Our 8 month puppy can be a bit snapish, if she is asleep and you stroke her she growls so we now wake her before we ever move her.
About 3.5 months ago she growled at my partner when he woke her (she had snuck onto our bed), he raised his hand to protect his face and she jumped from his arms and broke her leg. We were horrified, it was a dreadful experience.

The past week she has been acting a bit strange, since we had her she was crate trainined and when I go to work she sleeps in her crate ( I come home to lunch and we play) Now that she is toliet trained we decided to that she could have the run of the kitchen. (can't leave the two dogs alone together in same room) We have a saftey gate separating the kitchen and the lounge. Our male dog has the run of the downstairs when I'm at work. The first day there didn't appear to be any problems, the next day though in the evening she was very upset and had her tail clamped bewtween her legs. She spent the evening in her crate so we guessed she must have missed it and we have gone back to the normal routine.

We also have rescued a 5mth pup six weeks ago adn they have been getting on very well, the other evening though the older pup started to get a bit aggressive with her. This evening she was fine when I got in we all had a nice walk and I fed them about half an hour ago I went to stroke her and she growled, the pup then went to see her and she had a strop. My partner then sat on the chair with her and she got really stroppy. She is now in her crate as she growled big time, her tail was also clamped.

I'm really not sure how to handle this, she doesn't seem to be showing signs of any pain so I wonder if she is maybe getting close to her first season. I am a bit concerned about her because our male bedlington is so soppy you can lay with him kiss him and he hugs us all the time, she is also like this but is also I feel unpredictable. My boy would alow me in his bed and can pick him up and touch his food etc but with her when she is like this I would never stick my head in her crate or too close to her.

She has never bitten us but has anyone got any advice? she was the runt of the litter and is small for her breed but she is quite obviosuly trying to be alpha. I don't want to contront her as I know this makes it worse. I have read that I should no longer allow her on chairs but I'm worried about how I can enforce this when all my dogs are allowed on them and I have never had a problem like this before. 

Thank you.

Hi,

How many dogs do you have altogether?  What breed/breeds are they?  how old are they?  What food are they on and how often are they fed?   Sorry for all the questions but it will help to give more of a picture :) 

Hi,

We have three Bedlington Terriers, One neutered male aged 6, one female puppy aged 8 months, one female puppy 5 months. (neither are spayed yet) We would not normally have got two puppies so close togther but we rescued the second one. (this behavior had occured ebfore the pup arrived) They all eat pedigree pouches with mixer and I feed them in the morning and evening. As a treat I feed them roast chicken and vegetables or lamb mince. They are walked twice a day.

Thank you.
Regards
Karen

Just to double check, the dog displaying problem behaviour is not the rescue one?

Can i refer you to www.dog-dominance.co.uk which explains briefly that dogs don't try to take over the pack, although it is fair to say that dogs may get teenager "kevin" or "tracy" pushiness, just like a human teenager.

Did you get the 8 month pup at 8 weeks? How old was she when her leg was broken?

Have you done any particular training with her - ie, have you picked up her bowl, whilst she is eating? You can train dogs to be comfy around people and their food but it's done in a slightly different way.

It may be that she is inclined to resource guarding (which can be solved) - this can include food, comfy places etc.... was the main growling episode when the 5 month old was going towards your partner whilst he held the older one?

It could also be that she is getting hormonal which could explain a lot, it's difficult to say.

Lindsay
X

Hi Lindsay,

Thanks for replying. No its not the rescue one she is very good natured except for getting over excited and nipping which we have almost stopped now.

Yes we had Mille since she was 9 weeks old, I started training with her at about 14 weeks, she was unbelievably stubborn then and would not even sit. She will now sit and lie down. I managed about 6 sessions of training when she broke her leg at 5 months.She's ok with food generally and we can take her bowl, its more when you go near her if she's on a chair or even on the floor.

I don't think it was a jealously things as she started grwling at me first when I went to stroke her, my partner then sat with her to show her that it is our chair and not hers. She just got very cross then and was grumpy all evening. 

