# growling at kids



## Bella and Mags (Jul 2, 2008)

I'm new here, and so glad to have found this site!
I have two female golden's:
Bella-2
Maggie-1
My problem is with Bella. She has been dubbed the "love bug" by all who meet her, she loves attention and is good with basic commands. However, she is growling at my kids (ages 5 and 3). It's not an aggressive growl, and she has NEVER shown teeth. She will actually run away from them trying to pat her. 
We have had her since she was 8 weeks old, she's grown up with our kids and I don't understand why she won't let them pat her. 
Any suggestions would be appreciated!


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## cinnamonteal (May 16, 2008)

Sounds like she's afraid of them. Have either ever hurt her, maybe playing too rough?


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## Debles (Sep 6, 2007)

She just started doing this at age 2? How is a growl not aggressive?
I too am wondering if they have hurt her?


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## Lucky's mom (Nov 4, 2005)

Take her to a vet first and make sure she doesn't have a physical problem...like low thyroid or pain....A dog that isn't feeling well is going to have a problem dealing with human puppies.....

It could be that she had a bad experience....I have a 6 year old that wasn't allowed alone with Lucky til he was....6. Kids can do things not knowing they are hurting the dog.

I hope you get it figured out....I know this is making you very uncomfortable....


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## daddysgirl (Feb 27, 2007)

cinnamonteal said:


> Sounds like she's afraid of them. Have either ever hurt her, maybe playing too rough?


thought the same thing. she wouldnt run away from them without a reason. hope you can figure it out and have a happy family


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## TiffanyK (Mar 3, 2008)

I grew up with a GR/Golden mix that NEVER liked kids. She was the sweetest and most gentle girl too. We got her at 8 weeks old and my dad always suspected that neighborhood kids in our suburb pulled her ears and poked at her enough that she just was always nervous around little kids. She growled and would run off, avioded small kids whenever possible.. my sister and I were about 7&8 at that time and she was fine with us, but didn't really like our friends or was comfy with our friends until we were around 10 or 12.

she NEVER snapped or anything, just would give a low growl to let us know she needed out of there and off she would go to someplace in the house she was comfy till other kids were gone.



Lucky's mom said:


> Take her to a vet first and make sure she doesn't have a physical problem...like low thyroid or pain....A dog that isn't feeling well is going to have a problem dealing with human puppies.....
> ....


I also agree with this first and foremost!!!! Sorry for sounding a little ignorant, but I was suprised when my own vet told me that often the first sign that a dog or cat isn't feeling well or has a real health issue is becoming snippy or growling type behavior! I think I would start by having the dog taken for a full check up with the vet explainging the behavior issue too and hopefully it's something as simple as an ear infection (which is a common reason for this kind of behavior too)


Keep us posted!

Tiffany


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## Bogart'sMom (Sep 16, 2005)

Bogart used to be afraid of little toddlers because they were unstable on their feed wobbling along and he would run for the hills before they fall on him. It wasn't until we had 40 or more little kids giving him treats one after another and patting him that he discovered his love for little kids. He is great with them now. I have to say that I don't have Children so he doesn't see little kids on a daily basis. 
I wonder also if she got hurt accidently by your kids and she just wants to stay away from them. Give her a quiet place in your house were your kids are not allowed in so she had a place she can feel save and a escape.
When I have kids over I always gave my dogs our Bedroom as a off limit to the kids. Kids have to be protected from aggressive dog but dogs have to be protected from kids also. 
I hope you find out why your dog runs away from your kids.
All the best,


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## Bella and Mags (Jul 2, 2008)

Thank you all for your helpful response's!
I will call the vet. Bella is only doing this with our kids, she loves everyone else's! My two girls are special needs kids and yes, they have fallen on her, tripped over her, etc. (It's been a while now since this has happened, and even if it does happen it's far and few between)

What I ment by "not an agressive growl" is that it's a quiet, low tone growl, she lowers her head and then runs away. 
I've tried having the kids give her treats and such but she still won't tolerate them trying to pat her. Yes, this is a fairly recent thing.

Also, I can guarantee that my kids have not hurt her very badly because I'm a stay at home mom, I watch them every minute. I think maybe Bella is just "sore" at them for past accidents.
Any suggestions on how to "mend fences" between my girls and Bella would be great.


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## daisydogmom (Feb 26, 2007)

Hi Bella and Mags' Mom! So sorry you are going through this. I agree with the others- give your vet a call. You may also want to try calling a behaviorist in your area if the vet doesn't find any underlying ailment causing the behavior. You just don't want the behavior to escalate into anything worse. Being a stay-at-home mom myself, I found that as my son has gotten older (He's 3), he's found new and exciting ways to irritate my Daisy. You could try having your girls quietly throw a tasty treat toward your pet, then just walk away- no petting (my trainer calls it "treating, then retreating"). Have ONLY the girls give the treats to Bella. Honestly, I wouldn't have your girls try to pet Bella right now until you figure out what is going on with her. Also, I always have my baby-gate separating them if I can't supervise. Maybe you could find a safe space(crate or in a gated-off room) for your dog when the kids are playing rambunctiously around the house. There's also a great book out called Child-Proofing Your Dog by Brian Kilcommons. I hope some of this helps. Good luck! Let us know how it goes...


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## Debles (Sep 6, 2007)

It sounds by the way you described the growl and the way she runs away that she is afraid of them.

I think after you rule out anything medical, the behaviorist is a good idea to work on the relationship between the dog and the kids. 
So sorry you are going through this. Some dogs are much more sensitive than others.


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## paula bedard (Feb 5, 2008)

Hi, I think you're getting good advice. I was going to say growling can be playful, mine did it. But when you said she had a low quiet growl, that isn't playful at all, that sounds like she's anticipating a problem, voicing her concern, and heading in the other direction. 

Playful growling is louder and usually followed by a happy tail wag and barking. Sam played this way as a young dog and Ike does too. Much like two dogs playing.

I hope you find out what's bothering your girl.


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## FlyingQuizini (Oct 24, 2006)

Bella and Mags said:


> What I ment by "not an agressive growl" is that it's a quiet, low tone growl, she lowers her head and then runs away.
> I've tried having the kids give her treats and such but she still won't tolerate them trying to pat her. Yes, this is a fairly recent thing.
> 
> .



A quiet, low growl is still a growl - it's a warning... it's the dog's way of saying, "please stop..." Find a good trainer with experience is using positive training to modify behavior to help you... and at the same time, please have a full vet check done on this dog, complete with bloodwork and full thyroid. No sense trying to modify behavior of it's being caused by a medical issue.


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