Growling

[Guest Wasserbuffel]

Either by not putting them in that situation, or trying to alter their opinion of being there.

 

 

This says it perfectly. Jayne's always been touchy about people getting in her face, and despite my reminders they do it anyway. Since humans don't listen, I've trained the dog instead. I taught her to touch her nose to a face, "kiss". Now, instead of feeling threatened when people get in her face, she gets right back in theirs and expects a treat for it.

[Guest KennelMom]

Once I have figured out WHY the dog is growling, then I would work on fixing the why. Either by not putting them in that situation, or trying to alter their opinion of being there.

 

I love the way you phrased this! Be warned, I'm stealing this wording

[Guest Swifthounds]

too many people train growling out of their dogs and it's a mistake, IMO. Growling is a form of communication, not a form of aggression. We have a dog now that had no other place to go b/c her first family taught her growling was unacceptable. And that got her into trouble when she bit a kid "with no warning." Her aggression was "unpredictable." Well, duh, when you take away their voice, what do you expect. Fortunately, our pack is teaching her those skills once again.

 

What we correct is inappropriate behavior, not a specific behavior regardless of circumstances. In many circumstances, growling is a totally appropriate response to let a dog, cat, person, etc, know that you are getting too close, that the dog is uncomfortable or whatever. Dog beds are safe zones and are respected. But, you can't lay in the middle of the floor or on the human sofa and get away with guarding your space. Yes, dogs can learn that different rules apply to different situations.

 

[3greytjoys]

3greytjoys - I don't think the OP was talking about resource guarding to the point of having an bite-imminent situation, but growling. Growling is not an aggressive move, in most normal circumstances.

 

Yes, I agree with you that the OP's example situation was more like surprise growl to the dog vs. guarding. Since OP was also asking about growling in general, I wanted to offer other common examples of growling to which the OP and other readers could relate as well.

 

I view growling as a dog's warning of a potentially aggressive move. I know of many dogs who's growling became serious enough to refuse to let their owners return to bed after a night time human's bathroom break, or return to a sofa after a trip to the kitchen; thus, my alternative suggestion of a safe/positive method of calling a dog off of furniture while "trading up" with high value food. It might help someone remember a safer option vs. (example) not knowing how to remove a growling dog who stubbornly refuses to budge from the human's bed at night. Some folks reaction might be to reach for a collar and get nabbed.

 

Interesting topic. The OP hound's growling due to the cat surprise is a little more cloudy call in terms of cat safety. Since a retired racer / sighthound / hunter typically may not give warning before a prey capture, I may have the same reaction as the OP since a cat could become more highly perceived as prey if the hound is not given verbal cat corrections.

 

During the early months of one of our hounds' retirement, while on a leashed walk one night during poop stop, we were both completely surprised by a very bold outside cat who very suddenly appeared from behind us (I was picking up poop). In one second flat, that cat was hanging from the hound's teeth. (As if it were a gift of prey dropped from Greyhound heaven.) Just like a precise hunter, the hound was completely silent. (Of course, the cat screamed bloody murder!) Thankfully, the hound responded to my "no - drop it" commands, and the cat survived the bite. It was a one time event, and this hound has been fine with our own inside cats during the years since.

 

Since cats are new creatures to most newly retired hounds, I believe it's a good idea to be particularly vigilant with hounds living with indoor family cats to muzzle longer than we think we need to during introductory weeks/months when hound and cat are free together in house. I agree that cats' activity levels (and surprise moves) can increase as they become more comfortable with a newcomer.

[JJNg]

Good thread. I agree with those who believe growling is a form of communication. Too many people (not necessarily here) seem to view a growl as a challenge and automatically punish it as something that a dog should never be allowed to do. I find that in the majority of cases, dogs growl to express stress or discomfort with a situation.

 

Even on occasions when a dog is resource guarding, the dog is often insecure and defensive. People seem to take it personally and assume the dog is challenging them, when in fact, the dog is just trying to defend a resource they are afraid of losing. Not saying that this behavior should be allowed - just that it can be approached differently than correcting the dog for growling.

 

IMO, dogs should have the right to express themselves and communicate with us when they are not comfortable with something we are doing to them. I don't believe it's reasonable to expect dogs to automatically put up with anything humans decide to do to them. It's our job to earn their trust and find positive ways to teach them to allow necessary handling.

 

In the case of growling at the cat, I tend to allow it, but I know my dogs and my cats. Here's a previous thread on this. If a dog is growling at the cat, that means he's trying to communicate, and therefore not viewing the cat as prey. Dogs do not growl at prey - they just chase and grab. However, if the dog is uncomfortable with the cat's attention, and the cat ignores the growl, then it could still escalate into a situation where the dog could hurt the cat.

[Guest greyers]

I really appreciate everyone's comments and sharing their beliefs on this thread. You all have helped me to look at growling in a different light and see it as a positive a d not a negative action. My husband and I have had several discussions based on the posts here about how we might handle it differently if it were to happen again. I'm not sure I know exactly how I would handle it now as really the cat wasn't being bothersome and he is scared of dogs and just being curious. This was the first time he had even had the guts to go near the dog and it was likely that the only reason he did is because he felt safe that I was right next to Rego. But I would definitely remove the cat as the first line of action if this were to happen again, versus scolding Rego and THEN moving the cat.

So far this week the cats "safe room" in our bedroom is the only room they can be in while I'm at work. Just till we all get a little more comfortable with one another. Then the cats will have more freedom During the day to move around the house if they wish to leave the "safe room". Rego really has been fabulous with the cats, mostly not even acknowledging their existence and only that once have I seen him even growl. And it was nothing like the look of the dog in the pics on jjng's link! Anyway that's to everyone for helping me to look at his behavior in a different light, and for the polite conversation on discipline which we all know can get heated!