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You're dead wrong with regard to wolves and dogs. Left out in the wild, your house-pet will become feral and assume a pack mentality with with other canines. It's hard wired, and, at times, a dogs will challenge its master. Maybe by being protective of toys, growling, or yes, possibly snapping. None of these is acceptable. Barring a health issue, snapping is never acceptable, and a stern scolding is appropriate.
Very true......we hunt with hounds.
They are taken out of trucks........with dogs have never seen.....form a pack......pick a leader......and they are gone in less than a minute.
Sounds like pretty normal behavior to me if a dog is hurt or thinks you're hurting it, it will snap to defend itself. I'd take her to the vet as you suggested.
I'd also look for another coat that doesn't need velcro. Do those dogs need a coat at all? They have a pretty good natural coat IIRC. Unless it's really, really cold I wouldn't mess with the coat. Any dog with an injury (like to her foot) is prone to snap. You have to be careful when you approach any injured dog. Best to let the vet do it if at all possible.
As far as the nap goes - she was startled, didn't know what was happening and thought she needed to protect herself. I personally don't pet my dogs while they're asleep for just that reason. When my corgi got really old and went into a deep sleep and I needed to wake him up for his meal or something, I'd make a loud noise or stamp on the floor to wake him up. I would never reach down and pet him for just that reason, I was concerned he'd wake up afraid and snap. And he was a very good natured dog.
What would concern me more would be defending toys, bedding or food. Snapping or growling over those things needs to be dealt with ASAP.
Just want a quick opinion on what you guys would do in a sitiuation where the dog you've raised since a puppy, has started to snap at you.
- first time ocurrence?
-second time?
Quick note: If you have a personal story please feel free to share and give details on the breed and age.
Note: this is not a story, I did not get bit by my dog im just looking for people's opinion on the topic
"Started to" would indicate to me that this is not just a one-time thing, so that is problematic to begin with, because you never want something like that to go beyond the first time they try it.
I have had a couple of my ex-racing greyhounds snap at me fairly soon after I adopted them, one when I was taking away a toy and the other when I got into his personal space. I did not get angry (they don't know what is acceptable or unacceptable until they try it), but I purposely used the "voice of God" to let them know this was unacceptable, and in the case of the toy situation, I gathered up every dog toy in the room, put them all in my lap, gave her a challenge stare until she dropped her gaze and said, "These are mine!" I didn't have any problem with either of them snapping at me after that.
Except for the rare case where the dog is wired wrong, it is not the dog's fault if it feels free to repeatedly snap, it is the owner's fault for letting the dog come to believe that it is Alpha to the owner (which comes from being a weak leader in your dog's eyes) and that this is the way to successfully handle conflict.
If the owner can't put a stop to it, then a professional must be consulted. It is folly to have a dog in one's home who feels free to snap at humans, as it's just a matter of time until a child or unwitting adult gets bitten and then you have a real mess to deal with.
oh boy great timing and topic !.. I have a rescue dog that is well mannered and well trained BUT she will growl when being petted after a few minutes and will lift her lip on one side so you see her teeth. but she stands still just gets growly and lifts her lip abit.. soon as she does that she is sent to her kennel and she goes w/o problem but she is snarling and growling as she does .. she goes in and I shut the door .. She will lay down and go to sleep after and then comes out all sweet and loveable and then soon as she gets some butt scratching she will growl again.. and its a mean growl I am not sure where her growl to bite line is yet so the kennel is her safe place and she often goes in just to lay down .. I dont lock it unless she shows her growly side .. she has run of the house 98% of the time..
I am her 3d gaurdian and I want to keep her but we have to figure her out so that I stay safe
she is 3 going on 4 and I dont have alot of history on her other than she likes kids .. ( and she does ) and cats ( she does) .. she doesnt get on furniture she is totally house broken and isnt a trash digger .. She is a big dog tho and could do some real damage if she did bite.. why does she do this tho is what i wanna figure out .. anyone have any ideas? she is fully vetted and UTD on shots She is spayed and I am the pack leader like it or not ..
