# Aggressive, snarling, biting red golden puppy - 8 weeks old



## mylissyk (Feb 25, 2007)

Your puppy is 8 weeks old? It is 100% normal for puppies to bite. They use their mouths to explore everything in their world, and interact with everything in their world with their mouth. If you have ever watched a litter of puppies playing, you will see them doing what you describe to their litter mates when they play. Keep toys close by and redirect her to toys to chew on rather than using her teeth on you. This will be a process, and will take several weeks to work through, it will get better as she gets older. She is not being aggressive, she is being a normal puppy. It goes away, and is not an indicator of her adult behavior.

Take a look at the Puppy up to 1 Year section of this board. There are MANY threads talking about puppy biting with a lot of good tips for dealing with it.


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## Ffcmm (May 4, 2016)

hello and welcome! 

puppies bites ALOT. for the growling when you pick her up, slowly condition her, let her associate your touch with treats etc so she doesn't react so strongly. be firm and start on basic obedience at home with her, and work on those with short sessions multiple times a day- 5 mins. when she is in a frantic mood, instead of covering her eyes, you can then get her focus on you when you have the foundations of basic obedience.

you might find this thread helpful:



> It's a Puppy, Not a Problem
> 
> 
> Denise Fenzi started a new blog for pet owners on August 30th of this year, and this post really resonates, as we all navigate puppyhood with our babies. Thought I'd share. Here's the link to the article, and below is the content of the article. It's long, but well worth the read. Would love to...
> ...


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## Rene1mahr (May 2, 2020)

I am not taking about puppy biting or mouthing. Nothing described here fits what I mentioned... I read the whole thread. She attacked me and my wife. Her whole body went tense and she agressively snarled bit my hand - shook her whole body and wouldn't let go for 15 seconds. She completely lost control.
No offense I would have posted the same thing here if I would have never seen what I saw yesterday.
Is here anyone with experience with an agessive puppy
Rene


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## Joanne & Asia (Jul 23, 2007)

I am sorry to hear about the issue you are having with your new pup. It doesn't sound like normal puppy mouthing and biting at all. Have you discussed with your vet to rule out any health related issues and notified the breeder? I would do that as a start as well as consulting with a reputable trainer. I hope it all works out for you and your family.


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## Prism Goldens (May 27, 2011)

I have no experience on what you are describing but I also do not think that kind of behavior fits with my extensive GR puppy knowledge and experience. I would be worried as well. There are all sorts of disease processes that cause this kind of random aggression but none I know of affecting little puppies. I'd probably see a veterinary behaviorist if there is one in your state- they are few and far between- and I would also do the embark dna panel just to see if any oddball stuff comes up.


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## nolefan (Nov 6, 2009)

So I'm going to say that if you all have no dog training experience (growing up with Goldens doesn't count since the parents did 99% of the work in most cases, not the kids) and want to start a family, unless you want to hire professional help and spend the next year or two making a full time project of this puppy, she is not the best fit for a family with young children and needs to go back to the breeder today. You need to contact the breeder today to discuss what is going on and discuss options. 

What you are describing sounds like a puppy with a very low threshold for frustration biting. I'm curious if she broke the skin when she bit your hand. 

I strongly suggest that you all at the very least reach out to the breeder and get some help with private training lessons with someone who has Golden Retriever or large sporting breed experience. The puppy needs work and holding her still and covering her eyes is not going to work in another week or two. Your instincts are correct, I don't necessarily agree with the label "agressive" but something is off. All of this needs immediate attention, and most pet homes are not equipped to deal with it unless it moves to the top of your priority list on a daily basis.


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## Rene1mahr (May 2, 2020)

nolefan said:


> So I'm going to say that if you all have no dog training experience (growing up with Goldens doesn't count since the parents did 99% of the work in most cases, not the kids) and want to start a family, unless you want to hire professional help and spend the next year or two making a full time project of this puppy, she is not the best fit for a family with young children and needs to go back to the breeder today. You need to contact the breeder today to discuss what is going on and discuss options.
> 
> What you are describing sounds like a puppy with a very low threshold for frustration biting. I'm curious if she broke the skin when she bit your hand.
> 
> I strongly suggest that you all at the very least reach out to the breeder and get some help with private training lessons with someone who has Golden Retriever or large sporting breed experience. The puppy needs work and holding her still and covering her eyes is not going to work in another week or two. Your instincts are correct, I don't necessarily agree with the label "agressive" but something is off. All of this needs immediate attention, and most pet homes are not equipped to deal with it unless it moves to the top of your priority list on a daily basis.


Thank you for your reply! I see it the same way. 
I contacted the breeder - she said I should enroll her in puppy classes and talk to a dog trainer. No word about the agression, her prior behavior or other options...

She did break the skin.


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## Tagrenine (Aug 20, 2019)

I agree with the above. We have a rule in Border Collies...to never grab an excited dog. Outside of scaring them, sometimes they bite. Our working dogs, especially as puppies, have incredibly low thresholds for overstimulation and emotional control. They get over excited very easily and are not good at winding back down or properly responding. What may have been just excited digging behavior to you was probably something much more so than her and the stimulation + constantly being pulled back pushed her to tell you to back off. 

