Puppy being aggressive

[DJ]

For the most part Lily is a very loving puppy and is doing well overall. We also started obedience class for her. The biggest problem I have noticed is at times she will show an aggressive side to her and it usually occurs with my oldest son. He is 11 and is so loving with her. He usually takes her outside and plays fetch with her during the day. The aggression can happen either if we just get home and he goes to say hi or in the evening when he goes to pet her she will growls and almost attack him. It's very strange how she can change like a flip of a switch. He isn't doing anything mean to her at all. He will just walk up to her and Iita like she gets ultra moody sometimes. I have noticed it seems worse in the evening and at night and she even did it to me once. Is this normal puppy aggression problems?

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

This isn't aggression.  This is puppy play and normal.  Your son and your pup both need to learn proper behavior toward each other.   The puppy thinks your son is a litter mate and has no respect.  Your son most likely riles him up without even knowing -higher pitched voice, fast movements, etc.  Training will cure this. 

[Laura and Angus]

Training will help this this for sure. Puppies have to learn their "place" in the family and just like people have their own personalities. Our doodle is 3 years old and we continue to do training activities with him daily because he often thinks he can just run the show. We learned a lot of leadership activities to use at home. It would be important for your son to also do training/feeding activities with your pup, so that she understands she has to listen to all the humans. Some leadership activities that you can use are - having your pup sit and wait for food or to enter/leave the house until the person feeding or walking says "ok", day-to-day training activities and teaching new commands, and blocking - physically blocking her from walking or running by you in narrow spaces like doorways/hallways/stairs. These things teach puppy to look to as the person/people in charge. Just remember that you're currently teaching your puppy what is and is not acceptable in your home aka "the rules." So if she growls/lunges at your son, you can calmly say "No" and immediately stop the play/ignore your puppy for a minute. Then you can resume play and just keep doing that over and over. With time and consistency, your pup will definitely catch on to what is and is not acceptable.

I would, of course, pair this with positive reinforcement (i.e. treats and praise) for anything she does that you would deem "good behavior" - in this case greeting calmly, playing gently with no biting. It'll take some time, so hang in there!

[Lori, Winnie, Bob and Indie]

My Winnie used to do this when she was a puppy, and I too thought it was aggression. We would be out playing and she would "attack" me- growling, nipping at my coat, pant legs, etc. Most of the time it was out of the blue, but sometimes it was when I was trying to get her to come inside. Or, I would walk by her and she would do it out of the blue. It was very scary because she sounded so aggressive and mean when she did it. I've been around dogs all my life and had never seen a dog do this. Plus, it was oddest thing because she only did it to me, not my husband.

It wasn't until I saw her interacting with another dog that I realized she was just playing! She had been treating me like she did other puppies- playing by "fighting." Oddly enough, I (not my husband) was the one that was doing a majority of the training with her- taking her to classes, training around the house, etc.  She was a very headstrong and stubborn pup, and she was constantly challenging my leadership. We stuck with the training and leadership activities (like Laura talked about) and eventually she grew out of it.