AGGRESSIVE PUPPY!!!???? what to do.......

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Chrissy4221

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So, yesterday I made a 5 hour trip to go pick up a Chesapeake Bay Retriever puppy. He is 14 weeks old. All was well on the 5 hour trip home and even when we got home for awhile, and that's when the trouble began. He had taken something off a small table and I had said no and I went to tap his nose(definatly not hard at all) and he snapped at me. Then I wanted to pick him up as he was trying to get away and the second I touched him, he dropped to the ground and started to screeched and actually bit me! My boyfriend came and tried to grab him to calm him down and the pup started to bite him too, very hard. All the while the pup is rolling on his back and screaming and snapping like CRAZY! After he bit very bad, I got away and he ran under the table and stayed there for about an hour. A few mins after this incident I decided I would try to make him comfortable like I thought he had been so far with us, I reached my hand out to see if he would sniff it and he curled up his lip as if he was going to go at it again. I moved my hand away. Did not look at him again for about an hour. Then he trusted me to start to pet him. And within minutes I managed to slide him out from under a chair and held him. We went outside and he was all happy wagging tail and everything. Since it was late, we went to bed right after that. This morning he didn't want to come out of kennel. I sat next to his kennel, not looking at him, and out of nowhere he started barking like mad. Almost vicious like. I have never ever seen a puppy act like that at all!! Has anyone ever dealt with a pup this aggressive at such a young age? Any advice on how to handle this? I was able to carry him out of kennel and outside and he was happy yet again wagging tail running around. But inside, he changes. He runs and doesn't come hardly at all. Yesterday I got him to come to me a couple times after the incident but today that all changed......... I have contacted breeder and let her know what had happened. She would refund money or let me pick another pup, but I just don't know what to do. What scares me is that I have kids that I watch come to the house sometimes and I'm worried, will he have these snap behaviors at another time? Maybe when he's older and can really do something serious?? Please help me out!


Ok, I'm done now :-) sorry it was soo long.
 
To be honest I have never had experience of aggression in a dog so young. To me, it sounds like he was scared, unsure, in a new environment, with new people, you say he hid under the table and probably felt cornered and very vulnerable when you put your hand to him, hence the lip curl. What was yours and boyfriends reaction to all this? Were you calm or was there a lot of noise, shouting going on? Did you keep him outside in a kennel?
 
In all honesty, (i'm no expert though!) I think he's scared, not being agressive towards you. So seems you have two opitions, wait it out until he seems calmer and no longer scared of this new environment, or swap/refund?

good luck with whatever you choose :)
 
He is 14 weeks old for god's sake. What do you expect ? you plonk him a car for 5 hours, then you get him home and repremand him for something he has no understanding of, then you shove him into a kennel overnight.

You should take the puppy back, get a refund and buy a stuffed toy.
 
OK some questions that I asked myself

Did you get a chance to see his parents or siblings? What kind of lines are they from, did you research the lines? Did you get an idea of their temperaments or personalities if you did meet them? Do you know anything about his early life?

Was he used to being in a house as a baby or was he reared in a kennel?
Are you maybe putting too much pressure on him in such a short time period? He does sound very confused. It is a lot to go through in one day.

Are you quite sure he is not throwing tantrums/trying it on? If he behaves in this way, the thing that you want him to do, that he does not understand, or want to do, goes away and the pressure stops.

My young dog squealed the place down as a pup if he was lifted, he did this with a previous owner before I ever had him and would wriggle and try to grab the hand that lifted him. He still throws outrageous tantrums, throws himself on the ground, screaming, because he doesn't want to do what is being asked of him and he would probably bite if he had been let away with it in the first place. He gets ignored!!
 
This will come across as harsh, sorry:o

take him back to the breeder so he can have a chance at a decent start with people who understand how to raise a pup. Go home and learn as much as you can and speak to an experienced trainer about how best to start out with a pup before you get another one.
 
For the sake of the puppy and his future take him back to the breeder and get a refund. It is in the best interests of the puppy to do this. Do not get another one in his place.

Number one as someone already pointed out he had 5 hours in a car, 1st time away from his siblings, he does not know right from wrong and therefore immediate punishment and domination from humans in a completely strange environment would frighten the living daylights out of the poor thing. Naturally if anyone / anything GRABS him it just will trigger panic and defence mode which this sounds like.

I have a friend who breeds CBR's and in all the years being around them I have never seen aggression to people at all, but then her's are raised as working dogs in an experienced home.

You do not say but it comes across as this is your first dog. Take him back, go to your local rescue and get a young or mature adult who can be assessed on temperament. You say you often have children around. They MUST be taught how to correctly a dog and certainly reading your post I question the wisdom of having a dog at all in this situation.

