# Snapping at child



## Jumpshot (Dec 26, 2008)

We just adopted a year old female GSD who had 4 homes before ours. She's very sweet, can be aggressive with other dogs but that is manageable. She had no training before we got her. The problem is after having her for 3 weeks she started snapping at my 3.5 year old son. He grew up with our older GSDs and is good with dogs. She snapped with no provacation or warning. I really don't want to give her up, is this a cureable problem? Does anyone have stories, good or bad, of their own. Our 9 year old GSD is a saint, loves kids, dogs, horses, you name it!


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## Lauri & The Gang (Jun 28, 2001)

Can you tell us exactly what was happening when the dog snapped at the child?

Dogs do no snap at humans for no reasons - but sometimes it's hard to _see_ the reason.


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## DianaM (Jan 5, 2006)

With four homes before yours, yours is the fifth home this poor ONE YEAR OLD has seen, so she is going to have a LOT of baggage. She will need lots of time and patience and she might not be so quick to bond because she could very well be expecting to leave again. Poor thing. Thank you for taking her in.

Can you describe the situations where she snapped at your boy? Oftentimes we think a dog snaps for no reason when in fact the dog had a mile-long list of reasons. Was your son reaching for a toy? Did he walk near the food or water dishes? Did he walk by her when she was sleeping or resting or chewing? Did your pup have a complete physical by the vet to rule out any possible health problems such as painful spots that could cause the aggression? There could be many reasons and it will help us more if we have details.

In the meantime, you can feed your pup in her crate while making sure your son understands that when she is in her crate, she is not to be disturbed- no petting, no talking, no staring! That is her "safe zone." If she eats or chews a toy or bone, in the crate she goes. This keeps her safe as well as your son safe. Make sure your son learns to keep a wide berth around her when she is sleeping. No petting or touching the sleeping dog! Some dogs are quite disoriented when waking up and more prone to defense when disturbed. Your son is still very young so this will mean a ton of supervision on your part. 

Finally, get your son involved in the training of the dog. While you have her securely on leash, have your son give her a simple command that she knows well such as "sit," then have him toss her a treat (stick with tossing for now until you KNOW she takes treats gently). While you hold her, have your son put the food bowl in the crate so she can see that your son is also a decision-maker and food-bearer in the "pack." As your son and your pup grow older, have your son do more obedience and training work with the pup. All members of the family should be involved in training appropriate to their age and skill level. 

Make sure to sign up for obedience classes! Classes will REALLY help her bond with you and settle her in as well as help socialize her.


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## Brightelf (Sep 5, 2001)

There is always a reason, even if it isn't obvious to you just yet. Consider: Was the dog in a corner, or against a wall at the time? Was there a resource the dog was guarding from this child-- even if that resource was something simple like her resting spot/blanket, a toy, a bowl(even if empty)-- or-- even your attention? (this is a BIG resource to a dog.. your talking, your eye contact)

Now that you are thinking of the situation, great! Now let's look at the dog herself: Has she got any sore spots? Any limping? Does she not like you to touch her head/tail/ears? She can have an ear infection-- and you would not know it. (My dog did.. he was "aggressive" for "no reason" until the vet found a hidden, deep ear infection). Has she ouch-y joints that nake her feel vulnerable? GSDs at age 1 year can be feeling extreme pain from hip and elbow displasia.. even without a telltale limp. Why not take the dog in for a VERY thorough vet check-- mentioning the agression towards the child?

Now that you have considered the situation and the dog-- let's consider the child. Active, busy, loud (to a dog's ears) toddler-- that's a LOT for a traumatized dog to tolerate. Who is guiding this child's interactions with the new dog? If your 9 year old shepherd is a saint... you may be expecting this frightened new dog to tolerate something that is much too stressful for her. You may need to strongly teach the CHILD that he must be quiet, calm, and slow around this dog-- and to leave her alone for now. She may still be settling in, as it is so early, and she has had such a traumatized life. The boy may simply be too much (from her perspective) to be able to relax in her new home. She may feel she HAS to defend herself, as she imagines that her life is still in a state of flux and danger.

I think examining criticalls the situation, the dog, *and most importantly being honest with yourself about the behavior of the child towards a dog who is still in recovery*, will go a long way. It may be that while this traumatized dog settles in, she needs healing time without the child interacting with her much.


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## Jumpshot (Dec 26, 2008)

Yes, she sure has a lot of baggage and in the time she has been with us she sure has come a long way. She wasn't house trained, crate trained or anything trained. She jumped up on anything, anytime, anywhere and if there was food anywhere she just jumped up and helped herself! Plus she was HUNGRY, and so thirsty.
In 5 weeks she has become house trained, crate trained, will come when called and walk on the leash. She loves her crate and toys we gave her. Having come all this way I do believe that she can overcome the snapping as well. Strangely she doesn't seem food aggressive, only very hungry...but she won't growl or snap when food is involved.
Both times she snapped at my son she was near either my husband or myself and my son approached to pat her in a gentle way. She didn't growl or give warning and as he approached from the side there was no eye contact. We don't believe that he surprised her because he had been there all along. Except for her fear and general non-socialization with other dogs she is mostly very gentle.
We have experimented with a nylon muzzle on her when she is free in the house with my son and so far she has accepted that. Obviously I don't want that to be a long term solution but for now we can all relax a little when she is around my son.
I took her to my vet, she has no injuries or painful spots. We have started my son with some basic obedience and they have done okay.