My first steps would be to always keep a leash on her and supervise her. Don't put her in situations where she can get overstimulated. And if she ever does get in those situations, use the leash to remove her as opposed to touching her yourself. In my experience, dogs do not become reactive towards the leash, as they do the hand. I would then look into obedience training. Even if its just working at home with her. She has to bond with you and learn to depend on you and that pleasing you is a main goal of hers. Of particular interest would be a good "Leave It". I don't know about Goldens, but this is behavior I'm very familiar with in young, high drive working dogs. Finally, I would talk to a veterinary behavioristist or trainer and try to have them help you so she doesn't reach her overarousal limits.


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## nolefan (Nov 6, 2009)

Rene1mahr said:


> Thank you for your reply! I see it the same way.
> I contacted the breeder - she said I should enroll her in puppy classes and talk to a dog trainer. No word about the agression, her prior behavior or other options...
> 
> She did break the skin.


If I were in your shoes, and I have been down the road of raising 3 children and multiple Goldens, I would choose one of the following options. 

1) Return the puppy to the breeder today, while she is still young enough to allow her to work with her or rehome her to a family who are a better fit for her temperament/personality. Sometimes dogs need a structured upbringing with an owner who is a very firm leader who treats the dog more like a dog and less like a human child. I strongly believe there are some dogs who respond to the babying and sweettalk almost as if it's a sign of weakness, they don't respect it. Returning the puppy right now may give her a better shot at a happy life with the right people. This is not a slam on you all, it's realistic.

2) Consult Animal Behavior Consultants Directory - Dogs, Cats, Livestock, Horse, Bird for a consult, evaluation and potentially a treatment and training plan to work through this. It will be expensive and time consuming but could pay off in the long run. There are no guarantees you wouldn't end up being disappointed. Workign with a professional in person is better than getting advice off the internet. I wish you all the best.


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## ceegee (Mar 26, 2015)

Can I ask why you chose this particular puppy - or why the breeder chose her for you? If you made the choice, what attracted you to this specific puppy? If the breeder made the choice, what kind of pup did you tell the breeder you wanted, in terms of personality? Does the breeder breed dogs mainly for working homes or for pet homes?

When she growls/bites/snarls, what consequence does she get? Behaviour like that should definitely have consequences. If you react too mildly, or if you ignore the behaviour, you may inadvertently be reinforcing it or sending the message that it's acceptable. How you react is very important.

Having said that, some pups are tougher than others, and are better suited to working homes or homes that have experience with this kind of dog. I agree with Nolefan that not all pups will respect sweet talking. I have a friend with a very assertive golden who would be a nightmare in a pet home, but my friend has trained her for agility and they are a great team.

Best of luck.


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## gdgli (Aug 24, 2011)

I have a few thoughts on this. First it may be that you have a field Golden and she is too much dog for you. Second, you are probably used to a different kind of Golden. Third, you need to make a trip to the vet---eliminate a possible health issue and get a professional opinion.


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## Kenpup (Feb 1, 2020)

I am sorry you are going through this. 

Years ago we got a gorgeous lab from a good breeder. It was VERY apparent from his first days at home that something was off. He was very aggressive as a small puppy and it got worse and worse. At all puppy classes he would not be allowed to be off leash during socializing time as he would attack other puppies. I went through tons of private training with him and even invested in hydro therapy to try to calm him. We tried EVERYTHING for 6 months and not much changed. We came to the realization that our lab would always have an aggression issue and we did not want to deal with it for the next 10+ years. We contacted the breeder (had been keeping her informed throughout) and returned him to her. Her handler said he was atypical for a lab behavior-wise and refunded our money. I NEVER regretted that decision. 

My only suggestion is don’t wait six months hoping things will get better. I would have the vet check her out and talk to a behaviorist and get their opinion. 

Our golden pup is 5.5 months old now. He is a normal puppy with normal, sometimes bratty, behavior. There is a mountain of difference between that and aggression.

I know what you are going through. It’s not easy😕


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## Ffcmm (May 4, 2016)

hi @Rene1mahr I'm so sorry, i did not mean to downplay your puppy as agressive, i misread and thought that your puppy was being a usual hyper type of puppy and the fact that she did break the skin and freeze up like that during the bite points to how serious it is as well. you've been given good advise, and it's a lot to take in, but i hope that you managed to reach out to a good behaviourist.


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## Everlore (Mar 27, 2008)

Rene1mahr said:


> I am not taking about puppy biting or mouthing. Nothing described here fits what I mentioned... I read the whole thread. She attacked me and my wife. Her whole body went tense and she agressively snarled bit my hand - shook her whole body and wouldn't let go for 15 seconds. She completely lost control.
> No offense I would have posted the same thing here if I would have never seen what I saw yesterday.
> Is here anyone with experience with an agessive puppy
> Rene


I would contact your breeder immediately!


