Dutch Shepherd Forum

So Cosmo has been a great dog so far, sweet, affectionate, learning new tricks and is fitting in well. These last few days we have had a problem with him though. It started about three nights ago when he jumped up on the couch. My wife sat beside him and kinda leaned on him a little bit and he growled at her. We made him get off the couch right away and stopped paying attention to him for a little while. Last night I wanted to see if it was a fluke or if he would growl at me if I leaned on him. He did the same thing, and I yelled NO at him and made him go outside for a while. Again tonight he was sitting on the couch and when I sat beside him he was alright but as soon as I made contact with him he growled (pretty aggressively). It doesn't really make sense because he is a very in-your-face dog who always wants attention and human contact, but it seems that if you lean on him at all he gets aggressive or defensive depending on how you look at it. I know the simple answer would be to just not lean on him, and if it were just me and my wife that would work. The problem is I have a 4 month old and soon enough he will be walking around and I cant have Cosmo growling at him if my son happens to lean on him. Any suggestions on how to fix this? Thanks

is this limited to the sofa? / have you ruled out this same response to similar pressure on him in other situations? if it is not strictly related to the sofa and is as out-of-place as you imply, then I would not rule out that he is complaining that the pressure of the leaning is causing increased discomfort or pain emanating from a physical ailment [ a hematoma could be such a cause]. though this may not be likely, I would not ignore this possibility if this is a response to similar pressure regardless of where he is.

if this is a behavioral problem [ which seems like the default possibility], then others here are much more qualified to comment and advise.

Hi my solution would be to keep him off the couch completely till he learned he's not the same level as you and it's not ok. Nonchalantly touch and lean on him and correct him when he misbehaves. I don't mean pester him they get annoyed then avoid you in, just till he gets the message. I've always had my dogs with me and not around my kids until I knew what each (kid and dog) were capable of. Easier said than done, but my dogs always fallowed me around room to room. Some dogs know to act differently around different aged people. Maybe I've been lucky.
I use Dutch as a pillow sometimes if I’m watching TV. He does growl sometimes when he gets his special bone or if the cat gets to close to his bowls. He learns really quickly things get taken away and everything stops.
There’s no quick solution.
Heather

John touched on everything I was going to suggest. First of all NEVER punish a growl. That's an important communication tool that you want them to have because it means "hey I don't like this, I'm going to bite if you don't stop." Correction right on the growl, often paired with a no, is actually marking the communication as wrong and you will end up with a dog that skips the growl and goes straight for a bite.You need to redirect and if necessary, punish for not compling with the new command. You can use things like a place command to a new location, an off command from the couch, a recall into another room, etc.

Like John asked, was this limited to just the couch? If not, I would look into possible soreness, joint pain, or skin issues like hematomas. If it was just on the couch or other furniture, I'm likely to think it's resource guarding. The dog should have no more access to furniture unless earned. Look into NILF training.

I also prefer an xpen to be set up for this type of thing. Give the dog a place to call his own that no people or babies can or will come into. Shut the door if you want family time, or leave the door open if the dog is doing other things and may want a retreat. Keep all of his toys and chews in there and a favorite blanket and maybe even feed and water him in there. If the dog knows this resource won't get taken away or invaded, he's less likely to want yours. You can also use the pen as a positive redirect when he growls. Offer a place command to the xpen and reward once he's inside. You don't want to shut him away as punishment, but it gives him a friendly reminder that his pen is there and he gets good things for retreating to it.

Stephanie, I am so glad to hear someone say not to correct a growl. so right what you say on the subject.

Thanks for all the advice, I have to admit I never thought about the consequences of reprimanding a dog for growling, but now that it has been pointed out to me it really makes sense. So far the behavior has been limited to the couch, on the floor there is no issues, and I have even pretty much sat on him while play wrestling with him with no growls. It would seem like its resource guarding as you guys pointed out. I also thought about him being sore, but if I apply pressure to him while standing, sitting, or laying on the floor he doesn't act like anything is bothering him. I really think it all revolves around the couch, which can be an easy fix by just keeping him off the couch, but he is so cute and lovable its hard to do lol. The back bedroom is already pretty much his, so I think I will try what Stephanie suggested and give him his own space so maybe that will help. Again thanks guys.

how have things worked out with Cosmo? has he gotten better or worse? do you figured out what he was up to?