Belle has started to growl at us a little!

Belle is now almost 15 months old and is and always has been very placid but just recently she has growled at my husband twice when he was only just smoothing her paws?!
She is funny having her paws cleaned but has never growled before! I really don't want her to be like this.
When she was about 8 months old the vet clipped her claws and she moved and the vet ended up taking it to short and it bleed terribly!! I'm wondering if this is why she is so funny about being touched there? Also the first time she growled was last week and she had just had her booster shot?! So I thought it was because she was a bit grumpy from the shot that she growled?
How can I stop her from growling?
Many Thanks Karen, Belle and Daisy xxx

Not many dogs like having their paws handled, the growl is her only way of letting you know that she's uncomfortable. What is the rest of her body doing when he growls? Is she stiff or giving direct eye contact? You really don't want to stop her from growling, if it correct a dog for growling it takes away their warning to you, and that results in a dog that bites without warning. Remember, dogs can't communicate like us. Instead of getting mad, try and figure out why she is feeling uncomfortable. Maybe it is due to the vet, maybe her paw is hurt?

*if you correct a dog for growling, sorry on my phone!

I would echo what Rachel has said above, a dog will growl to give a warning, take a look at the link below about body language this may help too:

http://staffy-bull-terrier.com/dog_body_language

Thanks for your reply, I didn't think of it like that it was just she'd never done it before and so I was a bit worried.
She just growls a little her body doesn't change or move, although me and my husband have both grown up with dogs including Staffy's we've never owned dogs ourselves so it's all new to us

Thank you Kathy I will have a look on there now xxx

Totally understandable for you to be worried, is it all of the paws or just one paw? If it's just one I would be inclined to try and get a good look at the paw in question, with one of you feeding her tasty treats (cheese is always a winner) to distract. If it's all of the paws try and carry out positive desensitisation sessions, starting with a part she doesn't mind you touching and very slowly progressing towards the sensitive part, again with the use of special treats that she wouldn't usually get, and touch her paws gently whilst feeding her. If she starts to growl, stop doing what you're doing, as she's gone too far.

Thank you Rachel I'll definitely give that a go with the treats, she just doesn't like her paws being touched it's not one in particular but I will check over her paws to make sure they're ok.
She was a bit sleepy also when he was smoothing her so it could of been a leave me alone I'm tired growl xxx

Ah maybe bless her, Biscuits never growled at me but I had dogs in kennels that were a little worried about handling and paws seem to be a particularly sensitive area across the board! Just take it slow really good luck xx

Dont worry too much about it, its like said, its their only way to talk to us, you just have to listen to them and ask yourself why. You know its her paws.