Advice needed ASAP about aggressive puppy
 

Hi all,

I am absolutely livid about my six month of puppy. Just now, she grabbed some tissue that was on my mother-in-laws lap and ran off with it.my partner caught her to take it off her and she growled. When she was growling I intervened to take it out of her mouth as she was moving too much for my partner to take it.as I did it she leapt out and bit me and ran off with the tissue. She growled aggressively,showed her teeth. When I went to lock her in the kitchen to go to bed to get the tissue back off her -she growled again and showed me her teeth!!

We have three children and to me, what she just did was so aggressive I don't want her round the children incase she ever does that again!

What do I do??

Thank you in advance.

**I reserve this method as a last resort**

I have a special needs kiddo, so I am very picky about biting. In cases where "NO BITE" command, etc....does not work or takes too long to be effective, I have been known to grasp and gently but firmly hold my dogs lower jaw so they cannot close their mouth, and state several times "NO BITE". I only hold their jaw for 10 or so seconds (enough to say no bite twice usually), unless they continue to repeatedly bite. Then I increase the time a bit. This is not painful nor is it meant to be painful. No wrenching or stretching of the jaw is needed. Just hold the jaw it in its natural open position. Your hand should be in their mouth and your fingers grasping underneath their lower jaw.

It is my understanding, that dogs really do not like the taste of human skin, so this does several things. It immediately stops the biting from a small dog who can not/will not close their mouth---of course a big dog could just bite you while your hand is in their mouth, but I have never had them actually bite--they usually try everything they can to get my hand out of their mouths. It is a method every dog I have ever owned absolutely hates having done. It establishes that I am the boss, and I will not put up with this behaviour.

Good luck, and I fully understand your concern. Stop this behaviour now, or it will get out of hand FAST.

I would definitely supervise the dog around your children, especially if they are younger.

The situation is difficult for outsiders to assess without knowing the dog and environment, and seeing the incident. Biting and baring teeth are never acceptable, but it sounds like there is a whole lot of negative energy fueling the situation.

Your puppy did something naughty taking the tissue. Teach her "drop it" or a similar command for situations like this. If you show anger and frustration, and fly to chase her, your energy will fuel the dog's negative action.

Many Yorkies love to be chased for the naughty prize that they have snatched. Max will growl protectively over a chew when I want to get it away from him, but he has great bite inhibition and would never bite me.

I strongly believe in positive reinforcement training, especially for Yorkies who can be willful and test your patience. The only negative I employ is withdrawing attention, leaving the room, which can be very effective in stopping bad behavior.

Re-directing attention is also very effective. When my boys get out of hand wrestling, I tell them to settle down and then ask if they want to perform tricks for treats (a kibble for each trick).

Your girl is still very much a puppy. She will test your patience. Maintain an even keel, foster her trust, and train her to drop things and exchange things for a treat reward. This is for her safety and your family's.

Here is an article on bite inhibition:
http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/gen...nhibition.html

I want to add to give you more perspective: Max was a feisty Yorkie puppy. A good boy, but definitely could test my patience.

I tried the whole pack leader/domination thing with him for a week. Complete disaster. It just made things worse and I could quickly see him turning into an angry, frustrated, untrusting little guy.

I went back to the positive reinforcement training immediately. Dogs really do want to please us. I focused on having a schedule, our daily routine of little activities. This has a calming effect and instills trust. Made sure he had plenty of exercise and stimulation, both of which decrease the desire to seek attention through naughty things.

Wishing you good luck.

Do you have a good dog trainer in your area? It sounds like you need some help to keep peace in your home. I'm so sorry that happened.

My older boy was obsessed with tissues as a puppy. He would take a whole box off the nightstand and take it under the bed and shred the whole thing into a big pile. He was not aggressive at that age. She's testing her boundaries and I'm thinking maybe she has the roles reversed. Much like a bratty toddler who thinks they are the boss. Some simple command training may fix the problem. I'm not a big fan of hitting to discipline but I do agree with the other poster who said to hold the mouth and teach "no bite". Although she may not bite frequently you must not let her think that you are scared or intimidated by her.

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup: Great advice!

I would definitely get the dog enrolled in a training class. Petsmart has classes starting all the time if there is one near you. It will be the best investment you spend on your dog, except for vaccinations.

This class will not only show you how to train your dog, but how to react to your dog. They will teach you commands to teach them. Drop it is an amazing command. Give is also good.

I have 2 almost 8 month old puppies (where does the time go?) that I have worked with myself and they know I am boss without me having to show them I am boss. It is just how I have raised them. Mine are thieves that steal everything. I just look at them and tell them that is mine and to drop it and they roll their eyes at me and drop it on the floor and wander off to find something else to steal. I will grab them and take it out of their mouths if necessary and they know this, so they don't bother trying to run with it.

My puppies gummed my hands and arms from the moment I got them, so they do not bite me. They actually chew on my hands even now more as a comfort type thing and they have never bit me. I have had to tell them ouch and they left an indent in my finger a couple times but they learned quickly what biting too hard was and now they know well and can chew on my hand or arm for 20 minutes and I won't have to tell them once to be gentle. We rough play and they do not bite.

I highly recommend a dog class. It will help them bond with you and give you a better idea on how to handle situations like that. If it was one of my puppies I would have scooped them up into my arms and removed the tissue from them, but that is exactly how I handle that kind of thing and they are accustomed to it. It would not have upset them in any way, but then they know I am alpha around here as I was alpha from the day I brought them home.

A firm NO was definitely in order though. I am a positive reinforcement trainer with my dogs. They are told NO if they are doing something they shouldn't be and then they are redirected to do something they are allowed to do and praised when they do it. My dogs are never hit or scolded more than a firm NO.

Good luck as you do not want a dog that bites to be around kids. It is not a safe thing if you can't tell your dog no. I had one dog that was very sick with cancer and if I told her no she would turn around and snap at me. It got very bad with her and she did bite my teenage daughter when my daughter told her no. The vet thinks her cancer had gone to her brain though as she would just sit and growl at me if I talked to her near the end. It was a very sad thing to see your beloved dog not seem to know who you are anymore.

And more great advice from JadeD too :).

One more thing I thought of - you may want to purchase the Pet Corrector - here. It is not a harmful or aromatic spray or anything - it just makes a very strong/loud "hiss" noise that stops the dog in whatever they're doing. You may want to consider this as part of your arsenal....just don't overuse it though, or you could damage the kiddo, ya know?

When my girl was teething around that age, she went through an on and off aggressive stage that lasted a couple of months. I did have one session with a trainer, he did tell me to leash and harness her for a while in the house when anyone visited and also I second the use of the "spray". I used a product called STOP THAT available on amazon for around $6.50 and it was magic. After a few times using a quick spray (but I agree, its the noise they hate), I never had to use it again-just had to leave the can on the counter.