brins Posted March 16, 2015 Report Share Posted March 16, 2015 My 13 1/2 week old border collie puppy has bouts of aggression. Typically, he is a sweet boy and calms down nicely if we tell him "no". He knows how to sit, speak, is housebroken, and will not go to his food dish until we tell him that it is okay. Our issue is that at times, he will actually growl and even snap at us if we attempt to correct him. Also, if we are near his food and it is a special treat, he will growl and snap if he thinks we are getting too close. He will eat very gently out of our hands and we can hold the food dish where he won't snap. We have been working with him, and it seems to be getting better. When my husband put his food bowl down and held his hand up to stop him in a stop motion. The puppy sat down, but bared his teeth briefly and growled as if he might bite. He doesn't bite, but we are afraid it will get worse. He is a typically a very well behaved puppy and has started to roll over onto his back to have us pet his belly, in a submissive stance, but his moments of aggression causes us concern. Does anyone have any suggestions? Or had a puppy like this that outgrew this behavior? We are taking him to obedience training, in hopes that it will help. Also, when we are walking, he wants to herd us at times, but will seem like he is getting aggressive if we tell him no. We love the puppy and don't want him to become a nasty dog. We have had border collie mixes for 30 years, but this is our first pure bred border collie. He is so smart but we just are nervous about his aggressive tendencies. Is this normal for such a young puppy? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingfisher7151 Posted March 16, 2015 Report Share Posted March 16, 2015 Hi there! Welcome to the boards! I suspect the majority of the people here are going to tell you that most of that is very normal puppy behavior. Puppies can be very bratty and nippy, particularly if they become overtired. There are actually a lot of threads entitled "puppy aggression", you will probably find some good resources if you look back through the archives. At 13 weeks I myself am very hesitant to call any bad behavior "aggression". It's the same as a 4 year old throwing an "I don't wanna" temper tantrum. Miserable, yes. But it's not what I would consider aggression. Are you crate training? If you are, I would give him a timeout if he starts to get snarky. I know it sounds silly, but the message of "nipping at people makes all the fun go away" is very clear to them. The food guarding is a little bit more concerning. That said, it's also not uncommon. My pup went through some periods of being guardy with me. He never fully snapped, but he would posture and freeze if I came near his food. I was able to work him through all that, though he remains food aggressive with certain dogs. There are a number of things you can do to work him through it. There are also lots of threads about food aggression in the archives, I'd search through them for this too! Again, welcome to the boards! You'll surely find a wealth of knowledge here between the archives and the experienced members here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brins Posted March 16, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 16, 2015 Thank you so much for the information! I do appreciate it, and have read the postings on puppy aggression. We found that when we give the puppy a "time out", he dramatically calms down. If he is "herding" us and barking at us, we will tell him "no", stop, and not look at him. Most times, he will stop doing it and entertain himself with a toy. When our 14 year old border collie mix died, we were heartbroken, and this new puppy has brought such joy back into our lives. We just grew concerned as we have a young grandchild, that he would bite her. He is very good with other people and is very well behaved when going to the vet's office or in public. He isn't aggressive with other dogs, but barks constantly when another dog comes to the house. If we are in public, he doesn't bark at other dogs, just in his own home. Thanks, again, for the information and welcoming me to the boards. I see that there is so much that I can learn here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosikins Posted March 16, 2015 Report Share Posted March 16, 2015 Welcome! If that's him in the profile pic, he's a cutie! We had the same thing with Callie - we got a behaviorist to address the guarding and it's gotten so much better quite quickly! For us, it was largely complete and total bratty behavior rather than actual aggression. She doesn't have a mean bone in her body. She just thought she should have what she wanted when she wanted it. It also didn't help that her perception of the guarding situations was that we were trying to "steal" her good things from her (usually smelly socks). It also sounds like he might also need to just mature a bit and get some socialization with different people and in new situations. Callie got barky for a while around 10-14 weeks old as she adjusted to our house and family and started thinking of it as her own. I'd get a little bit of training assistance from a behaviorist and then just work on what he/she says diligently! Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosikins Posted March 16, 2015 Report Share Posted March 16, 2015 P.S. - When the pup growls at you, don't push him further because he might actually nip you. We made that mistake and our girl escalated her growling and snapping. Instead, back of and reassure him that it's ok. We thought it would reinforce the dog's thought that he's winning the argument, but the behaviorist said that growling is actually good behavior. You want your dog to always growl and not feel like he'll be punished for doing it, because if you punish the growling or consistently ignore it, he'll go straight to biting. Growling is his way of giving an audible warning that he's upset. The key is to show him that he doesn't need to feel that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GentleLake Posted March 16, 2015 Report Share Posted March 16, 2015 For the food stuff, do a search in the boards for trading up. It's a great exercise that usually works wonders quickly with a young dog. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GentleLake Posted March 16, 2015 Report Share Posted March 16, 2015 Also, when he's nipping at your feet when walking, you might want to try stopping and totally ignoring him. It's movement that sets this off, so if you stop moving and ignore him it's no fun any more and should stop when he figures that out. You say you're taking him to obedience training. Have you discussed this with the trainer? She or he should have some suggestions. Not everyone here will agree, but imo if the trainer tells you to do a leash correction (jerk & pop) or another punitive response, I'd look for another trainer ASAP. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chan Posted March 17, 2015 Report Share Posted March 17, 2015 Adorable pup!! Mine! by Jean Donaldson is a great little book that address resource guarding, which is what it sounds like you're dealing with in regard to the food. You can order it from Amazon. You'll be amazed at how quickly you can turn that around. Best wishes, Chandra Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle R Posted January 25, 2021 Report Share Posted January 25, 2021 My male Javieris 1 1/2 and started growling at me, I am the enforcer and my boyfriend is the softy. It comes out of nowhere. You see his eyes dilate and he growls and lunges towards me like he is protecting him. I spend more time with him and it’s frustrating and breaks my heart, aside from being scary. Afraid to have people over. Please Help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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