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## razngrl (Mar 16, 2020)

I had this problem with my golden puppy at about the same age. She did not ever lock on like you are saying but she bit very hard and aggressively, with growling when she was amped up. She also attacked me from behind and ripped up my pants. I had bites all up and down both arms. Also, I am the only one who is able to deal with the puppy in my household. I ended up sending her to a dog trainer for 3 weeks. It was a life saver for me. They taught me what to do and she is much better now. She is 5 months old now and much calmer. The one thing that is saving me is the pinch collar - it's the only correction she will react to. (you pop the collar rather firmly when correcting. believe me it gets her attention. It does not hurt her, just gives a pinch.) I hope this helps!


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## DanaRuns (Sep 29, 2012)

I have two questions:

1. What state do you live in?

2. What is the name of the breeder?

If your breeder is writing this off with "take her to puppy classes," you need to pursue a different remedy very quickly. Depending on the state and the breeder, you may have a variety of remedies.

--Dana


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## goldens9 (Apr 7, 2020)

What is Rosie's background? Did you meet both parents, met them, hung out with each parent, and visit with each one separately. What did the breeder do with the parents? Were the parents trained, did they do any sports? Or were the parents kennel dogs, kept in a kennel? Or kept in a dog pen all the time? Were the breeders active with both parents, with training, daily dog walking, dog hiking, events, dog agility, dog sports, etc? What were the personalities like of each parent? Very important.

A retired honest vet said to make sure the puppy does not get multiple vaccines at one time. That can wreak havoc on the immune system. If one must vaccinate before 16 weeks old, then only a single vaccine at least a week apart. This aggressive personality could be a result of a damaged immune system, it can effect the personality cause aggression, especially in very sensitive dogs like Goldens. Not to mention a weaken immune system caused by too many vaccines at once, causes seizures, paralysis of the hind end, ear infections, hot spots, anal gland issues, fatty tumors on puppies, very yeasty high doggy smell, oily hair, etc. I went all thru this, one golden puppy from excellent lineage, but the vaccines damaged her health greatly and after the 4th year rabies vaccine, became very aggressive. I started researching, and found others who had the same experience after the rabies vaccine, and meeting with a true health vet, who said never vaccinate her again, and try to get her body healed from all the toxins in the vaccines. She improved, but was never 100% healthy from so much toxic damage. Learn more about vaccines at TheTruthAboutVaccines.com

Then another golden puppy came from a stunning show Golden champion. Problem. Champion Golden lived in a kennel. He did not bond or care for people at all. Should never have gotten this Golden puppy, It was a long drive, and the mother Golden was fantastic, sweet loving, sat in lap, brought me her toys, and was a great Golden, but she was bred with champion kennel golden who was stunning, but had never been bonded with anyone. The sire was indifferent to meeting us. I figured it was a 50 50 chance hoping the puppy will take after mother. Nope, puppy took after father, indifferent, did not understand that people wanted to pet her. It was a lot of work. It took about 3 years for her to bond and for her to come enjoy meeting people.She likes other dogs, but coming to like people took a long time. So very important to meet each parent separately, as your Golden puppy personality may be like the mother or the father, or a blend of the two. The more interactive the family is with their Golden parents, the better. 

What did you learn about Rosie's background and her parents each individual personalities? Were the owners of the parents, interactive with the parent Goldens? Did Rosie receive multiple vaccines at one time? Did one or both parents receive multiple vaccines at one time? Were they vaccinated year after year? A lot to learn. 

The aggression should improve with puppy training classes, and learning to be a respective leader. But if the aggression stems from vaccine damage, then Rosie needs to be detoxed, to help her body rid of the toxins in the vaccines, to help her improve. The honest vets I know, say they see a lot more aggressive puppies, then ever before. It is becoming an epidemic of overvaccinated puppies, from overvaccinated parents, as the toxins travel from the parent to puppies increasing the toxic overload, which can result in this unusual aggression in puppies which use to be unheard of in puppies. The average allopathic vet will never be honest about this issue. The many chronic health issues of Goldens and many dogs stems from overvaccination. So many young Goldens with so many chronic health issues. Meet so many dogs, and when I read thru the vet records, I can see why they have so many chronic health issues. I went thru all this with my own Golden, so I learned first hand, I did lots of research. I learned about the chronic health issues with my lovely golden, then learned about the aggressive puppy syndrome with another Golden puppy.

We hope you can figure out how to work with Rosie. Be careful but be stern. Get her out and about every day, take puppy classes, and play with her everyday, and work on her training every day. Rosie may improve. I dealt with an aggressive Golden puppy, and with lots of perseverance, lots of confidence building, tried lots of new things, and kept working on it. There was improvement, and after a few years, there was great improvement. Lots of compliments, which amaze me, that we came so far, from an aggressive, scared, no confidence puppy. To a manageable Golden that goes everywhere, and people are impressed how good she is out in public. There were many nights, I worried that I could not have an aggressive golden puppy like this, but I knew I could not rehome her, because it would end badly for her, so I must work with her, and solve the issues the best I could. We know her weak points and we work around those. In all this, I have learned so much. With each Golden puppy and with each Golden will teach you more. 

I am hoping you can stick it out with Rosie and it will all work out.


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## Debsunshine58 (Apr 24, 2020)

Rene1mahr said:


> Thank you for your reply! I see it the same way.
> I contacted the breeder - she said I should enroll her in puppy classes and talk to a dog trainer. No word about the agression, her prior behavior or other options...
> 
> She did break the skin.


