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Beaker

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Discussion starter · #1 · (Edited)
Sorry if this should not be here as it's not a hunting question. I have a 3 yr male that has started to show aggression to strangers that come to the house. Seems fine with other dogs. Seems fine with kids.
He hasn't bitten anyone, he confronts them and growls. One man reached to pet him and he snapped.
He's not fixed. Not sure if that wouldhelp but i'll try it.
I've corrected him sternly (not sure if that's what should be done). He stands down when I do but if the person makes a sudden move starts up again.
Might be of note, he's afraid of thunderstorms but loves the gun. Doesn't otherwise seem fearful.
We do live in a rural area so perhaps exposure to people was limited. But we have a lot of guests so I don't know.


Is this common? Ever dealt with this? Any thoughts? Part of me doesn't mind it as the wife and kids are alone all day. But I'd like to change this behavior. I've never dealt with this.
 
#2 ·
I deal with it on a day in, day out basis. Scolding him for it will not help, and could actually make it worse. Truly fixing the issue is a process. Patching it with solid obedience is possible but not my recommendation.

PM me if you want to chat.

I'm not going to post thoughts publicly.
 
#3 ·
If this is a sudden behavior change the first thing based on experience is to check his thyroid. While my situation was slightly different running a full thyroid panel revealed that Piper was on the low side of normal prior to his 3rd birthday. As he was neutered already this was not a factor. As soon as we started him on thyroid meds I had my dog back. I lost him at the age of 13 to lg but never had any issues with any aggression towards dogs people anything once the thyroid was diagnosed and treated. The medication was really cheap and he took it for 10 Years. It was a tiny pill given 2times per day. Piper would not let me forget his pill as I fed in peanut butter right after meal time. Eat kibble then go to where the peanut butter was kept to remind me.
 
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#4 ·
3 years is when they start feeling their manly oats. Neutering may or may not solve it but it is worth a try before a snap connects and you have a real problem. A thyroid panel is a good idea too.
 
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#5 ·
I would also comment that after the thyroid diagnosis he went on to be a working therapy dog dealing with dementia patients who at times were rather umm at a whim nasty with zero reaction from him other than being dismayed.
 
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#6 ·
Let’s not jump to ob or owner before exploring the thyroid issue. This is a serious issue with the breed. A low normal thyroid level can have a dramatic impact on behavior. The dog can have been exposed to many situations from puppyhood had normal rules in place taken to ob classes and beyond sith an experienced lab owner and suddenly go off the rails due to a thyroid issue.
 
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#7 ·
I agree with thyroid, but I would send the blood to Dr. Jean Dodds in California since this is her specialty and she has actually established norms by breed. Michigan does not always detect the borderline cases.

Www.hemopet.org

I purchased a pup at 8 weeks from a reputable breeder. At two years old, he transformed into a dog that was super anxious, couldn’t stand to be touched, aggressive toward my older, much bigger male. I knew to check thyroid although local doc thought I was nuts. Sent to Dr. Dodds who said for his age and breed he was VERY low. It took about a year to find the right medication dosage and not all of the anxiety issues were solved.

Talked to Dr. Dodds again and she suggested we add cannibus to his meds. We saw a totally different dog in about four days—the transition has continued to improve. He is ALMOST the sweet, goofy Labrador he used to be.

Early onset thyroid is autoimmune and hereditary.

Meredith
 
Discussion starter · #8 ·
DarrinGreene said:
I deal with it on a day in, day out basis. Scolding him for it will not help, and could actually make it worse. Truly fixing the issue is a process. Patching it with solid obedience is possible but not my recommendation.

PM me if you want to chat.

I'm not going to post thoughts publicly.
Click to expand...
Hi, I welcome your thoughts. it says your inbox has exceeded space and you can't receive unless you clean some out.
 
