he's in a house with young boys.

Both times when he's done it, I've told him not to bark, and removed him from the window this time. Just not seem him like that before.

Frustration can sound quite aggressive in my experience - they have no other way to express themselves, really.

As an example - I walk some dogs who are frustrated greeters on the lead - the sound they can make is horrific but as soon as they're allowed to say hello, they go silent and switch into play mode

Yeah interesting, I'll see how he is when he's allowed to go for walks.

Please don’t punish your dog for growling (I include saying No under the umbrella of punishment). Growls are one of the ways that your dog communicates that he is uncomfortable. It is used to prevent aggression, not cause it. If you punish a growl, he is more likely to escalate to a bite without giving an audible warning. Also, if your dog is growling because he is scared, punishment could make him more fearful because he could associate the punishment with the presence of boys rather than his own actions. Afterall, why would he be being punished for communicating so beautifully?!

I would recommend that you read about the canine ladder of aggression/communication: www.pdsa.org.uk/taking-care-of-your-pet/looking-after-your-pet/puppies-dogs/canine-ladder-of-communication Dogs give subtler signs that they are uncomfortable before they escalate to a growl. Learning these subtler signs will help you interpret how comfortable your dog is around your sons and will help you with his socialisation (because socialisation is about ensuring that he has positive experiences).