When Dogs Growl

During a recent pet assisted therapy class, I had a new volunteer ask me what she should do when her dog occasionally growls at other dogs.  My immediate response was to say, "listen to your dog!"  Growling is just one of the many ways a dog can signal increasing discomfort.  Your response (or the other dog's response) to that growl will likely determine whether your dog feels the need to escalate their behavior at this point, or whether they can shake it off and move on.  What you don't want to do when your dog growls is admonish or punish them. If you punish away this signal, your dog may just snap or bite instead.  At least if you hear your dog growl, you have a chance to recognize their anxiety and potentially alter the situation to make them less stressed.  How about a couple of examples?

Let's say, as with the dog in class, that you have a small dog who growls when larger dogs get in his face when on leash. That same dog turns and moves away when off leash, but will growl and then snap if the big dog persists.  In this case, the growl is appropriate. The smaller dog is telling he bigger dog on leash,"Hey!  You're in my space and you're making me anxious! Back off!" The larger dog *should* respond by backing off in appeasement.  At the very least, the bigger dog's owner should apologize for the rude dog and move them away.

But what if that little dog is on the owner's lap and growls at a passing dog that doesn't even glance at the little guy? In this example, the little dog is guarding his owner's lap and should be placed on the floor when he growls.  He needs to understand that the human is not pleased with the guarding behavior and that such behavior will result in the dog not being allowed on the human's lap. By the same token, if your dog growls at YOU when you walk past him chewing on a bone, or eating from his bowl, or while laying on his bed, those are also examples of resource guarding that you need to address.  Again, you don't want to punish your dog for growling as that was a clear signal to you that you needed to hear. However, you don't have to just live with a dog who growls at you and guards resources.  Get the help you need!

And by all means remember that there are many different growls.  You can even hear dogs growl while they are playing with each other, playing with you, and while playing alone with their toys!  Not all growls are the same, nor do they all signal danger.  Remember, too, that while you know what your dog means with their growl, not everyone you meet will understand that.  So, in the example of a dog doing pet assisted therapy, those growls are risky.  A lot of the people we visit when doing pet therapy work don't have much dog experience, so any kind of growl is bad from their point of view. Thus, in that realm, I ask owners of dogs who growl to take note of the situation and make adjustments right then and there to ease tensions.  If a dog growls on the owner's lap, then they can't be on the owner's lap during visits. If they growl when rushed by other dogs, then the other dogs on the team need a lesson in polite social distances.  Again, I'm not telling the volunteers whose dogs growl that they need to punish their dogs or that they can't participate in pet assisted therapy. What I AM saying is that they need to listen to their dogs and adjust THEIR own behavior to help their dogs be more comfortable and not need to growl to make their discomfort known.  Oftentimes, owners inadvertently put their dogs into situations that lead to anxiety and growling.  We need to address that problem first and foremost to keep our pet assisted therapy visits safe.

Bottom line? Not all growls mean aggression.  Some growls can easily be extinguished with a few changes to the human handler's behavior. However, if you are dealing with escalating aggression, and your dog's growl quickly moves to a lunge/snap/or bite, seek help.  As always, you know where to find me.

Little dogs often feel threatened when bigger dogs

 get in their faces, particularly when on leash.