My Boston Terrier Growls when he is picked up

by Ashley
(Hendersonville )

Hello, I just got a Boston Terrier puppy (13 weeks) and when he is asleep and you need to move him, my fiance and I will first wake him up and try to move him. When we actually move him he does this growl. He has never bitten but it's almost as if he is back talking me and is telling me not to move him. What is the best way to stop this??

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My Boston Terrier Growls when he is picked up

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Dec 01, 2010
 my big dog did this too
by: Anonymous

I had a very very headstrong foxhound who did this when she was young, we actually took a tip from the Dog Whisperer Cesar Milan and whenever she did it we would say in a stern voice 'no, I am the big dog' and then moved her anyways. This helped in more than one way, she stopped with the growling when moved and anytime she would challenge us with other trying to see who was the boss behaviors we did the same thing and it seemed to work. She knew who the boss was and we didn't have to resort to using harsh methods like prong collars.
Nov 13, 2010
 it's not ok
by: Anonymous

My 10 week old female is doing the same. It's not oK in our house . Growling is a threat that they will bite at some time. Never have I been so frustrated. We are going to start training her w/ a trainer at 16 weeks , with a small prong collar.
Mar 18, 2010
 We must be the odd ones out
by: Candy

Our BT would hang out on my lap. When my husband picked him up he would growl. We found it hilarious. It was quite disappointing when he didn't do it! He was so well socialized and never aggressive so we just thought of it as a protest. He didn't turn his head (or even lift it really ) just complained with this adorable growl.
Dec 12, 2009
 "let sleeping dogs lie"
by: Anonymous

Our Boston Terrier - Rita - would growl when she was moved while she was sleeping. She only did this when she was a puppy. She will be two years old in February 2010, and she doesn't do this anymore. She has never been aggressive towards any human, and usually isn't towards most animals. Although, there have been a few dogs that seem to rub her the wrong way. She has brought so much joy and life to our home. She has so much personality and her "zest" for life has renewed my own "zest". We use positive training methods, and have never yelled or spanked her. She truly wants to please us, she can be very strong willed from time to time, but not very often. She has been easy to potty train, has never chewed up anything of ours, and gets smarter every day!! Raise your puppy with love, remember your goal is to train not to punish, and you will be rewarded with the best friend you could ever have.
Sep 09, 2009
 Nothing to worry about
by: Ziva's Mom

My Ziva does the same thing,she has been in our home since May of 2008, and she hasn't bitten anyone who has moved her, it's her way of saying please don't bother me, have you ever woke up a sleeping baby? ha.ha and telling them no in a loud voice doesn't make them stop, it just scares them.
Aug 26, 2009
 Don't Touch Me!
by: Mary

Hello!
Our BT would growl at us when we tried to move him too. That was NOT going to happen in MY house! I just told him NO really loud and in a forceful tone and so did my husband. We would not put up with that for a moment. He stopped after a couple of weeks. Never Never let him do it without telling him NO! Every soooooo often, by accident, he will make a very very soft little growl when we try to move him, but he gets hollered at if he does!

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