Occasional growling

[ginny]

Hello and thanks in advance. We’ve had our 3 year old girl for 4 months. It has taken a while for her to settle and I we’ve made huge strides. We had some growling at the start. She’s very loving and affectionate but pulls terribly on the lead but we’re working on that. She sleeps in our bedroom on her own bed but has started to whine in the night to get up and sleep with us. We make her go back to her bed and she usually settled eventually. In the morning we have a routine of her being invited into the bed for a snuggle which she loves. She would stay on the bed all day if we let her. We rub her tummy and chest regularly and she shows submissiveness when we do this but this morning I went to rub her chest when she was with us on the bed and she growled at me. I can’t imagine why she would do this! She wasn’t asleep at the time. Should I be concerned?

[rachelb003]

It sounds as if she is trying to dominate you a bit and claim your bed as hers. I think by encouraging her onto your bed in the morning it is giving mixed messages as she is then seeing this invitation and thinking it has been extended to whenever she wants. How were you bent over her when stroking her? One of mine doesn't like it if I put an arm across her body but loves to be stroked. She'll growl at us. We just tell her firmly no. If she was in the bed/on the sofa and doing it we make her get off it.

Hope this helps

[ginny]

Hi thanks for your help. I was just scratching her chest as I’ve done many times before when she growled when she was on the bed. so I really don’t understand! During last night she kept whining to come up onto the bed but we ignored her and eventually she stopped and slept through. We don’t allow her on the bed unless she’s invited but it’s very tempting to let her when we wake because she loves it so much. But maybe the bed should be completely off limits as you say. Thanks again.

[ReggieK]

Sorry for late contribution. I had same with my girl when i let her onto the sofa or on my bed. When she did it I started kicking her off (not viciously) and told her no, after about a month she stopped the growling. But I do make sure she is awake before I touch her if she is sleeping on either. Not heard a growl from her in years now. You just need to set the expectation level early so they know the boundaries.