Advice on staffy pup?

Question

I have a 3 month old staffy male, and the last few days hes been getting abit aggressive. Hes started growling and sometimes snapping. I know i need to take him to obedience classes, which i am looking into but can anyone offer any advice on how to get him out of it before he gets out of control. Any little things i can be doing to calm him down. I know they are an excitable breed, which he is but hes not doing it through play, hes doing it when hes been moved from doing things he shouldnt. Any help would be much appreciated.

Answer 1

its unusual for a 3 month old pup to be aggressive in this way, older dogs thinking they are above you in the pecking order act this way. if this is the problem, then your going to have to teach your dog through rewarding him when he does what you want him to. an example would be, if your dog sat in a chair, and when you tried to move him he snapped at you, then the best way to deal with it would be to coaxe him off with a treat and then to make a fuss of him being a good boy, eventually he will do it out of habit and he will accept you as pack leader. never resort to shouting or even worse physical punishment, it does not work, you will end up with a more aggressive dog, frightened dogs are more likely to bite you,

Answer 2

This is still quite normal puppy behaviour.If he is growling when you try to take toys away from him then it's possesive guarding and it is the most common behaviour of pups.I would advice every time you want to remove him or remove something from him,offer him a treat at the same time as saying leave.You need to nip it in the bud now because when he reaches adolecence it could develop further,if there is any children in the family dont leave them un supervised and also explain to them not to snatch his toys away or play rough with him.Pups also play like this even though it may not look like playing pups can think anything you do is a game.If you want more advice then go to your vet who will explain what is and isn't normal behaviour and remember never smack him or shout no really loudly as this could make the problem worse.Good luck

Answer 3

He sounds to be a normal Staffy pup to be honest.
I own 2 staffies and I have had them both from pups.
Yes you would benefit from enrolling you and your pup into obedience classes,
Your pup is doing exactly what it would do if it was with it's Mum, Dad, brothers and sisters, it's trying to become high up in the pack.
You and your family need to be firm with your dog and never let it think it has a higher rank than anyone in your family, If your dog feels that he is higher than anyone else you will have nothing but trouble with him. (show him who's the boss)
Staffies are very intelligent dogs who need to be occupied and love to learn tricks. (Increasing your pets physical activity and feeding a high quality diet will assist you in controlling his behaviour and will calm him down)

Owning a Staffie is hard work and requires commitment, Daily exercise is essential in this breed, or they will burn their energy off in your house, (chewing furniture, sofa's etc)

I wish you all the best, and I am sure you and your pup will be fine, they tend to calm down a little at around 8 months.

I hope this is of some help to you, and wish you and your pup a Merry Xmas xx

Answer 4

Read Jan Fennell`s books - The Dog LIstener. If you follow her method everything falls into place.
Remember - at 3 months he is teething so redirect his nips onto an appropriate toy. A tea towel with a knot tied in the middle is ideal for sinking little teeth into.Be patient with him and Never tell him off for nipping at this stage - just a firm "no" and put his mouth to the tea towel.
Get into puppy training classes ASAP. One of the best things at this age is the socialization that takes place in classes - an absolute must if you want a dog/human friendly pup to turn into a dog/human friendly adult dog.
Most importantly - enjoy - this age passes so quickly.
Good luck

Answer 5

I also have a femal amstaff and a male boxer.
They know im boss. I expect them to be loyal dogs by protecting me and my household but they know to look at me for approval before they jump the gun.
When teaching your dog not to be aggressive you need to be very firm and in their face. I usually will grab them but the mouth and talk stern into their face to show my dominance.
When the pup shows any sign of aggression, put him in his crate imm and tell him NO BAD DOG (remember dogs hear tone not words, so make sure your tone is always deep and firm with bad boy and high pitch and excited with good boy). Crates are a great training tool.
It may take a week or so but he will catch on. Also keep the crate in a diff room where he cant see you. Good luck!!!

Answer 6

If he is growling and snapping at you, grab his muzzle stare him in the eyes and growl back at him, until he looks away. This teaches him that you are the boss, and you don't like him doing that. If he doesn't look away within a few seconds or keeps acting aggressive, find a behaviorist immediately! If he is dominate aggressive, you have to take care of immediately before he is 60 pounds and aggressive. Good Luck!

Answer 7

Your pup just needs to be told whos boss, i have two at the moment one of 2 years and one of five months best advice i ever received was wag your finger in pups face, change the tone of your voice and tell him no, naughty, then stop playing with him. If hes nipping or chewing something he shouldn't tell him no naughty (wag your finger ) and remove the item and give him something he can chew.
I have never believed in cages or in physically handling my dogs.
Any pup/breed will chew, staffies do it when left alone for periods of time.
Always keep a special bone/toy/kong for them to have when you leave them alone and remove it when you come back in. A good play/walk wears them out and mine tend to sleep when left alone.

Answer 8

When he goes to snap suprise him with something, maybe a water pistol, to make him realise that when he does this he's gonna get squirted and he should stop doing it. Getting him used to being around you, lots of attention and you actively playing with him should lessen the agressive behaviour. Obedience classes should help alot.

Answer 9

get a childs water pistol and everytime he does something wrong squirt it at him then pick him up and remove him from the room for a few mins.he will start to associate the behaviour to the water pistol and the water pistol to being removed from company.it wont be long before the water pistol is enough to make him walk away remember each time he stops to reward him with praise staffies love good attention.

Answer 10

with out being nasty you need to let that dog know that you are the boss not him and when he does it again spray his face with a spray water bottle and tell him no and mean it and what ever you do don't hit him as if you do he will turn nasty and you don't want that to happens to you but just get hold of him and tell him you are a bad dog and mean it but what ever you do don't hit him but he must know that (he dog )(you boss) but when he is good reward him