Can anyone give me some advice please?!!?

Hi, My puppy Tricksie is only 11 weeks old and today I gave her one of those chewy puppy treats. She was happily chewing away at it then it got lodged between her cusion and the wall so she was trying to get it out.. I went to help her pull it out to give it to her but then she turned to me really visiciously growling and tried to bite me. She seemed really angry about it which is unusual as so far she has been a really placid, quiet and happy dog. I was just wondering if this behaviour is usual and what I should have done about the matter.

she only a pup they have abit of a nasty stage, what you should have took the chew off her and say NOOO and put her in her bed.

Thanks Steve. Yeah that's what I did! She wasn't very happy about it. Just as long as she wasn't to do that all the time.

eveytime she get nasty you want to do the samething

I agree, she needs to know you are the 'pack leader' and it is ok for you to touch her food, bones or toys. It makes it easier to take things like a broken toy or something you dont want her to have.

I bite when someone tries to take my chocolate as well

Seriously, I know this was an exception time but once you give a dog something to eat, meals or treats, you should leave them alone until they have finished them. It is unreasonable to expect them to give them up regularly. it is normal behaviour for a dog to protect his food, this is all your dog is doing, just being a dog.

There are times when you do have to take the food, as in this case, I have dogs here that came food aggressive but I can take anything off them I want now including bones. How I did this is I never took their food or treats off them once they were given. On the rare occasions I needed to I done a swop for food/treats of a higher value. A small piece of cheese, hot dog, chicken etc and your dog learns that nice things happen when you take their food/treats.

If there isn't time for your dog to eat their food/treat, then don't give it to them unless there is.

Thanx for your help Mattie... That's good to know.. I'll try that with her next time. I spose she never quite understood why I was trying to get to the treat. Even though I knew I was only trying to help her.

K&M wrote:I agree, she needs to know you are the 'pack leader' and it is ok for you to touch her food, bones or toys. It makes it easier to take things like a broken toy or something you dont want her to have.

Sorry, I don't believe in us being "Pack Leader", we are not dogs, can't speak dog, and our dogs know this. We are not a member of the pack. We also hold all the resources, food, water, exercise, rest etc so are automatically A leader to our dogs. We can be a good, fair, consistant leader who our dogs are happy to do as we ask, or we can be inconsistant, unreasonable and poor leaders.

K&M wrote:I agree, she needs to know you are the 'pack leader' and it is ok for you to touch her food, bones or toys. It makes it easier to take things like a broken toy or something you dont want her to have.

Iagree K&M, i would not allow mine to be food aggressive. In USA rescue shelters they will not re-home a dog with food aggression, they put them to sleep. God forbid a child could get bitten. Id nip it in the bud now while she is young. She does need to know who is boss, YOU, and that even his food, toys, treats etc are YOURS firstly not hers. Give her treats as a reward for good behavior, if she wont give back, speak to her in a warning growl ( 'Give it' ) as her mother would have done. Practise throwing a ball or toy and her bringing it back, and reward her ONLY for giving it back to you. Then progress to touching her food bowl, if she growls take it away for a while, use the growly voice again lol. Then try again,until she learns if she wants to eat she must be good, and give her lashings of praise for good behavior and treats as a reward. It will take alot of patience and repartition, but if you stick to it, it should work. I can take anything from mine, food,toys,treats etc because i am boss and they respect me. I have never hit my dogs, they do not understand human behavior, only animal behavior, pinning down is a good option, no unessasary force is needed but hold till submission.

She is 11 weeks old and not food aggressive nor does she need to to be shown who is boss, the owner has all the resources, if you need to show them who is boss you are not training your dog very well.

Would you treat a baby like this? An 11 week old puppy is a baby, she doesn't speak our language and needs to be taught what is wanted of her. We have to teach our children our language and they are the same species as us, so why do you expect an 11 week old puppy to know?

If I had to show any of my children or my dogs who is boss, I would have failed them.

every incounter we have with our dogs is a lernen curve for both dog and onwer as evry dog is diffrent..............

Sorry, I don't believe in us being "Pack Leader", we are not dogs, can't speak dog, and our dogs know this. We are not a member of the pack. We also hold all the resources, food, water, exercise, rest etc so are automatically A leader to our dogs. We can be a good, fair, consistant leader who our dogs are happy to do as we ask, or we can be inconsistant, unreasonable and poor leaders.[/quote]


This is exactly what I am talking about! Pack leader= leader, i put it in inverted commas because we are not literally a pack but we are taking on that leading role for the pups/dogs. And if we are poor leaders that is when problems like food aggression can develop further.

Mattie wrote:She is 11 weeks old and not food aggressive nor does she need to to be shown who is boss, the owner has all the resources, if you need to show them who is boss you are not training your dog very well.

Would you treat a baby like this? An 11 week old puppy is a baby, she doesn't speak our language and needs to be taught what is wanted of her. We have to teach our children our language and they are the same species as us, so why do you expect an 11 week old puppy to know?

