Shihtsu

Hope so Flexible friend...lot of hard work first I think...and then the rewards ☺

Well done for giving the little guy a chance, I'm sure he'll reward you a thousand times over.

Thank you both...he will be worth the work...and I will work with him...

Hope everything goes well. You'll be so rewarded for your perseverance.

A very sensible strategy farview.

Thank you all of you for your comments& advice..I have written down lots of them and going to try..I didn't like Gizmo for the first couple of weeks,think he didn't like me also..but now when I come home he is so happy, I have grown really fond of him,do want to keep him,he can't go back to his owner as someone suggested..he died,he lived in Pontefract Yorkshire..the ex wife lives a few miles from me but she can't have a dog..she had stayed friends with her ex and she went up to sort the funeral out..(long story short) I was asked to have him and I agreed to give it a go as was never keen on little dogs
Anyway..his good points:- he walks well on the lead,slows down when the children are holding him,he's clean in the house,he's loving,.. initially he was definitely grieving...he was moping,carrying his lead round and sniffing it/lying on it,so I threw it bought a new one,think he could smell his owner on it..I am going to put effort into training him,he is a quick learner,have put a dog bed in the spare room for a quiet place for him away from the children when I feel he needs to be..in 12wks. (and the children are here an awful lot) this has been the only incident..and yes.twice with me..but I think he's been through a lot...and am so going to give him the best chance possible...again...thank you all so much for taking the time to reply and offer advice

If he ever growls at a child again, I suggest you growl very fiercely at him. I know from experience that growling or hissing at cats works because that is what their mother did, and I imagine growling at a dog and baring your teeth will remind him of how he was brought up.

Like Iamb I would only let the children near the dog when you are there to supervise and forbid the children to go anywhere near the dog's bed, so he has a safe place.

Likewise teach them never to go near a dog that has a bone or is eating its dinner.

He's resource guarding, he was on the bed and wanted to stay there, was told to get off and voiced his objections.
He found a ball, high value resource to most dogs, balls mean fun, he didn't want to give it up and when the GC tried to take it he voiced his objections.
Neither of those things involved fear or aggression he just wanted to stay on the bed and play with the ball both things are easy to deal with, just be consistent. If he's not allowed on the bed, never allow him on it and give him a very comfy alternative. Give him his own ball and only allow him to play with that ball. One of my dogs has the Persil wash ball which is soft latex, can be played with indoors without risk of breakages and is easy to identify as his ball.

Elegran I said offer a treat not give a treat. Tbh I would show the treat to the dog and then once I had his attention I would toss the treat to the dog. My hands and certainly those of any grand children wouldn't be going anywhere near him until I was confident he'd learnt a few commands.

I think the first question you have to ask yourself is do you want to keep the dog? If the answer is no, then explain to the previous owner it hasn't worked out. If she doesn't want him back, take him to Dogs Trust and don't read on.

If you want to keep him, then I would advise a behaviourist. Not a trainer. If you ring your vet they should have the number of a behaviourist.

Without seeing him it's difficult to 'diagnose' the problem. But it may well be fear aggression. So in the meantime, keep children away from him and allow him to settle in. People tend to humanise dogs. For example, 'He is not allowed on the bed and I tell him so'. If you think about it from the dog's point of view, where he has probably been allowed to do this for 6 years, he's totally confused. If you stand facing him, possibly hands on hips and sternly reprimanding him, then to a dog, you are 'blocking' him and looking like a threat for his 'safe' place. He doesn't know, how can he, and he doesn't trust you yet and in his mind you are being confrontational. Carry some treats about your person and if he jumps up there, turn your back, move slightly to the side, don't block his route, point to the floor, say 'off' in a no nonsense voice. If he jumps off immediately toss him a treat. If he doesn't, toss a treat across the room and say 'good boy' when he gets down. It may take some patience. Don't grab him and don't 'block' him. Dogs follow gestures far more than voice commands because it's what they use amongst themselves. It's a miracle they can figure out what us humans want them to do if you think about our gestures and windmill arms when we're trying to get them to do something. Again, if he has picked something up that he considers high value, then trying to get it off him isn't wise. It's his, it was on the floor, why should he give it to a total stranger. He has probably not been trained as a puppy to surrender his 'stuff' as the consequences are good. A tasty reward. This will take some training and can't be explained well without demonstrating what to do. But he must learn to give it up and there will be a good reason to do so. A nicer toy or treat. Dogs learn by repetition and learned behaviour, not because they 'just should know'. If you want to keep the little chap, keep your grandchild safe. From his point of view right now, he's been plucked out of his home, lost his owner, taken to a strange place full of strange people who tell him off and want to take things away from him.

As someone said previously, he didn't make contact even though he could have. He was just giving out a warning. He is probably not used to children either. You must not, under any circumstances, give him an opportunity to bite. Good luck with him.

The dog didn't actually bite. If it had wanted to it would have connected. It was a fear or warning response. Dogs are faster than us. It was an air snap. We got 2 rescued dogs in Spain. Bobby (age 11) only had one eye, he'd been shot and has teeth missing and other damage.

He was 3 months old when we got him. He has always disputed me being a boss person but I am . He accepts the male boss more easily. He's a pointer/beagle cross and used to take off on a scent but that improved after neutering at 2 yrs old. Being stubborn and a bit of a git never improved, but we love him anyway. He is very friendly though and easy-going and would never snap.

