Staffordshire Terrier growls, shows teeth at my crawling baby. Help!

I would get Bentley in with a professional behavioral expert immediately, and do not introduce her to your newborn baby at all. I'm very concerned that she has already lunged at your 4 month old niece, and that is an aggressive behavior that could have extremely serious and even fatal consequences. The safety of your baby is paramount, and I would not allow Bentley anywhere near your newborn because she already has a history of lunging at babies. You need professional help managing this behavior, and it may be honestly that rehoming her is best. I know that this would be extremely hard, but you can't have an aggressive dog around a baby. Have her seen by a professional behavioral expert first to discuss training if you want to keep Bentley, but until they feel it's safe, keep her completely separate from the baby. It may seem like I'm overreacting, but I know of cases where this has gone fatally wrong. The last thing I would ever want is for that to happen to someone else, so I will always advice extreme caution. Speak to your vet first thing Monday about a referral to a professional behavioral expert. I hope this helps!

I am afraid you have a serious problem which is likely to become a bigger problem when Tiger gets older. Unfortunately this is not something you can deal with as a lay person. You will need the help of a professional behavioral specialist. It is definitely not normal for puppies that young to attack other puppies and eat them. This may be a hereditary problem, ie Staffies used to be fighting dogs and Tiger just may have a very strong aggression potential. I suggest you separate Tiger from the other dogs, so that you do not lose any more puppies. Ask your vet whether he recommends a particular behavioral specialist or find one here: http://www.dacvb.org/resources/for-the-public/ and here: https://avsab.org/resources/speakers-bureau/behavior-consultants-near-you/

Hitting your dog will likely cause the opposite effect and cause the behavior to escalate from growling to biting or snapping. If he is growling at you over objects or just in general, I highly recommend seeking out a professional trainer or veterinary behaviorist in person ASAP as aggression toward people is a very complex issue that should be addressed immediately. I would NOT continue to hit or punish your dog for growling as this will only worsen the behavior. You can find out more about veterinary behaviorists and find one in your area here: http://www.dacvb.org/about/member-directory/

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.

Oh goodness. This is a big question. You may want to consider a visit with your veterinarian or a veterinary behaviorist. As a veterinarian and a mom I can tell you that is pretty easy to keep them separated the first year of baby’s life, but as they become more mobile the next several years are hard. If you have a dog who as a low bite inhibition, meaning he has already proven he will bite, then the likelihood that he will bite a child is high. Other options are to keep them separated 100% of the time (near impossible in my experience), or to keep a basket muzzle on him any time he has access to the children. I also encourage you to consider the size of the dog - and how powerful and destructive a bite will be to a small child. I have been in your shoes and it is a very hard decision to make. I have also been the mom of the child who was bitten. I encourage you to always put your child’s safety above all else. If you want to discuss this further I would be happy to consult with you. Take care.

That is very concerning and you should definitely not have the baby and the dog in the same room. The best thing would be to have a professional trainer work with your dog to try and modify the behavior, especially if you are planning on having a baby soon. You could also get an Adaptil collar and see if that helps. Your vet could also prescribe an anti-anxiety medication, like Prozac or Trazodone, to see if that helps, too.

It does sound like from your descriptions that Graham is starting to act a little aggressive, and I would take him into a professional behavioral expert as soon as possible for training. I never recommend owners try to train aggressive dogs themselves because it can be dangerous, so it's best left to a professional. Aggressive behavior can escalate, and it can continue to be a problem. Without seeing his behaviors in person, I can't say for sure if your kids are safe around him, but I would not leave him unsupervised with them just to be cautious. I would speak to your vet first thing in the morning about a referral to a behavioral expert.