This morning she as good as gold again, maybe it is the hormones. I am planning to have both of the girls spayed soon.
Karen

Update:

At lunch time Mille behaved strangely again, she was sitting behind a chair and she growled at me when I approached her, she also went for the pup. It wasn't serious but she is quite obviously grumpy and wants to be left alone.

I decided to take her to the vet as my boy was having his booster jab today. The vet says she has a slight temperature and that she may possibly be having her first season with no obvious external signs (often the fitst goes unnoticed) He says to see how she is in a week. He has suggested delaying spaying in case it is her season as it complicates the procedure and it may also make her aggression worse.

Hi Kaznumi,

I have bedlingtons too - they're a bit special aren't they ;)

About your 8 month girl - Was she brought up in the house or outside?  What do you mean by the runt of the litter?  A small puppy compared with the rest may not be a runt but the only normal sized pup in a litter of big pups - especially if they're boys ;)

You say she has growled at you before when you went near her on a chair?    Its sounds like she is quite a pushy madam ;) the best way to deal with this is not to allow her on the chair and to call her to you when you want to pet her (Gwen Bailey puts it perfectly).  I have a pushy one too and was challenged BIG TIME when the pup was 13 weeks old, he was on the sofa at the time and like you I went to sit next to him, and he went for me, no contact but a definate "get off my sofa and don't come back"  I reacted rather than thought but picked him up and dumped him on the floor saying in a BIG LOW VOICE "MY sofa Stay off"  - he apologised immediately and tried to get back on but wasn't allowed.  To this day I can't allow him on the sofa or he gets pushy and starts to get grumbly.  As long as he stays on the floor he's a sweetheart (We get on the floor with him)  He also was touchy about us being near his food so we've done loads of work there and he's really great now.  Basically we follow the NILIF program with him and he seems a lot happier and more relaxed.  Some bedlingtons are bolshy, some aren't, but I'm told bitches can be more bolshy than dogs

As she is clamping her tail at these times it looks as if she's very unhappy about something - their tails are like barometers :)
Just out of interest, what is her copper status? were her parents tested?   Copper problems can make them grouchy too

Hello,

Yes we love Bedlingtons they are great,I fell in Love with a neighbors and rescued my first one a while ago, he was a real challege. He was totally dog aggressive. We worked very hard socialising him with dogs and training him as well as socilaising him in general he is now a well rounded dog and we are very proud. At first we were terrified everytime we went out incase a dog came up to us but now we have managed to train him and he can be off lead which is fantastic to see him running around and laughing.

Mille has not been tested for CT, I am not aware of the status of her parents. I am going to email the lady who owns the mother but she was actually bred from a pet and not from breeders stock. (When I said Runt I meant she was the smallest and had to fight the most for food)

I think she is very feisty and we will have to be more firm with her, I am looking forward to training her as I am giving up full time work in a couple of weeks which will enable me to do this properly. 

Thank you for your advice.
Regards
Kaznumi

That's the trouble when people 'breed from a pet' often the pedigree is not researched properly and the relevant tests haven't been done :(  and in the case of bedlingtons pedigree research and copper testing are useful tools in producing sound puppies - much better than relying on luck.  My own dogs were bred from pets but the dogs were tested and the pedigrees were researched,  so affected/carrier pups were highly unlikely and they both tested clear.  The tests aren't infallible but have helped reduce the incidence of copper problems in bedlingtons.  She would be very young to be suffering from copper problems but knowing her status is helpful. 

From what you say it's more likely that her problems are from not having the right socialisation as a pup in the nest.  Its important that puppies don't have to 'fight for food' and are supervised when eating so that each gets enough and doesn't feel that food must be guarded and defended.  Its also important that each pup gets one to one attention from the breeder and other people - this is what makes rearing pups such hard work, giving them all enough time and attention and the right kind of experiences to ensure they turn into sound reliable dogs.  Something you will be able to do as you have already done this with your older dog :)

She sounds a right madam but thats what makes her so interesting :D