# Growling When I Come Back Inside



## HavaneseSoon (Nov 4, 2008)

I can tell I have my training cut out for me with Dexter. The latest thing Dexter is doing........I must be approaching it wrong or something...please advise. 

Situation: Front door with glass storm door. Dexter can see through the door. I am going outside for a very short time. I tell Dexter to sit and stay and I go outside and return within 10 seconds and he is growling at the door and trying to bite my heels when I come inside. I try my best to ignore the bad behavior and show lots of pleasure when Dexter is nice with the greeting. 

I can tell Dexter is not very happy that I go outside and he is not invited, so is he showing an attitude or what? 

I will be continuing the going out the door thing today to see if I can break this bad habit.

Am I doing this right? 

Dexter is very head strong and wants the upper hand whenever he can get a chance to take it.


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## HavaneseSoon (Nov 4, 2008)

I have been working on this today and Dexter is very friendly now when I come in the door..........now, that I have said it......he will make a LIAR out of me. 

Let me check it out again.....Ok....he is still sweet. So, the positive reinforcement did work! :whoo:


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## Petaluna (May 9, 2008)

based on what I've been reading here and elsewhere, I'm doubting that growling is always an aggressive or dominance thing. My yorkie never growled except when she was stalking her toys or heard a weird noise, so I don't have much experience with it, though.

And the heel nipping is some sort of herding instinct in Havs, right?

I'll be interested to see the more experienced trainers chime in on this one.


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## Jill in Mich (Feb 24, 2008)

You might want to read Jean Donaldson's "Culture Clash". It does a good job of putting dog behavior in perspective (and helps you to stop thinking in terms of human behavior and motivators). It sounds like you're already well on your way to getting this behavior changed. I can't remember, have you taken a class with Dexter yet?


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## HavaneseSoon (Nov 4, 2008)

We are in the process of taking classes with Dexter; last class tonight, then we will wait awhile until the next class. 

Dexter does very well in the class, except for the command "down & stay."

I will have to look up the book, I love reading about dog behavior.


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## iluvhavs (Jul 21, 2008)

Lucy growls every now an then when DH walks into a room. I've always thought she was just practicing her growl and never thought it was meant to be agressive towards us. It's kinda cute!


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## marb42 (Oct 19, 2008)

Glad your training with Dexter is helping the growling issue. 
Gina


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## Jill in Mich (Feb 24, 2008)

I remembered first thing this morning that you were in classes with Dexter. Just from my own experience, taking a second class has really helped me understand more. Right now I'm taking the intermediate (basic) obedience with Tess, the advanced obedience with Cody and reading the Jean Donaldson book (I'm quickly approaching dog behavior overload). I'm getting a lot more out of the intermediate class this second time around and the advanced class is allowing me to better understand what's driving the behavior, why I'm hitting stumbling blocks and how to change my approach. For example, I was having a heck of a time first getting Tess to do "down" and then once I got that, I couldn't get her to do sit/stay. She'd go immediately to "down" and then give me a low little growl when I wasn't paying with treats. I realized it was my "stay" hand signal. It was too much like what I was doing for "down" I changed my hand signal, started the "stay" cue over from the beginning and she got it immediately. (If you asked her, she'd say I'm much more difficult to train - and very slow to "get it".)

If you can, I'd recommend doing the 2nd class as soon as possible. I waited a year with Cody & wish I had done it sooner.

The next book I have to read is "On Talking Terms With Dogs: Calming Signals" by Turid Rugaas in preparation for some personal training work I'll be doing with Cody (barking/growling/lunging at big dogs when on leash).

You mentioned liking to read books on dog behavior - Kimberly made a recommendation on another thread for a book by Ian Dunbar - "Teaching New Dogs Old Tricks" (I think?)


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## HavaneseSoon (Nov 4, 2008)

Thanks Jill....Dexter has to graduate this class first. Dexter is doing good. I do want to take the second class, but thought we would wait about 6 weeks at least and keep learning what we have learned. 

Oh! Dexter still barks at everything.....we are trying to calm this one down too. So much training all the time!

I have read so many dog behavior books, that I really need to review them now that Dexter is here and I am noticing some of the behaviors I have seen in the books. 

I think that Dexter was just pissed off because I did not take him out each time I went outside. Dexter is very verbal with grunts, different sounds of barks, sighs, etc., so many, that it makes Dexter so lovable.


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## marb42 (Oct 19, 2008)

HavaneseSoon said:


> Oh! Dexter still barks at everything.....we are trying to calm this one down too. So much training all the time!


Linda, I know how you feel. I feel like I am in a constant state of training all night and day, and Marble's nearly 2 1/2. Last night, DH told me that I should have just asked him to have another baby, because a baby would have been WAY easier.
Gina


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## HavaneseSoon (Nov 4, 2008)

It is mainly pretty quiet here, but if Dexter knows someone is outside or hears a weird sound from the TV.....Bark!


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## Petaluna (May 9, 2008)

I wonder what the barking ratio is between different Havs. One of the reasons I was drawn to this breed was the fact that they didn't seem to be particularly vocal in terms of barking just for the heck of it. Seems like some like to talk more than others. Did you try to work on the barking from the time you first got him, or is that fairly new?

I actually have a situation here where we need it to be relatively quiet for my husband, particularly when he is seeing clients, so I will have to work on training out excessive barking early on so it doesn't become a habit if she is so inclined. Better bone up on the shussh techniques!


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## Sheri (Oct 11, 2008)

I was also drawn by Havs not having the reputation of being yappy, (one of the many reasons!) Tucker barks very little; he's two years old now, and he's probably barked a total of a dozen times. I very much dislike barking, (hurts my ears,) so when he _did_ bark I didn't encourage it. I don't know if he simply didn't bark much, or he picked up on my not liking barking. (None of my other dogs were allowed to be barky, either.)

