Freaked out owner

[erugan]

Hi all
Today I was leaning off my bed, talking on the phone, and petting George. He was awake but out of nowhere, he got up, barked, growled, and bared his teeth. I am throughly freaked out. He was returned from another home for doing the same thing to a small child. Do I have an aggressive dog? Will he bite me? Do any of you have any experiences like this? He has been really sweet for the last week that I have had him.

[sylar]

are you sure he was definitley awake? leia sleeps sometimes with her eyes pretty wide and the only time she's ever barked is when she was woken abruplty.

[Jen Wren]

It sounds like he was sleeping to me. Goldie sleeps with her eyes open sometimes as well and can get a grump on when she's woken. We've all learnt to leave her alone when she's having 'me' time ;D

[erugan]

I was pretty sure he was awake. I had been petting him for maybe like 35 seconds before he went berserk. He was really kinda scary He has quite big teeth. I am kinda worried about petting him now when he lying down. I probably need to get over it.

[hippyhounds]

2 of mine dont like being woken and react in this way.they also dont like being disturbed when they are asleep or chilling out either,one will actually snap at you and one just growls and bares his teeth but he even does this when you want him to go for a wee at night.its something we have learned to live with but can be quite nerve racking at first.

[andywillow]

I think I'd just give him his own space when he is laying down. I learned this with my first greyhound. My old mongrel used to love nothing more than being stroked and hugged when sleeping. I tried it with my first grey and nearly had a heart attack when he jumped up and barked in my face They are used to being alone in their kennels and always have had their own space with no one bothering them. Its a learning curve for us all when we are new to greyhound ownership

Sue

[cadbury]

Very sound adcive from sue. As greys are used to having there own space and not being touched when asleep, it can come as a real shock to them and there natural reaction is to defend themselves, this can be said of any dog. My Penny suffered with night terrors for a long time, she would be asleep and jump up in the night and bark ect without being touched. The home is a freaky enviroment when all you've know is kennels .If in dout either say his/her name and weight for some sort of sighn there awake or let them come to you for fuss. The bark is a warning, a loud one which has the desired effect. If you need any more help come back here and ask away, we've have all been first time owners, good on you for asking for advice.

[erugan]

thanks everyone for your good and kind advice. I really appreciate it. This is really a learning process, both of us are getting to know each other and our personalities. I will just have to watch out for what George likes and dislikes.

[andywillow]

Just to add, my 12 1/2 year old still gobs off at me if I dare to touch him when he is asleep

Sue

[lurcherlot]

Sound advice! Let sleeping dogs lie ..... they need their own space.

[Jane and Sara]

I was just going to say 'let sleeping dogs lie' too! Both my boys can sound off - Bob is horrible if any of the others try to get into bed with him and as I have only had Sam three weeks I give him his space and let him come to me because he is nearly ten and I have no idea about his background - sometimes you don't realise that things you do can seem scary to dogs - eg. touching them suddenly when they can't see you - perhaps he was scared because you were in a funny position. If it happens again you might want to get the vet to check he isn't hurting anywhere. Nelly often shows her teeth and gets hold of my hand - but it has never hurt.

[elmuervo]

I think that many of us have had that experience, and it's scary as hell the first time it happens. Bless you, you must have been freaked-out beyond belief.


Barney does exactly the same thing. This first time it happened was that day he arrived . . .

I was sitting on the floor leaning against the front of the settee that he was lying on. There was suddenly, and totally out of nowhere, a loud bark and then prolonged snarling behind my head. I nearly soiled myself - firstly it was the shock, but it was also because I couldn't see what was happening (Barney was behind me, obviously). My Mum was also in the room and she just whispered "Move away slowly, move away slowly . . . ", which I did. It was terrifying, and at first it made me scared of him.

Straight after that episode we decided that risk limitation was the key. We stopped allowing him on the big settee that we always sit on (the one I had been leaning against), and he has the little one that we never use all to himself. We make sure that we sit on there with him sometimes, too, so that he doesn't think that he completely owns that space. We also don't ever allow him on our bed, just in case. It's just not worth the risk to us all.

He's been here eight months now, and it still happens in small ways from time to time. He's always mortified and submits as soon as he realises what he's done. If he starts to snooze when we're sitting with him we always say his name gently to bring him back awake, and then we say goodbye and move away. It's sad that we can't cuddle him to sleep, but this way we're all safe and happy and that's all that counts.

If you visit any American greyhound rescue websites they all seem to be clued-up and very honest about so-called 'sleep aggression' in greyhounds, but it seems far less publicised here. It's such as shame that new owners often have to have a terrifying experience and the worry that their new dog is psychotic before they are even aware that it's actually fairly common (if not exactly 'normal').

I suppose they're just like second-hand humans - they bring their emotional baggage with them, too! ;D ;D ;D

Please don't be scared of lovely George. Just respect his need to have his own sleepy-space and all will be fine.

Lots of luck!

Jo
x

[smurf]

Finn has similar problems. I f I'm cuddling him and he falls asleep I gently wake him up and get him off the settee or leave him alone. He also suffers from "night terrors" which the 1st few times it happened (he sleeps on his own bed at the side of mine) was absolutly terrifying, I'm used too them now he has at least 1 a month now it was more frequent..
It's always best just too leave dogs and let them sleep. Just think how narky we get when woken up!! ;D

[bluegreyhound]

Our two don't suffer from classic sleep aggression - it's fine to touch them when they are asleep. Eva does have what we call "sleepy growls" - she'll suddenly start up growling and bearing her teeth, and sometimes giving a short bark. This doesn't have to be in reponse to an external stimulus, but sometimes it seems to be a sound that triggers her off, but never a touch.

Fanta doesn't respond to her "sleepy growls" with fear or aggression - he usually just ignores her. She never actually attempts to bite anything when she's doing a sleepy growl.

She seems to do them when she's tired, and in a deeper sleep - after a long walk, or in the car after a long day's travelling - which can be slightly unnerving as you're driving along. She does look like she's awake when she starts one - eyes are normally wide open, and quite often teeth are showing, but she is not awake, and we have to wake her up by calling her or poking her, or sometimes she does wake herself up and sits there looking slightly embarrassed.

My guess would be that maybe George was doing one of those, if it wasn't simply normal sleep aggression. It would be quite scary, especially for a small child. My boyfriend had friends round the other night, and Eva was doing sleepy growls and one (adult male) friend found it rather offputting.

Eva does sleepy growls very regularly but is definitely not aggressive and wouldn't bite during a sleepy growl. I'd be quite happy to have her sleep next to me, were it not for the fact that she does tend to wake you up with each sleepy growl, and she also has an annoying habit of leaking when she's asleep!

[erugan]

I am glad to hear that this is a common thing and I really have nothing to be worried about. The last day, I have made a real effort to call George's name before I pet him if he is lying down. He has not gotten onto the settee or bed yet so I don't have to worry about him thinking he owns those spaces. I hope this behavior will at least lessen off and he gets more and more used to me and the flat.