Hi everyone I'm new to this site and just got my first siberian this past september, he's a great dog, he listens well and does great on leash and off leash but i have some problems with him inside the house. I can walk over him take anything away from him its no problem he's completely aware of whose in control but when a stranger walks up to him and pets him while he's laying down hell occasionally snap at them and if someone tries walking over him while he's laying down hell growl and snap at there feet, but he's completely fine outside the house has never showed aggression towards one person and hell walk up to strangers while there in the house and be completely fine. Ive taken him to obedience school and he's done great there he's super friendly with other dogs and shows no signs of food aggression i can take his bowl away while he's eating it, it just seems to be this one issue and he's only 7 months old so I'm sure i can still change this behavior in him but nothing I've tried works. Does anyone have any suggestions as to what to do ? or have had any similar experiences ?

Your dog may not trust everybody for one reason or another. And also the situations you describe are situations where your dog's personal space is invaded.

Some people don't like to be invaded like this. Same goes for dogs. I'd tell people to not walk over or try to pet him until he actually gives the ok. They usually give a long stare or some sign as a warning before growling or snapping. If you can learn to see this you can apply solutions to the problem before it happens.

It could be as easy as asking people to call the dog to them instead. If he wants anything to do with the person he will go to them. If he doesn't he will stay where he is and you should respect that.

If you work with your dog you can probably work this out. Give your dog a treat everytime you come to pet him. Introduce the scent of the treat then pet. Strangers can now take the same treat and slowly work towards him with the scent presented forward. He should learn to asociate people coming close to him to treats and positive things.

Hope this helps.

thank you for you help that makes a lot of sense, the one problem i have is that he thinks the whole house is his bed and picks the most inconvenient spots to lay down, I've tried to get him a bed and attach a command to the bed so he goes and lays down but i must have done it wrong or not been consistent enough with the training

He seems to lay in the spots were its impossible for a person to not invade his space

Yeah they tend to do this. lol. Try to put the bed in a conveniant spot for him.

And just don't give in. Put him back on his bed everytime. And treats everytime he goes there on his own. He'll catch on. 7 months is still Young. Took a year to train my husky and he was 1 when I started.

I would be slightly concerned that it may escalate. Does he understand No? If yes, I would say No when he tries to snap at people. Also, my dogs all know the move command. You nudge them some and when they get up, you say Move. Overtime, you will be able to use the move command to get them to move. As my mom is in a walker, this is kind of a command all my dogs need to understand.

Ya he understands no and its weird because he's completely fine with me he won't growl at me under any circumstances and does fine with people as long as he's not laying down, i do correct him and say no every time he does it but it doesn't seem to work, it seems as though he either feels threatened or is protecting his laying spot. I'm going to make sure i move his spot to somewhere there is no foot traffic and only let people pet him if he approaches them because he doesn't get snappy when he approaches people, hopefully that will work and he will become more comfortable around strangers in the house

Your dog is trying to establish his position in the house when others are over. It is a pretty easy solution to the problem, but it will take time.

Firstly, make sure that your dogs regular resting spot is not in a main walking area.
When people come over, he should be moved out of the way so they don't have to worry about walking around him.

Secondly, When you're home with him and he is in your path shuffle your feet towards him so he knows that he has to move out of your way and that you will not walk around him.

Thirdly, when people come over, tell them to ignore the dog. When he is ready then he will come to them. If does come to them, then make sure you have some treats close by, the moment your dog walks up to a guest in your house have the guest give him a treat. This will teach him that it is a positive thing to walk up to guests in the house and that they are not a threat to him.

Lastly, you mentioned that it mainly happens while he is laying in his spot. Try moving his spot every now and then, that way he will get used to being in different area and this will hopefully help him calm down when guests are around.