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## Debsunshine58 (Apr 24, 2020)

Hello there :
Ahhhh my poor friend I feel for you !
I did go through this for 10 yearS! It’s called poor breeding . This is happening a lot with golden retrievers and it’s all for the mighty dollar . My beautiful golden with AKC papers $ 3500 Golden eventually ended up going on doggy Prozac and that helped ! But even as the years had gone by my 275 pound huge partner was brought down by my golden retriever once in a while ! My golden definitely had problems secret agression I got some money back from my breeder when it was little . It was no joke though it required lots of training and meds . My golden was the most loved dog ever in the town but there was always that secret side of him and he was gorgeous !!!! . I spent thousands of dollars and I am also a dog walker on the side for 20 years for abused dogs including German Shepards that we’re abused . I stay at home and work so I was able to give my dog full 24 hour attention . Gabriel just passed a few weeks ago . Even though he had problems ( that became less when we grew older ) he became the most loving mush ever ! We even had to have him wear a muzzle he he was a teen just for walks . My dog never bit a dog he was submissive but he took chunks out of people he loved ! Over stimulated in his play ! Tons of trainers no help .
my advice - make sure he’s not ill . Don’t over stimulate a puppy . Food ! Very important ( I was late on this ) my dog shrink told me gluten free not so much protein because it’s too much energy over stimulated! That was a game changer!! Lots of excercise ! Also when we was a teenager I gave him a job . Which means we walked with little goals .to the store and back . Lots of tiring out . Gabriel was the most beautiful golden but the most work I would give anything to hug him today . He would never leave my side. This was my experience!!


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## Debsunshine58 (Apr 24, 2020)

Debsunshine58 said:


> Hello there :
> Ahhhh my poor friend I feel for you !
> I did go through this for 10 yearS! It’s called poor breeding . This is happening a lot with golden retrievers and it’s all for the might dollar . My beautiful golden with AKC papers $ 3500 Golden eventually ended up going on doggy Prozac and that helped ! But even as the years had gone by my 275 pound huge partner was brought down by my golden retriever once in a while ! My golden definitely had problems secret agression I got some money back from my breeder when he was little . It was no joke though it required lots of training and meds . My golden was the most loved dog ever in the town but there was always that secret side of him and he was gorgeous !!!! . I spent thousands of dollars and I am also a dog walker on the side for 20 years for abused dogs including German Shepards . I stay at home and work so I was able to give my dog full 24 hour attention . Gabriel just passed a few weeks ago . Even though he had problems ( that became less when we grew older ) he became the most loving mush ever ! We even had to have him wear a muzzle he he was a teen just for walks . My dog never bit a dog he was submissive but he took chunks out of people he loved ! Over stimulated in his play ! Tons of trainers no help .
> my advice - make sure he’s not ill . Don’t over stimulate a puppy . Food ! Very important ( I was late on this ) my dog shrink told me gluten free not so much protein because it’s too much energy over stimulated! That was a game changer!! Lots of excercise ! Also when we was a teenager I gave him a job . Which means we walked with little goals .to the store and back . Lots of tiring out . Gabriel was the most beautiful golden but the most work I would give anything to hug him today . He would never leave my side. This was my experience!!
> View attachment 872653


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## Debsunshine58 (Apr 24, 2020)

Debsunshine58 said:


> Hello there :
> Ahhhh my poor friend I feel for you !
> I did go through this for 10 yearS! It’s called poor breeding . This is happening a lot with golden retrievers and it’s all for the mighty dollar . My beautiful golden with AKC papers $ 3500 Golden eventually ended up going on doggy Prozac and that helped ! But even as the years had gone by my 275 pound huge partner was brought down by my golden retriever once in a while ! My golden definitely had problems secret agression I got some money back from my breeder when it was little . It was no joke though it required lots of training and meds . My golden was the most loved dog ever in the town but there was always that secret side of him and he was gorgeous !!!! . I spent thousands of dollars and I am also a dog walker on the side for 20 years for abused dogs including German Shepards that we’re abused . I stay at home and work so I was able to give my dog full 24 hour attention . Gabriel just passed a few weeks ago . Even though he had problems ( that became less when we grew older ) he became the most loving mush ever ! We even had to have him wear a muzzle he he was a teen just for walks . My dog never bit a dog he was submissive but he took chunks out of people he loved ! Over stimulated in his play ! Tons of trainers no help .
> my advice - make sure he’s not ill . Don’t over stimulate a puppy . Food ! Very important ( I was late on this ) my dog shrink told me gluten free not so much protein because it’s too much energy over stimulated! That was a game changer!! Lots of excercise ! Also when we was a teenager I gave him a job . Which means we walked with little goals .to the store and back . Lots of tiring out . Gabriel was the most beautiful golden but the most work I would give anything to hug him today . He would never leave my side. This was my experience!!
> View attachment 872653


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## Debsunshine58 (Apr 24, 2020)

My baby 10 years ago
I miss him so much !
I’m looking for a new pup


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## Cassie1951 (Dec 21, 2021)

Rene1mahr said:


