Havanese Growling And Biting
No one likes to think their Havanese would be capable of biting. One of the most common questions a dog owners get when someone wants to pet our dog is, “Does your dog bite?” If your Havanese enjoys meeting people, you’ll more than likely tell them that no, your dog won’t bite.
But most dog owners know that, in reality, all dogs can bite under the right circumstances.
What the person is really asking is if your Havanese will growl or bite as a reaction to them reaching down to say hello. If your Havanese likes people, your answer is probably no. That said, it’s important to normalize conversations about your dog’s boundaries and to advocate for your Havanese by being honest about their temperament. Each dog will have a different threshold for what pushes them to bite as a last resort. Some dogs will need more support to prevent biting compared to others. Knowing the reasons why your dogs are growling or biting will help prevent your Havanese from biting from happening.
Why Your Havanese Is Growling And Biting
With very rare exceptions, a dog that’s biting or growling won’t do it for no reason, even if it sometimes seems that way. From smaller warning bites that don’t break the skin to more serious bites that require medical care, there are lots of reasons why dogs may feel that biting is the most reasonable response. Unfortunately, lots of people will often miss the warning signs that a bite may happen. Most dogs will try to communicate discomfort prior to biting by growling. But what actually leads to dog bites? There are a variety of reasons that could cause a dog to use their teeth as a last resort:
Fear
Most aggressive behavior from dogs comes from some level rooted in fear. A Havanese may be fearful of something or someone that’s getting too close to them, or in their personal space. When whatever a dog is afraid of gets too close, dogs can become overwhelmed or “over threshold” and may respond by growling or biting. A dog that bites out of fear, is probably about trying to create distance from whatever or whoever they’re stressed about.
Startled
A dog can bite if they’re startled, especially if they’ve been sleeping. A dog that was startled awake could easily get disoriented and confused about where they are and what’s going on and bite. Often these bites will take people and even the dog by surprise. This can be particularly common with dogs that are older who may have decreased sight or hearing so they’d be particularly confused if someone was to startle them. Always be thoughtful before thinking about touching a sleeping dog and teaching children not to go into a dog’s bed or wake up a dog that’s asleep.
Protecting/Guarding
If your Havanese has something that they value, whether it be a toy, food, or chews that they don’t want to share, they may growl or bite out of fear that the valuable thing will be taken away from them. Biting to protect valuable items can happen as a form of resource guarding. Some dogs may have stronger guarding tendencies compared to others and can resort to biting if they perceive their home is being intruded upon, or if they believe someone in their family is in danger (regardless if the danger is real.)
Frustration
Dogs can get overwhelmed, which is another situation that can lead to the behavior of growling or biting. If a dog feels that they’re trapped in a situation that’s uncomfortable or unpleasant then they could very well bite out of frustration. A dog can also feel frustrated if they’re unable to get at something they really want as they’re being held back by the owner or leash. Sometimes called redirecting, or a redirected bite. In some instances, a dog could turn and bite at what or whoever is holding them back.
Pain
Being sick or injured can be very stressful, scary, and overwhelming for a dog. Even the most tolerant of dogs can bite when they’re injured or in pain. If your Havanese is recovering from an injury, be aware that they may bite when handled, so be particularly careful if you need to lift or move your injured Havanese. If your Havanese behavior changes suddenly, it’s a good idea to schedule an appointment with your local vet and with a local positive reinforcement trainer.
Play
One common form of biting that newer dog owners won’t necessarily think about is mouthing, which happens in concurrence with playing. Light biting or mouthing with some growling is a common behavior that dogs do during play. While generally not very enjoyable for some dog owners, it’s a natural part of how our dogs play with each other, and of course, how they engage with their toys. Watching dog’s mouth, each other while playing can be alarming. If you are concerned about how mouthy your dog is in play with you or other dogs, then consider taking them to see a trainer could be helpful to help gain some understanding about if your dog’s play style is appropriate or not.
Setting Up For Success
A good way to help prevent a dog from biting is to remember that dogs are individuals. Not every dog is going to be comfortable in the same situations. As a dog owner, it’s important to be aware of how well your dog deals with different situations. By helping your dog be successful by proactively removing your dog from the stressful or overstimulating situation before your dog feels the need to escalate the situation and bite.
For example, if your Havanese is nervous when meeting a new person or dog, avoid putting your Havanese into these situations where they may feel forced or expected to interact with other dogs or people. Not every dog is going to be super social, but by working with a trainer, you can learn more about what situations are making your Havanese uncomfortable. Through training, you can gain skills that will help you to work with your dog’s comfort level. This will help your Havanese to work towards developing neutral responses to the presence of other people or dogs.