He does have a very cute "grunt" when he wants my attention, though. :blabla:


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## Evye's Mom (Dec 16, 2008)

Oh....barking. A sensitive subject here. Bentley doesn't bark and Evye barks at EVERYTHING...the door bell, a leave blowing, a bird, the dishwasher, the wind...any and all unusual sounds....the golfers ready to tee off, which I am sure pisses them off royally !!! I have read Ian Dunbar's suggestions, giving them permission to "speak" and when to be quiet. Its a 80/20 thing...sometimes it works and most times it does not. I have a big mouth !!!! and leash walking !!! Ugh !!! Trying to practice before tomorrow night's class and its awful !!!!! A leash is a toy to her...to be chewed, pulled and anything else she wants to do with it.....besides walk.


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## Evye's Mom (Dec 16, 2008)

Ok...we just practiced leash walking !!! I will go so far as to say I cannot stand my dog when I put a leash on her. It's her way or no way...she wins. Hope she likes never going on a walk for the rest of her life !!! At my wits end !!!!


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## sweater32 (Dec 12, 2008)

marb42 said:


> Linda, I know how you feel. I feel like I am in a constant state of training all night and day, and Marble's nearly 2 1/2. Last night, DH told me that I should have just asked him to have another baby, because a baby would have been WAY easier.
> Gina


LOL!!! I laughed so hard when I read:
_DH told me that I should have just asked him to have another baby, because a baby would have been WAY easier._

Dh came to see what was so funny!!! Sad thing is, it is true!!


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## Petaluna (May 9, 2008)

Sharlene, how old is Evye? Did you get her as a young puppy? Boy, I had better stop reading about all these training issues cause you guys are starting to freak me out! :suspicious: lol!

I gotta say I have a vague and distant memory of my first and only dog (yorkie) resisting both collar and leash early on, and I did very little formal training with her, but I think I just kept trying and she eventually sort of got it. She loved going for walks, and I guess she figured out that getting leashed up was part of the deal. I didn't stop her early pulling, either, but she eventually stopped pulling on her own. I think the fact that she was so small made it easier to be lazy with her training, and I just was not educated about dog behavior. By the time I knew better, she had become a really nice adult dog mostly on her own somehow, along with some clumsy work on our part, and she was smart enough to know who she could manipulate and who she couldn't, so she got away with more with some people. I wonder if it would be harder for Evye to get at the leash and bite if you used a harness? Or are you already?

On the barking, that is so funny, but annoying at times I'm sure. Does not sound like most of the Havs I've met. Do you think she barks much when you are not around? I'm just wondering if no one is home to shush her, maybe she is learning that barking a lot is OK if no one is correcting her? Just throwing out ideas. 

I'm planning to be more conscientious this time around, and I am hoping the fact that I work at home will make it easier because I can take short training breaks all day long, but I have a hunch it's often just a matter of time and maturity with these guys. Is it my imagination, or does it take a good 2-3 years before many of them sort of settle down and really come into their own?


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## Sheri (Oct 11, 2008)

Sharlene,
If she is having a screaming hissy fit just having the collar/leash on and fighting it, what about just leaving it on for awhile and letting her drag it around? Or, if that is too much for her, attach a shorter section of rope or leash to her collar to let her wear around for awhile, so she can learn she's not going to die and your aren't going to give in?


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## HavaneseSoon (Nov 4, 2008)

Dexter is not a yapper. But, he will bark when I am home. He is my GUARD dog!:biggrin1: Dexter is pretty loud for a small dog! Dexter does get my attention to check something out. 

I am trying my best to reinforce quiet behavior because if I am going to acknowledge all the barking....I will go check it out, and tell Dexter it is ok and try..............to remove him from the situation that is causing him to bark. And, hopefully the barking stops.


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## marb42 (Oct 19, 2008)

sweater32 said:


> LOL!!! I laughed so hard when I read:
> _DH told me that I should have just asked him to have another baby, because a baby would have been WAY easier._
> 
> Dh came to see what was so funny!!! Sad thing is, it is true!!


Colleen, your reply made me laugh as well. The sad thing is that it is true, and my DH said this despite not wanting any more children. Marble is like having 10 toddlers running around. I think this is the result of being born in a puppy mill environment rather than a great breeder who socialized him properly.

Linda, I cracked up ound:when I read your comment on how you felt about your dog on a leash. Marble is a nightmare on a walk. I have tried to stop every two seconds and correct him when he pulls. It's quite a site when we go on a walk (stop and go, stop and go), and I'm sure our neighbors are having a good laugh. He goes ballistic when he sees another dog or person. He goes triple ballistic if he sees a bike, stroller, scooter, etc. He has a harness, and I wanted to try the Easy Walk collar by Premier to stop the pulling. However, the xsmall is too tight and the small is too big. It may help you though, if Dexter can fit in one of those sizes. Good luck!
Gina


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## HavaBaloo (Mar 24, 2009)

I too have been having a growling problem with Baloo, he growls at 2 of my sons friends and I don't know if it is because he smells their 3 dogs or what. We have only had him for 2 weeks so I am thinking it may be an adjustment thing. He does growl as well when sleeping if he hears something, like a watchdog which is okay. I really don't like him growling at Noah's friends, I am going to work with him next time they visit.

We were having trouble with the leash as well, but I am now using the dogwhisperer technique, and it has been working really well I am so proud of Baloo, hardly pulling at all. Has anyone seen Cesar Millian's technique for this (http://www.cesarmillaninc.com)? You keep your dog on a very short least right beside you or behind, and if he/she starts to pull, lightly tug up or to the side and say a noise like "tick tick" and keep doing this when they pull, Hav's are smart and they will train quickly using this technique.


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