Generally, inter-dog aggression is more of a problem between dogs of the same gender. These problems are more likely to occur in older dogs but can happen at any age. This will help your dog behavior consultant find a pattern. If there’s no one near you, feel free to reach out to me – I take clients via video chat from anywhere in the world, and I can help. Dr. Anna O'Brien is a veterinarian and writer who has worked with animals ranging from horses, dogs, and cats to camels, cows, monkeys, and honeybees. The minute you see what makes your older dog aggressive to puppy, step in. Unfortunately, people often mistake the cause of canine aggression as dominance-related behavior when there may be another cause. Remember, though – in the vast, vast majority of cases, your puppy is not aggressive. Hey, Kayla. The Spruce Pets uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. I thought it was just puppy behavior and he was scared or protecting me. When she’s not writing or training Barley, Kayla enjoys cross-country skiing, eating sushi, drinking cocktails, and going backpacking. I am nervous that this behavior will continue to escalate as he continues to grow. They were cute eight- or nine-week-old hound mix puppies – huge ears, big spots of tan and black and white, soft dairy cow eyes. Puppies that lunge at strange people, dogs, or other objects on walks. Amy is a dog trainer with more than a decade of experience. I love this little puppy, but I am so scared that this behavior will continue to worsen. He makes the same noises and behaves in the same way to being restrained as the puppy in the video and while he has not yet broken skin, he bites incredibly hard and much harder than his normal mouthing. Train and socialize your dog to help prevent fear down the road. could it just be she hates the medicine or did she change from the spaying? She has started aggressively snarling and snapping and actually bitting. Only one puppy in my time as a dog behavior consultant has been truly concerning – even frightening – to me. Do not skip step three (managing the situation) and just go straight to the juicy training bits. It’s pretty normal for most puppies to be interested in their environment. A couple of days later, she jumped up on my son’s legs and barked aggressively, showing her teeth, in his face a couple of days later. Please remember: Never allow children (or anyone, really) to sit on, ride, tease, pinch, pull, poke at any part of a dog’s body, roughly pet, throw something at, run toward, hit, scream, kick or step on a dog. She has a dog bed, lots of toys, and I occasionally throw a ball around and play with her. If you can figure out what triggers your puppy’s aggression, that’s great! We reached out to a few rescues with more long-term resources but didn’t have much luck. She is a puppy mill dog, and was in a whelping pen for 5 months before we got her. Dogs tend to become more aggressive during this time even if they have been neutered. Penny the puppy lunges and snarls at other dogs on walks. Try incorporating LickiMats and stuffed Kongs into her crate time, and make sure she has some fun toys and puppy-safe chews in there too. In reality, aggressively dominant behavior is not nearly as common as the other causes of aggression. Halley looked just like Copper from Fox and the Hound. What should you do when your dog shows these signs of hostile behavior? Some may have tendencies towards one behavior or the other, but this is typically determined by the circumstances. It's important to understand that dominance is a behavior, not a personality trait. It sounds like she is having some resource guarding issues which you can practice working on via some training games. He likes to play rough a lot by biting our ankles, arms, fingers, toes, and other things but I recently learned that he’ll stop chewing on us if I tell him to stop or if I give him a chew toy. If you punish the growl, they might go right to a bite next time they are uncomfortable! I have a 9 month old black lab. For example, if your puppy growls when you touch her food, your job is to avoid touching her food bowl. ... Hello, I have a new puppy (4 weeks) - a 6 month old rescue who is a Boston Terrier-Shih Tzu Mix. Hi! She owns her own dog training business, Journey Dog Training and holds a degree in biology from Colorado College. From day 1, the puppy has tormented the older dog. Don't try to take matters into your own hands until you know what you're dealing with. I don’t want to be frightened of my dog, but I am starting to walk on eggshells around him since his behavior is unpredictable. By around 5 months of age, a male puppy can produce sperm; by about 6 months, a female is capable of produ… However, another issue is touching him. It’s easy to overlook concerning behavior in something so cute and fluffy! This is especially true if the child is not just rude, but seems to have the intent to harm the other child. What to Do About Puppy Mouthing The owners might not be up for the time, money, and attention needed for training. You should start working on behavior and obedience training with your puppy from the moment he enters your home. I don’t know what happened to Halley, but if she had been a private client of mine, I would expect a relatively long road of behavior modification to help keep other dogs safe around her as she reached adulthood. Please let me know if we are on the right track and if this is “normal” behavior for a puppy this age! Dog behavior consultants will have knowledge and skill sets that differ from even the most experienced obedience trainers. 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