New dog growling at me - advice?

Charlie Bucket

Charlie Bucket

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As some of you may know, I tragically lost my best friend a month ago, to idiopathic epilepsy. He was my dog of a lifetime and I miss him everyday.

We adopted a new dog a couple of days ago, she is a 4yr old Collie. Been in the same home since a pup, but they are getting on and can't give her the attention she needs.

In 99% of ways she is as good as gold, a real sweet thing. We just seem to be having a problem. She will get up on the couch/armchair (I don't mind this as a general rule) but when I try to move her or get her 'off', she becomes quite aggressive, snarling, growling and she has even snapped at me a couple of times.

I have been firmly telling her NO! With my finger, then repeatedly asking Off! Until she obeys, then feeding her a treat and giving her lots of fuss. I have to do this from a few feet away, as if I get any closer she starts to snarl.

Am I doing the right thing? I want to get off on the right foot, and she has a forever home with us that I would like to be happy and content.

Thanks in advance for any replies :)
 
Did you get her from a rescue centre? If yes they should have a behaviourist who should be able to help you. Alternatively find someone with a good reputation who can assess the problem directly because aggression is a difficult issue to help with unless someone can see exactly what is happening.

Meanwhile I would avoid 'hands on' techniques in case you get bitten and don't give commands she is likely to ignore. One good way of getting her off the sofa/chair safely is to tip the chair until she falls out then reward her for being on the floor.
 
I would attach a light weight cord to her collar then when she gets on the furniture you can pick up the line and gently pull her off with which ever command you want to use ( I use OFF) this way your fingers are safe and she's will soon realise you can make her do it. Btw I would not let this dog onto any furniture if she becomes possessive
Hope this helps
 
Why give her a treat ? To me you are just rewarding her bad behaviour, if you don't want her on the furniture or growling at you, and who would, then be firmer, don't let her up and if she does then tell her to get down and mean it.
 
As I said in my OP, I don't mind her on the furniture - I don't want to ban her from it all together as it is nice for her to come up for a cuddle etc. I just want her to know that when I say off, I mean off and that's the end of it.

I'm not praising her for her bad behaviour, when she is growling at me she gets a stern NO, it's only when she obeys my command to get off the furniture that she is rewarded, as she has done what I have asked of her.

We seem to be making progress already - I have just gone and sat beside her and said Off, small growl followed by a No from me, Off again and she obeyed, so lots of praise then.

I'm hoping that it is just a settling in problem, her testing the boundaries and once she realises that I am to be respected and obeyed she will do just that. In her defence she has had a big upheaval, so it is understandable that a finding feet period is inevitable.

She is not from a shelter, I got her directly from her previous home.
 
bonny said:
Why give her a treat ? To me you are just rewarding her bad behaviour, if you don't want her on the furniture or growling at you, and who would, then be firmer, don't let her up and if she does then tell her to get down and mean it.
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I think OP is treating the dog once its dog off the sofa and on the floor. I'm no expert but they say with resource guarding that if you take away what they want and are guarding - you should give a desirable alternative, make it pleasant for the dog to have jumped off and be on the floor.
 
What Satinbaze says and tbh, you can't have it both ways. Either she's allowed on the furniture or she's not. She won't understand being allowed on one time but being made to get off another time.

IMO, dogs belong on the floor and I think she needs consistency, one rule that is enforced all the time. She's already confused having left her previous owners, don't confuse her further by giving her different rules for different times/moods.

Just my opinion, but you can't expect her to read your mind about when/if she's allowed on the furniture.
 
A few years ago I took on an 18month Dobermann due to him having bitten someone in the family. He was as fat as a house and spoilt with no bounderies which sounds like your dog. He too got on the sofa and when told to get off he growled at me and I knew if I had reached for his collar I would have set him up to bite me. I went behind the sofa and tipped it up, at the same time I said get off and he ran into the kitchen and got in his bed and looked very sheepish.

You need to be firm with your dog and set out the bounderies very clearly, mine became my dog of a lifetime and he never growled at me again.
 
Thank you for your replies, all very helpful advice. As I said, even since posting this this morning we seem to have made some progress. If she becomes any worse I will try the tipping chair/light rope techniques. I'm not in any rush, I just want her to trust and respect me which I'm sure will come with time.

I guess it's just a shock, I was used to my boy who would do anything asked of him and more without so much as a eye blink. He really was an absolute treasure.

Thanks again for your advice everyone, I really do appreciate it. :)
 
I've never had a problem with dogs understanding that they can be on the sofa at some times but not others. They are allowed on the sofa until they are asked to get off, it's no different from anything else they are asked to do.

I also reward when they do the right thing because the more you reward a behaviour the more it is reinforced.
 
But all dogs are different Booboos and this girl's history is unknown, she's not being taught from scratch.

Agree use a light house line and take all the conflict out of it. Stop pointing at her unless you want to lose the finger. It can be quite threatening to some dogs. I would just put some flat chairs or a drying rack on the furniture to make it not a comfortable place to sit. Don't set her up to fail.

For now, I would not let her on the furniture as it will just confuse her - it needs to be really clear and consistent.
 
I don't allow my dog on the sofa, we never have as a family and I guess if a dog is allowed then told to get off it can get confusing for the dog I suppose.

Does she get up of her own accord (ie when you're not on it) or does she get on with you to be with you?

If just on her own and you want her off then maybe sit on the floor and encourage her to come down to where you are - make that the nice place to be. Reward her being down there and not when she's on the sofa.

