Aggressive to ME not my husband

[Brody's Mom]

We recently (about 6 wks ago) took in a 3 1/2 yr old unneutered male that had been left behind when previous owners moved. A friend of mine fostered him (few months) until she found him a home (about 3 months) with a younger couple, that didn't work out and we took him. He lays down on the floor when you raise your voice leading me to believe he wasn't treated right. When we took him my friend said he "is a womans dog" Well, he took right to my husband, follows him everywhere, crawls on his lap, etc.
He has shown shown his teeth, growled and raised his hackles to ME twice. The first time was when we were playing with his ball (a week after we got him) and I tried to take it from him, the second was yesterday when my 13yr old son wanted me to look at the webbing in his feet. My son was holding his foot out looking at it and when I took his foot he started growling. He continues to growl for several minutes, even if I or he walks away. I don't back down when he does, SHOULD I? I don't know if it's cuz his previous owners were women and abusive to him, or if it's a dominance thing. He DID do it to my son at the same time he did to me with the ball. But hasn't since then towards him. He's home almost all day with me and we have had no other problems. I read in another post that being too nice might be causing it? When my husband won't pet him he comes to me and pushes me with his nose and I always pet him, should I? I want to nip this in the bud now, if possible!
Thanks, Rachelle
P.S. we have a Yorkie & Chihuahua that he gets along fine with

[Anja1Blue]

Thank you for giving this fellow a home! He certainly has been bounced around quite a bit in a short time...be advised that it can take several months for a dog to feel secure, and to realize that he isn't going to be relocated once again.

It sounds to me as though he sees you as the weakest member of the family - often it has nothing to do with the sex of the human, just who seems to be "in charge" - or not, as the case may be. Perhaps women in the past were the more dominant - however your husband now seems to be filling the bill (and possibly your son, if there have been no further incidents.)

We have been rescuing and rehoming dogs for years. One of the first things we have always done is to sign up for group OB classes, and have gone together, so we are on the same page when it comes to training. This builds a bond with the newcomer, and trains you to provide leadership skills. In the meantime stop petting him just because he is nudging you. Your husband has the right idea when he ignores that behavior, a high ranking member of a pack does not comply with the demands of a subordinate.....doesn't mean you shouldn't show him affection, but it should be on your terms not his.

Try some NILIF with this fellow (lots of threads on this forum) and if you can, enroll in a class ASAP - growling can escalate to a bite if he feels empowered enough.
___________________________________________
Susan

Anja SchH3 GSD
Conor GSD
Blue BH WH T1 GSD - waiting at the Bridge

[Brody's Mom]

Thank you!

[Castlemaid]

This thread is locked as it is a duplicate.

Please go here ---> Aggressive to ME not my husband