# Aggression in an 8 week old Chihuahua puppy



## JsonRose (Dec 31, 2013)

**Sorry for the long post but I need help**

I just recently got an 8 week old female Chihuahua puppy. I am concerned that she is showing severe sings of dominance related aggression. I will first mention that I have raised a beautifully submissive and well mannered male Chihuahua who is now 2 years old and has never once shown any aggressive behavior towards anyone in any situation. 

This new puppy is very dominant towards my two year old male. She will have her head high, ears pricked up, and place her front paws on him and growl or bark. I do not think it is normal play behavior. She is very intense and relentless in trying to over power my other Chi, who seems to take it as playing or will just ignore her. She will push up against him and make him move out of her way. She will approach him when he has a toy or treat and she will snarl and nip at him to try and get whatever he has. I try to discourage this as much as possible. 

I had met her parents and litter mate. Both the mother and father were happy, friendly and laid back dogs. She was a bit more active than her litter mate, but seemed like a normal pup with no signs of unwanted behavior at the time. Her litter mate was a bit on the timid side, but nothing out of the ordinary. 

However, she is not only doing this towards my other dog. She targets myself and my other family members as well. She is very pushy, and will try to force her way onto my lap if I am sitting on the ground with her. If I try to block her from climbing on to my legs she will snarl and nip at my hands. I have never seen such a young dog snarl and bare teeth like she does. If I try to move her while she is sleeping she will growl and try to nip. If my other dog approaches her play pen, the puppy will charge and bark. 

When she bites I have tried saying "No" very loudly, clapping my hands over her, substituting with toys, tapping her nose, getting her to bite her own paw, holding her in the air, and putting her on her side. When I hold her on her side (in a gentle manner that I have done with every dog I've owned with no issues) she will struggle at first, trying to bite my hand, then she will relent and quiver violently, as I have seen with much older dogs who are carrying years of pent up energy, and then finally she will close her eyes and relax. But as soon as I let her go with will continue on with whatever she was doing. Nothing has discouraged her from snarling or biting. She is not mouthing either. She targets hands and fingers and will hold on if she makes contact. 

I have tried everything I know how to do with her that has worked for me with every other dog I have been around. I am a dog walker and aspiring dog trainer. I have experience with large and small dogs of all ages and temperaments. But I have never seen such a young dog act this way before. 

Her tail is never between her legs, nothing scares this pup. She is very confident and dominant in almost every situation. I am very worried as I had none of these issues with my first Chihuahua. I understand their needs as dogs, and I do not treat either of them like "purse pets". I don't know why this new puppy is acting so aggressively. I live with my boyfriend, my father, his girlfriend (who is pregnant) and my 8 year old sister. I do not want to put my family at risk by having a severely aggressive dog in the house. She has snarled at all of them for no apparent reason in different situations. 

I believe an owner should be able to handle their dog in any situation with confidence, as I can handle my first Chihuahua. I am at a loss as of what to do with this new puppy. I do not want to have to isolate her or re-home her due to this bizarre aggression. Please give me your helpful and constructive advise only.


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## taquitos (Oct 18, 2012)

Okay, first, please throw out the whole dominance thing out the window -- human-dog dominance does not exist and dogs are not trying to become masters of the entire world. I'm sure someone here will jump in with all the necessary links explaining why the dominance theory is flawed.

To me she sounds like a very rambunctious, normal pup. Everything you described, to me, sounds like an overly rambunctious puppy -- no aggression. Dogs rarely show aggression at such a young age.

http://www.dogstardaily.com/

This is a good place to start on puppy training.

If your dog bites you too hard, or is playing too roughly, you can first try replacing your hand with her chew toys. If that doesn't work, you can "yelp" and leave the room for a few mins to begin teaching her bite inhibition. She will learn that too rough = fun stops.

Please do not ever try to alpha roll your dog -- dogs and wolves only offer the submissive stance on their own, they never forcefully roll another on their back the way Cesar Milan suggests we should do unless they are about to kill them. It is very frightening for your dog and can cause her to bite out of fear.


