what to do if dog growls?

Hi
Tonight for the first time ever my dog growled at me for moving him off a cushion in the living room. I was fuming. I cant believe it. He is a westie and i know they are stubborn but i now feel really cross with him. He has a tenfancy to growl if he has something he shouldnt like a sock etc... What advice or experience do people have of this? It wasnt just a growl he was telling me to back off and standing his ground.

how old is he ?
what did you do when he growled?

Hi Sarah didn't Henry have a hip problem. Are you sure you didn't accidentally hurt him when he was moved . Is he well, if in doubt get him checked out by the vet.

Please don't ever be cross with a dog for growling, it is giving you a warning. If you are angry and discourage it from giving a warning another time it might just go straight in with a bite instead.

If Henry growls when in possession of an object and you wish to retrieve it, try offering something else he is allowed to have like a toy and do a swap.

Make sure he has a comfortable bed in the sitting room and instead of removing him physically from the cushion (on the sofa?) call him down and lure him to his comfy bed with a tip bit, then give him praise for getting in his bed.
If his bed is comfortable and he is rewarded for getting in it he will learn to prefer it to your cushions

Yup its just a warning
They can get grumpy if you keep taking things off them and moving them away from comfy places
You would too!!
Much better to train a 'off' comand, make it a fun game and v rewarding when he does go off. Also train an 'OK' or 'On' command, whenever he comes to go on the sofa you decide if he is OK to come on the sofa and tell him 'OK, UP' if you want him on there

and totaly you dont want to get in a conflict over stupid things - agree try swapping, and teach a 'give' or 'leave it' dogs like working with us and if they have a command that is rewarding for them to follow then they will give up the prize without thinking about it - and then you give them something nice as a reward

My sisters Westie sometimes does this with her, but she has arthritis in her shoulder, so we suspect that is the reason. My sister coaxs her off with offering a treat now, once Ella has got off the chair she is praised and given the treat. Hope you can find away of doing it like that.

My dog once had a thing for socks - it's really best to teach a dog to retrieve items to you for a reward, or to play plenty of "swopsies" games as it's easy for dogs to start to not trust and to become possessive.

My advice would be to never, ever tell a dog off in this situation but to use training, and to build up a history of trust over the months and years. One moment of yelling (not saying you would do this but it's easy to get frustrated/annoyed) can undo or can start years of possessive guarding which can be hard to undo.

As for the sofa - always always give the dog the benefit of the doubt (esp. if there have been physical problems) and also yes, teach the dog it is rewarding to get off the sofa to a command. Again, I'd never punish a dog in such a situation because if confrontation occurs you not only lose the trust but can start a horrible cycle of owner cvs. dog. If you have problems, I'd suggest getting in a reputable trainer or behaviourist to assess the situation and to give advice on how to alter the situation.

You could try www.apbc.org.uk or www.apdt.co.uk to find one.

Excellent advice given - just wanted to add one more thing. I know this won`t apply to your dog, but growls can be a Fear signal. My rescue GSP will go rigid and growl sometimes if touched- this is a fear response. We either (depending on the circumstances) either leave the hand where it is with no pressure and look away, or walk off. If anyone has any better ideas, I`d love to hear them

Provided it is neither fear nor pain causing the beligerence, perhaps a houseline might assist? You could lure him off the sofa with a treat, but assist him on his way with gentle application of the houseline?

Thank you for all your advice. I think maybe it was his bad leg that caused him pain at the time He has been fine again today and i have moved him off the setee numerous times just to see how it goes. It wasn't so much getting off the setee it was how he had positioned himself as we have scatter back pillows he had got behind one of the cushions and i moved the cushion and moved him slightly on it so maybe he was bit unsure of this. I dont think he will be coming on the furniture anymore and will have a permanent cushion on the floor that he can lie on. He is a strong willed little thing and is so differnt to the westie i had when i lived at my mum and dads. I think he tolerent level is lower due to his operations and is normally quite good, in fact he is an angel concidering how long he spends on his own in the day and he doesnt make any mess or cause probs. It is just a possesive element he has over things like socks, tissues or anything like that whivh he will not let you have unless you trade with treats. I do worry about this as if we had any children then how he would be if a) the child dropped something and he got it and b) if they tried to get it back. He has met my friends baby and little girl and he was lovely with them even rolled over to let them stroke his tummy. Lay by baby on the setee and was so gentle. He will let anyone have his toys i can touch his food when hes eating and touch him but the possessive element does worry me slightly.

Thanks again

Sarah x

From what you describe there, the fact that you can take toys and food off him, are you sure that the 'possessiveness' over socks etc isn't just playfullness. I can't tell you how many dogs I know that on pinching a sock will run around trying to instigate the 'catch me if you can' game; my brothers spaniel for example - you have to catch him by the collar and hold on to him to release the sock/shoe etc, but there is no mallace in it whatsoever.