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## sitstay (Jan 20, 2003)

When you say that she is very hungry, do you mean that she scarfs her food down so quickly that her mouth doesn't leave the bowl until every bit is gone? Does she keep an eye on everyone as she is eating, and will she start to gulp her food even quicker if someone moves while she is eating? Does she hunker down even closer to the bowl as she starts to gulp faster?
After living with you for 5 weeks, and being fed during that time, she shouldn't be hungry. Maybe what you are seeing is low level resource guarding? And now you and your husband have become another resource? 
Sheilah


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## Timber1 (May 19, 2007)

I have read all the subsequent posts and advice, and do not disagree with any of the suggestions or subsequent questions. 

However, snapping at a child is a major concern, and I doubt you want the dog in the house, always with a muzzle on.

Perhaps, one of the previous people that responded, and I can provide the name of a good trainer if you let us know what part of the country you are from. 

One last word, and just an opinion. When I said good trainer, I meant a good trainer. Most might not be that helpful.


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## DianaM (Jan 5, 2006)

Before we jump to conclusions, we must remember that this is the FIFTH family for this dog in one year. That means every two to three months, just as this pup settled and bonded, she got passed on. She is probably still very nervous and unsure of her place, probably not at all fully bonded, and probably hasn't built up any trust. She doesn't need any sort of heavy-handed methods right now; what she needs most is stability, patience, discipline, clear rules and expectations, and time to trust and bond.


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## KristinEnn (Oct 2, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: DianaMBefore we jump to conclusions, we must remember that this is the FIFTH family for this dog in one year. That means every two to three months, just as this pup settled and bonded, she got passed on. She is probably still very nervous and unsure of her place, probably not at all fully bonded, and probably hasn't built up any trust. She doesn't need any sort of heavy-handed methods right now; what she needs most is stability, patience, discipline, clear rules and expectations, and time to trust and bond.



Very GOOD advice!


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## BowWowMeow (May 7, 2007)

Based on your clarification, I am pretty sure you are seeing resource guarding. There is a great book on this called "Mine" and you can look for it over on dogwise.com 

In the meantime you want to interrupt the behavior before it happens. So, you never want to let her get in between you and your son. You can step in front of her and reward her for remaining relaxed. But basically you either need to crate her or leash her until you can get this one under control.

I had a dog like this and he did it with my other dog and my cat. It got to the point where they were afraid to approach me because he would jump up and snap at them. He would also do it with people if we were in an umfamiliar space. I did not allow him to lie at my feet anymore and if he was in between me and then I would step forward and take control of the space that he was guarding. 

This is a fearful behavior and if not dealt with properly it will escalate so it is great that you are willing and able to work with her on this. 

I would also teach her a focus command and watch her very carefully so that you can read the little changes in her body language and are able to predict when her guarding mode kicks in. Then you want to get her to focus on you and redirect her to something positive. 

Clicker training would probably be great for this dog.


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## Timber1 (May 19, 2007)

Diana,

I do not disagree with your comments, but will admit I am a bit paranoid because just one bite to a 3 1/2 year olds face could be permanent damage.

Between the being very nervous and unsettled after having been kicked around, and when the dog settles, something bad could happen.

I do not think I mentioned heavy handed methods.

Doing rescue as a foster, I understand the background, but would be concerned about the dog's snapping if I had a young child in my home.


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## Jumpshot (Dec 26, 2008)

Great advice from many good sources, thanks to all! Diana and Timber I agree with you both. I think she gets better each day as she learns the rules and feels more stability. Each day I see more progress in her in so many ways, BUT it is also very troubling to think of what could happen if she has the tendency to snap at a child. 
Sit, stay you are kidding right? She has been in our home for a mere 5 weeks and at one point in her life she has clearly gone without food. She is still very underweight and YES we are feeding her the right amount and a good quality food. I think it will take quite a bit longer for her to trust that she gets food at regular intervals in adequate amounts. She doesn't guard her food or act aggressive about it, just acts like she has never had enough. 
I am working with my vet and she has had a complete physical exam, so the pain factor has been ruled out. I touch her everywhere, she loves to be petted, touched any sort of attention.
She is definitely resource guarding our attention and we are working with her on that. Thanks BowWowMeow for pointing me in the direction of Mine. I will look into that.
I am good with dogs and other animals, LOVE GSDs and have had them my whole life but I can't risk the health of my son.