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## jsca (Dec 10, 2013)

I agree with taquitos; the ONLY instance I have ever seen of aggression in a puppy is coming from very fearful, frightened strays who wind up at the shelter coming in from the streets and had never had any contact with humans prior. 

Someone else will be able to guide you better to training resources, but it just sounds to me like you have a confident pup that's testing out its boundaries. 

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


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## wongboyui (Dec 15, 2013)

I'm sorry that I do not have anything good to add, but I am also a little confused with my puppy as he is acting the same way. I know that puppies thrive under consistent and confident owners, but I just can't feel confident at this moment because I don't know what to do with his behavior!

With that said, I am very interested in seeing what other people will suggest. @taquitos and @jsca, your input is very helpful! Thank you for clearing up that issue of dominance


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## Xeph (May 7, 2007)

Aggressive: I do not think this word means what you think it means.

Your puppy is being a PUPPY. She is PLAYING. None of it is dominance at all. Bunch of bunk. When you block her from your lap, she thinks it's a game, so she responds like a normal puppy. She play growls and chews on you. Get her a tug toy and play tug instead. Don't squash her confidence. She needs to learn rules and boundaries, but your puppy is totally normal.

There are very very very very VERY few instances of TRUE aggression in such a young puppy.


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## briteday (Feb 10, 2007)

We have a 7-month old puppy and experienced some of the same behavior. Since we had not had a puppy in the house for about 25 years, it took a bit of getting used to before we created the boundaries and dealt with the unwanted behaviors. As mentioned, this is pretty much normal puppy behavior Just because your previous puppy was more mellow doesn't make me think that the current one has a problem. Puppies are individuals and some are easier than others. Your current one just has plenty of spunk.

Be sure to have plenty of chew toys and soft toys to play with. Redirect the puppy to these toys when she wants to play too rough with human hands. We don't allow our puppy to play with our hands at all because it just ends in one of the humans being unhappy. Set boundaries for the amount of play that's allowed before it's time to settle down. Most puppies tire quickly, but if she is getting overstimulated by a certain game, pick her up and calm her down away from the other dog and people. Sometimes they just need their crate in a quiet place. Be sure you are giving her enough directed activity both physical and mental. A tired dog is usually a good dog. Take her out to run, fetch, chase, hike outdoors at least three times every day unless the weather is brutal. Indoors can include chasing tennis balls down a long hallway, fetching toys, and following along as you do chores. Mental exercise that has worked for us include feeding meals from a puzzle ball, hiding toys, working on basic obedience training, and socialization with safe dogs and to safe outings. 

After all this, there really isn't much time left for the dog to do anything but eat and sleep.


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## Crantastic (Feb 3, 2010)

Agree with the others -- the puppy is being a puppy. Even if dominance between dogs and humans were a thing (it's not), an eight-week-old puppy would be too young to show it.

I think it's great that you want to be a trainer. The first step is to do A LOT of reading about dog behavior and training! Here are some good links to get you started:

The Dominance Controversy (by Dr. Sophia Yin, DVM, MS)
De-Bunking the "Alpha Dog" Theory
AVSAB Position Statement on the Use of Dominance Theory in Behavior Modification of Animals
Misconceptions of the Mythical Alpha Dog (Dr. Ian Dunbar)
Wolf expert L. David Mech's site (he helped popularize the whole "pack order"/alpha/dominance thing, but later learned that much of what he believed was wrong)

Plus:

Enforcing vs. Reinforcing – Reflections on Leadership and Dogs
The History and Misconceptions of Dominance Theory
Is Punishment an Effective Way to Change the Behavior of Dogs?
Leader of the Pack
Common Misconceptions of Positive Reinforcement

Getting more in-depth with (applied animal behaviorist/PhD) Patricia McConnell's series of blog posts about this:

The Concept Formerly Described as "Dominance"
The "D word" and Social Relationships in Dogs
Dogs & "Dominance" –What’s a Person to Do?
Dog Training and the "D" Word


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