Question:
: I've read lots of the q&a's and they've been helpful. However, I'm confused with the statement "don't let your puppy win". If he growls at me and I put him down on the floor, did I win or did he? How agressive should I get in order to win? I want him to know that I'm the boss, what does it take to let him know that. We plan to take him to puppy school very soon. Thank you for any suggestions
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Hi Mike,
I don't know exactly where you read "don't let your puppy win," but I am certain that person wasn't talking about physical or harsh punishments. Being alpha is not in severe discipline or in phyiscal strength or prowess. Dog communicate with each other in fairly subtle ways, and also pick up on our subtle cues also. Alpha isn't about fear; it's about mutual respect.
You may have seen a reference to the human winning in a game of tug of war. The human "wins" by being the one who ends the game. You decide when the game ends, before the dog does. Wait until the terrier releases the tug toy, or gentle give a "leave it" type command. Then that toys gets put away, and the dog gets praised and perhaps encouraged to play with another toy or ball. It's very simple and does not need to involve any physical contact at all.
If your dog is growling, please assess first why he is growling. Are you certain it's aggression toward you? Are you playing and he's just talking? Many terriers are very vocal when they play, and aggression is a completely different picture. Be certain you are seeing/hearing aggressive growling before you do anything about it; punishing him for growling in play is punishing him for playing. You definitely don't want that. If your terrier does growl at your aggressively, gently lift him to the floor and ignore him for 5 minutes or so. If he insists on coming back at you, not letting you ignore him, place him in his crate. He will quickly learn that being with you is something he only gets when he's being good.
Additionally, I would STRONGLY encourage you to locate a good trainer and start withing with them and your dog. Especially since you are suspecting aggression problems, you need to get into some training to teach you how to handle your dog and to get him socialized.
Heather