To me, it makes more sense to instill clear boundaries of what is allowed and what isn't from the word go to avoid any confusion. I understand that people on here have said they've nevr had an issue with this but this dog to you is new and all dogs are different. It could well be she got away with this behaviour in her previous home as well.
 
I'm probably going to get shot down here but here goes anyway.

For the sake of the dog, you have to be firm. She maybe new to your home but she has to know the rules and rule number 1 is that the humans are at the top of the pecking order and she's at the bottom, what they say goes, end of.

We have had one or two including rescues that would lift a lip and growl but it didn't last long. Firm but fair and no treats! You'll end up with a happier dog, believe me.

Good luck with her.
 
Our dog is on the soffa with me as we speak. Cwtched up next to me. There's no confusion for her if I ask her to get down.

Op, I wonder if simply letting her 'be' for the moment is the way to go? Until she's more confident of her surroundings and feeling less protective of herself and the space she chooses to occupy.
 
Shei has only been with you a short time and she is resource guarding, put a harness and a lead on her in the house for now, so you have a way of moving her and avoiding conflict.

I would start training her to jump on the sofa and then off it, not when you want to sit on it, but as a training exercise. Make it all positive, and yes reward her for doing what you ask ( getting on or off). Then when you do want her to move it becomes something she understands. Do lots of other training with her, build up her trust in you. I would not say anything if you get into a situation where she growls, just use the lead to remove her.
 
Some of you have some strange ideas .....in my humble opinion ! This is a collie, she dosen't need a harness and lead on in the house or treats. Just a bit of commonsense from the new owner and all will be well.....
 
amymay said:
Our dog is on the soffa with me as we speak. Cwtched up next to me. There's no confusion for her if I ask her to get down.

Op, I wonder if simply letting her 'be' for the moment is the way to go? Until she's more confident of her surroundings and feeling less protective of herself and the space she chooses to occupy.
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Because your dog has learned the difference. Dogs have to learn how to learn, they are not all the same.

If the dog growls when it wants the human to go away and leave it alone, and you do, what does that then teach the dog?!
I do agree some of the OP's behaviour could be construed by the dog as threatening, but to ignore it is an even bigger mistake.
 
I agree that it's a good idea to not allow the new girl on the sofa unless you say she can come up. Don't let her invite herself, it's your sofa and you decide who goes on. If she knows it's yours, she will back off if you want it to yourself. I'd probably be quite strict for now with everything including feeding her so there's no confusion over who's in charge; you can always relax later when that's established. Good luck, it sounds like she is a lucky girl to have found you.
 
bonny said:
Some of you have some strange ideas .....in my humble opinion ! This is a collie, she dosen't need a harness and lead on in the house or treats. Just a bit of commonsense from the new owner and all will be well.....
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Nothing strange about 21st century dog training. Teaching the dog what you want it to do rather than creating more conflict. Resource guarding is easily fixed if you approach it the right way, absolutely no need to force the issue.
 
CaveCanem said:
But all dogs are different Booboos and this girl's history is unknown, she's not being taught from scratch.
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Yes of course I wouldn't dispute that, I was merely pointing out that the getting on furniture is not in itself problematic. The dog is not possessive because it was allowed on the sofa in the first place, it could be possessive over its bed or its feed bowl or other things that are usually given to dogs.

Given that the dog is possessive over the sofa that needs to be addressed though.
 
bonny said:
Some of you have some strange ideas .....in my humble opinion ! This is a collie, she dosen't need a harness and lead on in the house or treats. Just a bit of commonsense from the new owner and all will be well.....
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Operant conditioning??? What is this witchcraft this thread is spouting? OP should just ask the man on the clapham omnibus.
 
Apologies if I sounded snappy (growly?!), I hadn't had my dinner :o and thought it was a good idea to log on to HHO while I waited for the oven to heat up, bad idea :p

Anyway, I think it's as important to tell the dog what you don't want it to do, as it is to tell it what you do, otherwise, how does it know the difference, if that puts me in Bonny's Krazy Dog Training Skool then so be it :p

Operant...classical...the rats, the rats!!
 
bonny said:
Some of you have some strange ideas .....in my humble opinion ! This is a collie, she dosen't need a harness and lead on in the house or treats. Just a bit of commonsense from the new owner and all will be well.....
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i agree ^^



my two (collie x and a cocker) know they are allowed to go on the sofa anytime they want......but they also get off as soon as i say....any hesitation and i would physically drag them off.... (never had too)!....

both currently sprawled out before bed on the sofa with all 4 paws in the air!! :rolleyes:
 
Yeah but this dog is growling and snapping at the owner for raising her voice and wagging her finger - maybe she should go drag the dog off and get bitten? If you use a line (or even as mentioned, tip the sofa) you get the message across and keep your hands hole-free.
 
Didn't mean for this to turn into an argument.....:o

We have made lots of progress and it's been what, 12 hours? So will see tommorow and just keep being consistent. The scold is very minimal and the praise overly enthusiastic. She's a quick learner :)

Thank you again for all your advice, all been taken on board and in my opinion there is no right or wrong way to train, whatever works for you and your dogs to result in a happy relaxed atmosphere :)
 
That's not really an argument by AAD standards :p nobody has used the words cruel, barbaric or evil yet :p

You're quite right, do what suits the individual dog. Keep up the good work :) but I wouldn't overcook her, just a couple of sessions a day so the sofa doesn't become a big deal :)
 
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