> Hi all,
> I’m writing this in deep despair. Our red golden was supposed to bring happiness to our life as my wife grew up with 2 golden, it was clear what she wanted.
> Since we couldn’t fly to Hawaii for her 30th I wanted to make another wish come true. Rosie was born 3/6 and we picked her up exactly one week today. The first few days everything seemed perfect. She was sweet and witty.
> But from day one we heard her growling. I saw her snap after my wife’s face but didn’t pay more attention, but it’s getting worse as she gets used to us. She just randomly gets aggressive if she doesn’t get what she wants. She starts growling when holding her. Today she wanted to go in the bushes. I said no and pulled her back, she runs forward into the bushes. I say no and ask her to sit. She runs into the bushes and I say no and pull her back. Then she exploded. She snarled and bit my hand shaking her whole body and would not let go. Her aggression was still going up. The only way to calm her was to put my other hand over her eyes and hold her. Later I saw her do the same to my wife.
> ...


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## Cassie1951 (Dec 21, 2021)

I know that this was originally a post started more than a year ago, but I feel compelled to respond — first to express my empathy Zto the forum member who initiated this thread and was going through a problem with aggression in a golden. I want to thank you for your post, because I have recently gone through this myself with probably the most remarkable golden I’ve ever had. A lot of people told me this was puppy behavior. It was not! This was open aggression.
I confess I do not know what the possible causes are; there are many good suggestions here about vaccinations, diet, overall health, setting firm boundaries, the need for thorough training and consistent exercise. 
One thing I really want to emphasize is that you have to take it seriously. I had a golden many years ago which had an aggression problem with other dogs. Never people. She was often attacked and it was entirely unprovoked, so I felt there was something going on that was hidden from me, possibly a hormonal aberration, possibly something as simple as the way she carried herself. Anyway, she only improved slightly after age 7, after after I took her to an attack dog trainer, who was able to set boundaries in a way that she could tolerate. I swore then that I would never again get a golden who was an alpha personality or who showed signs of early or later aggression, because I know they get worse not better. I tried everything! About four months ago, after losing a golden I was so in love with, I set out to buy a new golden by doing a lot of research, because this now represented a $2,000 to $6,000 investment just to purchase a puppy.
After only about a month with me, I began to see serious signs of aggression or signs of serious aggression, whatever. Ultimately, by six months of age, she injured me with her ultra assertive behavior, and I felt I had to rehome her. 
This is the hardest thing I have ever had to do with a dog. But like the original post writer I was desperate and in despair. 
I wish I had an answer for you or a way to correct this problem in a dog, but I don’t really. Nothing absolute or universal, for sure. 
But a few tips for you. The dog’s health and the background of the breeder are essential matters to investigate. As for breeder choice, be sure to get recommendations and double check them. With the problem itself, thr good news is we have a lot more information than we used to have. More understanding and clarity among good vets. I was never anti-vaccine and I really am not now, but I am beginning to think that there is something to this being a contributing factor. When you hear it often enough from all sorts of people — breeders, people who show, owners of champion line dogs, neighbors, — you have to give it some thoughtful consideration. 
When it comes to golden retrievers, the need for vigorous exercise every day for a long enough period of time is something you cannot cut corners on. It is both a kindness to the dog and a technique for safety for you.
This morning I found myself in the shower, two weeks after I had surrendered my dog, literally weeping for several minutes, with sadness, bewilderment, grief, guilt, and a very deep almost wild despair. I found myself talking to the dog I had for little more than three months, apologizing to her that I didn’t know what the answer was to help her in time so that we could stay together.

I have owned and cherished goldens for 50 years, and I have a deep deep concern for the breed. We are overrun with breeders who are in it for the money alone and this includes backyard breeders, wandering breeders go from region to region in the country, supposedly reputable breeders – – it’s a problem across-the-board. In my effort to get help for my dog, I learned so many disturbing things about how little monitoring there of breeders, about how ludicrously inadequate wildly varied local laws are for animals, and how insane it is that we are now asking people in some cases to pay nearly $6000 for an AKC Golden who comes not from champion lines or respectable breeders but the DIY home breeders. I feel I may never be able to trust a breeder again, I had such a terrible experience. And personally I feel like my hear has been torn out, losing two goldens in six months, too much loved goldens. 
I want to emphasize that I think my nightmare was no fault of the dog or in the dog. But there is not enough screening of either buyers or sellers to see a turnaround in this problem. And as many of the readers have said, it is so sad especially because goldens have been the faithful, loyal, loving, goofy companions of many generations of people who adored them.
My dog bit me several times before I gave up, and in the past biting was sort of my line in the sand. It can’t be tolerated. It’s so so dangerous. I would love to see on this forum people who are interested in joining together to do something serious about the aggression problem. It’ll take money, public information, new laws, research and love.
I hope those of you who have experienced this problem or struggling with it now, trying to get help, find some peace. I have experienced it as a temperamental problem, much more common among alpha dogs of both sexes. But this notion that somebody is going to train it out of your dog or that it’s not really an important problem, it’s just a puppy thing is so irresponsible, it just makes me furious. I really hope people continue to discuss this on the form, because it is a growing problem and we really are wandering around in the dark. The golden breed, which admittedly has been hurt already by over-breeding and inbreeding, remains such a loving astonishing dog. I always used to tell people my goldens were angels dressed in dog suits. They certainly were better people than I. I really mean this when I say, for all the breed has given us, for all that these individual dogs have taught us and modeled for us, they deserve better from us then what they’re getting now. 
We talk about the problem aggression is for us. I think we need to also call to mind how terrible anger, aggression, and frustration feel inside the soul of creatures like this. Aggressive dogs are not happy dogs. An occasional show of assertiveness during puppyhood or in an inadvertent territorial or food struggle or competition, these are not the issue many people are experiencing. I praise the people who point out the finer shades of meaning of the incidents of aggression. Among puppies the interpretation really may be different. And legitimate. But for a dog like a golden to permanently maim a child or an adult even, it’s just tragic for everybody. I fear that we will lose the breed if we do not act decisively soon.
When I finally am able to stop mourning and being hobbled by my own grief and guilt, I am devoting myself to find out more about this problem in the breed and work with the dedicated people of the AKC, as well as truly responsible and loving breeders to get some answers. 
I wish you all well. Never has “peace on earth”had such a strange and ironic nuance as it does for me this year. Thank you for your time and patience on reading, and keep the comments coming.


