Labradoodle growling?

[Neptune]

I want to intervene early and ensure this behavior does not progress!  I have a 15 month old Labradoodle.  The puppy is actually my first dog as I am allergic to dogs and was purchased from a breeder after much research to ensure I would not be allergic.  He was to be a pet for my kids ages 13/11.  We immediately started puppy training with both kids in attendance.  This was followed by basic training,  where only my daughter and I were attending.  Following with good citizen class, and intro to clicker training at this point only I was attending the training. 6 months into dog ownership my kids stopped walking, feeding, and taking the dog out for potty.  They still play with him and love him but are not consistent.  They also play pretty rough with him...  and do tug of war. 

Here is the problem.. I work from home and spend tons of time with the my puppy plus I feed him, walk him, and just adore this puppy - Jett.  When Jett turned 13 months old he first growled at my son... and was mouthy with him...  My son was trying to pick up Jett from a dead sleep.. the puppy growled..  my son ignored.. and kept trying to pick him up..  Jett was mouthy and used his teeth on his hand.. did not break skin but was trying to stop him.  I immediately went to the dog and picked him up and handed him to my son....  Then a month later I was sitting with Jett in my lap and my daughter tried to pick him up off of my lap and he growled at her.  My daughter yelled at him and continued to pick him up... he was mouthy with her but she ignored him and picked him up.  At this point I realized I had a problem on my hands...  I started to re-read a few dog books I have and ask my old dog trainer for help.  She had a few points to  make.  1.  Let sleeping dogs lie.  2.  Dogs are not toys and he may just not like being picked up anymore (can this be a dogs choice?)  3.  Poodles often really bond to one person in the house.. in this case me.  So this is not surprising but can be fixed. 

Here are my questions... 

*  As a new dog owner.. how normal is it that  your dog would growl at a family member?  I am freaked out!!  Does growling turn to biting?  I have heard that if you teach your dog not to growl it is worse b/c he will then go from nothing to biting?

*  I am now insisting that the kids feed Jett and spend more time with him walking him on loose leash so he will learn the kids are alpha.   He will walk loose leash with them.. and wait at the door and walk behind them but I still don't think Jett thinks he is submissive to my kids?  I think he knows he must play this game but he is really alpha or at best they are litter mates?

*  I am being super strict with Jett at home and have tightened up the rules again.  He is not allowed on furniture unless invited, he is sleeping in crate again, he must wait before he eats, I removed all bones and they are only given to him by the kids and taken away by the kids. When we eat as a family he must sit in another room and WAIT.

*  I am showing the puppy that if he growls he is sent away and the kids stay with me.  He has only growled one other time so I have not really been able to practice this yet?  I was thinking of practicing.. having Jett on my lap and showing him that the kids can move him away from me.. with my watchful eye.  None of us think he would actually bite any of us but he does use his mouth on us? 

Where can I learn more about this behavior and prevention??   Clearly I love my dog..  but can't let him guard me away from my kids...

I am happy for feedback and success stories of how to get Jett being submissive to everyone in the house.

Neptune!!

 

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Laura, I wouldn't tolerate my dogs growling at me for any reason, but I am not a new dog owner, my dogs accept me as boss, they aren't dogs that need strong leadership, etc.  I would tolerate my dogs giving my grand kids a warning growl  (and then running away) if the kids were behaving badly with them.  Luckily this hasn't happened because training the grand kids has already happened and they know what they can and can't do.

[Laura and Angus]

Makes sense. We don't have children in our house and I've never seen Angus growl at a child, but like I said, I think understanding your dog is the key in these scenarios. My bf and I know Angus very well - his behavior, temperament, and moods. We've decided the rules for our house and make sure that Angus follows them. The sound of growling during play doesn't bother me, personally. Angus even whimpers and yips and groans in his sleep. But we make sure that Angus follows the rules of play that we've set and if he gets too rambunctious, we stop and correct his behavior. Like I said, we don't have kids around the house, but if Angus ever growled at a child in our home that would not be tolerated (even if he was playing) - my guess is I'd talk with the child about how they need to behave around the dog along with correcting Angus. Luckily we don't have to worry about that for the time being because Angus gets very excited and playful around little kids; outside the home when children want to interact with Angus we usually have him on a leash and let the child know how they can approach him. I think we all have different ways of interacting with our dogs. I think what works with Angus wouldn't work with every dog and vice versa.

My family had a standard poodle for 15 years and I never heard him growl once. Every dog is different, but making sure to create strict boundaries for your household and adhering to them 100% is the most important thing that I've learned from our very active and headstrong pup (and from our trainer).