Snarling behavior problem with my Golden Retriever/Lab mix

[DouglasMarchio]

My first Golden thought she was a person and did not have any behavior problems.  My second Golden (plus some Lab), Della, is quite different and I don't know what to do about it.  If she doesn't get her way she snarls and starts coming at me.  This happens if I'm leading her in a direction she doesn't want to go, or if she is chewing on a chair and I scold her with a "NO".  There are other examples too, but I won't go into them.  I want to address this behavior before she gets much older.  Della is now 4 months old and is 40 pounds.  The only thing that helps is to distract her with a toy, but I don't feel this is getting to the root of the problem. Does anyone have suggestions?

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Hi there,

Welcome to the forums!

It is indeed important that this is addressed early as you are right, things can get complicated as Della matures. 

To get to the root of the problem, with a pup like this it helps to implement some impulse control training and frustration tolerance exercises. Basically, start asking for sits for a variety of things during the day (sit for meals, sit before being let out of a door, sits before attaching the leash). This helps pups learn how to "say please" rather than giving in to their instincts. More on this is covered here:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/impulse-control-frustration-tolerance/

Also, providing food puzzles during the day (like Kong Wobbler, Buster Cubes, Frozen Kongs) can help the pup make good choices allowing legit items to chew while  making other look less desirable. Rotating toys can also help make them more interesting compared to having them out all of the time. 

To tackle the issues you are facing, I think some small adjustments can make a ton of difference. For instance, if you are leading her in a direction that is different than where she wants to go, say "heel" as you tap your knee area and give her treat for complying. Once your pup realizes that she gets a tasty treat, she may be more collaborative. 

You can even do some exercises at home, to teach her to "give in" to leash pressure versus opposing to it. In other words, sit on the couch while she wears the leash, when she moves away and the leash tightens, encourage her to reach you (you can make a smacking sound to grab her attention) and as soon as the leash is slack again, praise and give her a treat. We want the pups to learn that giving in to leash pressure and walking where we go is extra rewarding. 

Here is a read on teaching the smacking sound:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/the-airplane-game/the-smacking-sound/

Here is a guide on teaching pups to heel:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/heeling-attention-heeling/

It's scientifically proven that dogs respond better when we tell them what we want them to do rather than telling them what not to do. When we get frustrated or angry, our dogs sense that, and it can lead to undesirable behaviors such as barking back, nipping, growling etc. So rather than saying no when chewing on something, try teaching her to "leave it" which means "move away from the item" and reward that with a treat. 

Here is a guide on leave it:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/take-leave-it/

With pups, I like to carry a treat bag on me at all times, so that I can redirect at a moment's notice and reward desirable behaviors as they unfold. The treat bag doesn't have to contain treats, even the pup's kibble can work well in indoor situations. Rather than letting them eat it within seconds, at least I can put it to good use!

More info/tips on chewing:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/behavior-training/chewing/

I hope this helps, feel free to post if you have other questions!

Edited January 9, 2022 by Adrienne Farricelli

[DouglasMarchio]

Thank you Adrienne, I will begin with your suggestions. 

 

 

[Adrienne Farricelli]

You are very welcome, keep us posted on how it goes!

Happy training!

Adrienne

[JMFS]

While Esther doesn't snarl, she was (and still can be) Horrible with following where I wanted her to go.  Three things have helped immensely in the last 3 weeks.

1. The leash pressure Adrienne mentioned.  I'm practicing this in the yard, but I really like the couch suggestion for getting started.  Far less distractions!  I do a smacking sound or say, "here" and when she's at my desired future heel position she gets a treat.
1b.  Every single potty trip is a training session for us

2. Emergency U-turns - they're not just for emergencies.    I attribute this to most of our success and her decreased pulling. You'll need to find your own personal touch on it.  For instance, Esther responds best if I hold and lift the leash about 18" from her and pivot around that and her.  Gertie needs me to use the leash pressure on a more parallel angle.  There's an inner and an outer u-turn.  Inner you pivot around your dog, outer your dog pivots around you.  I attribute the u-turns to the occasional attention heeling I get from her and it's a thing of beauty!  I feel highly accomplished teaching her how to walk, lol.

3. Walk in a big circle going in whichever direction you want her to heel on.  I have a right-handed heel because our parks require us to "curb" our dogs, which means they have to walk on our right-hand side.  So when Esther starts pulling ahead of me I'll start veering into her and use my legs (gently!) to move her in the direction I'm going.  I use this method on the u-turn as well, but she's usually much closer to me when I do those.

For all three I use the treat as a lure.  For leash pressure it's Really tough to do, but I was taught to keep my hand stationary rather than using it to pull the dog.  Instead, the treat is what's going to encourage her to come to my hand and put slack in that leash.

The first few days were awful and aggravating.  By the 5th day she was beginning to respond marvelously to the U-turn so I make sure to do Lots of those in the yard every potty break.  It might take us 10 turns to get to the back end of the yard, for example.  I do it whether there's something I want her to turn away from or not and I keep the treat at my thigh which makes her have to come to that position for the reward on the inner turn.  For the outer turn I'm still working on my own coordination - for some reason this one is more difficult for me.  She swings a bit wide, but it's the same as the inner turn - keep that treat next to the thigh so she has to stick to you like glue.

A useful tool I have (because I'm arthritic and am sometimes super stiff and not quite able to maintain a firm grip) is a leash that I can hook around my waist.  It gives me a little extra leverage.  My in-person trainer forgot hers here and I've fallen in love with it.  She said use it until she gets back and use it I have!  It's paracord braided with a clip on each end (no handle).  Every 18" or so there is a closed ring the clips can be attached to that allows for so so many configurations.  I can clip it around my waist and put a traffic handle closer to the dog's collar.  I can shorten it by clipping some of the length around to the section around my waist.  Here's a video of the leash I "borrowed."  I have her bringing 2 to me on her next visit.  I love that I can use up to 6' and can shorten it to my liking.  I also discovered that if I hook the handle end onto 3 rings and slide it under the pantry threshold, then close the door, Esther is effectively tethered and I can move about the kitchen freely (she's incontinent and I like to limit her to one area for me to clean rather than me Easter egg hunting for puddles).  https://www.leashesbyliz.com/multipurpose-leash-video

[FrederykBlot]

And if I may : never underestimate treat value

The more difficult is the behavior change, the more value the treat should have

For example, to brush Loki, we had trouble to make him stay in place, while using normal treats, because some places were unpleasant to him as he has knots

When we switch to cooked hot dogs, no problem anymore, he would stay, and I could even pull on the hairs quite strong without him bulging

 

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Awesome works! Kudos to you for finding the right treat on Loki's hierarchy of treats so to work on the issue.