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## brib (Dec 23, 2021)

Hi Rene,

Could you provide an update on what you did your with pup and how it turned out? We have an 11 week old red golden who is doing the same things. She is sweet and snuggly at times, but out of nowhere will snarl at us, bite hard and break the skin, come after us aggressively, and even lunges at my face. We don't play overly rough with her, she gets tons of exercise, we put her in her puppy playpen when she gets like this and she usually calms down - but I'm really worried about whether she'll grow out of this or if we have an aggressive puppy on our hand. We recently lost our last goldador, who I got on craigslist when she was 2 or 3 years old. She was the sweetest to our family, but bit multiple other people and we were never able to properly socialize her and had to put her behind closed doors if anyone came over. We really don't want to go through that pain and stress again, and I don't want to subject my kids to an aggressive dog.


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## pawsnpaca (Nov 11, 2014)

My condolences to those of you who have, owned, had to rehome or had to euthanize an aggressive dog (of any breed). That is tough under any circumstances, but particularly when it’s a breed which is (or should be) synonymous with loving everyone and everything. Id like to think that educating buyers to only buy puppies from reputable breeders who prioritize temperament along with physical breed type would go a long way toward reducing this issue in Goldens, but I also know that even reputable breeders can have issues of temperament, due either to downplaying temperament issues in a dog they love and are invested in, or just due to luck of the draw. I know of an extremely experienced dog trainer who bought her puppy (not a Golden) from a very experienced and reputable breeder with no history of aggression. She invested almost a year working with the dog and trying to resolve concerning aggressive behavior, until she reluctantly decided that, for the safety of her family and the public, she would have to return her deeply loved dog to his breeder. Sometimes these things truly are nature and no amount of “nurture” will fix them.

Now, having said all that (and this Is directed more toward future readers of this thread, and not toward either of the recent posters), what is sometimes interpreted as “aggression” by the inexperienced owner really is just normal “land shark“ behavior from a bratty puppy who needs some boundaries. This forum is full of threads from owners coming here in frustration about their “aggressive” puppy who, upon further questioning, turns out to be a perfectly normal puppy owned by someone with unrealistic expectations of how a Golden retriever puppy should behave. SO... I strongly recommend that anyone who is seeing worrying signs of what they perceive to be aggression in their dogs immediately get a second (or third, or fourth) opinion from an experience, qualified trainer. If it truly is out of the norm, then the sooner the dog starts training (or is returned to his breeder) the better for all concerned. If on the other hand the behavior is relatively normal, then a trainer can both reassure the owner and provide a reality check both in terms of the behavior and what or should not be done to change it.


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## Cassie1951 (Dec 21, 2021)

brib said:


> Hi Rene,
> 
> Could you provide an update on what you did your with pup and how it turned out? We have an 11 week old red golden who is doing the same things. She is sweet and snuggly at times, but out of nowhere will snarl at us, bite hard and break the skin, come after us aggressively, and even lunges at my face. We don't play overly rough with her, she gets tons of exercise, we put her in her puppy playpen when she gets like this and she usually calms down - but I'm really worried about whether she'll grow out of this or if we have an aggressive puppy on our hand. We recently lost our last goldador, who I got on craigslist when she was 2 or 3 years old. She was the sweetest to our family, but bit multiple other people and we were never able to properly socialize her and had to put her behind closed doors if anyone came over. We really don't want to go through that pain and stress again, and I don't want to subject my kids to an aggressive dog.





brib said:


> Hi Rene,
> 
> Could you provide an update on what you did your with pup and how it turned out? We have an 11 week old red golden who is doing the same things. She is sweet and snuggly at times, but out of nowhere will snarl at us, bite hard and break the skin, come after us aggressively, and even lunges at my face. We don't play overly rough with her, she gets tons of exercise, we put her in her puppy playpen when she gets like this and she usually calms down - but I'm really worried about whether she'll grow out of this or if we have an aggressive puppy on our hand. We recently lost our last goldador, who I got on craigslist when she was 2 or 3 years old. She was the sweetest to our family, but bit multiple other people and we were never able to properly socialize her and had to put her behind closed doors if anyone came over. We really don't want to go through that pain and stress again, and I don't want to subject my kids to an aggressive dog.


