Dear Zoë,

I have an 11 year old female German shepherd and a 10 month old baby at home. My dog has always been friendly and non-aggressive towards my baby girl. My baby is crawling and always after the dog-using her as a "ladder" to stand up and grabbing her tail and face. Usually my dog has always walked away or I have removed my daughter. Today was the first time ever that she growled at her and showed her teeth when my daughter tried to grab her (my daughter was in my dog's sleeping area).I slapped the dog on her back and sent her to her room but I got really concerned. Does that mean she might bite her in the future? Can I retrain my dog to be nice to my daughter? I love my dog dearly but my baby comes first. What do I do?

Concerned,

Susan

Dear Susan,

Even the most tolerant dogs need a safe place to be alone. I suggest that your entire family should designate a place as your dog’s alone area (a bed or crate) and agree that it is a house rule not to bother or approach her when she is there.

A growl is a strong warning, especially if teeth are shown. Most important thing is to NEVER USE PUNISHMENT, it only makes things more tense and dangerous in the future. To put it simply, if you punish your dog for growling you are actually doing three things: 1) Associating your baby with pain for your dog which will make your dog less comfortable around the baby, 2) Jeopardizing your dog's trust in you and your hands, and 3) Punishing the very warning that can be the difference between preventing a bite about to happen or having it happen so fast that you don't see it coming.

The dog and the baby both need to be very closely supervised at all times. I would recommend having your dog checked by a trusted veterinarian to ensure that there is no underlying medical cause for her reaction. If that is ruled out, given the gravity of the issue, I strongly recommend that you work with a qualified Canine Behaviour Counsellor and Certified Dog Trainer.

Best of luck,