Expert: Have4Paws - 2/27/2010

Question
I have a three month old male beagle pup and he tends to get aggressive. Just a little while ago I took him by the collar to lead him to his crate and he got nasty then I tried to pick him up to put him in and still growled and tried to nip ..what the heck is going on???!!!. I have done the whole submissive thing where you turn them on there back and hold them down, but how many times does it have to be done in order for him to understand I am the alpha male like he's not getting the picture... Please help!!??

Answer
Hi Mike, sorry to hear you are having this problem.... I have to say it is not typical of a three month old. I am wondering if he was removed from his litter too early so he didnt learn the essentials from his pack mates. Ideal is 12 weeks, minimum 8 weeks, if it was before that then he missed out on some important life lessons. Since I don't know really anything about him or how you deal with him I am just going to make some general statements and kind of out of the blue, throw some stuff down.

I am not a fan of using the submissive hold down on a puppy so young, this is usually reserved for very aggressive dogs and done by a t experienced trainer or someone like Cesear Milan. The problerm with it is that if it isnt done correctly it can inadvertently teach aggression in a pup. Aggression breeds aggression and if there is any tenseness or anger to it coming thru you or your touch it will not serve its purpose. As well,when (if, in your case I feel) a dog has issues with aggression there should be NO rough housing or tug of war kind of stuff going on with him which will futher reinforce aggression towards you. You want him to respect you as the Alpha but it is often easier to do with love and positive reinforcement with a young pup. Remember also that aggression is often just the outward sign of fear. Is there anything he is sensing from you that would cause him to fear you?

It would be good for you to start doing some things that will show him you are boss but also breed calm submissiveness and respect. Things like holding him on you lap or legs on his back and rubbing his tummy to get him in a relaxed state. If he fights this and you fight back it sends aggressive signals to him through your touch. Also getinghim to come to you for a treat shows you are the provider of food. Getting him to sit before he eats is one that should be done for the life of your dog. There is no "free lunch", you have to do something to please me to get it

At three months the most you can hope for with obedience training is to get him to learn to sit, especially in a beagle. They are very smart but highly distractible by sights, sounds and MOSTLY SMELLS. If you can get him to learn a sit it will be helpful in handling him but at this age may not be consistent yet (unless you are practicing ALOT) 12 weeks is still a baby. I usually recommend teaching sit and maybe stay the first 6 months and then obedience training after that and then repeat it again after 1 year when they will really retain it.

I might also suggest that instead of taking him by his collar and trying to pick him up that you get him in a state of mind where he wants to come to you and then it is more natural to pick him and put him in his crate. Maybe offering him a treat. Beagles are highly food driven which by the way I want to throw in as a caution, They will eat until they literally burst and therefore need to be on very well monitored food plans, no table scraps and whatever they get in treats needs to be counted in their daily calories and adjusted down thru their regular food.

As far as the crate, just to make sure..... a crate is NEVER a place to be banished to. It is a place of relaxation and safety. If he does some thing wrong never banish him to it, this will create him hating it and not wanting to go to it and will defeat the purpose of a crate.

So as I said, I am taking a stab in the dark because I dont know much else about him, hope some of this helps. Feel free to contact me again with follow up questions.

Hav4Paws