We'll discuss why a dog might growl at children and how to help the dog feel safe around children. A growl, as well as other strong "get away from me" signals are called "distance increasing signals." These often come after the dog politely uses "calming signals" to communicated he/she is not comfortable with what is happening in the environment.
Dogs do not enjoy using distance increasing signals. These signals are stressful. They'd much rather use their polite, calming signals to communicate with each other and us!
When we teach ourselves and our children what calming signals look like and what they mean, we can help our dogs feel safe. Our dogs don't need to "yell" at us to explain they are uncomfortable.
And, when any dog growls at a child, a responsible adult needs to move the dog away from the child as well as move the child away from the dog. The dog needs to be handled gently, as they were trying their best to explain to the child how uncomfortable they were feeling.
A professional and positive dog trainer (look for their certification with an accredited positive reinforcement organization) can provide a program to help a dog feel safer with children. We also recommend learning more about calming signals from Turid Rugaas who has books and videos for learning.
We provide a 25 minute Dog Communications webinar on our Animal Connection Training KZread channel (formerly Mountain Hooves & Paws) to start you on your journey to understand your dog better.
Enjoy!
For more information about our training program, visit: animalconnectiontraining.com