If I had to show any of my children or my dogs who is boss, I would have failed them.

An 11wk old pup is not the same as an 11wk old baby. Aggression can escalate as they grow and IF it bit a child/adult it would be put to sleep. Whats the sense in that? It is a bullbreed and they get a bad press as it is.
And yes when a dog joins our family 'pack' there is a pecking order and they need to know their place because that is what they understand. I have been lucky with mine and have not encoutered any aggression issues with them i love and repect them and they love and respect me. But as with children they need to be taught what is acceptable and what is not. Aggression is NEVER acceptable, thats why there needs to be a 'leader,boss,top dog,Alpha role model etc to teach them right from wrong. Puppy hood is the time to learn those lessons.
Boss/role model, all children need one dogs too otherwise theyd run wild, they need to learn. 'Pack mentality' is what dogs understand.The pecking order. When we take them from their mother 'Alpha leader'(boss) we have to continue to take on that role. We do tend to humanise them i'm guilty of that i spoil them rotten lol but they are my fur children lol But i never lose sight of what they could be capable of if left to their own devices. Not showing them right from wrong is failing them IMO.

In the wild ' pack ' the Alpha male/female eats first, if any lower in the pecking order try to take his food he reacts with aggression. ( exactly like the pup in question ) so therefore she sees herself higher in rank than her human mother, and needs to know where her place is ie Humans first her last. Even domesticated dogs have a pecking order as their wild relatives it is what is in their Hereditery genes. Sorry to be so long winded

staffsrock wrote:
An 11wk old pup is not the same as an 11wk old baby.

I didn't say an 11 week old pup is the same as an 11 week old baby but they are babies and like all babies they have to be taught what is expected of them. It doesn't matter what sort of babies they are, human, dogs, cats, horses, they all need to be taught first, unless they are they can't be expected to know.

Aggression can escalate as they grow and IF it bit a child/adult it would be put to sleep. Whats the sense in that? It is a bullbreed and they get a bad press as it is.

At 11 weeks old it isn't aggression but a baby learning what is acceptable and what isn't. Using aggression on babies of any type, turns them aggressive and is the main cause of aggressive dogs when they are adults.

And yes when a dog joins our family 'pack' there is a pecking order and they need to know their place because that is what they understand. I have been lucky with mine and have not encoutered any aggression issues with them i love and repect them and they love and respect me. But as with children they need to be taught what is acceptable and what is not. Aggression is NEVER acceptable, thats why there needs to be a 'leader,boss,top dog,Alpha role model etc to teach them right from wrong. Puppy hood is the time to learn those lessons.
Boss/role model, all children need one dogs too otherwise theyd run wild, they need to learn. 'Pack mentality' is what dogs understand.The pecking order. When we take them from their mother 'Alpha leader'(boss) we have to continue to take on that role. We do tend to humanise them i'm guilty of that i spoil them rotten lol but they are my fur children lol But i never lose sight of what they could be capable of if left to their own devices. Not showing them right from wrong is failing them IMO.

Dogs like children need boundaries but how you teach those boundaries can turn a dog aggressive just like it can turn a child into an aggressive adult. If one of your children took your T bone steak off your plate when you are eating it, what would your reaction be? I am sure you wouldn't be very pleased, may shout etc but you expect a 11 week old pup to know that he should let people take food of him without teaching him.

In the wild ' pack ' the Alpha male/female eats first, if any lower in the pecking order try to take his food he reacts with aggression. ( exactly like the pup in question ) so therefore she sees herself higher in rank than her human mother, and needs to know where her place is ie Humans first her last. Even domesticated dogs have a pecking order as their wild relatives it is what is in their Hereditery genes. Sorry to be so long winded

Not true, in wild packs of dogs the pups eat first, they are the future of the species and have to be looked after until they can hunt for themselves. The leader of the pack is never aggressive, they don't need to be, often a look or lifting the teeth is all they need to keep control. The dogs that are aggressive are the wannabees, they wannabee higher in the pack than they are. The top dog and the bottom don't fight, those inbetween do. The top dog will defend himself if he is attacked by a wannabee.

Several of my dogs were aggressive when they came, none of them are aggressive now. If I had accepted the challenge that my 70lb Greyhound was throwing over possessions he had, I wouldn't have a face now. He didn't know that he was supposed to give things up when I asked he had to be taught them. He had been in kennels all his life and never learnt this. With the right handling, not using any form of aggression, not "Showing him I am boss", he gives even bones up now at the first asking.

When you start training with aggression, eventually that won't work so you need to use more aggression to get what you want. Eventually you are using a lot of aggression, causing you and the dog a lot of stress as well, and many dogs will show you aggression back, they will attack.