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## sitstay (Jan 20, 2003)

No, actually, I wasn't kidding. Dogs don't think like we do. You might know that she will always get food now, but she isn't going to see it that way. She isn't going to settle herself down with thoughts of how comfortable she is in your home, or how happy she is to be with you. It has nothing to do with trust.
What she does know is that she hasn't been fed enough in the past and she needs to protect what she gets now. The idea of being able to relax now isn't really going to enter her head because dogs don't think like that.
My question was geared more towards getting you to think in terms of her possibly being a resource guarder, and not seeing her eating habits has her just being hungry all the time. Which was why I wanted to get an idea of how she eats. The guarding behavior has nothing to do with being currently hungry.
It is not uncommon for a dog who has a history of not being fed enough to be a resource guarder. And it is not uncommon for a resource guarder to see a valued human as a resource to be guarded. 
I was not at all implying that you were not feeding her enough now that she is in your home! You could be feeding her until she pops, and it won't be enough because the behavior has nothing to do with being hungry.
Good luck with her. She is lucky that she found someone who loves the breed.
Sheilah


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## bearlasmom (Sep 21, 2006)

lets make this simple.
she is 1 yr old. she is in #5 home in that one year.
at some point she went without food and water for some reason.
she has been passed on like a towel, handed from one family to the next. 
she has never had time to settle in because she is never there long enough and has not been able to develop atrue bond with anyone. 
am i right so far?

she needs love, understanding, training. she needs to learn that you are not going to pass her down the line again. they do not think the way we do, they do not understand our saying sweety, we wont give you away again. 
that is all she has ever known. teach her that her crate is a safe haven and try to teach your child not to go near the crate when she is in it. when she is free, get her to come, sit, stay and then give your son a cookie to give to her. never leave a dog of any size, with a child, no matter how behaved it may be or appear to be. 
start obedience training with her, it will be great for you both. she will learn how to listen and to trust in you and you will learn how to deal with her on adaily basis. she will learn relatively fast that that she is not going to be tossed aside again. play alot with her and with your son. teach your son how to play fetch with her. take it one day at a time. hang in there


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## Jumpshot (Dec 26, 2008)

Bearlasmom, that's great advice. It's what my heart is telling me about this dog. Thanks.
Sit, stay, thanks for making that more clear for me. I think viewing her as a resource guarder for our attention is going to help a lot.


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## Timber1 (May 19, 2007)

Thanks for taking the time to post. The comment you made that hit home with me is the dog will learn relatively fast, she is not going to be tossed aside again.


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## DianaM (Jan 5, 2006)

> Quote:I do not disagree with your comments, but will admit I am a bit paranoid because just one bite to a 3 1/2 year olds face could be permanent damage.


Absolutely. This sort of situation is tricky because the kind of training you're thinking about would be fine for a dog that's been in the home awhile but we have a very special case here and that sort of training would probably ruin the relationship for quite some time. While the dog is settling in, she should ALWAYS be on leash in the house, either dragging it or being held by a responsible adult. Her moves can be completely controlled. The child will need to be supervised carefully as well because kids will be kids and dogs will be dogs. 

Body blocking is wonderful when it comes to resource guarding- put yourself in between the dog and whatever it is she is guarding, and without any malice or even looking at her, just walk into her and "push" her away with your body. To the dog, that means, "This is no longer your concern; I have taken ownership of the issue/resource, your presence is no longer necessary, BACK OFF NOW." It's crystal clear, firm, and yet not very threatening if you know when to actively push and when to just stand your ground. Some dogs will fight back (just had that happen today with the in-laws' dog but I stood my ground and he backed off), but that isn't so common and I think your female will get the message. Just stay calm, stay in control. Use crates, x-pens, and leashes as your tools to control her moves. As she gets more trustworthy, she will calm down and settle into the routine and she can earn her freedoms gradually.


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## dogladyso (Sep 13, 2000)

For whatever it is worth my female was snappy with children on two occasions when she was that age and very unused to them. It looked like a reprimand to a puppy the couple of times she did it.

We worked on teaching her that kids are not her job to take care of and she developed into a very loving gentle dog with kids.

Please supervise any interactions and train your new dog. The body blocking mentioned by Diana is great advice. And also, be sure to never leave your child alone with your dog until you are very sure of what her temperament is and behavior will be.


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## dogs_dolls (Apr 27, 2001)

Just a caution aabout the child feeding treats to the dog. YOu want to make the dog associate your child with GOOD things, but you want to keep the baby safe! Sooo, YOU give the dog treats whenever the child is around. NOT the kid. You want the dog to associate the mere sight of the kid with great things! So you might keep a stash of really yummy treats (like bits of cheese or cooked chicken or whatever really will get her attention) . This is what you use when doing your work with child and dog. But the important thing is that you ( or your husband) are doling out the treats not the child. You want YOUR fingers near her mouth not his! And as you no doubt know you never leave them alone together. NOt even for a little while. 
One other thing...don't try to rush things. Take is slow and easy, set her up to succeed at this. Rushing things won't work. Good luck.


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## Jumpshot (Dec 26, 2008)

Thanks dogladyso and dog_dolls for the good advice. Our little dog is doing a little better everyday. She is beginning to thrive under the regular shedule, attention and EXERCISE! My vet gave me some anti anxiety meds to use for this transitional period but she thinks we should be able to wean her off them after a few more months. I've been trying to use some of the good tips you all have given me and I really think she will become better about my son over time.
This is why I adopted her! I knew she needed help and a loving, capable home. I am going to knock wood-but I think it's working .


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