Growling

[Guest BeccaAnn1991]

My greyhound of two months has started growling at me. I have heard that it is bad to punish them for growling since it is a way of communicating. I have become scared of him sometimes and I think he can sense that, since he is so big! We have definitely bonded, he won't go anywhere without me, so why is he growling?

I know he likes his space but we recently let him sleep with us on our bed and he growls for no apparent reason.

[Acadianarose]

Is he growling at you in bed? If so, don't let him in your bed. He may not be ready for that yet

[BatterseaBrindl]

Is he growling at you in bed? If so, don't let him in your bed. He may not be ready for that yet

[Guest june]

Sounds like the muzzle is your friend. He can growl but you don't have to be afraid he will bite you. Sometimes removing the fear factor will help them calm down.

[greysmom]

Just because you can't see it, doesn't mean the dog doesn't have a reason. There is *always* a reason.

 

If he's only growling at you in bed, then it's likely he has some space aggression. If this is the case, he SHOULD NOT be in bed with you. It has nothing to do with how much he's bonded with you or how much of a velcro dog he is. This is about how he reacts in more confined spaces, which will be instinctive. He may, with a lot more time, at some point, be able to sleep with you, but that time is not yet.

[Sambuca]

We really need to know more about the incidences to help. I agree though, there's always a reason, sometimes its hard to figure out though.

[KickReturn]

Many Greyhounds (and their owners) are better off if the Greyhound has his own bed. Put it right beside yours or at least somewhere he can see you at night if it makes him and you feel better. Two months is a very short period of time. Our Grey occasionally growled for for almost two years when approached when lying in his own bed. We were always thankful for his warnings and acted accordingly - never scolding.

 

The growling is probably to let you know that he is claiming a bit of real estate on your bed. (In this case even bumping him at night could be a disaster.) Please don't take the growling personally, his genetics compel him. Instead celebrate the spirit of the animal that is not afraid to "speak up" and accomodate him by giving him a space free of concern.

 

If you think he is bonded to you now - just wait another 6 months or year. Enjoy the ride. Maybe post a photo for us to have a look at the big fellow.

[JJNg]

I agree with the other responses that dogs growl for a reason, even if that reason doesn't seem obvious to us. Is the growling always when he's in bed with you? Have there been any incidents in other situations? Can you describe a few of the growling incidents in detail? What were you doing, what was he doing, where was everyone relative to each other immediately before he started growling?

[Guest Clawsandpaws]

Dudley has been sleeping in bed with us pretty much since the 3rd week we have had him. He did have some incidents where he would wake us up barking in bed, he lost bed privileges for a while until we could figure out what his triggers were and then work on desensitizing him. The only time he would bark/growl, would be if one of us would roll over on his head while he was sleeping, um, yea, I would freak too! What we worked on was getting him comfortable with having pressure put on all parts of his body while he was laying down, not a lot of pressure, but we wanted him to realize that when we start to roll on him, we feel he is there and we will immediately roll back. This only worked because we realized that Dudley is afraid of being physically hurt and "lose control" of his body (he also never roaches without someone there to brace him), the bf and I are light sleepers and don't move much, so it worked out nicely for the three of us.

Also important to note that I hired a behaviorist to do a few evaluations first, as well as an in home trainer, and we did not start letting him sleep in bed again immediately, until we all felt comfortable. For a while we trained him to sleep only at the bottom of the bed, and now he can pretty much go wherever he wants. I happen to LOVE having him sleep in bed with us, but you definitely need to work on some desensitization, and don't set your dog up for failure by giving him more privileges than he is ready for, do not take it personally if he snarks at you, but do take the information he is giving you and make sure you clearly understand what he wants/needs and proceed safely from there. You need to know WHY he is growling, how long of a growl is it, does it escalate to a snap, is he fully awake, etc etc. So you can start evaluating his behaviors.

 

((ETA: If your dog has sleep/space aggression, it may never be safe to allow him to sleep in bed with you. There is nothing wrong with that, so keep that in mind, don't push him for something you want, make sure he feels safe and happy. Our dog cannot sleep without seeing us, our bed his too high up and that really upsets him, so him being on makes him happy, once the bf and I fell asleep on the couch and he was happy to sleep on the floor in the living room, so more time with your hound is necessary to really get to know him ))

 

It's been almost 2 years now... I wouldn't trade this for anything

Edited November 10, 2013 by Clawsandpaws

[Guest DogNewbie]

When we first got Wiley, he had some space aggression. When we would get to close to his face or in his personal bubble, he would bark/growl. Now he is totally fine. He has been sleeping in our bed now for probably a little over a month (We got him in July) Before that, he slept in his closed crate, then his crate with the door open. We had him baby gated in our master bedroom until about 1 month ago. He no longer has space aggression with us. We can approach him while he is sleeping or what ever (thus, earning him a spot on the bed). But if someone he doesn't know gets to close to his face, he growls. Good luck with your houndie! I think some of them just need time to trust you. Although, I am certainly no expert!

[Guest jschwe]

Superbird also had some space aggression in the beginning. Once he was on the couch and I leaned toward him--he freaked. It was a while before he was allowed on anything except his bed after that. Once we understood each other better, and now that he is used to being snuggled/lay on/walked around, he is on the couch more than we are. Now, the only time he growls is in his sleep. (Or if he thinks the cats are going to steal his toys )