When Dogs Growl or Snap: What NOT to do
If your dog recently growled or snapped, you may be wondering why. After all, you may have done your research and made sure you adopted the best dog for your family. Does this sudden behavior change mean you must rehome him, or worse? Does it mean you have a dominant dog on your hands that you must force to be submissive? What would suddenly make your dog act aggressively?
To us humans, expressions of canine aggression are unacceptable behaviors. However, for a dog, they’re simply ways of communicating. From a dog’s perspective, there’s always a good reason for aggressive behavior. The good news is that growling and snapping don’t necessarily mean that worse behavior is inevitable. Simply put, dogs can’t use words to talk to us. They can’t say, “Please don’t do that to me. I don’t like it.” They can’t reason with a small child to quit pulling their ears or quit crawling on them. Instead, they communicate via the only means available to them–they growl or snap.
Humans and dogs have different communication systems and as a result, there are often misunderstandings between the species. Many dogs are uncomfortable with being hugged or being approached with direct eye contact. When humans approach dogs in this way, they usually intend to be friendly, but dogs may perceive this behavior as threatening or intimidating, and react accordingly. There’s no way around it: we don’t want canine aggression in our homes. A dog’s aggression can lead to a bad outcome if your dog bites someone. The good news is that a growl or snap is your dog’s way of communicating a waning—and your dog is choosing to warn you instead of biting.
In the past, many dog trainers viewed growling and snapping as dominant behaviors and advised dog owners to respond by doing alpha rolls (forcing the dog down onto the ground and onto his back), stare-downs (staring at the dog until he looks away, which signals his acknowledgement that you are dominant over him), shaking his scruff, and long, forced “stays.” Unfortunately, even though a wealth of information now exists about the hazards of these training techniques, a number of trainers continue to use them, including popular celebrity dog trainers who make them appear effective through highly-choreographed video editing. Some trainers recommend even harsher methods for dealing with aggression such as shock collars, which allow you to administer a shock to dog when he displays aggressive behavior. You’d be best advised to stay away from such trainers and advice.
Any trainer/behaviorist who understands dog behavior and the psychological process behind modifying behavior knows that punishment does not help aggression. In fact, punishment often makes the problem worse. If the aggression is motivated by fear, punishment will only make the dog more fearful, and therefore more aggressive. Attempting to punish a pushy or controlling dog is likely to make his behavior even worse. In either case, the dog and owner end up in a vicious cycle of escalating aggression. Punishing territorial, possessive or protective aggression is likely to elicit additional defensive aggression and is likely to ultimately result in worse behavior.
Sometimes, dog owners assume that punishment prevents further aggressive behavior. I probably could have intimidated my dog into not growling at me again. But would that have solved the underlying problem? Not at all.
If you don’t address the underlying issue—perhaps of fearfulness or possessiveness—behind your dog’s aggressive behavior, you’re not changing your dog’s feelings about the incident that caused the growl in the first place. The danger in this is that even if you’re successful in making your dog suppress a growl, your punishment might intensify his feelings. Thus, the next time a similar incident happens, your dog will still feel threatened and become more likely to bite. The dog has learned that his warning (growling) doesn’t work, and in his mind, the next logical step is a bite.
It’s also important to remember that your dog will associate his punishment with whatever is causing him to be upset in the first place. For example, if you punish your dog for growling at a crawling toddler (when your dog was just trying to tell the toddler, “Please don’t bother me!”), your dog may interpret your punishment as “I get yelled at when that child crawls towards me.” Thus, the punishment could cause an escalation of aggression towards the child.
The moral of this story is that we want our dogs to communicate with us. We want them to warn us when they feel uncomfortable or threatened and we want them to know we’ll respect their warning. If they growl and we respect the growl, they’re much less likely to resort to further aggression in the future. The purpose of this article, however, is not to advise you to be permissive with your dog or to ignore the circumstances that caused the growl. If your dog is growling, there is something bothering him and you must address it. It’s important to understand why your dog is growling and what you can do to fix the problem proactively rather than punitively. Your dog will thank you and you will ultimately reap the reward of having a great relationship with your dog.
If you wish to learn more about how dogs perceive human behavior, behaviorist Patricia McConnell has written two very insightful and easy-to-read books about this titled The Other End of the Leash and For the Love of a Dog.
If you have any questions or concerns about your dog’s behavior, visit www.ThinkingOutsideTheCage.org
Dogs are pack animals, who look to their leader for direction. Its imperative that are the leader of your pack, even if it consists of just you and Fido. Depending on the type of aggression the dog exhibits, its possible that he doesnt respect you as the pack leader. Thats especially true of possessive aggression. In this case, discipline your dog by taking away his toys. If he likes sleeping on the sofa and got snappy when asked to move, hes not allowed on it for the foreseeable future. As dog trainer Cesar Millan states on his website, “From this point on, [the dog] needs to live in your home on your terms, not his. You won’t be taking anything away from him; you’ll just be changing who’s in charge.” Millan recommends removing any objects that trigger aggression so the dog learns that they only can be used when the pack leader permits it.
Jane Meggitt has been a writer for more than 20 years. In addition to reporting for a major newspaper chain, she has been published in “Horse News,” “Suburban Classic,” “Hoof Beats,” “Equine Journal” and other publications. She has a Bachelor of Arts in English from New York University and an Associate of Arts from the American Academy of Dramatics Arts, New York City.
If a dog snaps at you, that behavior must be stopped. Disciplining your dog doesnt consist of hitting him and yelling, though he must recognize a firm tone in your voice. Discipline consists of establishing firm boundaries and ensuring your dog recognizes them. He also must recognize that certain behaviors, such as snapping, are unacceptable.
If your dog snapped at you, he either didnt make contact with your skin or the contact was very light. As the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals website points out, dogs have “wonderful control of their mouth,” and if he meant to bite rather than snap thats what usually happens. Observe your dog and his behaviors carefully to head off problems. Its possible that hes been sending you signals that a situation is becoming intolerable, but you havent noticed it. If your dog suddenly freezes and fixes you with a hard stare, thats a warning. Think about what might have triggered his snapping, so you know what sort of aggression youre dealing with. It also helps you prevent repetition of the incident.
Disciplining your dog through counter conditioning involves using a lot of treats, preferably small ones. If you know what causes your dog to snap, you must desensitize him to these triggers and reward him when he reacts properly. Its not a short-term process. For example, if your dog snaps at you when you wear boots, he might be displaying fear aggression related to being stepped on. Desensitize him by leaving the boots out. If he approaches the boots, praise him and give him a treat. When hes fine with the unworn boots, put them on. Walk around with boots on, but do not interact with the dog. Get closer to him while wearing your boots, rewarding him and praising him as he approaches you without fear or aggression. Eventually, wearing boots becomes a nonissue.