Children also need to be taught that dogs are not dolls, they are living, breathing animals with feelings. Many owners seem to think that dogs should take whatever the children dish out no matter how much it hurts the dog. I have a dog here that has been abused by a 4 year old girl, I have had him for 10 years, he was 10 months old when I got him and he is still terrified of small girls.

Dogs do need boundaries, but those boundaries should be taught and enforced without any form of aggression.

AM i missing something???? Since where did i say to use aggression? As for the the learning that is exactly WHAT I SAID ,they need to be taught or if left unchecked it could escalate to violent behavior when older. As for taking things off plates, dont feed them scraps off your plate, then they wont. Dont assume or imply i am aggressive to my dogs when im NOT. Like i say ive been lucky with mine ive had staffs for nigh on twenty years and never had any of the above issues so i must be doing something right. My dogs love and repect me as i do them. In the wild Growling, snarling and lifting teeth is a warning of aggression, I was talking as the pack as a whole not pups, the wildlife programmes i've watched have escalated into biting when food has been scarce by the top dog.
The first litter i went to view, a litter of 7, 8wks old, one of the pups a bitch, started play fight with mom, mom warned and growled, pup got mom underneck growling n snarling, really going at her in a bite hold under the neck. Mom having had enough when her growls didnt work turned and pinned her down round the neck underneath her. The breeder did not intervene. Pup was doing the dying fly to get her off but mom let go when she got her point across. This is 'pinning down' and completely natural, ive seen it. Ceaser Milan uses this method no real force is needed until the dog submits, its what dogs understand allready. I dont see it as agression. If taken from the mother too young it may have missed these lessons by the mother. And i totally agree about overplay by children, can ruin the pup, i dont have that problem as my son is an adult. My dogs are my babies Ceaser Milan teaches boudries and limitations, THATS exactly what my post said. They do need a leader, a dog will choose one himself from in the family(pack) who they will go to, follow, look to for leadership, affection, the most etc

staffsrock wrote: pinning down is a good option, no unessasary force is needed but hold till submission.

This is using aggression on a dog, some dogs will give up, others will try and take your face off. Start doing this as a pup, and it excalates, you will need more and more force to control your dog. I have had to try and turn round too many dogs that were started like this.

staffsrock wrote: The first litter i went to view, a litter of 7, 8wks old, one of the pups a bitch, started play fight with mom, mom warned and growled, pup got mom underneck growling n snarling, really going at her in a bite hold under the neck. Mom having had enough when her growls didnt work turned and pinned her down round the neck underneath her. The breeder did not intervene. Pup was doing the dying fly to get her off but mom let go when she got her point across. This is 'pinning down' and completely natural, ive seen it.

That was a bitch checking her pup, I may be a bitch in human terms but I am not a dog, I do try to understand a dog's body language but I could never behave like a dog no matter how hard I try, neither can any other human. If one of my older dogs check one of my younger ones I don't intervene either, they learn quicker from other dogs.

staffsrock wrote: Ceaser Milan uses this method no real force is needed until the dog submits, its what dogs understand allready.

Have you ever watched Cesar Milan with the sound off? Please watch this dog's body languagewith no sound, ignore Cesar Milan, then turn the sound up and watch it again. I won't say what I see yet, but it would be very interesting to see how you read the dog before listening to him. We could have a good discussion then.

staffsrock wrote:My dogs are my babies Ceaser Milan teaches boudries and limitations, THATS exactly what my post said.

Basically I agree with most you are saying, but I now understand a lot more as you are now quoting Cesar Milan, but will say more after you have watched that clip with no sound.

I love a good discussion, I can learn so much from other people

Didnt mean for you to use your teeth Mattie I will check him out as you say when hes on telly and get back to you

Ooops, sorry I didn't put the link in, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXPkSZ7gBTk this is the one to watch with your sound down first then with the sound up.

If you think I am using my teeth there you don't know me

I really do love discussions because everyones experiences are different and had different ways of coping with things. It is by passing on these experiences that everyone can learn. The more I learn the more I realise I have a lot more to learn.

At first It Looked playful, happy, excited wagging his tail wanted to get out to play,( or needed to cock his leg lol) Ceaser stared him down which is a challenge to a dog. Suppose he got the reaction he was after. I dont think the dog was nasty at all. See where your coming from mattie. Ive seen that before on tv never thought about it, till you pointed it out. Like the saying goes ' A dogs never too old to learn new tricks' excuse the pun

At first I couldn't see what was wrong with CM but didn't feel comfortable but someone told me to watch with the sound down, it was quite an eye opener. He has the gift of the gab and we miss what the dogs are telling us because of it.

I used to train the Barbara Woodhouse way, wasn't comfortable with it but one day I thought there had to be a better way, my dogs were a lot happier after that.

One good thing CM has done, is get more people in the USA walking their dogs.

I try to learn something every day, and the day I stop learning, I won't be here. I have learnt a lot about Staffies on this board, and hope to learn more.