growling

[HansPeter]

Hi!

Our 7 months old Bassethound has grown a tendency to growl at us whenever we try to move him. When we move him it is mostly because he asks for help to get down from the bed ☺️ 

He will also growl at us when we ask him to get out of the room by pushing him. What can be done here?

Thanks in advance.

[Adrienne]

Hello and welcome back!

In these cases, firstly we would need to establish whether we want the dog on the bed/in the bedroom or not. If not, it would be important establishing clear rules and mostly preventing access to the bed room by simply closing the door or erecting a baby gate or pet fence. This is the best option, and I would recommend that in the case of a dog with a tendency to growl when on top of furniture as the behavior can get habit-forming the more the dog rehearses it. Closing the door or using some type of boundary would also easily solve the issue of the dog getting into the bedroom/on top of the bed once and for all. 

If we want the dog on the bed, but want him to get off it when we ask him to, then it's important to avoid manually pushing the dog off as this may teach the dog that hands are bad and it may lead to biting, especially when the growling is ignored or suppressed. Here's why growling should never be suppressed in dogs: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/growling-never-suppressed-dogs/

In such cases, we may want to train the "off" cue. 

 

Here's how to train it.

1. Catch your dog when he is on the bed. If your dog isn't on the bed, then plan your training sessions around that specific time your dog does climb up.
2. Say your verbal cue "off" and then toss a treat or kibble on the floor with a downward motion of you hand. Tip: use hard treats as these are more effective in grabbing your dog's attention since they will make a noise when they hit the floor (if you have carpet, you can place a large book or something hard that you can toss the treats on to make them produce the noise).
3. Just as your dog jumps off the bed or couch and before he eats the treat/kibble, say "yes" or click your clicker (if your dog is clicker trained).
4. Repeat this exercise several times as the opportunity presents making it a fun game.
5. At some point, start saying "off" but this time without actually tossing the treat. Just pretend you toss it using your downward hand gesture. When your dog jumps down say "yes" or click the clicker and feed him the treat, but this time drop it from your other hand. Your ultimate goal is to say "off" and stop tossing the treat/kibble.
6. Repeat the above exercise and start morphing the treat-tossing hand movement into just pointing at the floor and then feeding the treat from your other hand dropping it to the floor when you dog jumps off. This is to prevent dependence on the sight of treats. 
7. Now, it's time to raise criteria and add an extra challenge. A day may arrive when you need your dog to get off the couch, but you don't have treats. Start mixing in praise without giving treats or use other types of rewards such as giving a favorite toy, running together to the yard to play or giving your dog a nice belly rub. Don't stop giving any types of rewards or treats altogether though; as that may lead to the behavior extinguishing!

The leave it cue can also be used to train a dog to not approach something and therefore can be also used to tell a dog to not jump on the bed or enter a specific room. It has a "preventive" function, meaning it helps prevent the dog from jumping up versus dealing with a dog who has already jumped up.

Here is how to train it :https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/take-leave-it/

You can also train a reliable response to a smacking sound which tells your dog to stop in his tracks  and come to you for a tasty treat. This can be used for example, when you catch him going towards the bedroom. When he stops to look at you, you can toss the treat/kibble at a distance, as you go close the bedroom door. 

It's important to make the bed inaccessible when you aren't training by closing the door or you can simply keep your pup in a separated area) and aim to work on making your pup's bed extra appealing by offering wonderful things when there (toys, treats, edible chews, kibble). Here is how to train a dog to sleep on his mat:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/video-archive/train-dog-go-to-mat/

If your dog has been growling often when on the bed, you may need to also change his emotional response to you approaching him because he may be getting tense when he sees you approach (anticipation of being pushed off). In this case, it may help change his emotional response by tossing him something tasty while he is on the bed (like a kibble) before then tossing one on the floor to get him to get off. It may also be easier to ask him off once he has already gotten up and is standing on the bed. 

It goes without saying, that dogs who tend to growl when asked to move off the bed may do the same when on the couch. So the training may need to applied there as well. Personally, I prefer to offer dogs a dog bed/mat making it extra appealing  to sleep on (they even make dog couches nowadays!) and prevent them access to human beds from the get-go so to prevent dogs from rehearsing the problematic behavior to begin with. 

Happy training!

Best,

Adrienne