My 5-month-old puppy growls at my son and husband. What can I do?

I strongly recommend you consult with a professional, in-home dog trainer. You need a trainer to come to your house and see the behavior and the interaction of all the family members with the puppy. This is your best bet. Aggression problems need special care and it is not recommended that you try to correct this on your own. You may give him the wrong signals and make him worse. This needs to stop before he hurts someone.

Hi there. Resource guarding is a very common (and normal, to some extent!) behavior in dogs. Do not try to take high-value treats away from her while she is chewing them, as this will only teach her to be anxious and on guard whenever you approach. Instead, leave her alone to chew them in peace. You can also practice walking up to her while she is chewing on something, dropping a tasty treat like a piece of cheese or a hot dog slice, and walking away without bothering her. This way, she learns that having you approach her when she has a "treasure" is a good thing, and not a threat! If this behavior escalates over time instead of getting better, then I would recommend getting in touch with a veterinary behaviorist or a good reward-based trainer who can evaluate her in person and help you put together a training plan to address it. Play growling during tug of war is normal, and it not typically a cause for concern.

Food aggression or toy aggression is a common behavioral concern that can often be worked through. I would recommend hand feeding Sadie for each meal and teach her to “wait for it” before allowing her to eat. Once she is sitting and listening then allow her to eat. Start with a small amount in your hand, then put some in her bowl from your hand, then desensitize her to your hand in her bowl. I would also train her to “wait for it” for any toys she may love. If she is food motivated then she will associate this training with lots of reward and will learn not to “guard” her food or toys. If she is fully vaccinated then she is at a great age to begin puppy kindergarten. These classes are a great way to bond with her, establish boundries, and strengthen your relationship.

Hi Carol! You're right that this behavior is somewhat concerning in such as young puppy - some lines of Presa Canarios can be quite dog aggressive, so this is something to keep an eye on as Karma gets older. Growling or lunging at another dog who gets close when she is sitting with you is a form of resource guarding - basically, she wants you all to herself. To improve this behavior, you want to teach her that good things happen when RaeRae approaches. If RaeRae starts to walk over to you when Karma is sitting on your lap, praise Karma, pet her, and tell her what a good girl she is. If she growls and RaeRae leaves, just say something like "Oh - too bad!" and calmly put her off your lap or on the floor. Basically, you want her to learn that if she growls at RaeRae, she loses your attention and the opportunity for snuggling - but if she allows her to come over without growling, you fuss over her and pay lots of attention to her. You could also try using a DAP pheromone collar to help reduce Karma's stress about this and encourage more social behavior. If you don't see any improvement in this behavior over the next few weeks, or if things seem to be getting worse, I would recommend making an appointment with a veterinary behaviorist sooner rather than later - early intervention gives the best chance of a good outcome with behavior problems in puppies, just like human kids.

This aggression may be hormone related now that she is at the age of becoming sexually mature. If you are not planning on breeding her I would suggest you have her spayed as soon as possible. The other option is that she is in pain somewhere in/on her body. A vet exam to rule out any pain would be a good idea. Pain can make them "grouchy". The final thing it could be, is just her personality, in which case, you should not breed her and you should work with a professional, in-home dog trainer to correct this behavior before it gets worse.

Oh dear! Growling when you pick her up is a major red flag for future problems in a puppy this age - this is not normal, and needs more help than just socialization. From your description, it's hard to say if her behavior with the other puppy is normal play or aggression. I would strongly recommend making an appointment with a veterinary behaviorist who can evaluate her in person and help you put together a plan to work on these issues - it's best to do this as soon as possible, since early intervention gives you a much better chance of being able to change this behavior before she grows up. I'm not sure what part of Canada you're in, but your regular veterinarian should be able to help you find out where your nearest board-certified veterinary behaviorist is so that you can make an appointment. In the meantime, I would try and avoid doing anything that tends to make her growl - instead of picking her up, for example, use treats to encourage her to come to you. I would also not recommend any kind of punishment for this behavior, as this has a high risk of making things worse over time. The behaviorist can help you identify what kinds of situations tend to trigger the growling, and will put together a training plan to work on this issue.

It's very common for older dogs to not like a new puppy much at first - puppies can be rude, pushy, and overly playful for an adult dog :). You will need to give your older dog plenty of time to adjust to the pup at her own pace. Make sure she has someplace she can go to relax if she doesn't want to be bothered, and supervise them closely to make sure that the puppy isn't allowed to harass her when she doesn't want to play. It's also very normal for adult dogs to growl or snap at puppies who are being pushy and rude - this is how puppies learn manners, and your older dog should not be corrected for this. Things should improve over the next 2-3 weeks as they get used to each other. If there is no improvement in this time, or if you have concerns that your older dog may injure the puppy, then I would recommend making an appointment with a veterinary behaviorist for some hands-on guidance.