Take this as seriously as you possibly can!
But what to do and how.
I have just gone through four months of real torment with my gorgeous golden puppy and aggression that started at about 12 to 14 weeks of age and continued to escalate until I finally surrendered her to someone with vet experience, four other dogs, a male partner living in the house and two acres of fenced wild farmland (with a variety of ecosystems). In other words, paradise for a young golden.
I have been devastated by the whole experience: a supposedly reputable breeder who made a lot of promises about continuing real support if there were problems but who did NOTHING to help. In fact, she was indifferent to the dog which was not the one I was promised but was subbed out to another buyer whose deposit had been received earlier. The dog I got was absolutely everything I had clearly explained I could not have: alpha, super-smart, serious hunting/ field dog, very powerful and a wild streak too complex to go into here. No refund, a demand through a lawyer that I return the dog to the breeder but would get none of the $1800 back that I paid for her. (Another complicated wrinkle to my story that is not relevant to this thread.) Just context to demonstrate how acrimonious it has all become.
After two professional trainers, support from actual responsible breeders, the problem got bigger and more threatening. She bit me several times, attacking me, and finally causing significant to injury to me. Still I loved this little girl, but as is often true of an alpha paired with a bit of a softy, confrontations were pretty continual.
I surrendered her three weeks ago to a vet tech I had never met who wanted to derail my plan to have my dog put down. Why did I take this step and consider the extreme action of euthanizing the dog? I live in a neighborhood with many older residents who were wary of her—completely warranted. I will not tolerate aggression or frantic high energy that leads to biting or injury from falls. Absolutely unacceptable.
Here is what I tried and I think was worthwhile: 
Socialize, socialize, socialize. Goldens don’t just crave interactions with their owners, they also need it with other dogs for exercise, play, stimulation, to learn boundaries and limits. This is how they learn about good behavior with other dogs.
Exercise, exercise, exercise. These alpha dogs especially need to be off leash sometimes to run, snuffle around, investigate, look for a job, RUN.
Praise and reward clearly and consistently.
As pure and clean a diet as possible. Consult your vet and take the mood of your dog community, ask for recommendations from local AKC and vet specialists. Back off sugar and too much grain.
Play games that encourage your dog to think, plan, strategize with you.
Surrendering my dog is one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. But I loved my dog so much I had to get her an environment that was unambiguously joyful, safe, stimulating and fun. 
Finally, don’t wait too long to figure out what course of action you’re going to take, and make sure your whole family is on the same page with you. Try to track your dog’s triggers to aggression. Keep a journal and watch for patterns and clues. Frustration over environmental conditions can set a golden off. I have a friend who is a clutterbug. Her golden had almost no room to lie down. His frustration and despair were palpable. Ultimately, he was tranquilized to help him get on track. He had every training method within 100 mi radius. It cost his owners thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours to barely make a dent in the problem. Recovery and retraining is very slow.
I am most concerned about the safety of your wife, because she is afraid. That is not a trait that blends well with an alpha temperament.
Talk to other dog owners locally to get their impressions. Often other people outside the problem are able to see more clearly. 
hang in there. Good luck.


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## Howler (Feb 4, 2021)

Rene1mahr said:


> But from day one we heard her growling. I saw her snap after my wife’s face but didn’t pay more attention, but it’s getting worse as she gets used to us. She just randomly gets aggressive if she doesn’t get what she wants. She starts growling when holding her. Today she wanted to go in the bushes.* I said no and pulled her back*, she runs forward into the bushes. I say no and ask her to sit. She runs into the bushes and I say no and pull her back. Then she exploded. She snarled and bit my hand shaking her whole body and would not let go. Her aggression was still going up. The only way to calm her was to put my other hand over her eyes and hold her. Later I saw her do the same to my wife.


I have only had one dog, and I'm told by random dog lovers that he is particularly _happy _and _tenacious_. I have clearly made many mistakes, but one thing I believe is that my golden (and probably your golden) will raise their energy levels to match whatever you offer.

If I pull back on Murphy, he is going to pull in response. He will also add a little more energy to the pulling to test the limits. We negotiated, and we came to an understanding that if neither pulled then we would both walk a lot better.

I wrongly assumed all dogs are a bit like that. My poor mum is a dog lover and she helpfully offered to walk Murphy while I was away, and let her get on with it. Poor mum pulled back on his lead, and it ended with her literally being dragged along the grass by the lead that was wrapped around her wrist! 

There is something else I need to share. If a dog growls then it is presenting a warning. Never suppress a growl because its one of the few verbal communications your pet can give. Instead, back away and give them space because the next step after a growl is a snap. Murphy doesn't snap, but that might be because nobody has ever backed him into a corner and given him a need to snap.

