aggressive behavior in puppy

Question
Hi,  We have a 5 month old male King Cavalier Spaniel named Riley.  We lost our 13 year old Brittney Spaniel this past summer, and my family surprised me with Riley in November. My oldest daughter found Riley on the internet at what appeared to be a reputable breeder. Riley arrived with ear mites but otherwise checked out okay at the vets. I found out later from my daughter that the breeder she got Riley from also sold multiple other breeds. This was her first experience with buying a dog and she had never heard the term puppy mill.  Riley had to fly in a crate from Iowa to Michigan, which I am sure was traumatic for a 9 week old puppy.   Riley at first seems like the perfect puppy. Riley is a sweet loving little dog who likes to play with our other animals and with us. He likes to ride in cars and is happy to see us when we come home and crys when we leave. He is friendly and affectionate.  He is not shy with strangers and lets them pet and hold him and appears very happy when they are holding him.  From day one Riley appeared to be skittish of noises or shadows. Someone running up the stairs and coming around the corner would send him yelping to the nearest person for help.  Bringing groceries in and setting them on the kitchen floor would sometimes make Riley not come in the kitchen because he would be afraid of one of the bags sitting there. Someone always comforts him when this happens and then we walk slowly to the thing that he appears to be afraid of.  We stand close to the item and let him look from the safety of our arms. When he finally realizes what the item is he is always happy and starts wagging his tail and then he wants down to smell and investigate whatever it was that he was afraid of. We thought that because he was a puppy and new to our home that with time this would get better. We have had Riley 3 months now and he is better with many of the things he was afraid of, but finds new things everyday that make him afraid.  Our older dog Cody is 12 and he sleeps most of the time so Riley and Cody like each other but don't have alot of interaction.  My sons girlfriend has a golden retriever named emma and she is at our house probably 90% of the time.  Emma is a wonderful gentle dog and Riley loves to play with her.  They play very well together and they do not ever get aggressive with each other. There are 5 people in our household - myself, my husband mike, my son Michael [20] and we have twin 16 year old girls Jenna and Jessie.  Our oldest Katie is away at school but comes home on the weekends.  Along with being afraid of things, Riley also started growling at us when he would lay down to go to sleep and someone would try to pick him up.  We were surprised that such a young puppy would do this - we always take his face firmly in our hands and tell him in a stern voice 'No'. Sometimes he growls again and other times he looks remourseful and wags his tail and licks your hand. He will go two or three days without growling and then growl for the next week but only when he is trying to go to sleep or is already asleep. Last night Jessie and I were leaving the house for a short ride and when Jessie reached down to pick Riley up he growled and then tried to bite her, she jerked her hand away, and so I reached down and he did the same to me.  I grabbed his face so he couldn't bite me and told him no three or four times with my face close to his, when I let go of his face he licked my hand once or twice but then stood up and walked dejectedly across the room.  He kept looking at me as if to say 'Why did you do that".  I love animals and already love Riley but his behavior just does not make any sense. He is well loved, well fed, and sleeps with us every night.  He gets plenty of exercise and already has a basketful of toys. He appears to be happy and he seems like a normal little puppy except for his fearfulness and growling and now last night trying to bite. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.  

Thank you,
Karen
kpick733@aol.com


Answer
It sounds like a bit of dominance aggression and you need to re-establish all humans as the alpha or dominant pack leaders, not Riley.  Try practicing Dominance Down, where you hold him on his back until he relaxes (i.e. submits to you)...tell him good boy and then let him up.  I would also recommend doing manners and some behavioral training at home AND enrolling him in classes.  Make sure to reward him and praise him when he is calm and relaxed.  If he seems more aggressive when on the sofa or bed, then deny him access to those areas.  Also, make him sit and relax before feedings, going outside and any kind of positive thing.  D.A.P. is a diffuser that is used for anxiety in dogs and may help reduce some of the stress he is exhbiting with noises.  If the behavior doesn't improve, I would recommend consulting a specialist.