Avoid Flooding/Overwhelming Your Havanese
The goal is to avoid “flooding” your Havanese with stressful situations. Flooding refers to exposing a dog to prolonged or large amounts of things that will scare or overwhelm them. It’s an approach that is generally anxiety-producing for dogs, and won’t do anything to shift your dog’s emotional response to the situation that they find overwhelming. In these situations, it is more likely that your Havanese will respond to being overwhelmed by biting.
Your dog’s comfort or tolerance for stressful or stimulating situations may shift depending on how stressed your dog is, how tired they are, their age, or how unfamiliar a situation might be. For example, if you have a Havanese who hasn’t had anyone come into the home for a while and suddenly you have a big gathering, remember that people suddenly coming into the home could be very overwhelming for your dog.
Why You Shouldn’t Punish Your Havanese
If your dog growls, snaps, or even bites you, your natural response may be to punish the dog’s behavior. Unfortunately, not only is this confusing for a dog, but it will probably make the situation worse in the future. A growl or an air snap without making contact is a dog’s way of warning that they’re extremely overwhelmed or uncomfortable by the situation.
If your dog was ever punished for growling as an expression of displeasure or discomfort, it’s very possible that you will actually increase the likelihood of your Havanese skipping the warning growl and going straight to biting next time. This is because your dog has learned that they shouldn’t warn the person, and instead go directly to a bite response when they’re feeling uncomfortable.
Dealing With Growling
Growling is an obvious way for a dog to communicate that they’re uncomfortable. A dog may growl when someone is in their space. They feel threatened or are suffering from an injury. It’s not usually meant to be aggressive but, rather a warning that your dog feels uncomfortable.
Rather than punishing your dog for growling. Instead, respect their space or figure out a different way to get around the situation. For example, if your Havanese is growling over food, give them their space while they’re eating. If they are growling over a dog bone and you need to put the bone away, rather than pulling it away from them, trade for a smaller treat so you can take the bone away safely.
How To Calm A Stressed Dog
Dog owners should also reflect on their own behavior to see if it could be contributing to the dog’s stress. Some dog owners can make their dogs stressed by not giving clear commands, staring directly at them, or punishing them without a clear explanation.
The best way to calm your dog is to identify what has stressed them, then eliminate the trigger. Alternatively, you may want to get the help of a professional trainer or your veterinarian to reduce their response to the trigger.
Sometimes the solution can be as easy as blocking off an area where your Havanese can eat in peace without no one bothering them. Or teaching any children within the house how to respect the dog appropriately. If you know your dog gets stressed out with specific events, such as a car ride or fireworks on the Fourth of July, then there are some specific ways to ease that anxiety.
The bottom line: Try paying attention to your dog’s body language and you should be able to read their stress signals and reduce their anxiety within no time.
Resource Guarding
Resource guarding is a dog’s tendency to protect an object, location and, in some cases people, that have a high value to the dog. In the canine world, this is a natural, deep-seated reaction to a threat. A dog who guards its most precious things and safest spaces the best is far more likely to be a dog that is successful at surviving and reproducing.
But in a domestic environment where we provide our dogs with everything they need, whether it’s toys, tasty treats or comfortable places to bed down, resource guarding is not just a useless behavior but can be dangerous.
Unfortunately, though, your dog’s resource guarding isn’t logic-based, it’s a genetic drive deep inside a dog’s DNA. A dog that guards isn’t “alpha,” or “dominant”, they’re just acting in ways that they’re genetically programmed to act.
The good news is that resource guarding doesn’t have to be a lifetime sentence that will have you and your family tiptoeing around your Havanese for years to come. There are ways of teaching a dog that resource guards how to share. Here are a few suggestions to help them get there.
Teaching Your Havanese To Share
To overcome resource guarding, the most common method to use is desensitization and counterconditioning. These methods are used to gradually decrease a dog’s desire to guard over time by systematically exposing them to trigger (beginning with small steps and non-threatening) while simultaneously changing the dog’s emotional response to the perceived threat.
Desensitization and counterconditioning can be tricky and requires patience. If you need help, then getting a certified positive-reinforcement trainer or veterinary behaviorist could help to guide you through the process. Anyone with a dog who has a history of biting when guarding should get in contact with an expert before beginning training.
