# Growling, hackles up and barking - 4 month old



## Sitz&Platz (Oct 20, 2012)

The honeymoon with Dexter ended officially today. We have only been on 4 walks so far, mainly because we were leash training and working on loose leash walking and he's not utd on all his vaccines yet. 

We were walking past 2 men doing some construction work on a house in our neighborhood, and there it was. Growling, hackles up and barking. He's 4 months old! The last time, he barked at 2 guys during the walk, I brushed it off to the fact that we have not been on that many walks yet. We do socialize him, and take him everywhere we go (we drive there) and he does well anywhere we go. He's super friendly to people and licks them to death. 

So when he barked today, I tried to get his attention, and he was just standing there, frozen and fixated on the men. I finally got him to walk with me, told the guys to just continue working and I walked him past the guys a couple of times, back and forth until he was fine and ignored them. I rewarded him when he ignored the men. 

I was surprised to see his reaction today. What do I do now? Is that aggression, fear or just puppy behavior? What is the right way to deal with a situation like this? Should I have asked the guys to feed him some treats? Should I have ignored his behavior? I've never seen him like that, and I definitely don't want this to become a habit. :help:


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## AngVi (Dec 22, 2012)

I'm glad to read your post. My four month old boy does the same. Even when we are home and he thinks he hears something. At first I thought he just liked to hear himself bark but its happening more often. Even in the car there are certain people he doesn't like walking by. 


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## Jag (Jul 27, 2012)

OP-strange loud noises likely set this off. Sounds like fear, IMO. I've used "Knock it off" and "let's go see it" in neutral vocal tones. I will walk closer to whatever the pup seems to having issues with and place treats there. Reward for calm behavior. Bring the pup in closer, with you taking the lead. Touch things to ease the dog's mind. These are great learning opportunities! If you can, go to a home improvement store where he'll be able to listen to more of the same.


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## harmony (May 30, 2002)

I am in the yes and no about someone giving my dog a treat and most of the time it is no. It should come from you when the dog is doing right . A hackle and a growl is fair warning, then you take charge do not let a stranger do it.


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## harmony (May 30, 2002)

I go to the vets and well let them give my dog a treat and he either spits it out or just will not take it, and they all love him because he has manners


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## Sitz&Platz (Oct 20, 2012)

Thanks, guys. We have been going for regular walks since the initial post, and he's getting used to all kinds of distractions. The information I've read is so confusing at times, with some people suggesting to nip any growling in the butt and others saying not to discourage growling, because it produces a dog that bites without a warning. 

I think, I will continue to expose him to those kinds of situations over and over again, ignore any growling and just repeat the exposure until he doesn't react to the stimulus. 

The weird thing is that Dexter is still a tall skinny Minnie, but some people seem uneasy when they see us walking by. Those seem to be the ones that set off the barking or growling in the situation I described. Meaning people who stop doing what they're doing and freeze/stare, cross the street to avoid us, etc. He's always fine with people who simply continue doing what they're doing or the ones who approach us in a friendly manner to "meet the puppy".


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## Jag (Jul 27, 2012)

Sitz&Platz said:


> Thanks, guys. We have been going for regular walks since the initial post, and he's getting used to all kinds of distractions. The information I've read is so confusing at times, with some people suggesting to nip any growling in the butt and others saying not to discourage growling, because it produces a dog that bites without a warning.
> 
> I think, I will continue to expose him to those kinds of situations over and over again, ignore any growling and just repeat the exposure until he doesn't react to the stimulus.
> 
> The weird thing is that Dexter is still a tall skinny Minnie, but some people seem uneasy when they see us walking by. Those seem to be the ones that set off the barking or growling in the situation I described. Meaning people who stop doing what they're doing and freeze/stare, cross the street to avoid us, etc. He's always fine with people who simply continue doing what they're doing or the ones who approach us in a friendly manner to "meet the puppy".


