# Puppy Aggression - Any Advice Please?



## MollyMolly (Nov 27, 2015)

Hi,

We got our little cockerpoo Molly around 4 weeks ago now when she was 11 weeks old. She is super cute. However... she is turning into a very nippy and snappy little girl.

We got Molly when our old dog passed away leaving us devastated. We had our old dog as a puppy who displayed none of the aggressive behaviours Molly does which leaves us feeling extremely anxious we're bringing up a future aggressive dog. 

We reached breaking point last Saturday when my sister banged the floor and sat down, getting molly extremely excited and she started growling and jumping to bite her face, my dad ended up walking over and telling molly off. My sister took the situation far too lightly and have now created a 'no sitting on the floor with the dog' rule. 

Our biggest problem now comes when molly jumps onto the sofa's. We tell her down (not something in which she responds too despite constant telling) whilst putting our fingers under her collar and dragging her down. Every so often, but more and more often now, she gets growly and tries to snap at your hand. This is becoming quite scary and concerning. 

At 15 almost 16 weeks old, we can't understand why she is displaying such behaviors . 

Yesterday we found an article which suggests molly could be suffering from having the wrong kind of food (allergies) and it described her behavior perfectly; particularly irregular toilet tendencies, being hyper, eating grass and dirt in the garden. So we've just changed to some hypoallergenic food which we hope to help.

But does anyone have any advice is regards to her aggressive (or what we feel is aggressive) behaviors please? or anyone experienced a similar situation that has resolved? if so how did you do it. 

*Also, unsure if this is relevant to the situation, but we were told by the person we bought Molly from that Molly had been hand reared because her Mum was stolen when she was a couple of weeks old or so. We did visit the home and saw mollys dad and other 2 siblings. But obviously the mum wasn't there. We don't have concerns about this being a genuine case, however we are aware a puppy should be with its mum until 8 weeks+ so wonder if this plays a part in her being naughty?*

Thank you in advance.


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## Lexi&Beemer (May 5, 2013)

If you review a lot of posts on here (search aggressive puppy) you will find this a common complaint because it's really normal and really not aggression. I say this because I thought the same thing about my two. 

My suggestion is to think about it as Molly learning to play and you help teach the rules. The growling is her talking. For some reason when they are little it sounds ferocious. It's not. 

As for how you are correcting her - take it from her perspective. She is confused by your behavior. Like the incident with your sister - looks like your sister was initiating play and then suddenly Molly is in trouble. If you watch how dogs play they nip at their faces (that's how my two played then and still do with each other). Molly is probably confused about the couch as well. 

I'd suggest rather than trying to punish her for bad behavior you move to a reward based system. That is get her to obey you doing something that keeps her from doing things you don't want. Such as if she gets nippy, do some training such as sit and lay down. Rather than punishing mistakes, teach her correct behavior. Instead of trying to teach her off, try to teach her come. And make sure every success is rewarded with a yummy but small treat and lots of love and praise. As for the behavior you don't want her to do, the best approach is to ignore her. Watch her play with another puppy and you will see how they do this if it helps you. But you make a quick ouch sound when she nips and then walk away. Or stand up and stand still like a tree until she calms down and sit nicely then you get on the ground and pet her. I had rope toys that I would use so I can play with her but have a little distance from those razor sharp teeth. 

Finally, if you think she's aggressive then you will raise an aggressive dog. So the most important thing in my book is to adjust how you think about behaviors. I read all that stuff on the internet too and it's bunk. Don't believe it. Imagine the perfect puppy and think about the behaviors that go with that perfect puppy. Your job is to teach them to her with reward based training. Truly, the bark really is bigger than her bite. She's not aggressive. She's just learning and trying to figure out how she fits in your family. 


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## MollyMolly (Nov 27, 2015)

Thanks for the reply. Yes, we've read a lot of posts on here and as much as it seems to be a common (and we do take some comfort in the fact this isn't just a molly thing), it's very difficult for us to not question why when our past couple dogs gave been exceptionally well behaved and haven't ever had this issue. So this is untrodden territory for; and as a family we've said that is has been easy for us to become almost oblivious to the fact each dog is different and don't behave the same.

We just want to do the right thing and ensure we're doing everything we can to make sure she is brought up to be her best. She can be very loving and clever, she does pick things up quite quick (sit command has been brilliant so far), but this getting off the sofa situation is becoming pretty tiresome and we're not sure how to approach it so that molly is learning and not getting grouchy when she's brought down.

We try a lot of reward based stuff, maybe not as consistently as should be as my family work and I'm away at university but am home most weekends (so I haven't spent lots and lots of time with her/ as much as my family just yet). We're now looking at other treat alternatives that can fit into her diet that aren't going to cause her an irritation (most likely chicken and other hypoallergenic treat).

The incident with my sister, is something we did place blame on my sister for ; she did get molly far too excited (hence us creating a no sit on the floor with molly rule... although if she's playing with an ice cube, we do get down there to retrieve it for her and almost work as team - in that sense she's very playful but patient). 

I could write bundles, we love her and want to do the right thing by her. I'll pass your advice onto my family and hopefully start making some changes with the way we treat molly.

If anyone has any other advice or similar experiences then I'd like to hear it . But thank you for the help so far - appreciated!


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## 2ndhandgal (Aug 29, 2011)

I totally agree with Lexi and Beemer and think you just have a normal, albeit very lively puppy. I am not sure anything on your list would indicate a food allergy either at the moment - all sounds pretty much like standard puppy stuff to me. Cockapoos do tend to be very full on.

I would suggest you enroll in some positive reward bases training classes. These can make the world of difference when you are starting out with a pup as you can get advice and also feel less alone as you will be meeting other owners we are having the same issues.

Think of the sofa issue from her point of view she is on there and having a comfy snooze and someone comes and shouts at her to get down, she will probably stay still which is one of the signals dogs show they are worried and then the person tries to drag her - she feels attacked so from her point of view you are the aggressive ones and she is defending herself. When she is jumping she very probably has no idea what you are telling her no for so ask her to sit instead, a dog who is sitting can not jump. Block access to the sofa when she is not supervised and if she does get settled on there call her off rather than confronting her.


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## fairlie (Sep 7, 2013)

Yes many of us have known the nippy, snappy, territorial beast you speak of.  Reassure your family that if treated with humour, affection and a ton of positive based and challenging training (ie. keep her brain and body busy) she will mature into your best dog yet. Key is to make them excited and proud to be part of your pack, then they'll do all they can to please you. It is a *lot* of effort, but it does pay off. The alternative, sadly, seems to be an adult dog with a whole host of "issues", often requiring rehoming or worse.


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## Marzi (Sep 17, 2012)

I hope you are feeling reassured.
Be gentle and calm, be kind, be consistent and make sure that your pup gets plenty of quiet time.
Off the sofa - Better to block and praise her before she gets on the sofa in the first place.... bits of her kibble in your pocket and give her pieces on the floor or on her bed. If she gets on the sofa get up and call her off (rustling treat packet in the kitchen will work). Do not grab, pull or push her off...

Re not having her mum, she may well have missed out on some early manners learning, but pups are clever learners given the right lessons.


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## Alinos (May 19, 2014)

My Poo has the run of the house. He plays every where and sleeps on my bed. But when he goes to my Mom's home, he knows that her bed and couch are off limits. Every time he would get on either, the whole family would say NO and pick him off the bed /couch and sit him on the floor. After a few days, he figured out what was what . He gets super excited every weekend when I go visit my folks but even whilst he's super excited, he won't jump up on the bed or couch now. 


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