I have a 2 year old German Shepherd that has been fixed (at approx 6 months). He has not really shown signs of aggression other than when he was a pup, he growled a few times when he had treats but I took care of that, and had no problems. Now, 2 years later just over the past couple of days he is starting to show signs of aggression. He growled and showed his teeth to me, and just today growled at my wife. Last night when he growled at me I had give him a bone. The bone was across the room and he was sitting by my chair. I was petting him, and rubbing his snout, like always, and he growled and showed his teeth. A few minutes ago he when he growled at my wife she was doing the same thing as me the other night, petting him. She had been eating a piece of beef jerky, and it was laying next to her, don't know if that had something to do with it or not. Also, today when I give him some water he was acting a little sheepish and give a little growl.

This dog has always been sweet and have had no problems. I read under the Dominant Dog article Ed says dogs sometimes make a run for pack leadership in this age range. I'm wondering if this is a pack structure issue possibly?

I admit I have been lax on the training over the past bit. I followed the obedience dvd's from this website when he was a pup, so he had early age training. He does mind, but sometimes he doesn't.

I plan on immediately resuming his obedience training, but I want to know what everyone thinks, and how I can resolve this.

Sorry for the wall of text, but I figured the more information the better.

Just wanted to add I do have an e-collar that he wears at all times, but don't know how you correct for this, or what is the best way to deal with the situation?

Hi Chris

Something I see right from the start here. If you give him a bone or food, do not try and pet him if he doesn't want to be pet. Put him in his kennel or crate and then give him his bone, that will eliminate any unnecesary stress. You also would not want to take the food away once you give it to the dog.

I agree with that, too. I'm bumping this for more basic ob and pack work and to address the e-collar.

MHO for the e-collar for this is no.

What is going on is somewhat age appropriate for the dog 'coming into his own' so to speak...maturing (2 to 3 yrs old) & testing the boundries. Step up the OB training & put the dog on a line in & outisde for a few days (just like you would for a pup)or however long you think it takes for him to realize that you are the leader & in charge of all that happens in his life. (feeding, exercise, lack of freedon & choice, attention etc etc) Believe me, he will notice this very quickly. I would leave the line on even if you would normally do any retreive work in your OB. The line is a mental thing to them also. All you have to do is reach out & grab it to control him. You don't need to do any corrections of any kind. He just has to go everywhere you do..the kitchen, the bathroom, to do the laundry, empty the trash etc, etc. When you can't have him tagging along, crate him. No exceptions. Absolutely no freedom. I believe that ED has some information on this in his pack leadership article.

I have & use e-collars as a back up out on the field but I'm not sure that I would use an e-collar for this. E-collar stim can have reverse effect in times of aggression. canThere are other less harsh ways to deal with this behavior. I went thru this with my male when he hit about 2 1/2. I have very good OB on him, but he was feeling his oats & thought he'd give it a try. He has always been a very pushy dog & has always tried to test the boundries...but this was beyond the usual stuff. He has aggression in his lines & got 'cute' a couple of times & I put him in 'boot camp' for a 3 or 4 days. He had a very different attitude when he got the reminder that I make the choices, not him. I will also say that you don't want to put yourself into a position of a fight that you may not win with your dog. Besides destroying your relationship, you can get hurt. You can be very calm & matter of fact & avoid confrontation by putting him on a line & controling everything...it speaks volumns to them without having to get tuff.

As far as the bones...I can take food from my dogs, but I don't. If I give it to them, be it a bone, a meal, a bully stick etc, I leave them alone with it to enjoy it. If you want to continue feeding bones, I would just crate the dog until he is done. If the only issue is the dog's behavior with a bone, don't feed them to him. But my guess is that if he is growling at you for petting him when he has a bone & getting away with it, I would not be surprized if he tried it in other scenarios as well over time. Better to nip it in the bud. JMO

I only use the e-collar during obedience training, or if he won't mind. I have been holding his food while feeding him, and he doesn't have a problem with it, and we have restarted obedience 3 to 4, 5 min sessions per day.
The thing I didn't understand about the bone is it was across the room and he came over and sit by me. I guess it's just the stigma of it being there for him.

Thanks Anne, that helps. I work from home, and usually can take him with me if I do have to leave, so I believe I'll keep him tethered the next couple of weeks.

Chris, recreational bones are a MUCH higher valued food item to dogs then their regular meal RMBs or even more so to a kibble fed dog. They will often get far more possessive of them then a meal.

Also the fact that he was sitting by you & the bone across the room, means that the growling may or may not have anything to do with the bone. He may have just not wanted to be petted. If that is the case I would be even more concerned about getting things under control before it worsens.