1 yr old shepherd starting to growl

Question
We have had this g. shepherd since he was a puppy and he has been fine, playful, happy, an inside dog that we crate at night. Have an 12 yo spayed shep and a neutered 10 yo lab. No problems with each other. Baron has not been neutered, but this can be done because we are not breeding him. Anyways, the past week he has been acting like he does not even know our 12 yo daughter. She has always been kind to him and has taken a part in working with him in the house and on a lease outside. It started when she put her hair in a pony tail and he did not seem to recognize her. Now any time she appears he is on the alert. His tail goes up, hair on his back is up, stiff stance, and he growls at her. I am fearful he is going to bite her. She tries to ignore him, feed him treats, talks to him, but I can see a fearfulness in her stance even though she says she is not scared. I am fearful for her and I am sure he senses this. When he does this, I do not strike him, but I put him in his crate. The only thing I can think of that is different is that my daughter has just started her menstrual cycles. Could he sense this? She smells different and does not like it? What could we do? Locking him up is not good for him. Should we find him another home before she gets bitten? Please reply. Thank you so much.

Answer
Yes, likely he is reacting to her menstrual cycle.  I would go ahead and neuter him and then obedience train him letting your daughter be involved. With somebody the right age in the family, 4-H dog training is a great idea. In my area, clubs form soon after the first of the year. Even many urban areas have 4-H. For info look in your phone book under government listings for extension or cooperative extension offices. Ask specifically about a dog or canine club. The dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog. Life is much easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones. You can learn to play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands a treat.