May sound blunt but my first concern is for the welfare of the puppy.
 
I know very much aout ChesapeakeBay Rtrievers. I thought I would go on here and simply just see if anyone has any suggestions in case this happen again on what to do with him. Don't very much appreciate that I have been told I am maybe not a good enough dog owner simply for no knowledge perhaps??? This is related to my dog. Its her nephew. Met parents and breeder is my friend. She has bred dogs for 30 years and has never had a pup act like that. Yes, obviously I knew he was scared. Nobody was yelling or freaking out when it happened or anything. Simply wanted to pick him up and take him outside to relax as he is happier out there it seems. He is kennel trained so no I did not just shove him in a kennel for the night. Was inside outside dog before I got him? But had been comfortable being inside. Loves the other dogs I have and they leave him alone. Comes from very good lines. Never had a problem with my other dog. And when I got my other Chessie a year ago, I did PLENTY of research on the breed!!! I was just simply concerned if I should leave him alone or is there something more I needed to do but nevermind.
 
And as for buying a stuffed toy......thank you for that. Very nice! I'm ready to just get off this forum. I thought people may go here for advice and whatnot but not to be like that. Sorry. Everyone has problem with their dogs and me on here trying to see suggestions, don't see anything wrong with that
 
This is my 5th dog raising from a puppy on. Just don't really wanna be told that I can't handle it. I have talked to trainers and was going to start a training class. Yes, I get it that he was scared. But maybe I could've made it clearer on I wanted ways to calm him down. Repeatedly I talk 2 the kids about how to be around dogs, the problem is, they do forget, they are 5 years old an d that's just how it is for them. I repeat and repeat and eventually it'll sink in. Yes, I understand 5 hours is long! Was long for me to. But the breeder has taken him away from parents and siblingsa month ago. They sure saw each other but not direct constant contact with them in order to build up confidence. When the situation happened, it was only a few seconds. Very fast. And he really got scared when my hand touched his back and that's what brought it all on.
 
It is the way you worded your initial post with a description of GRABBING the pup that indicated a lack of canine experience to other readers. In addition to sliding it out from under furniture when it was attempting to hide from the humans who had so far given it a less than encouraging start in a new environment. Sorry but we do not have crystal balls to see your previous canine talents.
 
Ok, so I didnt make it clear then....After leaving him relax for an hour, I went over to where he was. I sa down on the floor next to him. I started to pet him and all was fine. After a few minutes, I put my hand in front of him and he rested him head down on it. I took it as a good sign as he was content with me then. We have ceramic tile floors and the pup hardly weighs that much. I moved him a little closer to me. Just put my arm around him and moved him a couple inches closer. Then I stopped to pet him. Again, I put my hand out and he rested his head down on it so I nmoved him a little closer. Continued the process a few more times, until he was fully out and laying down going to sleep. Then I picked him up.

Sorry, used words like that as I didnt think anyone would want to read a book on here :-) I can describe in even more detail,l but dont have the time as I have a puppy to watch and take care of.. :D And I was writing from on my phone and its difficult to keep typing on there.
 
I wanted to see how other people who have had this situation maybe have handled it. Like I said, yes I do understand the puppy was scared. You people werent there to see it happen, so please dont be a judge of me, who i am, or how I care for my dogs. Because you just dont know.
 
if you have that much experience and so many experienced people around you then you've no need to be seeking advice on a forum have you :confused: but then.... if that was the case you wouldnt have brought home a clearly fairly unsocialised puppy and 'tapped' it on the nose then come crying on here calling him agressive and wanting us all to think how dedicated you must be for having traveled 5 hours to collect a puppy:rolleyes:

good luck.
 
So, if there was a person that has never owned a dog before but has researched them and wants to get one, they should simply not get one because they wont be able to know what to do in all circumstances?? We all face this at some time. I thought that was what this forum was for. Bringing up certain situations that people may have about dogs, and help others find a solution maybe. Maybe I am in the wrong place then. I dont know. I certainly do not want to give up on the puppy though. Dog trainers have the job for a reason, to help people train their dogs...... I dont know why people are telling me to give up.??
 
Am I trying to say I know everything about dogs? I definatly do not. I said that my friend(breeder) hasnt experienced an episode like that...so I came on here to get an opinion. I started coming on here to learn from others and the techniques that they use with their dogs. I am no expert!!!!!!!!! I have read other people having problems with their dogs tooon here, but they ever got quite the responses that I got..
 
