Agressive X Terrier

Hello,

We have a X terrier/Lab, that we have had for 4 months, he is 1. He snarls and growls and will bite in certain situations.

If he is getting attention off my wife and I stroke him he can turn & show his teeth! any tips / advice. Note when he does this we have been putting him outside for 5 mins but he still continues to snarl etc the next day.

you've got 3 threads, but they probably arent separate issues, but all indicate an unhappy and/or stressed dog.

we need way more info.

where you get him?
has he seen a vet?
whats his daily routine?
quiet or noisy home?
kids?
does he have his own space?
etc
etc

i would try a home visit trainer, google APDT, APBC, or UKRCB for one

His routine is up at 6am, fed then half hour walk at 6.30,
my wife then sometimes takes him at 8.30 for 30 mins..

He is then left in the conservatory from 9 until 4 at latest,
he is then fed and walked again for 30 mins he ususally gets another walk at 1830, at weekends
he is walked for longer...

We have 2 kids 18 & 15, it is usuall a quiet house, however
the last 7 days we have been having work done in the garden which is upsetting him, (feels like he has gone backwards)

We got him from the RSPCA 8 months old, in June 2010, he had really bad food aggression which we have overcome, but the snarling when with my wife and I stoke him (occaisionally), and the snarling if try to dry hima are current issues.

He has a lot of attention and seems to be a happy dog most of the time

how did u fix food aggression?

To me (and this is really a guess because I don`t know the dog) he is hand-shy. Probably through rough treatment in the past.
Putting him outside just confirms his fears that hands are bad news, so I wouldn`t do that.
The best way to help a handshy dog is to let him make the first move. When he is confident he will approach you for contact. You could also try teaching him that hands are good things by hand-feeding him. But don`t touch him unless he wriggles up to you. Trust is a fragile thing when it is developing.

Thank you for your help...

With the food aggression we fed with the bowl raised in our hands and then said dont touch, he now sits until asked to eat, and then if we enter the room when he is eating and we say dont touch he slowly a bit reluctantly stops and will sit, we then remove the food and praise him and give him the food back. we do this most days.

i wondered if that were the case.

personally, i dint think you have dealt with that issue.
in a way you have suppressed him....hence the reluctantly stops bit.
removing the bowl when he is eating is unfair, can be building up a confrontation, and creating tension.

it would be better to leave him to eat in peace.
dito to dry in peace.

the reason i say this is i suspect you took on an emotionally damaged rescue dog with a generalised stress problem.
which has abated as yet in the time you have had him.
the fact you note he has shown some new stress related behaviours since you had workmen tells me he is generally an over aroused dog.
this is the point i would be working from as the first thing.
therefore, making a tense daily routine out of mealtimes is going to further the other stress behaviours you have mentioned.

i would be looking at the whole picture and the emotional being of the dog, which will cover routines, diet, training, all the relationships in the home, layout of the home, all the interractions in the home, the whole dynamic.

hence the need for a good understanding empathetic professional to come round and assess and advise.

Could you recommend any 1 for a home visit?

Oh dear I agree with Krusewalker you have only suppressed the behaviour.

He needs to learn that you are a source of all things good-food, touch etc & need professional help to show you how.

I never understand the desire to give food to a dog(a very value resourse to a dog)& then take it away only to give it back again, this is totally difference to teaching your dog to give up something that he shouldn't have, but owners tend to confuse the two.

Food aggression can be defused by sitting holding the food dish low enough for the dog to reach & putting food into it small amounts at a time. This way your dog will learn that you supply food. When your dog is happy with this then you can put the dish on the floor & continue to add the food small amounts at a time. When your dog is happy with this then you can put the dogs food into his & add tasty bits to it. This is a slow method but very successful & reduces the dogs guarding his food, because you are no threat

speak to your vet or look at the lists provided earlier.
as clair said, avoid franchises like barkbusters and dominance based theorists like dog listeners etc