But he doesn't give the ball back easily. He leaves it on the ground until I am nearly there and then runs off with it. But would lay it at grandson's feet and sometimes at the feet of strangers!

3 lots of barking in 12 weeks is not so bad for a dog who has lost his main person. Bobby doesn't bark at people but as he only has one eye and few teeth now he barks aggressively at other dogs he doesn't know. He goes over to say he is tough. He's ok with ones he knows and knows most in the park. I explain to new owners and scold him.

Your response after the first post sounded like a dog person with some experience. I am sure he will settle down.

In order to get the treat, it will have to let go of the ball! Before long, the growl won't be there, the treat is expected so the ball dropped before you even show the treat. It is not rewarding the growl. If the dog considers a ball to be a high value object, there is absolutely no difference. The only lesson to be learned...by the human, is what the dog will consider worth giving up the bird in hand!

Incidentally I should have said my dog was 6 years old when I got her. She had been kept as a breeding dog. There are no bad dogs just bad owners most of the time..

Maybe get in touch with a dog behaviourist. What had been learned can be unlearned. I have a rescued Westie who bit me twice when I tried to put a collar and lead on her. She was frightened in an other new environment Lots of patience love and care has changed her so much. She is now a Therapy dog who goes into schools and nursing homes as therapy for pupils and staff. Please do not give up on your dog. It has not had a good start in life and deserves better.

Sounds like the wife had good reason to want to get rid of him. There are friendly enthusiastic dogs that get put down for want of a home. Ask the previous owner to take it back, then find a friendly one and train it from the beginning. I doubt if the wife will take it back though.
I agree with lesley4357. This is a 6 year old dog, not a youngster.
If you do keep it, you have to keep it away from children and be careful when taking it out.

I don't think I would give him a treat (as Flexiblefriend suggested) unless he gave up the ball. If he gets a treat just after he has growled at someone about the ball, he will associate the treat with the growling and do it again. He hasn't learnt that it is good to let go.

Showing clearly that you are not going to play that game if he acts like that would be better. You having an extra ball or more to play with, and ignoring the one he is being possessive about would mean he wanted the other one(s) If he enjoys the game he will want to play again, and he could get a treat if he gives up "his" one, thus learning that it is worth surrendering it.

It didn't take long for the discussion to become polarised into those who say never use aversive techniques because it makes things worse, and those who advocate a pack leader type approach.
For what's it worth, the best trainers I work with use largely positive techniques but aren't afraid to make use of (non violent) aversive techniques where necessary.

Don't leave the dog unsupervised around children. Ideally, create a safe space for the dog, it could be a crate or a small room with a Childs gate across it to maintain separation between the dog and children or unknown visitors. Has the dog ever lived with children? You need to make sure your grandchild never tries to remove an item from this dog. The dog found the ball, it assumed huge importance to the dog. The child tried to remove it - help your grandchild understand, its never a good idea to play tug games, or to try to remove anything from a dogs mouth. Meanwhile, it sounds to me as though you need some professional help with this dog. I've pm'd you.

Do you really feel you will be able to trust this dog near you CD. Is it worth the risk?

Make an appointment with a Dog Behaviourist & another with a good dog trainer.
The last thing you want it so have to pts because he has actually attacked your GC or worse

We have our 3rd rescue, a tibetan terrier which is the largest cousin of the Shitsu and the breed standards suggest very similar temperament. Ours tries to be dominant but has now accepted our dominance over him. We did all that Nana and Flexible suggested and one more thing - don't let him go to the door when visitors arrive. We have a lead anchored back from the door and he accepts that. We got a couple of dog behaviouralists to advise, one who used the reward system and one who didn't. Neither of them had had any experience with tibetan terriers.
I would suggest getting in contact with the shitsu rescue society in your area and ask for advice. They will be best placed to help. Do hope you can keep him and enjoy him!

Growling is not aggressive, it is a signal to warn, just like you and I might raise our voices to let people know we are unhappy and to back off. You are all so much bigger than him and he has to tell you he is unhappy about something, somehow.
Please employ the help of a behaviourist and work with this poor little chap who is probably still struggling with the big upheaval after the loss of his owner. Nobody would expect a small child to understand all the changes in their life, including a different way of communication from his past master, after just 3 three months.
Find a high value treat which he will happily give up a ball for so he learns that is what is expected of him and he will get a reward. Same for getting him off the sofa. It is about changing their thought process...think Pavlov!
I think this article, whilst obviously biased towards the Victoria Stillwell schools explains why we use positive methods rather than negative reinforcement. positively.com/dog-training/find-a-trainer/how-to-choose-a-good-dog-trainer/

You need to speak to a dog trainer asap,make sure it is a reliable one,there are sites on Facebook for owners of reactive dogs (I have One)that are very good snd hrlpful

Thank you Tillybelle - though perhaps I ought to confess I used to work for Guide Dogs so lots of insider knowledge.

rizlett Excellent! Well said! Especially about the dominant dog not being the fierce one but the female in the safe position.
It is taking people too long to learn this, sadly.
With this dog, we do not know what happened to him before. He has a lot to un-learn.
I completely endorse your advice. Also getting a positive reinforcement behavioural trainer as soon as you can is very wise.
Thanks for your comments.

Send him back. He should not be around children. I have been a dog owner for over 60 years and would never harbour an aggressive dog that age.