I advised you take the pup back as you dont seem have the fundamental dog sense or experience needed. Some people get lucky and the pup they bring home is a really easy sort, they learn as they go. Read up, seek advice and yes make mistakes along the way. Sounds like yours for whatever reason, isnt going to be an easy sort and the easiest thing all round on the pup and you is to return it to the breeder going by your reactions and comments.

Id go against the grain and strongly advise against the OP seeking out a rescue dog,more often than not they come with a heap of hang ups = in this case, a recipe for disaster.

I dont mean to jump on you, sorry you're not getting the responses you had hoped for.
 
Ok. Lets end this thread right now. I really wish I wouldve kept the whole situation just to myself. I do not want it to go on like this. So sorry, this was not how I wanted this to turn out. :( I was just sharing what had happened, in hopes to find someone that may had a puppy that did this so they can share with me the steps they took in the situation. I was hopeing leaving him alone wouldve been the right thing to do and not like it would mean he won and the situation would happen again. Sorry it turned into this. Oh and the puppy was extremely friendly at the place I got im, he was used to life there, I know. It was not that I just got him to get him.. I was updated on him starting a month ago, very often. Pictures, videos, etc. To me, there is always going to be something to learn about dogs. In hopes of getting other peoples techniques, I hoped to learn more and more. Thanks to everyone, you made me frustrated:p but I know that I will continue to work with him despite everyones doubt that I should have a puppy.
 
Ok ,you`ve started off on the wrong foot with this puppy;he is obviously very traumatised by the whole thing. What you should have done is to just sit with your back to him..for hours if need be..after the initial incident,and eventually he would have snuffled round to you,surely you must have seen this done?
In this puppy you approaching him will be seen by him as "another attack"..which is what the "grabbing" from above was to him.
If I were his breeder he would have been back home with me by now though.
 
If he was mine, I would just leave him to it and let him to come to you when he's ready. He's probably scared and coming to terms with a stressful situation of leaving home. Could you give him some space and avoid picking him up? Maybe use a tasty treat to lure him outside without needing to carry him at all? Dogs are very forgiving, I'm sure he'll let you have a fresh start today. Good luck, it sounds like you've got the support from a breeder you trust.
 
springtime13 said:
If he was mine, I would just leave him to it and let him to come to you when he's ready. He's probably scared and coming to terms with a stressful situation of leaving home. Could you give him some space and avoid picking him up? Maybe use a tasty treat to lure him outside without needing to carry him at all? Dogs are very forgiving, I'm sure he'll let you have a fresh start today. Good luck, it sounds like you've got the support from a breeder you trust.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I have left him alone today besides out to go to the bathroom. Everytime I glance at him and he sees me looking he wags his tail and perks his ears. I think things will get better in time. Hes come over to me and rested his head on my feet. Ive pet him but have kept it to a minimum. He loves my other chessie(his aunt). They were laying across from each other with both of their paws touching each others paws. :) Right now hes exploring the room. He found a comfy spot(on my feet) Keeps me warm too.
 
You do not have an aggressive puppy, what you do have is one that is very scared and nervous. As you have spoken to the breeder did she tell you if it was well socialised with people. After a long traumatic 5hour journey I expect he was exhausted and being in a strange place made him flip. It sounds to me you did not give this puppy time to settle, did you have a nice comfy bed prepared for him, somewhere he could retreat to when things got too much and not be disturbed.

Op you need to take this slowly as you have to win this puppies confidence, as other have suggested allow this puppy to come to you, do not force yourself on him, and punishment has no place in a puppies upbringing.
 
I was thinking about how this thread was going to turn out when I was out just now and it has gone exactly as I suspected :o

OP, just let him be a pup for a while and stop stressing. He is not aggressive. No need to leave the forum.
 
Ok, also wont pick him up at all. Thanks. Hes good about following to go outside, but not too good on jumping up the step to get inside. So I pick him up and put him inside and then hes fine and walks in the rest of the way. Everytime you do pet him, he sits down and lets you. Thats what my friend teached all their puppies, that if they want to get pet, they must sit before and not jump up.



Oh, and his name is Hector. I kept his name the same as I thought itd be easier for him as he is used to hearing it, if he knows it or not, I dont really know:o
 
Possibly some meaning of the original post has been lost in the rather colloquial language.

Our now ancient dog was a nightmare when he arrived as a puppy. I wore gardening gloves near him for a couple of weeks. Had to squirt him with a water pistol in order to open fridge. Pinned both kids to kitchen units in barking frenzy. He was tiny, but so aggressive. It was all based on fear, of course. He had come from a virtually dog-only environment to one with noisy kids, clumsy husband etc.
With patience, clear boundaries and a good puppy class, he settled down and has become a truly brilliant family pet that none of us would want to be without.
 
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