We never try to outcompete him on energy. We _influence_ Murphy with some very light punishments, which are basically something low energy and different to what he wanted. If he barks we give him the option to go outside to potty - he stopped barking. If he pulls on his lead we stand still and and talk. These are not punishments per-se, but they reduce the energy levels and that has so far always been the opposite of what he wanted.

Murphy has high energy activities with rules such as _tag_ with a suitable handicap (e.g. I use tennis equipment). I strongly discourage him from playing with me fairly!


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## unsinkablemolly (11 mo ago)

Rene1mahr said:


> Hi all,
> I’m writing this in deep despair. Our red golden was supposed to bring happiness to our life as my wife grew up with 2 golden, it was clear what she wanted.
> Since we couldn’t fly to Hawaii for her 30th I wanted to make another wish come true. Rosie was born 3/6 and we picked her up exactly one week today. The first few days everything seemed perfect. She was sweet and witty.
> But from day one we heard her growling. I saw her snap after my wife’s face but didn’t pay more attention, but it’s getting worse as she gets used to us. She just randomly gets aggressive if she doesn’t get what she wants. She starts growling when holding her. Today she wanted to go in the bushes. I said no and pulled her back, she runs forward into the bushes. I say no and ask her to sit. She runs into the bushes and I say no and pull her back. Then she exploded. She snarled and bit my hand shaking her whole body and would not let go. Her aggression was still going up. The only way to calm her was to put my other hand over her eyes and hold her. Later I saw her do the same to my wife.
> ...


Rene: the first thing I want to tell you is YOU ARE NOT CRAZY.
I have had goldens for 30 years and recently had gotten another since my last golden had just died. The new dog turned out to be a very intense alpha temperament and definitely aggressive. I had described in detail what I was looking for in a golden, and the most important thing was that the dog not be an alpha personality. I had already experienced what life was like with an alpha personality in an earlier golden I had, and after that unending difficult experience, I swore I would never again keep a dog that showed signs of aggression. The beautiful, smart golden I got just after Labor Day seemed fine at first but rapidly showed signs of unprovoked aggression, and I don’t mean mouthing or chewing or nipping or any of the descriptions people use to try to excuse inappropriate and at times dangerous behavior. Believe me, I know the difference, and three veterinarians backed up my assessment of the aggression when I tried to bring the dog back to the breeder.
This is not a simple problem, as you know already. Fairly quickly, I rehomed my puppy with someone with veterinary experience and more fenced land for the dog to run in. EXERCISE IS KEY, LONG FULL-OUT RUNS, IF POSSIBLE. If I had not found a suitable home, I would have had the dog put down, a decision that was heartbreaking for me, since I had already bonded with the dog, and my predicament reflected the loss of two dogs within six months. The breeder was no help and in fact hostile. But that’s a separate issue.
I empathize so much with what you’re going through. You have a lot of great ideas on this forum, but I would encourage you to analyze your side of this dynamic. It is very admirable that you are so willing to work so hard to save this dog, which did nothing to cause the problem you’re facing. I found that I needed to ask myself honestly, why did I get a dog and what did I hope to have in a companion dog. I have already lived through a whole lifetime of a dog whose early problems never improved, poor thing. In fact that dog was pretty consistently attacked, unprovoked, by other dogs. Nobody ever gave me a clear or reasonable explanation for the dog’s behavior.
I felt it was really important before getting my dog late last summer to clarify exactly what would be bottom line issues for me. The only thing was that the dog could not be an alpha and could not be aggressive. Managing aggression in a pet reduces to such a great degree the life of the dog and the owner. And it never ends.
I sought out five different independent assessments of my dog before deciding to try to rehome it as best I could. Unanimously, the professionals involved said that it was not a temporary or passing problem, not normal puppy nipping or mouthing. Knowing that I was doing the right thing for the dog and for myself as well as the entire neighborhood was not enough to ease the pain, disappointment and grief that I felt ai letting the dog go.
We golden owners are very invested in maintaining the breed’s reputation as friendly, cuddly, tender, funny, and beautiful, the perfect family dog. So you will find that there is no shortage of people who will tell you how reprehensible it was that you went to X trainer or chose Y decision. I hope you know that other owners have experienced this, and don’t take it to heart. Aggression is a very real problem, and despair is exactly where you find yourself. Only you can know how much you can tolerate and how much rehabilitation of the dog you are willing to commit to do, knowing it might not work anyway. In the kindest possible way, I will just observe that if your wife is already afraid of your puppy, perhaps you need to rethink what you are doing or not doing. Remember, too, that a raging dog is not a happy dog and does not experience an enjoyable life.
I was deeply affected and hurt really by the experience I just went through. What I mean by “hurt“ is that I know I will be grieving this dog for a long long time. I wish you a gentler ending to your story.


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## nolefan (Nov 6, 2009)

unsinkablemolly said:


> .....I was deeply affected and hurt really by the experience I just went through. What I mean by “hurt“ is that I know I will be grieving this dog for a long long time. I wish you a gentler ending to your story.


Thank you for sharing your experience. I am so sorry for your heartbreak, I know it is very real and genuine and hope that in time you will find some healing. I also hope that knowing there was no real choice lets you have some peace.


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