Growling At Children

[Mali]

We've had our retired racer coming up 5 months. She's settled brilliantly and has, until the last week or so, been a fabulous addition to the family. Over the last week or so she has started growling at the children. I haven't heard her do it, it's been when we're out of the room. The children are 6 and 8 and are respectful of her space. We've now said they can't sit with her when we're not in the room to try and avoid this. She's growled at me when I've taken a chew from her but I just ignored it and took it anyway. We've not punished or reacted to the growling, as I know this is a warning and don't want her to move straight to biting, but have told the children to move away from her as soon as she growls.

 

How can we get past this? We all love her dearly now and I would hate for her to become intolerant to the children and for them to be afraid of her.

[MaryJane]

I would probably not have the children near her at all at this time and not wait for a growl for the children to move. Your greyhound is saying that she is uncomfortable with the situation so do not let it happen for at least a few weeks. And, please make sure that you are always in the room when the greyhound is with the children.

 

Just to confirm, you have not been there and seen when the greyhound has growled at the children so, this secondhand from the 6 and 8 year old ? If I misinterpreted what you said and you were there, what were the children doing right before the growling started?

 

I might suggest that you also take into consideration that the children (unintentionally) may have done something to hurt the dog - pulled an ear, put a finger in an eye. The only reason that I say this is that I used to do many show-n-tells with greyhounds and I had to watch my dogs constantly because children would attempt to do the strangest things to dogs.

 

Moving forward on this depends on whether the dog is on a couch or a bed - if on a couch, the you need to revoke couch privileges for the time being. Give the dog some time to settle down and then observe the interactions between the dog and the children in the same room (they should still give the dog space). Observe if the dog is uncomfortable (side glances) or just gets up and moves away - if this is the case, then you can work on having the dog feel comfortable in the room with the children by seeing at what point the dog gets up and leaves and on the following days, the children should not cross the "invisible line" - you need to do this for a while, it will not happen overnight. Eventually, you MIGHT be able to get your children closer however, there is no guarantee.

 

Some books might recommend that the children throw treats at the dog from a safe distance however, I would NOT recommend throwing anything at the dog. Same thing with feeding the dog as I personally would not want the children close to the dog until you have a better idea of what is causing the growling and how the dog acts after the warning (does it stand it's ground or get up and leave).

[GeorgeofNE]

So, honestly, you actually don't even know what's happening if this is always when you aren't in the room.

 

Until you do, it's hard to make suggestions beyond the obvious. Tell the kids to leave the dog alone. If you were dreaming of a Lassie/Timmy situation, well, that's television! A dog doesn't just randomly growl out of the blue, and only when Mom or Dad isn't there. Something else is going on.

[greysmom]

Many times a greyhound will tolerate actions in the first few months of a new situation that they are really not comfortable with generally. One they begin to settle into home life and relax, they begin expressing themselves more forcefully. You already know she's a resource guarder, so you need to have everyone in the house respect that fact a bit more.

 

First I would suggest that for now, the kids should just be told to keep away from the dog when she's laying down, whether there's an adult present or not. Beds are important to dogs, and many prefer not to have that safe space invaded when they want to sleep. If the kids (or adults) want to interact with the dog, they need to wait until there's an adult there and call the dog over to them. That way you know for certain the dog is awake and aware, is off the dog bed, and standing on her feet. Make sure she's rewarded with a yummy treat in addition to the pets and attention when she comes over to you.

 

As far as high value treats like bones, please don't just snatch it away from her. She will learn not to trust you when she has a really great treat, and skip the growling and go right for more forceful protection of her stuff. You need to foster trust and acceptance of people being around her when she has things that are important to her - her food, her bed, her high value treat/toys.

 

When it's time for her to be done with a particular treat or high value toy, get another high value item and "trade up" for it with her. It has to be something really great to get her attention away from the item you need to take away. Offer her the new treat in a way that will move her head away from the old treat. If you can get her to actually turn her body and leave the old treat it helps. When she leaves the old treat, use your foot to scootch it away from her and *then* pick it up with your hand. That way your upper body isn't looming over her and your bare hand isn't in danger from a bite if she tries to snatch it back.

 

If the growling continues despite your best efforts to de-escalate situations, contact your group for a referral to a certified animal behaviorist to come help you in person with these issues. That person can observe the interactions and give you some tips to get you back on track.

 

Congrats and good luck!

[turbotaina]

Many times a greyhound will tolerate actions in the first few months of a new situation that they are really not comfortable with generally. One they begin to settle into home life and relax, they begin expressing themselves more forcefully. You already know she's a resource guarder, so you need to have everyone in the house respect that fact a bit more.

 

First I would suggest that for now, the kids should just be told to keep away from the dog when she's laying down, whether there's an adult present or not. Beds are important to dogs, and many prefer not to have that safe space invaded when they want to sleep. If the kids (or adults) want to interact with the dog, they need to wait until there's an adult there and call the dog over to them. That way you know for certain the dog is awake and aware, is off the dog bed, and standing on her feet. Make sure she's rewarded with a yummy treat in addition to the pets and attention when she comes over to you.

 

As far as high value treats like bones, please don't just snatch it away from her. She will learn not to trust you when she has a really great treat, and skip the growling and go right for more forceful protection of her stuff. You need to foster trust and acceptance of people being around her when she has things that are important to her - her food, her bed, her high value treat/toys.

 

When it's time for her to be done with a particular treat or high value toy, get another high value item and "trade up" for it with her. It has to be something really great to get her attention away from the item you need to take away. Offer her the new treat in a way that will move her head away from the old treat. If you can get her to actually turn her body and leave the old treat it helps. When she leaves the old treat, use your foot to scootch it away from her and *then* pick it up with your hand. That way your upper body isn't looming over her and your bare hand isn't in danger from a bite if she tries to snatch it back.

 

If the growling continues despite your best efforts to de-escalate situations, contact your group for a referral to a certified animal behaviorist to come help you in person with these issues. That person can observe the interactions and give you some tips to get you back on track.

 

Congrats and good luck!

 

This

[Mali]

Thank you so much - greysmom particularly, that's really very helpful advice.