Dog growling at baby...

[DivineMrsM]

What would you do? He's a Tosa, a 150lb BIG dog. He used to growl at my 3yo when he was a baby and is now growling at the new baby, 9mths old. Granted, the baby was tryin to play with him and he didn't want to play, so it was a warning growl. But what if that growl turns into a snap or a bite? He could very easily maim or kill my baby.

My husband doesn't want to rehome the dog. I do. I don't want to take any chances.

WWYD?

[heartmama]

My 9 month old baby would never 'play' with a 150 pound dog, even the nicest dog. But I know there are people who insist their dog is the exception. So even accounting for that, in this case, your dog growled in the past at a baby...so I would say there is zero chance I would allow this to happen again.

So, short answer is that the dog and baby would never have the chance to encounter each other in this way again. I would do what I had to do to make sure it was impossible. Crate, gate, door, harness, or all of the above--I would not put the baby down where it could reach the dog.

[Dmitrizmom]

I've got to agree with heartmama.

[DivineMrsM]

oh, he's been gated in the kitchen ever since this happened. well, whenever the baby is downstairs, the dog is nowhere near him now. but the dog is now confined to one room of the house and even though i don't really like the dog, i feel kinda sorry for him.

[ReadingMama]

I've had friends with giant dogs who growl at the kids (one family had Great Danes and one family had rotties). The kids were bugging the dogs and so the dogs gave warning growls. It freaked me out (as I have a friendly-to- everyone lab mix who tries to lick milk off of babies' mouths), but the parents watched for any other posturing or behavior that would indicate aggression and they never found any. One of the giant rotties did bite ME when I was playing with his family's toddler by chasing her through the house, but never the kids. If the kids came near him while he ate or got near his Nylabone, he growled too. These familes saw the growls as warnings--dog speak for, "You're in my personal space, kid. Back off." Maybe these dogs are so huge and babies are so small that they treat them like they'd treat puppies?

I'm no expert and I'm all for erring on the side of caution. It is definitely your responsibility to make sure your kids are safe--even if this means less freedom for your dog for a while. I'd read up on dog body language and maybe even spring for a home eval with a behaviorist. Getting a professional's opinion about your dog's behavior might make you feel better about whatever you decide.

[SquishyKitty]

Your dog needs to learn who the leader is, and it isn't him. If it doesn't get fixed soon, he will resort to correcting his pack.

Keep them separate, young children should never be allowed to crawl around on a dog or attempt to play with them. Correct ON THE SPOT if there is any more growling, and keep them separated unless you can 100% supervise.

[SquishyKitty]

Originally Posted by ReadingMama

I've had friends with giant dogs who growl at the kids (one family had Great Danes and one family had rotties). The kids were bugging the dogs and so the dogs gave warning growls. It freaked me out (as I have a friendly-to- everyone lab mix who tries to lick milk off of babies' mouths), but the parents watched for any other posturing or behavior that would indicate aggression and they never found any. One of the giant rotties did bite ME when I was playing with his family's toddler by chasing her through the house, but never the kids. If the kids came near him while he ate or got near his Nylabone, he growled too. These familes saw the growls as warnings--dog speak for, "You're in my personal space, kid. Back off." Maybe these dogs are so huge and babies are so small that they treat them like they'd treat puppies?

I'm no expert and I'm all for erring on the side of caution. It is definitely your responsibility to make sure your kids are safe--even if this means less freedom for your dog for a while. I'd read up on dog body language and maybe even spring for a home eval with a behaviorist. Getting a professional's opinion about your dog's behavior might make you feel better about whatever you decide.

Yes, the growls are warnings but I wouldn't just allow a dog to growl at a baby. With an older child who UNDERSTANDS the growling, maybe. My son is 9 and sometimes likes to try and get in the rottie's face. She will tolerate it for a second, and then she growls. She never bites, but he (through much conditioning from me) understands that this is her way of saying "I don't like it, get out of my space". However, I wouldn't let that happen if I wasn't right there, either way.

NEVER trust a dog 100%, especially when kids are involved, and ALWAYS supervise.

[greenmulberry]

Keep in mind, that a dog growling is one of his only ways to communicate that he is uncomfortable with something.

If you keep correcting a dog for growling, and he stops, he does not have a way to communicate that he does not like the baby being in his space. What is his next option?

I actually have a dog that this was done to her in her previous home. I'll spare you the details but I have taken her in because I am a dog trainer and can handle this kind of thing (and I like her a lot despite her flaws!).

She is a high strung dog that goes from laying still to biting the face of another dog, HARD! and totally silently, because the growl was corrected out of her. The other dogs don't even realize they are making her angry because her communication skills are so poor. I am trying to teach her to growl to communicate her concerns when another dog is in her space and she does not like it. Fortunately, she only has problems with other dogs, not people and kids, and my other dogs are well adjusted and patient with her.

So, I am not trying to say that there is never a time to correct a growl, but you have to be very careful because a growl is one of the few ways a dog can tell you he is uncomfortable.

I personally feel that keeping the dog and baby separate until the dog is more comfortable with the situation is the safest. Some dogs just do not respect a baby as they do an adult or child, and it is very hard to instill this in a dog. After all, what is there about babies that inspired respect and leadership?

[greenmagick]

Yes to keeping the dog and baby separated...however, make sure that the dog doenst learn to associate the baby with being in trouble or being separated from you and his pack!

Dog Star Daily has a two part series on kids and dogs...It is very informative.

Part 1

Part 2

You dont want to focus on the growl so much as what the growl is saying. Is he uncomfortable? Nervous? That is the behavior you need to modify.