#10 ·
mwk56 said:
I agree with thyroid, but I would send the blood to Dr. Jean Dodds in California since this is her specialty and she has actually established norms by breed. Michigan does not always detect the borderline cases.

Www.hemopet.org

I purchased a pup at 8 weeks from a reputable breeder. At two years old, he transformed into a dog that was super anxious, couldn’t stand to be touched, aggressive toward my older, much bigger male. I knew to check thyroid although local doc thought I was nuts. Sent to Dr. Dodds who said for his age and breed he was VERY low. It took about a year to find the right medication dosage and not all of the anxiety issues were solved.

Talked to Dr. Dodds again and she suggested we add cannibus to his meds. We saw a totally different dog in about four days—the transition has continued to improve. He is ALMOST the sweet, goofy Labrador he used to be.

Early onset thyroid is autoimmune and hereditary.

Meredith
Click to expand...
I was lucky. 2 vets in the practice I was using at the time were long time lab owners. Mine only decided to go after my older bitch. No fear issues absolutely zero issues with people or other dogs but I had weight issues. Since they knew me and my other labs they knew I wasn’t over feeding him. First thing was the full thyroid panel and they went right after the low normal. The change was rapid. I had my boy back almost immediately and it lasted until I lost him at 13.
 
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Discussion starter · #12 ·
At first it was just men. A recent incident was a woman. When we're gone he's kenneled inside. which is rare, wife doesn't work, kids are homeschooled. We have a some neighbors. Only other factor is we recently lost another dog.
 
#13 ·
Several years ago I had a yellow male out of CNFC CNAFC FC AFC The Marathon Man. He had always been very dominant and not very biddable. At 3 years of age he weighed 95 lb. and started showing signs of aggression toward other male dogs. One day I was out in the front yard with my 12 year old daughter. Jake was sniffing the mailbox post (probably male dog piss). My daughter walked up behind him and he turned and snarled at her, baring his teeth. He had turned into Cujo. I told my wife that I wanted to put him down because of the risk toward my daughter and other people and dogs. She suggested we try neutering him first. It turned him into mister nice guy, and he became a reliable hunting dog until the age of 11. I think this is a different situation than yours. His behavior was driven by male hormone and a dominant personality.
 
Discussion starter · #16 ·
I'm taking all advice seriously...not dismissing anything. But it's never toward family and never toward children, so it's not really out of nowhere in a sense.
A couple with 2 young kids stayed with us. The adults were growled at when coming in the house. Even after being with us a day or 2. They played fetch with him all day. That when returning from a dinner, he confronted them again. At bedtime from his kennel he'd growl when they walked by.

Meanwhile their 8 and 10 year old kids could do whatever they wanted to the dog.
 
#17 ·
So what have you done other than observe his behavior? Have you gone to the vet and had a thyroid panel drawn? Have you discussed neutering? Neither of these things are harmful to him. Are you expecting a magic wand to be waved over him and his growling to stop? He is probably taking over from the loss of the older dog. Nip it in the bud before it escalates.
 
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#18 ·
Is it possible he was mistreated by someone while you were gone? (an adult). Maybe UPS or delivery person or ???

I don't think this is something to take lightly. The more he does it and gets away with it, the more likely the behavior will escalate at some point in the future.
 
Discussion starter · #19 ·
ErinsEdge said:
So what have you done other than observe his behavior? Have you gone to the vet and had a thyroid panel drawn? Have you discussed neutering? Neither of these things are harmful to him. Are you expecting a magic wand to be waved over him and his growling to stop? He is probably taking over from the loss of the older dog. Nip it in the bud before it escalates.
Click to expand...
Not waiting on a magic wand. He will be neutered. At that time we will ask about the thyroid panel. We're also consulting with someone from the forum via private messages.

What I was implying is the aggression being limited to strangers visiting the property would lean my uninformed opinion for it to be more psychological than medical. But I'm proceeding all the avenues.

Certainly appreciate the replies.
 
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Beaker
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