Doodle bite! Help!!

[Deeann Roesser]

Hi everyone. Our 5 month old Goldendoodle, who we love so much, just bit my husband and drew blood. This was not play biting, it was aggressive, guarding behavior when my husband was trying to take a receipt from her that she picked up. She growled a little at first and would not let go, then she bit him and he reacted by swatting her, then she lunged at him again. He moved just in time to avoid another bite. We are so upset because we have two granddaughters who come over often and that's why we got this breed.

BTW, she has never been hit by either of us before, so this was a first for us. We are so upset, even thinking of taking her back to the breeder. Please, please give any suggestions on what we can do to retrain her so this never happens again. We are so sad!

[Cathy, Fozzie & Shaggy]

Yes, it does!  :)

[Deeann Roesser]

Thank you so much Cheryl.  I've really been worried since last night when it happened that maybe we didn't pick the right pup, even though we had first pick and I fell in love with her at first sight.  It is true, we have given her nothing but love and affection because she is so darned sweet and loving.  We are both committed to training Ginger to be the wonderful companion we know she can be, while also training our granddaughters how to interact with her in a positive, calm way.

Thanks to all of you who responded.  It really made a difference to my husband and me....and Ginger!  I love you guys....:)

[Cindy and Olive (Ollie)]

:) lots of caring and love in this "village!" Xo

[BG and Gavin]

Here is an article I wrote a couple of years ago about getting your puppy off to a good start: http://www.doodlekisses.com/forum/topics/everything-i-ever-needed-t...
If I could add to it I would encourage you and your husband to do 1/2 hour each every day of umbilical work whereby you tether the pup to you and go about your daily business. Don't use words or pay any attention to the pup, just move about the house. This teaches the dog that you are in charge and that he needs to pay close attention to you and anticipate what you want him to do. Remember, don't grab the leash, just move and do not talk to the dog.

[Julie and Max]

My Max had a lot of resource guarding issues for awhile. He was like your Ginger, with growling and even bit me once at about the same age.  He is much much better now and I found a combination of all the training mentioned here helped me work it out with him. It took months of consistency and I continue to work on this (probably always will). I did hand feeding, drop it, leave it. Walk away when it was something that wouldn't hurt him (this had become something of a game for him, to pick up something he thought I wouldn't like so I would chase him around.) Some things that he really likes he still has trouble with drop it, but he will give it up now. I can now take anything out of his mouth and I know he won't bite me (although I do refuse to take the dead things out and I'm still working on this one for drop it lol) Lots and lots of working on it. Don't give up on your pup!

[Susan and Bentley]

Julie, my Bentley sounds just like Max.  We will always have to work with him on this.  He also is much better on the whole but it takes a lot of work, and a lot of patience and control.  I agree.  Don't give up on GInger!

[Shari Becker]

There have been so many great answers to your post, but I just want to share that we had a lot of trouble with 'resource guarding' with Lexi (now 18 months), too. She was fierce about protecting her food - and bones - and treats that she felt were hers. She snapped at my daughter twice, drawing blood once. We started working with a trainer right away after the first incident. It's apparently much more common than you'd think. So don't feel badly at all that it happened to you.

The training changed everything for us. I feel like just building in that structure of command and reward let her know who is boss in the house. I even now have my third grader doing small, supervised training sessions because I think it's important to remind Lexi that my daughter is higher up in rank than her. I've also had to do a tremendous amount of training with my daughter. :-) 

We haven't had an incident since last June.

That said, during Xmas dinner, Lexi crawled under my 3rd grader's chair and found a dropped piece of meat. My daughter was swinging her feet, being silly, and Lexi growled at her so fiercely that we all jumped. My husband gave her a firm "NO Lexi," and we removed her from her spot immediately. I know growling is a normal way that dogs share their displeasure, but she was resource guarding -  her growl was not her usual "Uhm, kid can you not sit on my tail, please?" growling. It wasn't a snap, so that is the most important thing, but it was a reminder that we need to be on top of training all the time.

For whatever it's worth, I never hesitate to hold her mouth shut and say "no biting" firmly when she's too rough with her teeth, too. It's not mean, it's not painful. It's putting her in her place. 

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

This was just about the age when we started to see some aggressive behavior from Murphy (who is now five).  They do a lot of testing at this age and this is when many of them try to "take over".  I would start with the "nothing in life is free" approach.  We STILL use that with Murphy, and I know it helps.  I'll post a link to that discussion separately. You need the right kind of training program right now....one that teaches him that YOU are his leader.  There's more to training a dog like this than just teaching a sit or down....it's all about leadership.  You need to find the right kind of trainer who will work closely with you.  Remaining calm is key....she reacted to your husband's aggression (that's how she would interpret his "swat") with stronger aggression.  With a dog like this your energy is absolutely critical to controlling how they respond.  I agree that for now I would keep her away from the grandkids.  I'll come back and add some additional insight about our approach with Murphy later today....I have to run to an appointment now.  I will tell you that although this has been a lot of hard work with Murphy, it is possible.  He still needs some "special handling", but he's now fine with our grandkids and if we keep hims "world" controlled he is a wonderful, loving guy.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Here's the "Nothing In Life Is Free" discussion.  http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/trainingmindsets/forum/topics/not...

[BG and Gavin]

Such a useful article Jane. I was glad to read it again. Even though Gavin is far from a dog that challenges for top position, I used many of these principles in training. I like to think of them as "best practices,"

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

Deeann, I am sorry for all the stress you are feeling with your pup. You have gotten such good advice here and I don't have much to add in the training department, but I do know how it feels to feel disappointed that maybe you didn't get the "right" dog. It happened to me when I realized Fudge might not be a dog park dog. I couldn't love my Fudge more, but I understand. Here is a blog I wrote and maybe it will help in some way. Good luck. Stick with it. It will all be worth it. 

http://www.doodlekisses.com/profiles/blogs/wanted-perfect-doodle

[Susan and Bentley]

love the blog Laurie!