Start of aggression?

[TeresaMalia]

I got Dexter when he was 4 months, he has had very few (>3) times when he got out of line when sharing a toy with the little dogs. Dexter just turned a year old last week. Yesterday he was eating a bone in his closed crate and started growling at one of the smaller dogs walking by. I went over there and corrected him to which he then turned and growled at me. I opened the cage and called him out, he just growled at me. My roommate came over and after he stopped growling, helped me pull him by the collar out of the cage where I put him into submission on the ground and she took his bone out and closed his cage. The rest of the night he "pouted" for lack of a better word. He laid in his cage and didn’t come into the living room with the rest of the family unless i called him. When I went to bed i gave him the bone. This morning he still had it. I opened his cage told him "outside" he walked to the door with his bone. I told him to "drop it" which he didn’t but he allowed me to take the bone from his mouth and went outside. Today he has still been pouting. So I closed his cage and every time he tried to get to it i blocked him. He started playing with the little dog (one who has been his shadow since day 1) but he would not allow her to have the toy....this is VERY unusual. He usually plays with her VERY well. So i just put him outside by himself.....I'm at loss as to how to nip this. I wanted to wait until 18month to have him fixed but would this help him calm down? He has been to obedience training already and i was going to hire a trainer for in the house but financially I really need to wait another 2 months. I know he reads my emotions so I tried to stay calm and relaxed. I've had many dogs before but none this big or potential for major aggression so I want to react properly.

 

[Ripsmom]

he's being a typical teenager... in my opinion I would go ahead and neuter that sucker asap, that might take the edge off..this is the age when they really start to test the waters (sounds like he's been testing the other dog a bit as he's matured) neutering can help with that. what does the little dog do when he gets growly with him? dogs figure out their own pecking order and to be honest I never recommending trying to alter who's who because usually it just makes things worse. since he seems to be really possessive of the bone I would suggest not letting him have it right now; some dogs just get over the top with high value items, my rotti mix is like that with marrow bones. if he is showing this behavior with toys too then I would pick up all the toys and put them away, they only come out when you say it's play time...not him. then when your are done playing with him or letting him play with them they should be put away again. he needs to realize that you control his resources, part of N.I.L.I.F . It would be a good idea to get a good trainer in to help you as well. you can start working with him giving up whatever he has by trading him with an equally high value food item like liver or chicken etc. and teaching him the "drop it" while trading...forget the submissive roll...it's not really effective particularly for a dog that age. while you're at it you should make him work (sit, down, stay etc.) before even giving anything to him (toys or food). having said this I would never leave him loose with the little dog..assuming he is a mastiff... there is too much size disparity and you don't want an accident. He may start to change his tune once you eliminate the bone and control the appearance of his toys. Many dogs are possessive of things/food with other dogs... usually they work it out and either the other dog will let the aggressor have it and "fix things" or the other dog will move away when the aggressor starts to display BUT be careful because in some cases the other dog will think he's gonna put the aggressor in line but he winds up getting more than he bargained for... again may or may not be a big deal (depending on the type of dogs) with dogs of equal size but when you are dealing with a little one you need to do damage control or it could be a disaster.

 

[BradA1878]

It's really not good practice to correct a dog for growling, whether its over food or not... whatever the reason.

Dog's growl to communicate, if you correct him for communicating he may stop growling (for fear of correction) and then he will not have as many "tools" in his "toolbox" for communicating with you - resulting in him appearing to go from not-to-bite in seconds.

He is resource guarding his item because he's insecure and concerned that you will take his item from him. Instead of correcting him for growling at you, if he growls at you over a treat/toy/bone, offer him another toy or treat in exchange - something of higher value. Like a "swap". This shows him that you are fare and it also helps to build an association between you and positive reward. So when you approach his crate or bone he thinks "oh, here comes my friend, I wonder if I will get a nice treat" instead of "oh, here comes that person who takes things from me, I must make sure that doesn't happen again".

Violence begets violence. If you treat your dog violently you are teaching them to act violently. Forcing a dog into submission is a violent act.

I also agree with "Ripsmom" on removing toys and other resources. One of the best ways to set your dog up for success around resources (toys, bones, treats, food) is to control his access to those resources. As "Ripsmom" suggested, use those same resources as rewards for good behavior - have him earn them.