Canine communication – do not punish your dog when it growls.
There has been much talk recently about the dog’s growl and why we should not only take note of this but why we should not punish them for growling.
We were often told that when a dog growls it was because the dog wanted to dominate us and that we needed to punish the dog for growling. This is very far from the truth and punishing a dog that growls only leads to a dog that no longer growls, but bites. Therefore, punishing a dog that is growling may lead to full-on aggression.
Dog psychology today explains that aggressive displays of behaviour and communication are normal and that a growl is a form of non-violent canine communication. So, what is the dog trying to say when it growls? A growl means stop, back off or stay away from me.
When your dog growls it is a vital piece of information and can give the owner a better understanding of the situation, training, etc and prevent the dog from having to escalate its behaviour and in future, it can prevent a bite incident.
If you punish your dog because they are growling, then you are taking away their capability to communicate with us, other animals, dogs and their world in general. This results in a very dangerous situation.
Points to remember about dogs growling:
- It is not a problem that your dog is growling.
- Growling prevents the dog from biting.
- When a dog growls it is preventing violence, it is not used to start violence.
Points to remember if your dog is growling:
- Stop what you are doing if your dog growls at you. If your dog is growling at someone else, then
remove them immediately, walk them away, put some distance between you and the situation. - Assess what happened before your dog was growling. Was there something that you could have
done to prevent your dog being in that situation? - Action your dog’s behaviour and this involves getting in touch with a qualified behaviourist to help.
Check TCBTS and ABTC for qualified and certified behaviourists in your area.
Remember: When your dog growls this is not a problem – they are telling you that there is something wrong.