# 6 month old Golden Retiever snapping and showing teeth?!



## Tayla's Mom

I know this behavior well. We got our GR when she was 4 months old. She was purchased and taken from her littler at 5 weeks. Her original owner didn’t do much with her and what he did seems to have made things worse. When she is over excited or over tired she snaps. I try to keep her little mouth busy as much as possible. She has gotten better with me, but she got my husband good last night. She just ran into him with an open mouth and got his arm. Unless put in her crate, she does not have an off switch. I’ve been working really hard with her on calming things, but my husband just gets frustrated with her so she seems to be worse with him. Needless to say they have not bonded much. I’m hoping if I can keep working with her, taking her to training classes with a behaviorist who has told us she doesn’t do it as an aggressive thing, but because she is frustrated and doesn’t know how to handle things.


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## Tucker's mommy

Our Tucker went through this phase. He's now a year old, and way way less intense when he gets riled up. He still gets riled, and he'll put his mouth on us at times, but it does not break the skin or bruise anymore. All I can say is train, train, train. When they go over the edge, either put them in their crate if they're tired, or do training exercises with them. I used every mouthy moment as an opportunity to practice a sit, down, stay, look and finally a "kiss" command followed by a treat. The training really helped us bond. I think a ton of the behaviour you're seeing is your pups trying to test their boundaries, and to see what's acceptable. Just be consistent. They WILL get it eventually. Our Tucker was a real nightmare between 8-11 months. It wasn't really until this past month (and lots of training/positive reinforcement during those moments of good behaviour) that we finally saw the lightbulb go on in his head.

Hang in there! It does get better! :wave:


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## Tucker's mommy

Forgot to add - I'm sure you know these dogs need a ton of exercise as they get older. Training classes are a great idea. I had Tucker in two classes, and we even had a couple trainers visit us here at home when he was at his worst stage - we're confident that we're doing everything right - so much of it is something they just have to grow out of as we work them through it in positive ways.


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## Elisabeth Kazup

Not much to go on from your description, but "super hyper" speaks volumnes. Once dogs zone out, anything is possible. You need to teach your daughters how to control their play so Kellie doesn't become so excited/hyper. This is more of a 'human' problem than a dog problem. 

I think all dogs love a good butt rub, including thighs. Without more information, I'm going to guess that the turning around and mouthing is in response to the stimuli of the scratching.

If the thigh scratching produces a reaction that isn't acceptable or one that you can't work with...i.e. scratch until she turns the first time and quit...then don't scratch at all.

Most of these things work themselves out as the pup matures.


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## wmag

Kasey will sometimes snap at us if we get too close to her tail or rear end. She likes to be pet on her back but she warns us if we get too close! She never actually bites.
Kasey is still hyper with my 14yr old daughter. When Kasey was little we did the walk away thing when she got too bad with our 3yr old daughter. Kasey never bites or jumps on her but she will still jump on and nip the 14yr old. My daughter insisted no she was fine but now that Kasey is so big she does not like it. Sometimes I think it is the super excited tone my daughter uses with her also. We pretty much started over with the 14yr old! When Kasey starts jumping she turns her back on her but if that doesn't work she walks away where Kasey can not follow. It is working but I am constantly reminding my daughter to turn around or walk away and not to let her jump! Kasey understands off too but for some reason my daughter can't remember to tell her that! Good luck and I honestly don't think it is aggression at all!


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## jluke

*Plays like a Puppy...*

My daughter, 19(!) has been the one in our home who plays with Maisie, now 11 months, like she's a puppy, too. Maisie gets all wound up and treats my daughter like a puppy, mouthing, nipping and even trying to mount her. When my daughter has told me over and over she doesn't like this, I've cautioned her not to engage in puppy play -- not to let Maisie jump on her, wrestle with her on the floor, mouth her long hair, etc. After several visits home from college, my daughter finally "got it" and started acting like a person, not a puppy. She still plays a lot with Maisie, but the mouthing, nipping and mounting have stopped. And she's still Maisie's favorite, by far. I don't know if this might be part of what's going on with your pup, but your post sounded similar...


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## chapjr3

have a six month old male most of the day he is good but about 7 oclock he starts in and we cant stop him , sometimes the only way is to pin him down . I hate doing this but he sometimes is bad any suggestions


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## laprincessa

chapjr3 said:


> have a six month old male most of the day he is good but about 7 oclock he starts in and we cant stop him , sometimes the only way is to pin him down . I hate doing this but he sometimes is bad any suggestions


He's probably over tired and ready for bed
Do you have a crate?


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## Charliethree

Pinning him down is not a good or advisable solution. Pinning can cause fear, and fear can lead to aggression. He is not being 'bad' he is being a dog and he wants to have some fun. A lot of dogs get the 'zoomies' (an energy spurt), early evening - when you see him getting wound up take him outside in the yard, let him run, play with him, throw a ball or do something to burn off that energy. Consider whether he is getting enough exercise - walks, playtime, training time - a tired dog is a good dog.


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