tempermental puppy

[brambles]

hi

i have a 9 month old chihuahua and king charles cross. i would appreciate some advice on his behaviour. we have 3 children the youngest is 4 and the oldest is 13. the dog is fine with the two younger children and lets the youngest pull out of him, take his food or anything he wishes. every time my eldest touches him he growls and bares his teeth, she ignores him and picks him up and cuddles him regardless, when she does this he will lick her face even though he is still growling at her. he is very well socialised with adullts and children as the children bring himi on walks with their friends several times a day. he still growls at their friends though, the younger kids tend to be afraid of him but the older ones ignore his growls and again he will lick them. i dont want to isolate the dog from the kids ( will he get used to childrens attention) my fear is as he gets older he will bite someone anyone know what i should do?

this is my first dog so im confused as to why he would growl and lick

[melody]

Growling could be a sign of aggressive behavior in a dog and your kid should be careful about handling her. You can read about dog aggression on this page http://dogobedienceadvice.com/dog-aggression.php

It could also just be your dogs way of saying to your daughter that he's the boss.

I would suggest that you take your dog to an obedience class. Or you can also train your dog with your daughter.

You can ask your daughter to do this exercise with your dog. Have your daughter cradle him, rub his back and make him feel good. if he squirms, just hold him a bit tighter until he stops and ask your daughter to give the dog a treat. If he's going to growl again, just ignore him.

I would not suggest that you scold him. My trainer said that we can teach dogs to not growl BUT th would mean that they will not give a warning before they bite. The thing is that you need to disrupt the dog when he growls.

Also, the next time your daughter picks him up and he growls, ask her to place the dog gently on his back and hold him until he stops wiggling. Stroke his tummy and as soon as he stops behaving badly, ask your daughter to pick up the dog again. Just be persistent