Mean streak in our adopted puppy

Question
We have adopted a six month old English Spring Spanial from the shelter.  He is really loving but he has a mean side to him.  He had run out the front door and I had to run after him and grab his collar, he showed his teeth and actually bit me.  He is very possessive of his food so we have separated him and our 9 yr. old English Spaniel at breakfast and dinner.  Also, whenever he vomits and we try to clean it up his teeth again show and he tries to bite us!  What is causing such behavior and can we train him?  We can't have a nasty dog in our house with 3 kids and another dog.

Answer
Hi Margaret;
It sounds like he may have some abusive treatment in his past that has made him more aggressive.
A good obedience class would help, but for the aggression, I recommend massages.
I have used the Tellington-Touch method of animal massage with great success.
You can go to this site, read about what can be done with the massages, and order a video to teach you how to do them correctly.

  www.lindatellington-jones.com

The aggression problems are not helped that much by just obedience training, but that will help with teaching him who is the alpha, and just generally give you some training in getting and keeping the upper hand.
The massages would work wonders for the aggression.
Charlotte