aggressive behaviour to one person 16 month old GSD - Page 1

Our dog has recently become "growly" with me, whilst remaining freindly with everyone else - vet, wife, friends, strangers.  Unlike my wife I have never hit him and cannot recall anything which might have brought on this behaviour which began about a month ago when he growled when I patted him on the head to say goodnight.  Got worse when I tried to put him on the leash before letting him out of the back seat of the car.  Now he rarely lets me take his leash off without a warning growl.  He growls at me if I reach out to pat him (no matter how slowly).  If I get too near him in the car he growls.  If  do not back off when he growls he curls his lip and snaps at me (not actually biting me  but acting pretty mean).  He still obeys me as far as staying, coming and sitting are concerned (more readily than he respnds to my wife's instructions). Tonight he tried to stop me coming in to our yard, snarling and looking aggressive.

At first I wasn't conciously afraid of him doing anything more than threatening (thought this is gradually changing), but some instinctive reaction made me go cold and the hair on my arms and back were raised up - could nhe nbe sensing this and be trying to dominate me because of it?

Any suggestions on what I can do - he is too big and powerful to let this go on getting worse.

Thanks

 

 

stick your foot in his ass,and dont act scared of him.my last dog growled as a communication it was a low growl but never in an aggresive way.if he is snarling and you cant handle him you better find someone who can or we are going to be reading about this "vicious handler aggresive dog".you control everything he gets including food so use that to your advantage!!!!!!!!!! NILF

You better get control of him soon. Your wife has to stop feeding him, you do it. Get a crate and crate him, the only time he gets anything, food, excerise, toys comes from you. You also may want to train with him make it fun, but first he needs to learn  his life depends on you!
Do you yell at your wife, if so, talk softer she has a mighty big stick right now!

It sounds like your dog doesn't respect you and is picking up on your fear. It's hard to say exactly what's going on from one short message, but that's what it sounds like to me. And I've been told that around a year and a half is when male dogs really start to challenge their owners for dominance.

I would recommend you see a dog behaviorist or psychologist (not just trainer, this is a psychological issue, not just a behavioral one) right away if you can afford it, and if not, just watch every episode of the Dog Whisperer. Seriously. There are many many cases like yours on the show and they almost all come down to the dog not being provided with a strong enough pack leader and trying to take over the role. It sounds like he's claiming his space (which should actually be your space) by growling as a warning, and following through with a bite when you don't listen to the warning. This is perfectly normal behavior for a leader in a pack of dogs, it's not considered mean or antisocial by them, but obviously is a problem when they act that way towards humans.

It's not that there's something wrong with your dog, or with you. You simply haven't made your role clear to him. Or, if you have, you've made it clear that you're not the leader. This is probably simply due to a lack of knowledge on your part, or being misinformed by the well-intentioned. I was having dominance problems with my own intact male GSD when he was a puppy, but I started watching the Dog Whisperer and learning from it. Now he still tends towards dominance, I don't know if he'll ever be fully submissive, but he respects me and my fiancee and would never try to bite or growl at us. We're still working on his behavior toward other people and dogs, but I'm never afraid of him.

You're doing the right thing by seeking help, though. If you ignore this behavior it could get really bad, but IT CAN BE FIXED. You say you haven't ever hit your dog, but your wife has. While it might sound mean (or even abusive to some people), this is probably why he hasn't displayed this dominant behavior towards your wife. In the dog world they don't have words, they use body language, a few sounds, and physical contact like bites. If you watch the Dog Whisperer, he uses his fingers to simulate a bite. In the dog world, if there is a conflict between two members of the pack, it is the dominant one that will bite last. You must always have the last word, so to speak.

If you don't address this behavior in some way it WILL escalate. However, I wouldn't suggest you "bite" or hit your dog if you think you might be feeling afraid at the time you do it. If you're fearful when you do it, it may escalate things and lead to a real bite. For now, until you have a professional to guide you or you feel comfortable around your dog, I would suggest you have your wife correct him in whatever way is most effective and comfortable for her (even if it is a slap on the nose) when he displays this behavior, since it sounds like she isn't afraid of him. You don't want to be angry or scared or upset in any way, just matter of fact about it. Easier said than done sometimes, I know, but it's really the only way to get the response you want.

Also, is he neutered? If you're not going to breed him, NEUTER HIM! I know it's not common practice in a lot of countries or it's thought of as cruel (I don't know where you're from, but from your spelling I assume it's not the US where neutering is much more accepted), but it's not! Dogs don't have a self-identity like we humans do. He won't know he was neutered, he'll just exist and respond to situations, just like he always did without any thought of his lost balls, or feeling bad or like less of a man or anything like that. If you are going to breed him, let him mate! At least twice a year (once his hips and elbows are OK'd, of course). Not being allowed to m

ate while still having your balls is what's really cruel.

I really hope you can develop a new, better relationship with your dog,
All my best,
Alice

LOL Alice, with that last comment, I thought for sure you were a guy!

I agree with 1doggie2.  For now, everything must come from you, not your wife & he needs to be in a crate except when you take him out and exercize him.  No toys left in the crate.  No food except from you.  He needs to learn you are his god and as such you can take him "out".  The quicker you get started, the faster he will learn.  Start obedience class with him too if you haven't already.

If I hear dog behaviorist one more time I'm gonna puke !!
Now that I got that off my chest,
Fred, some folks here have given you some good advice, take total charge and if you haven't done any obedience work with your dog its almost certain he needs it.
Its very un-nerving to have your own dog growl at you.   I would say if you can't master your dog I would find an experienced trainer to help, or get rid of the dog.
You left out much info about yourself.
Is this your first GSD?
What are his bloodlines?
Are you now fearful of him?
They sense whats going on inside you.
Do you have knowledge of training a GSD?
Personally I would grab him and pin him to the ground and never allow this behavior with one of my dogs, he would know Its my way or a hole in the earth.   Thats me, I don't expect you to do the same.   But if I had a dog that I could not handle I would look at options.
Its hard to know what to tell you without a lot more information.

Moons.

Unlike my wife I have never hit him and cannot recall anything which might have brought on this behaviour which began about a month ago when he growled


your dog is being a dog -  you are being a whimp - your dog want''s to dominate over you......

start obedience with it in neutral ground and if he growels choke him

Fred Flintstone, hello. Please answer this question. Yuu say your dog is a year and a half. Sounds about right age for this kind of thing.

Why do you think your dog is behaving like this now, what is your opinion as to why is he growling at you?