Well, that end part is interesting! I'd think they'd be older to re-act to people who are uneasy or maybe even to try to make people who are uneasy afraid to get a reaction. In that case (if it was me... so do NOT take this as 'what you should do') I'd be correcting for that. I don't think it would create a dog that doesn't give warning. My bitch NEVER gave warning...was never corrected for growling because she never did. I've been all over Grim about barking (but he's not barking at people or things... just the air). I'd be interested to see what others would suggest on this one. Probably some LAT or focusing on you instead.


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## Sitz&Platz (Oct 20, 2012)

We've been on many more walks since I posted this, and I really can't judge his behavior. We can go to noisy, busy places and he is super calm. He only exhibits this behavior during walks, and it's very selective. Screaming kids on skateboards - no reaction. People coming up to greet him - no reaction. But any "suspicious" acting person - I will call it that for lack of a better term - causes him to react. 

I know based on everything I've read that he's too young to react, but I would say that he's very much in tune with what's happening around him. Dexter acts so grown up at times, that I wonder if there's such a thing as a GSD "puppy". 

I will include his latest anecdote here to avoid a new thread for Dexter just being Dexter. We went to the vet yesterday, and he is usually excited to be there and greets everybody happily. He really thinks that rectal temps are overrated, but that's usually his only complaint. 

He got his vaccines and I had asked the vet to clip his nails. The tech and the vet turned him on the side and he just went ape-crazy. I've never heard a dog yammer and whine as much as he did. It took about 10 minutes to clip his nails, and he was screaming and trying to get away for about 5 of those 10 minutes. I kept telling him calmly to settle down, and he did after he figured out that he wasn't going to have it his way. The vet then started to educate me that I had to work on restraining him more, hug him, handle him, because otherwise he would grow into an uncontrollable adult. She then told me a terrible story about an uncontrollable GSD that was out down after being passed around from owner to owner, because he never learned to be handled. 

I wasn't sure what to make out of what she was saying. Was he acting like a brat? Yes! But they did flip him onto his side rather fast, and I don't usually "handle" Dexter like that. I brush him, bathe him and touch every body part including his muzzle and paws many times a day and we hug. Boy, do we hug.  If I want him on his side, I give him a verbal cue and push him very gently, I don't just flip him on his side. 

Her story made me feel as if I was a terrible owner who will turn her dog into a monster. Was his behavior really that unusual for a puppy who had his first nail trim? He wasn't snapping or growling, just trying to get away. Is that really alarming?


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## Sitz&Platz (Oct 20, 2012)

I like to post updates for others to see what Dexter is teaching me.  The growling and barking was all me. Dexter is young, but he's 100% in tune with my feelings and reactions. I started to pay less attention to his behavior and focused on staying relaxed and not tense up when we encounter an "obstacle" that might unsettle him, and it works! As long as I'm relaxed, he's relaxed. It's amazing how my own attitude is directly connected to his behavior. I've never had a dog like him - if he really is a dog.  It's creepy how well he knows me even at this young age. 

He's taught me so much more about dog "training" than any book.  But, I guess that's the part of living with a GSD, that nobody told me about.


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## spidermilk (Mar 18, 2010)

I interpret that growling and barking as puppy insecurity. Your dog sees something weird and he is scared- I think it is really normal for puppies and it is why we have to do so much socialization.

I would always carry very, very good treats when walking my puppy and create situations where you can give the treats. When your dog is really far away from whatever object he is reacting to and being calm, focused, able to sit, whatever- treats treats treats. As long as he remains calm you can keep showering him with treats and even asking him to do something super simple (sit or just make eye contact with you) that he is good at at home without distractions so he can do it and get lots and lots of rewards.

If he is growling or barking then you are too close to the thing, so work further away from it. I realize sometimes you are going to have to walk past this house so I would just walk quickly past as quickly as possible luring your dog with treats.

I also found that my tenseness was a HUGE problem for my puppy. Obedience classes did wonders for my dog and ME. Highly suggest them.


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## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

Sitz&Platz, so glad you saw what was really going on with Dexter. Very open and insightful of you to admit it. 

It just always amazes me just how tuned in our dogs are to us. Dexter will thank you for giving him a greater sense of security when out and about.


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