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My puppy is growling when picked up

20 11:37:55

Question
QUESTION: I have a Yorkie/poodle mix.  She is about 10 weeks old.  She is generally a great puppy but for some reason, mostly when she has been playing when we go to pick her up she growls and is a bit nasty.  I try to make her approach me first and pick her up calmly but she still growls.  I have tried a few things such as putting her on her back until she stops but that just seems to make her more angry.  I really want to do the right thing, could you please give me a suggestion on what to do to help her to stop. Thanks!

ANSWER: Kate,

What I would tell you is going to depend on what your definition of growling and nasty is.  I have a westie that growls when you pick her up when she is sleeping.  She does not want to be bothered and that is her way of telling me.  I allow her to growl but she is not allowed to snap or bite.  If you could define growls and nasty to me I can better help you to teach her the behavior you desire.  I will wait to hear from you.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: She does not always growl when she is being picked up but when she does she growls more than just a little growl, shows her teeth a bit and continues to growl until she is put down or sometimes we look at her and say no.  She sometimes tries to snap at us also. Thanks for responding so quickly to the initial question.  We just do not want to do the wrong thing and create bad habits!

Answer
Kate,

The fact that she sometimes stops growling when you say no is a good sign.  She is only ten weeks old and that is still very young.  You are right to use the word NO because it can be used as a universal word for unacceptable behavior.

The most important thing right now is that you are consistent.  Consistency is the key to training of any kind.  If you teach her now that the word NO means you are not pleased then as she gets older she will stop every time you tell her no and not just here and there like she is doing now.

Puppies are like small children.  Their attention span is very limited and if they are playing or otherwise distracted they will not hear you or pay attention to you when you are trying to redirect their bad behavior.  For this reason I usually suggest that people clap their hands loudly and say NO in a loud voice.  The clap gets their attention and then they will hear the NO and the disapproval in your voice.  Remember, if you decide to clap and then say NO you will need to do it "Every" time.  If you clap and say no five times and then just say no the sixth time you have just erased the first five times of progress.  I cannot stress enough that consistency is the key.

The growling should be addressed by using the No command.  The snapping is another story.  Snapping is an offence that cannot be tolerated in any situation or for any reason.  You will have to address this behavior with a more severe form of punishment.  I hope you have a crate or a cage for her.  If not you are going to have to buy one because you will need it for other things as she gets older.  I recommend a cage because it can be used if you want to put her somewhere when you are going to be away and you want her to have enough room to move around and she can see better as well.

When she growls you need to give her the clap followed by the NO command.  If she does not stop growling then you will have to tell her in a very stern voice "bad dog".  Then you will need to take her and put her in the cage for a time out.  After you have put her in the cage tell her again that she is a bad dog then leave her in the cage.  In the beginning you can leave her in the cage for as little as five or ten minutes because she has such a short attention span that she won't remember why she is in there.  Before you take her out ask her if she is going to be a good dog.  Say it in a cheerful voice and then take her out and give her love.  Tell her she is a good dog.  This way you are showing her that being a "good dog" is something that she will like to hear and she will eventually learn that if she wants the good feelings she has to be good.

You should use this same method when she snaps except I would put her in the cage the very first time she snaps.  Because this is a more unacceptable behavior there should be no second chances.

As she gets older you may have to put her in the cage for longer periods of time when she misbehaves.  You should use your common sense to tell you when this will be necessary.

You should also have started potty training her.  You can use the same approach with potty training and the cage comes in handy when you cannot watch her to make sure she is not using your house for a toilet.

I have a downloadable book I wrote on Yorkshire Terriers that details potty training and everything else.  If you are interested you can order it on my website at www.petremembrances.com/Yorkie%20Advise.html

You can also find the information about potty training in the reply's I have written to other people on this site.

Good Luck with your baby.  

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