It might be her way of saying enough petting. Hard to say for sure but I would start by only give her a couple pets and then walk away let her be. Stop well before she starts to growl. Are you going and petting her or is she coming up to you and asking for pets? If you're going to her, I'd stop and let her come to you when she wants affection. Are you always petting her in the same spot when she growls? Have you taken her to the vet? Maybe her hips are sore or she has a skin problem and the scratching is irritating it? Maybe she associates it with something bad from her past. If it's always the same spot that elicits the reaction, don't pet her there.
oh boy great timing and topic !.. I have a rescue dog that is well mannered and well trained BUT she will growl when being petted after a few minutes and will lift her lip on one side so you see her teeth. but she stands still just gets growly and lifts her lip abit.. soon as she does that she is sent to her kennel and she goes w/o problem but she is snarling and growling as she does .. she goes in and I shut the door .. She will lay down and go to sleep after and then comes out all sweet and loveable and then soon as she gets some butt scratching she will growl again.. and its a mean growl I am not sure where her growl to bite line is yet so the kennel is her safe place and she often goes in just to lay down .. I dont lock it unless she shows her growly side .. she has run of the house 98% of the time..
I am her 3d gaurdian and I want to keep her but we have to figure her out so that I stay safe
she is 3 going on 4 and I dont have alot of history on her other than she likes kids .. ( and she does ) and cats ( she does) .. she doesnt get on furniture she is totally house broken and isnt a trash digger .. She is a big dog tho and could do some real damage if she did bite.. why does she do this tho is what i wanna figure out .. anyone have any ideas? she is fully vetted and UTD on shots She is spayed and I am the pack leader like it or not ..
I know YOU feel safer with the dog in the kennel but isolation is NOT the solution for aggression or what you perceive as aggression. She must learn to work through her instability IN the pack. Being sent OUT of the pack is not helping at all except for you not to be scared.
First of all STOP scratching and petting her. PACK LEADERS do not nag the pack members like that. And I'd suggest that NO, she does not see you as the pack leader.
Especially scratching the BUTT. Stop it.
See how she acts. It appears you haven't had her for long? What OTHER times does she get like that? Putting on leash and collar? Feeding? Toys? I suggest finding a behaviorist because she's more than you're ready to handle.
You should alpha roll the dog. Hold it until it stops struggling. Release your hold but command the dog to stay. Repeat hold until dog obeys verbal command to stay down. Let dog up and give it a treat.
The dog is confused. It's likely you are sending mixed signals. Make sure when you walk dog it stays at your side and doesn't walk in front pulling. Dog should eat after you have eaten. Dog should wait to eat after bowl is placed on floor until you tell it "OK." Dog should not precede you through a door. If you are consistent, the dog will be too.
If my dog started to do that, and hadn't done it before, my first suspicion would be that he might be sick or in pain. My dog just doesn't do that, so if he did, I would suspect something is seriously making him uncomfortable to cause him to react so sensitively. My friend's dog will snap at you if you put your face too close to hers, almost as an instinct, you can tell she doesn't even really mean to do it, she just can't help it. But I would wonder what is bothering my dog, my first suspicion would be a physical illness or injury.
A sudden change in a dogs temperament is often a sign of pain, if I had a dog that suddenly started snapping I would be taking it to the vets. However having said that vets do not always have the answer as I learned a few months ago with Chaos. she was very sick, stopped eating,was lethargic, lost her undercoat had some weird swellings that came and went and the vet did withdraw fluid and all it showed was inflammation . she had trouble sitting and getting up and was very snappy with other dogs. We did many tests even Xrays and the vet was stumped put her on some meds that really did not help so I called an animal communicator and with her help Chaos is back to being Chaos. It was actually two different issues one was pain in her spine and doing as the communicator suggested seeing a chiropractor for a couple adjustments fixed it, despite the issue not being obvious on X-rays. But pain is so often a cause for a dog to become snappy.
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